A Surprise Fall Fish Turned Catch and Cook
Like many things, surf fishing is seasonal. Lucky for us, each season still offers some solid potential to catch fish from the beach. Every year, a large percentage of anglers hang up their rods when November rolls around as they await the summer months. While that used to be me, I just can’t do that anymore. So, can you fish the surf in the fall and winter?
Absolutely you can! Will some fish be less active than others though? Yes, it’s all about putting the time in and knowing your target. While surfperch and halibut will be increasing in abundance, corbina and spotfin croaker aren’t off the table by any means. Here’s the story from the other day.
Conditions
I made it out for a late-morning through early-afternoon session a couple days ago and arrived to some pleasant conditions. The surf height was rolling in at 1-to-2-feet and the current was minimal but present. Water temp was a mild 63-degrees Fahrenheit while the air temp and overall weather made for a nice San Diego fall day. No surf fishing waders necessary this late in the morning as my only complaint was the seaweed. It wasn’t quite perfect. Bait choice for the day was mussel meat and the rigging was as usual and described in detail on my surf fishing gear and tackle page.
On the Sand
It’s 10:30 am as I rig up my gear and prepare to soak a line. I’m loving what I see out there. Upon reading the surf, the structure looks like it has to hold some good fish. One specific spot is littered with small troughs (or scallops) and I head straight over there.
I’ve only got a few hours to work with so I’m hoping for a quick and steady bite, but we all know how fishing goes. I finish getting set-up and slap a piece of mussel meat on my hook. After figuring out where I want to place my bait, I give it a few casts to feel out the direction and strength of the current.
My First Good Fight in Quite Some Time
Just as I’m getting settled in, I feel that classic, “tap… … … tap… … tap-tap-tap-tap”. I feel the full-take and set the hook! Immediately I know I’m on something decent.
At first, there’s no initial run, just a solid hit and a stationary struggle. After a few seconds though, I feel my rod begin loading up and I ease up on my grip as line starts zipping off my reel!
The first run was a feeling and sound I’d been missing for a few weeks and it felt awesome to experience it again. It didn’t take long for me to realize I wasn’t fighting a surfperch. After that initial run, I’d narrowed it down to either a spotfin croaker or a corbina and I’d be happy either way.
A couple mild runs later and with the help of a couple waves, I battled the fish onto the sand. A 20.5-inch corbina in November! I decided to make this one into a meal as it might be another 5-months or so before I hook into another corbina of this size.
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Thoroughly enjoyed the video from the structure and kelp tips to the letting the bait drift tip to the grilling! Couple questions, where do you buy your mussel bait (I’m in coastal north county) and what does that work for in the winter besides corbina? Thank you, well done!
Thanks, Montie. Mussel meat will get anything and everything sand crabs get but it will primarily get perch, croaker and the occasional corbina and maybe calico if you’re fishing rockier areas. I basically use it as an offseason sand crab. It catches the same stuff but I’ve found I get fewer rays in general on it. I get my mussel meat at an asian super market called “Vien Dong 4 Supermarket”. Don’t get them “on the half-shell”. Get just the meat.
HI NICK, GOOD JOB ON THAT 20.5 IN. CORBINA….THEN I WAS GETTING INTO YOUR STORY ON THE NEXT ONE WHEN IT WAS PEELING THE LINE OFF YOUR SPOIL, AND YOU WERE GETTING A DOPAMINE RUSH AND THEN YOU LEFT ME HANGING…..LOL YOUR FUNNY….
ANYWAYS MY TROUT SEASON STARTS THIS WEEKEND, SO I WILL BE FOCUSING ON THAT FUN FOR AWHILE….
HAVE A NICE THANKSGIVING AND CONTINUE HAVING FUN !!!!!!
You have a wonderful Thanksgiving too, Richard. Good luck this trout season!
Great catch Nick ! I’m encouraged by your post as that’s what I’ve been hoping for this season end but for what ever reason, it’s just not happening this year. In past years, I’ve always got into some large corbina & croakers in the Fall months. Not this year so far. Over the past 6 weeks, I hit up 4 different beachs at different times of the day & tides, various baits & artificials and it’s been just dead, save for just a few small perch. The troughs & holes looked promising but just did not produce. I’ll probably give it a few more sessions to month’s end then shift into halibut mode, conditions permitting. Thanks for the report.
Thanks, Bill! Keep at it and good things will come. everybody goes through lulls but when you finally get that big fish, it’s gunna feel great!
Thank you for the reply Nick, much appreciated!
Liked the vid on prepping the fillets; how do you get that skin off so easily? I have a real problem with that part of filleting. Still waiting for a big Fall bean or spot fin. Been skunked since 1st of Oct., not like past years for sure.
Hey Bill, I actually thought I recorded the whole process but apparently I temporarily ran out of storage so I didn’t catch the skinning process on video. Surprisingly, I find the skinning process easier than the filleting process. the steps are listed below, but I have a video where I skin the fillets of a small spotfin croaker here (go to 7-minute mark): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr_NDILpsH0&t=584s
– I use the same knife as I do to fillet the fish (although a slightly duller knife is sometimes better.
– I take one fillet (skin side down) and grip the very tip of the fillet with my finger tips.
– Then I begin skinning at a 45-degree angle while applying only enough pressure to keep the knife in contact with the skin.
– The motion requires more forward pressure (meaning from one side of the fillet to the bottom.
– Than just keep moving your grip closer to the knife as you keep good control.
Thanks for getting back Nick. Appreciate it.