|
by Capt. David
Bacon, Wave Walker Charters
 I
willingly confess that calico bass are my favorite fish. There
is something mystical and magical about these checkerboard
beauties. It's difficult to successfully catch them consistently.
Anglers use just the right tackle, need to understand various
tactics and get plenty of practice. That's the fun part, because
the only way to get good at it is to fish a lot. No red-blooded
angler will have a problem with that.
Here
is a good outline of favored habitats and what tackle and
tactics will bring you success:
Kelp
This is the most common place to fish for calicos. In fact,
the Dept. of Fish and Game (DFG) refers to them as “kelp bass”
because of their affinity for suspending among kelp fronds
– where they are amazingly well camouflaged – and ambushing
baitfish near the surface.
Boat positioning is key to catching calicos in the kelp. Anchor
up so that the boat rests at anchor about a boat length upcurrent
from the edge of the kelp. Begin broadcasting a steady chumline
of live baits and chunked dead baits. This draws nearby natural
baitfish to the chumline and enhances the attraction to the
predator fish. Bass will often swim out of the kelp and chase
baits in the open area between the kelp and the boat. When
the bass boil on the surface to catch chum and hook baits,
fishing gets downright exciting! A simple and effective rig
is to run your fishing line through a 1/8-oz. sliding sinker
and tie it to a #2 size live bait hook. Pin a baitfish through
the nose, or collar hook it, and cast it to the edge of the
kelp. When a bass picks up the bait, give it a good long moment
to take the bait fully into its mouth before you set the hook
fast and hard. Then lift the rod and reel like crazy to keep
the fish out of the kelp where it can bust you off, flip you
off and swim away.
Hard Bottom
Calico bass prowl the shallow reef zones, usually in less
than 120 ft. of water, where they find plenty of forage species
and good hiding places where they can rest in safety.
The
best time to fish reef zones is near a high tide when a medium
current is flowing and water clarity is medium. That combination
of conditions really triggers their feeding activity. On the
other hand, every time I think I begin to understand fish,
they up and teach me a brand-new lesson by going on the chew
when I least expect it. So, fish whenever you have the opportunity
and hope for the best.
On
a calm day, it's easy to slowly drift over a reef zone and
drop baits to hungry fish. One good rig to use is a reverse
dropper-loop, made by tying a live bait hook to the end of
the line and hanging a weight from a loop a couple of feet
up from the hook. Pin on a live bait such as an anchovy or
sardine or squid on a quality live bait hook matched to the
size of the bait, and fish it within a few feet of the bottom.
Another proven method to fish the reef zones for calico bass
is to anchor just upcurrent from the reef and chum the waters
to draw the bass up the water column. Then cast live baits
with light sliding sinkers, swimbaits or Gulp! baits on leadheads,
and let the offering slowly sink down through the water until
it's inhaled by a rising bass.
 Boiler
Rocks and Cliffs
This is my own personal favorite place to fish for calicos.
It's genuinely exciting to take a boat in close to boiler
rocks – where swells surge over exposed rocks – and cast lures,
such as plastics or Gulp! swimbaits on leadheads or small
jigs, within a couple of feet of the rocks, and then retrieve
them very slowly in order to keep the offering within several
feet of the rocks for as long as possible. Similarly, when
fishing along sheer cliffs, cast to the cliff and let the
lure flutter down the face of the cliff before retrieving
slowly. React instantly, by winding the fish onto the hook,
at the first hint of a strike.
When a bass blasts out of a protective pocket between rocks,
inhales your lure and pulls hard to get back to the safety
of the structure, you are in for a tough fight. Lightning-fast
reflexes help here, because the hook must be set at the first
hint of a strike, and the fish must be pulled away from the
rock. If you're not fast enough, it may be a short fight,
because that calico is heading for trouble.
Final Thoughts
The daily bag limit of calico bass is 10 fish, but most caring
calico anglers would not think of keeping that many. They
are a precious resource. I recommend keeping no more than
five, if you keep any at all. The minimum size is 12 in.,
but many recommend a slot of 14 to 20 in. for keepers. Let
the littler guys go to grow up and let the bigger ones go
to spawn. If you fillet your fish at sea, the fillet must
be a minimum of 6 1/2 in.
Capt. David Bacon operates a private charter 6-pack service
out of Santa Barbara. Join him for an adventure aboard WaveWalker
to the Channel Islands and along the mainland coast of the
Santa Barbara Channel. Visit his Web site at www.wavewalker.com
|
