Well~! It is now officially Halibut season. I received a wonderful message from my new friend Raney who I met on my last fishing trip at Alamitos Bay. He sent me a picture of him holding a Halibut!! He wrote “A picture of me fishing a Halibut” along with the image. He didn’t catch it with a Flash Minnow, but he did catch a good size Halibut with the Pointer 128 (Aurora Black). Raney! Thank you very much. With that exciting news, I headed out to catch a big size Halibut as well (I over exaggerated!)

On the day of my fishing trip, the weather was in horrible condition… Wind blowing sideways and sprinkling!! However, I was told that this time of season in full moon, Halibuts are spawning and they gather to the shore. And not only that, Raney’s picture! Even in the sprinkling rain, I started casting. Of course there were no other fishermen and it was a sad and lonely fishing day…

It was cloudy with very thick fog and I started off using a dark colored lure. Even in the area where I usually catch some, I got no reaction. But I continued to cast while moving along the beach. Like last time, the water temperature was extremely cold and I could barely put my feet in the water! (I’m very sensitive to the cold also…) I was being very carful with the approaching waves, and since I couldn’t get the water to go no further than below my knees, I felt that my casting distance was about 7~9m short and maybe missing my chance for bites. I did a whole round trip with travel distance of 300m which I’ve decide for myself. I also used the usual color rotation when the weather is bad: I start off with a dark color lure, then white, then green. And I got absolutely no bites!! I finally went back to the corner and did a range change. Considering that it is high tide, I changed it to a PT100DD and while being very aware of the wind condition, I continued to cast in suspicious areas. I again got nothing… It was getting close to noon and the rain was getting stronger so I decided to give up for the day.

I realized that even when it was in good fishing condition the day before, if the water temperature decreases, the fishes become less active and becomes tougher to fish. I will save my legal size for next time.

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. I’m going to order a wader from Japan!! Then I should be ok even when the water temperature is cold!!

During the SWBA practice, Keith’s daughter, Jacey caught a Spotted Bay Bass with the Flat CB at Newport Beach. I want to catch one too.

Another early start of Okappari (shore fishing) to catch some Halibut! Alamitos Bay is a famous place for Halibut fishing, but this time I decided to go fishing at Redondo Beach with my fishing friends, Miki and K. First thing in the morning, I started casting with the FM110.

Redondo Beach is known for their rock fishing, but we decided to start off from the harbor side. After a few minutes from the first cast, Kimi gets a bite with the FM110 and caught a small size Mackerel (Saba)! The lure color used was “Aurora Black”!! In contrast to that, I changed my aim at a deeper range! I used the newly released “Bigup” lure which I haven’t had any catches with it yet and continued to cast with that. I used the “Day Iwashi” color!! It features a red color belly which Halibuts tend to like.

I really want to catch something with this new product! And this strong feeling really came through… I changed locations and after few castings and at about 4m until fully retrieved, I saw something going after my lure!! Usually at this point, it will notice and I could never catch it! Bu…bu… but!! This time I was able to stabilize my retrieving speed without panicking and… bamn!! It finally came!!! The lure was already at its tip at the 2m range so I wasn’t able to enjoy fighting with the Halibut, but I FINALLY got to catch a Redondo Halibut!! The size wasn’t even close to being a legal size, but it is still a very precious catch!

Kimi was catching so many Mackerels too! The “Aurora Black” color seemed to work best!! Usually, Kimi mainly goes bait fishing, but today he kindly went lure fishing with me. And he even caught some fish!! He really got to enjoy using our Lucky Craft lures!! Thank you!!

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. For my next fishing report, I’m thinking of going to San Pedro next week. So stay tuned!!

I started casting early today to go Okappari (Shore Fishing) to try to catch some legal size Halibut (Hirame). Even in the early morning, as far as I was able to see, there were already about 10 fishermen. From seeing this many Halibut hunters (?), I knew it was officially Halibut season.

I started casting at the usual sweet spot (the corner of the jetty and beach). I heard from a fellow fisherman that at this very spot last week, a 30inch Halibut was caught! I became really excited hearing that and immediately started fishing. As time went by, I felt that the tide was rising, so in the early morning I decided to use the FM110!! As it was becoming high tide, I made lure adjustments to a DD (Deep Diver). Since the water was cloudy, I used Gold and White color lures!! …But unfortunately I got absolutely no bites and decided to move locations before the wind comes towards the beachside. I resumed fishing while walking along the beach!! And lately almost every time now, a fishermen comes up to me and asks me, “What color lure are you using!?” I guess a lot of people are curious of what I’m using! I guess all fishermen are alike! I myself get very curious of what type of lure and colors others are using too! What is the ultimate color that would solve the eternal mystery of catching fishes? On this fishing trip, as I mentioned it earlier, I used a Gold color lure which is not in the CIF Series and it is also not sold so it is a rare piece here in CA! My fellow fishermen mentioned to me, “I’m using a Flash Minnow too!!” I suppose Flash Minnow is a popular lure for fishermen aiming for Halibut from the beach! Perhaps Halibut = Flash Minnow!!

