Catalina Mole 05/19-20/2024

[Mahigeer]

CATALINA MOLE 05/19-20/2024

Sunday May 19, 2024

Although I had been to the Cabrillo Mole in the city of Avalon at the island of Catalina,
in the state of California, and the country of USA about two weeks before,
I decided to once more surprise fish-ninja and join him on a weekend outing before his last ticket expires.

I was the first passenger in the general seating line.
Fish-ninja arrived a bit later and was surprised to see me. We made the 6:00 AM departing boat.

We were setting up "camp" around 7:30 at the Mole after a smooth sailing over.

I setup for bonito with cast-a-bubble rig, a green color Sabiki rig and a single hook rig for sheephead.
No Opaleye rig on this trip. I also had brought several long poles to see which one I would like for the future trips.

Although it was weekend, there were no other "bonito hunters" on the Mole or on the boat for that matter.



1- Angler in his happy place. The popular corner for casting into the harbor channel.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193739-07375248-me.jpg



2- Nice Calico on lure by fish-ninja.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193740-707de0db-me.jpg

I heard that the "bonito hunters" were there on Friday and were catching a lot of bonito.
Perhaps they wiped out the school. It may be the reason that for two days of casting lures and top water rig,
neither of us hooked to a single bonito.

Thus, against my normal habit of not using Sabiki in the kelp covered pier, I started to cast Sabiki
and mackerel responded. Mostly the Spanish mackerel.



3-Lately the mackerel are showing up. The Pacific chub mackerel seem to be on the bigger size and they
fight like a small bonito. fish-ninja caught several using lure.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193740-e7eea1a2-me.jpg

I also caught a small tree fish, scorpion fish as well as a small calico bass.


fish-ninja took the 7:45 PM boat and I stayed behind.
I stayed on the pier all night and took catnaps while sitting in my under-the-weather enclosure.
I watched an Ellery Queen DVD and then took catnaps all night sitting in a chair.




Monday My 20, 2024


Around 5:30 AM got out from my enclosure and started to cast the top water rig. No takers.


4- Sunrise (sort of) on Monday. Perfect (less sun) conditions for bonito hunting.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193741-212e823e-me.jpg


Then I switched to the Sabiki rig and the Spanish mackerel responded.
I also setup a single hook rig using squid as bait.


5- I had the pier to myself most of the day.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193742-44cdf478-me.jpg



6- An interesting visitor.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193741-657450fc-me.jpg
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193743-b1349f53-me.jpg




7- Possibly the largest Garibaldi that I caught at the Mole. It was hooked in its eye.
I have caught a bigger one in Baja, but did not keep it.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193742-b9d7c4fc-me.jpg



8-This pesky cormorant has learned to hang around the pier when it sees a rod over the railing.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193743-2fc0f1aa-me.jpg
It kept stealing my fish from time to time, but not all. A sea lion and its pup kept hanging right in front of
me about (50) yards away from the pier. A pelican also showed up on the pier but was mostly sleeping.
I have seen a "bonito hunter" feed the pelican, which is a big no, no.



9- Wind conditions were not too bad.
https://www.photos.inherentlydifferent.com/_data/i/upload/2024/05/23/20240523193743-229da47d-me.jpg

After having a bucket full of Spanish mackerel (even though I had given some away),
I stopped fishing for them.

I packed and was on the 7:45 PM boat on a smooth ride to Long Beach terminal.
Got home about 10:00 PM tired, but content about my trip.


THE END

[JohnMckroidJr]

Many decades ago when I worked on the Freedom, the Galley cook would talk about growing up on Catalina, and how if he caught a flying fish off the pier, he could bait it on a hand line and throw it out from the shore. Hours later he would come back to find a White Sea Bass on the other end. :wsb: When I worked on the Grande, Frank Hall would talk about the days when he would pull up on a fishing spot and determine if the White Sea Bass were going to bite or not by their color. :wsb: A lot of magical stuff has happened at Catalina. :jig: Good to see a report from there -- Thanks. :reel:

[Mahigeer]

Thanks for the kind words.

I am always hesitant to post non-kayak outings hear, but there is no other board to post it on this website.
I know members like to see other kind of fishing as well.
I still have my kayaks but have not used them in a long time.
So, I hope it is ok to post them.

As to Catalina, it is a magical place for me. However, there is a serious talk of major remodeling at the Mole.
Thus, during construction and then after that, I may not be able to fish the Mole.
More on that later.