The hunt for the dorado is underway

Jim Niemiec

Huge schools of dorado have moved into channel waters and are

producing very exciting fishing for local anglers.

Water conditions are ideal and when a hungry school of fish is located

under a floating kelp paddy, the action can be explosive.

With almost the entire Newport Harbor-based sport fleet and many

private yachts out hoping to find the right paddy, it’s getting pretty

competitive on the ocean.

Boats are racing from one paddy to the next and there have have been

some angry words exchanged between captains of anglers when more than one

boat tries to move in on a school of feeding dorado.

Schools of dorado numbering over 100 are not uncommon to the channel,

with a more reasonable expectation of 10- to 20 fish per paddy. In

addition to the dorado, the same kelp can hold big yellowtail weighing up

to 30 pounds.

Dorado have not been too picky when it comes time to feed, anglers are

hooking them on sardines, mackerel and anchovies. Also, effective for

enticing a dorado that won’t take live bait are bright feathers and

Rapalas.

Most of the dorado are on the small side, weighing in the 8- to

12-pound class, at least those that are willing to bite, but there are

larger fish that just aren’t real hungry yet.

As these fish become settled in a little more, the bite could improve

to where every bait that hits the water is eaten by a hungry dorado.

Balboa Island resident Lynn Cathcart fished on board the Bongos II

earlier this week and caught both dorado and yellowtail while fishing

with the Newport Harbor Lady Anglers group. The anglerettes chartered

both six-pack charter boats from Bongos Sportsfishing Charters and

enjoyed good fishing a few miles off Dana Point.

One of the larger dorado caught this week was landed by Greg Harold of

Balboa, who decked a 17 1/2 pounder while fishing on board the charter

boat Caliber, operating out of Davey’s Locker at the Pavilion. Harold

hooked the exotic fish on an anchovy fishing a paddy in blue water about

10 miles west of Laguna Beach.

Off-shore islands are also producing good action on yellowtail,

barracuda and calico bass. The all-day boat Thunderbird fished San

Clemente Island during a lull in albacore fishing this week and really

got into some excellent action on big “tails.�

Steve Parks of Costa Mesa fished the island on Tuesday and hooked into

a 28-pound yellow that chomped down on a sardine.

The sport boat has been mixing fishing trips to the islands with

albacore runs out to open waters depending on sea conditions and how far

to the west schools of albacore and bluefin tuna are biting.

The ocean temp is in the high 60s southwest of the 43 Fathom Spot and

there is a good chance that albies and tuna will move inside the east end

of San Clemente Island and put on a good show before the end of the

month.

The marlin bite has cooled off, big time. Water temps are good, there

are plenty of greenback and big Spanish mackerel in channel waters, but

for some reason, billfish just are not showing up around high spots and

we are getting pretty much into the traditional marlin season.

Not only are there no billfish to speak of around Catalina, there have

been very few fish spotted tailing or jumping down off San Diego.

Bay and local surf fishing continues good for a variety of small game

fish. Spotted bay bass and a few legal halibut are what boaters in the

bay are catching on live bait and plastics.

Surf anglers fishing between the Balboa and Newport piers and around

the rock jetties are catching good numbers of barred perch along with a

few corbina and croaker with the bait of choice being live crabs.