I happily gave him the FM120DD (in Pearl White) which was release this year. He wasn’t able to get a Halibut right away, but he did catch a small-scaled shark!! Since it was already getting close to full tide, he must have caught a shark that migrated to the bottom!

Afterwards, we all took a picture together!! Everyone screamed, “Flash Minnow~!!” I was extremely happy!! Starting left, the colors are: Sexy Geisha Queen, Aurora Baby CroakerX2, and Salty Pearl White 120DD. I did not make this up!! They really did have these lures! It is such a popular product! I would like to thank them for fishing with me this time! I hope they get a chance to check this blog out!

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. The water temperature was very cold and in the afternoon the wind started blowing and my hands and feet were so numb! It was tough!!
I definitely want to purchase the wader he was wearing.

There are no signs of Barracudas now and my last fish catch count was zero. So this time, I went to Redondo Beach hoping for a better result!! I brought with me some crucial lures for this season to reconfirm my fishing techniques to a better direction and to personally level up my skills. For that, I tested out my retrieve speed. When you think of Lucky Craft salt lures, the well known lures would be theFM110 & FM130MR… but this time I used a newly released lure in Japan – it is called the “BIGUP”. Lucky Craft Japan pro staff, Mr. Abe created this deep dive model Seabass lure!! For detailed product explanation, how it is used and fishing results, please check out the “Enjoy” DVD! And this time, I went to test out the “BIGUP” lure (as well as other lures…). And in result to the testing, I think it went pretty well. It doesn’t go as far as the FM, but it makes small and detailed wave motions underwater. Also, when you stop retrieving, instead of suspending it performs a slow sinking action. FM series are suspending models, but I imagined BIGUP lures to utilize its performance to get bites while sinking. Very interesting! Calico Bass and Barracuda!? I plan on always having color lineups from metallic, gold, and green colors for this summer and also having my FM and BIGUP lures to go Okappari (Shore fishing) and boat fishing. So please stay tuned.

BIGUP Product Ad:
http://luckycraft.co.jp/blog/img/0306.jpg

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. It’s actually been awhile since my last Okappari (Shore Fishing), and I was able to go through a lot of thinking while seeing a lot of people having a good time kayak fishing. I would like to try that out next year.

On this next fishing trip, I again departed off from Redondo Beach (where they had a few Barracuda catch count) and went off Santa Monica to aim for some Barracudas. Due to the rain the day before, there were high waves and strong winds and the boat was shaking pretty badly! It’s been awhile since I got motion sickness, but I still managed to start casting with a FM130MR. For about an hour, as we saw a group of birds we would move to that area and finally an angler right next to me got a Barracuda bite! The rod was bent beyond normal and it was so big it was impossible to even bring it up to the deck. The lure he was using was a jig used very commonly in the West Coast. As for the color, it was very similar to the Lucky Craft “#703 Aurora Mackerel” color! I suppose Barracudas like blue and silver colors. Then I realized – will I be able to lift up a Barracuda with the rod I brought!? I started to worry…. Last year for my very first Daily Flash Minnow Report I caught a Barracuda here in Redondo Beach……….. But I didn’t know it can get this big~~~! Since the wind and water temperature is pretty low today, crowds of Barracuda migrated 50ft (around 15m) in water depth. So after I casted a jig, I let it sink first then retrieved!! I continued this pattern. I couldn’t go home like this! So I decided to do it “Sandy Style”! The “Anomalous Carolina”!! I attached a 1oz egg shaped weight to the leader area and then a FM 20cm apart from the weight. I started fishing again!! But can’t seem to get any bite… no one around me is catching any either! In result, today’s total catch was 30 and a pretty disappointing outcome. However, the Big Fish caught was enormously big! And it wasn’t like the person who was measuring it was small either! I was very surprised by its size. Next time I will change rods and definitely have thicker lure hooks set up and try again!

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. No matter what, I want to catch a Barracuda that size with a lure!!

It finally came! The lure fishing season off of a boat!! And the target fish is… not a Bonito, still a little early for that. The water temperature increased from last week and it has been a nice and sunny weather. It will be my very first attack for some Barracuda this year off the coast of Newport. From 3 days ago, it’s been decreasing from 200, 100, to 50 Barracuda catches, but I wonder what will happen on this 4th day of fishing? I brought the new “Bigup” lure send to me from Japan as well as the usual FM130MR & FM110. I carefully selected my lures so even if the Barracuda migrates to the outer surface or the middle area, I will be able to aim it at any depth. And because the weather didn’t look too good in the morning and was very cloudy, I brought gold, green, and white color lures. Barracudas have small mouths so it makes it difficult to adjust retrieving. So sometimes I would have to stop retrieving and basically continue to do a stop-and-go action and immediately resume casting… I continued this for 2 hours, but had no bites at all including all the other fishermen (with live baits) around me……. Nothing in the outer surface or middle area!! Then the captain announced, “Since there are no Barracudas today, we will change our target fish to Scorpionfish & Sanddab”. I had to give up on fishing my very first Barracuda of this year…

We changed locations to the fishing spot we have been previously, where we were able to catch a lot of Scorpions before. I didn’t have a jig prepared, so I made a loop previously taught by Brent (positioned at 15cm from the weight) with an 8 oz weight and started fishing. There was only 30min left and I was getting ready to catch nothing today, but then I moved to the other side of the boat and… I caught 7 in a row!! It wasn’t a Scorpion, but I caught some Sanddub and Whitefish and my day of fishing ended. This is some additional information, but a small-scaled shark was caught also, but since it wasn’t a big fish nor a target fish, it had to be released. But it was so powerful, pulling and tumbling, it was a very good fight! Since the fishing result wasn’t so good, the captain insisted us to take home some Sardine used for bait, so I took some home.

