Dana Point 3-24 - Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge

SorryCharlie · 03-25-2013, 08:39 AM

Similar experience here.

Was up at the kelp near the headlands around 8am, fished there till about 2pm. Ended the day with nothing legal, but 6 short calicos (2 were so close) and 2 short sandies.

Tried just south of Doheny for some hali for about 45 minutes before calling it a day, nothing there but trying not to get to close to shore for when the big sets came in. Still a decent day on the water.

I did hear that people were catching some barracuda by the bait barge as well, didnt give it a try myself tho.

chefjtwalker · 03-25-2013, 09:28 AM

I was on the pipe for the morning, in a sand revolution. I wound up with a 5+lb sandy and a 2lb calico. Lots of bites from shorts. I was using larger swim baits (6 inch) to keep the macs and shorts off the hook. Had I been using 4" i would have had a lot more in the yak. Lots of PB out there... more than what I normally see. Quite a few whales in the area too.

Raskal311 · 03-25-2013, 10:56 AM

How deep do you think you let the swim bait drop before retrieving when fishing the pipes? I was fishing 4" swim bait but didn't get too many bites.

stephenG · 03-25-2013, 01:02 PM

I try to keep my presentation slow and on the bottom when the water is cold. My larger fish was on live bait and the smaller one was on a drop shot 4". There agian sounds like ChefJTWalker was on a better grade fish than me.

03-25-2013, 01:26 PM

Any help on the location of the pipe?

Raskal311 · 03-25-2013, 02:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephenG

I try to keep my presentation slow and on the bottom when the water is cold. My larger fish was on live bait and the smaller one was on a drop shot 4". There agian sounds like ChefJTWalker was on a better grade fish than me.

I think that was the problem, my lead head wasn't heavy enough to get down low.

Quote:

Originally Posted by madncrzydm

Any help on the location of the pipe?

2-3 o'clock heading out of the harbor, look for yaks and boats lined up.

chefjtwalker · 03-25-2013, 03:40 PM

When I fish the pipe I try and drift over it. I normally cast out so I can drift and bounce it while I drift over it. The pipe is about 10 feet across it seems. It is a little tricky to find it with out a depth finder. In 30-40 feet of water it is almost straight off the life guard tower. In 50-60 feet of water it is almost straight off of the DoubleTree hotel.

I normally fish 3/4 to 1 oz heads so I can get down fast below the macs. If the current is ripping or the wind is pushing me to fast I move up to a 1.5 oz head. The sandies are normally in the bottom 10 feet and I have caught calicos off the bottom and had them chase all the way to the surface.

Like most places its all about time on the water. I have been fishing DP for about 3 years, getting out an average 3+ times a month. If you want to learn some of the spots try and get out during one of the Fishing with Friends events at DP Jet Ski:

http://www.kayakfishingmafia.com/smf...ic,2993.0.html

Always more fun when a little money is involved. Decent amount of people show up so you can see a lot of different areas people fish. Good luck out there.

03-25-2013, 08:39 AM	#1
SorryCharlie Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Carlsbad Posts: 140	Similar experience here. Was up at the kelp near the headlands around 8am, fished there till about 2pm. Ended the day with nothing legal, but 6 short calicos (2 were so close) and 2 short sandies. Tried just south of Doheny for some hali for about 45 minutes before calling it a day, nothing there but trying not to get to close to shore for when the big sets came in. Still a decent day on the water. I did hear that people were catching some barracuda by the bait barge as well, didnt give it a try myself tho.

03-25-2013, 09:28 AM	#2
chefjtwalker Junior Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 9	I was on the pipe for the morning, in a sand revolution. I wound up with a 5+lb sandy and a 2lb calico. Lots of bites from shorts. I was using larger swim baits (6 inch) to keep the macs and shorts off the hook. Had I been using 4" i would have had a lot more in the yak. Lots of PB out there... more than what I normally see. Quite a few whales in the area too.

03-25-2013, 10:56 AM	#3
Raskal311 Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Santa Ana/Westminster Posts: 1,256	How deep do you think you let the swim bait drop before retrieving when fishing the pipes? I was fishing 4" swim bait but didn't get too many bites.

03-25-2013, 01:02 PM	#4
stephenG Member Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: San Clemente Posts: 97	I try to keep my presentation slow and on the bottom when the water is cold. My larger fish was on live bait and the smaller one was on a drop shot 4". There agian sounds like ChefJTWalker was on a better grade fish than me.

03-25-2013, 01:26 PM	#5
madncrzydm Guest Posts: n/a	Any help on the location of the pipe?

03-25-2013, 03:40 PM	#7
chefjtwalker Junior Join Date: Feb 2009 Posts: 9	When I fish the pipe I try and drift over it. I normally cast out so I can drift and bounce it while I drift over it. The pipe is about 10 feet across it seems. It is a little tricky to find it with out a depth finder. In 30-40 feet of water it is almost straight off the life guard tower. In 50-60 feet of water it is almost straight off of the DoubleTree hotel. I normally fish 3/4 to 1 oz heads so I can get down fast below the macs. If the current is ripping or the wind is pushing me to fast I move up to a 1.5 oz head. The sandies are normally in the bottom 10 feet and I have caught calicos off the bottom and had them chase all the way to the surface. Like most places its all about time on the water. I have been fishing DP for about 3 years, getting out an average 3+ times a month. If you want to learn some of the spots try and get out during one of the Fishing with Friends events at DP Jet Ski: http://www.kayakfishingmafia.com/smf...ic,2993.0.html Always more fun when a little money is involved. Decent amount of people show up so you can see a lot of different areas people fish. Good luck out there.