Newport Bay: Spotted Bass Fishing Trip!

Fishing in local bays and harbors for saltwater bass is always fun. This time of the year, the water is warm enough for float tubing without a wetsuit on, and the fish are eager to bite. Throwing an array of soft plastics lures, I typically tie into both calico and spotted bass. Lately, I've been fishing Newport Harbor, both from the shore and from my float tube alot. The float tube is simply perfect for navigating the shallow water structure that I prefer to target, and it's easy to fit into my vehicle as well.

Video of trip

Filmed in 4K

ThiEye T5E

This particular trip, I was throwing a softplastic, red paddletail worm. Picked it up for just a couple of bucks here (Aliexpress), and matched it with a jighead. Pretty decent action in the water, and the 16" spotted bass that chomped on it thought so too!

Hitting the Salt

Did a little exploring along the coast in Orange County. Found this sweet cove, open to fishing (not MLPA closed), but didn't land anything. Enjoy the video though, beautiful views!

Fishing the Newport Jetty in Orange County, California

The Newport Jetty is one of my favorite spots to fish for saltwater species at. It's not the most convenient, but it's a gem of a spot, with a multitude of different species to catch. Of course, it gets its share of pressure from many other anglers, but I typically do well here.

This trip was a little slower than most. We only landed 5 fish or so, but the variety of fish made up for the slow action. That's one of my favorite aspects of saltwater fishing - you never know what you will catch!

The highlight of the trip was catching a spunky Half Moon fish. Beautiful finned fighter! All were released to be caught on another outing.

Tight lines everyone!

Hitting the Salt Again, California Harbor Fishing

Spent a few hours tossing jigs and bait into one of my favorite saltwater fishing harbors here in Southern California. The water visibilty was very poor, but we still managed to catch several nice fish. Caught two kelp (calico) bass and one opaleye, all released after a few photos. Great way to spend the afternoon!

Surf Fishing Maui Hawaii

Just got back from a great trip to the beautiful island of Maui. Snorkeling, hiking, and, of course, fishing! I relief heavily on the awesome fishing tips of iFish user Joloni (read his guide here) and my past experience fishing in Hawaii. Managed to land several small fish and one awesome barracuda! Check the video for the fishing from the whole trip!

Surf Fishing Hawaii Big Island

Probably should tag this one #notcalifornia! 

Enjoy this short video from my trip to the beautiful Big Island, Hawaii. 

Had a tough time figuring out the fish, didn't seem to run into quite as many predators as I did on the Garden Island last year. Still managed to land several interesting fish, plus the ever-present Lizardfish. Tight lines! 

Mackerel Attack!

I usually go fishing for freshwater species. However, at times I'll get to fish the mighty Pacific Ocean, usually from various piers and jetties scattered across the coast. Laguna, Dana Point, Newport and so on-all offer some fun fishing opportunities for a wide variety of species. I'm still working on improving my lure skills in saltwater; I usually do better with cut pieces of shrimp, but I have manged a few nice catches on jigs.
Recently went out to one of my favorite jetties and had a ball catching mackerel all afternoon. To be honest, the mack bite wasn't as wild as it sometimes is, but it was still fun. I and my friend managed to land close to 20 mackerel in a few hours. We kept the largest 4; they are quite tasty if prepared correctly. It was really fun to watch the pelicans crash into the surf, as they divebombed schools of macks and other fish.

The usual (saltwater) suspects...

As much as a I love bass fishing, I can't resist hitting the salt. The sheer variety of fish to be caught brings me back every time. I've been fishing the ocean the last few weeks, and caught these while fishing a jetty in Orange County. Here's a little perch, caught while throwing jigs tipped with cut shrimp.

Spottie! I love how these fish absolutely nail your lure, fight like a saltwater smallmouth bass, never give up. I need to learn more about targeting these guys, I usually only end up with loads of dinks.

The sculpin here are awesome. This guy totally caught me by surprise, quite the mouth on him. Check out those colors! The water near the jetty's have lots of salad right now, making the fishing pretty tricky, but it's worth it.

I love Newport Beach. It can be super crowded at times, but just getting down to the ocean from the stinky Inland Empire is so absolutely worth it.
I've been getting into some epic freshwater largemouth bass action lately, lots of pics to come soon!