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. The Sanddub I fished today was cooked for my son’s 100th day birthday (a Japanese tradition). My family was very happy! Dad did it!!!

Today for a good recreation, I went fishing with Brent and Sandy from the Daily FM blogging site. We only went on a one day charter boat, but I had a lot of fun. My aim was the bottom fish and the reeling after a bite was tough… It went 20meters, 50meters, still half way… 80meters, 100meters, still going… 120meters, finally I saw the fish!! It was just very tough! Next time I’m buying an electric reel!! By the way, does everybody know that these types of rock fishes are delicious as a sashimi!? It has this certain texture to it. Well, the hamburgers we eat on the charter boat after fishing are exceptionally good also.

This time I was originally suppose to attend the FLW Tour Finals, but unfortunately it was cancelled. And due to the cancellation, Brent got a day off so the 3 of us (Brent, Mr. M, and I) decided to go saltwater boat fishing.

We departed from Newport Landing where I’ve been departing from often lately, and went on a local passenger boat from there. The target fish last month was Scorpaenopsis, but this time according to the fishing report from the day before, it is the Rockfish. We started at a position 1.5hrs offshore and it was right in the middle between Newport and Catalina Island. At a fishing point 430ft in water depth, I attached an 8oz weight and dropped it all the way to the bottom!! I’ve never experienced such water depth and as I reeled, I realized the line wasn’t enough!! And while experiencing such accidents, Bass Pro Angler, Brent would continue catching nice size fishes. Pro Anglers are amazing!! He showed me at what range the fishes were at and to reel 30times from the bottom! I did exactly as told and I kept getting bites!! And from there, it is up to your very own skills on how to catch it! Brent also advised me, unlike fishing Rockfish and/or Flounders (Hirame) where you immediately make a move after a bite, first have it swallow its bait (Sardines and/or squid) and when you feel the pull, then start pulling it up! Also, when fishing in deep areas the timing of adjustment is a little different where you don’t pull with your rod. Instead, you use your reel and spin it about 4 times and then pull at once. Finally, you need to use the bent of the rod to catch it well. I again did exactly what Brent taught me and waited a little after a hit… I had a big hit!! My rod was bent like I’ve never seen before! It was really tough to reel it from 450ft below… but I was able to catch my very first big Rockfish!! It won’t compare to a real BIG fish, but I did catch a lot! In result Brent caught about 20 fishes and I caught about 7 including the ones I released. Pro Anglers definitely have something different!!! Can they talk to fishes or something!? It is strange… but extremely amazing.

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. I was taught how to tie a loop for the first time!!

Going south from our office (for my search for new fishing locations), I have a mission to use the Flash Minnow in different areas to find out what type of fishes can be fished! I am very excited for this new project! To start off, I first decided to go to the “Anglers’ Center” to get some information on recommended fishing spots. From the information I received, I immediately headed first to Laguna Beach. Then for some reason, there were a lot of people just swimming at the beach and I saw no other fisherman there. With my rod in one hand I was walking along the beach and a life guard noticed me and informed me that fishing is not allowed here. I was surprised to hear that and immediately headed back to my car. And on my way back I noticed a sign that said “Marine Protected Area”, basically means fishing is limited. It was completely my lack of research…

I left Laguna Beach and headed down south on PCH for about 15 minutes and arrived in Salt Creek Beach Park. Here they didn’t have any “Protected Area” restrictions so I started fishing. I then realized it is one of the shallowest beaches I’ve ever fished in. Even when I make a full cast, it won’t exceed the wave, but I continued to cast while walking along the coast. I didn’t get any response so I decided to change locations. I went even more down south to Dana Point and fished at the pier side right in front of the tram station. I aimed for some fishes near the buildings but again no fish. It was in the afternoon already and I went back towards Newport and started fishing again in Corona Del Mar which is on the other side of Newport. At this place there were a lot of rocky areas and kept beds and seemed to be difficult aiming in the mid-area. I imagined some Calico Bass arriving in the surface, so I continued to cast in between kept beds, but got nothing. Pelicans continued to dive into the water for some baits and seals kept popping their heads out from the ocean. When the evening bites were approaching, my expectations were getting high. But before it even became high tide the waves were splashing intensely and became dangerous to fish by the rocky area so I ended my fishing there.

Sandy
The Daily Flash Minnow

P.S. Please be aware that it becomes possible to fish from around Dana Point in the southern area.