New Del Mar Fishing with Jacob and Shlome

Today I went on a great half day fishing trip on the boat New Del Mar of the Marina Del Rey Sportfishing company. We went from 12:30 to 5 P.M. I wanted to go fishing on a boat with my Uncle Shlome, especially because we didn't get to catch any fish on the trip from Newport Landing last year and the mistake they made by putting us on the wrong boat. We went out with my brother, Jacob, too. On the way out of the marina, we stopped at a floating live bait stop. Two main differences that I have found on party boats in Southern California and Miami is that in SoCal the boats have a big live well on the back of the boat and is not only easy for people to take live anchovies, but at every stop a crew member stands on top of it and throws out some live anchovies to chum the water. Another difference is the useful floating live bait shops on the way out of the landings/marinas. After the bait shop, we were ready to fish. We went south along the coast for about an hour and a half until we got to the surprisingly very inshore kelp beds off the coast of Rancho Palos Verdes. Other than live anchovies, cut squid was another available bait. The squid would end up being way more effective. Everyone on the boat started catching right away. We were catching Sand and Calico Kelp Bass. Despite the fact that the boat was catching, Shlome, Jacob, and I weren't. Until finally Shlome felt something and then set the hook. We reeled it in and we caught it. A Barred Sand Bass! Our first fish of the day! Soon after, Shlome had another fish on! He was reeling in, but then the fish got the hook stuck on the thick kelp. The spot was really cool. Not only were people catching fish, but the huge volcanic bluffs of the Palos Verdes Peninsula was an interesting sight to see. Later, I felt something on my line, so I started to reel up. I stopped, and the rod didn't bend, so I knew that there wasn't a fish. But as I was reeling up the rest of the line to check if I had bait, a fish took the Squid. I reeled the fish in with Jacob, and I caught it! A Calico Kelp Bass! A Calico Kelp Bass was one of the first fish I had ever caught. I had wanted to catch another one since then not only because they are really fun to catch, but the picture I have of it is not a great one and it doesn't show the intricate pattern on its side. After releasing it, we went to another spot because the water became colder, which tends to make fishing slower. For our next spot, we went about a half hour north up the coast until we were near Redondo Beach. The way the houses were set up was and it was really cool to see. Jacob and Shlome were the first people to catch fish, and they did so immediately. They had a double hookup of mackerel that they brought in, only to dehook them and have another double hookup! They caught those, too. By then, I was really excited for this spot. We kept on fishing and we kept on catching. At the bottom, I started to feel nibbles. I was pulling the line a little to make the bait move until I had a fish! The rod bent and I reeled it up. I caught it! It was an Ocean Whitefish! We kept it to eat that night. I caught another Ocean Whitefish from the bottom before I decided to fish near the surface again. I could see schools of Mackerel were swimming by about 5 feet below the surface of the water so I dropped my piece of squid there and watched. Soon the school came and the ravenous mackerel were crushing my bait. When I saw a mackerel eat the squid and then swim quickly while my rod was bending, I jerked the rod up and started reeling to set the hook. I caught it! Jacob and I kept on fishing like this for the rest of the time at the stop. Shlome went to the other side because he saw people catching more Ocean Whitefish, but he ended up not catching any fish. When time was running low we went back to then dock at Marina Del Rey. I caught 14, my brother caught 17, and Shlome caught 4. When we went home, we fried the Ocean Whitefish and used it to make delicious fish tacos for dinner. This was a really fun trip and I learned a lot. I hope to be fishing on this boat agin. Tight Lines!