Joy and I had an opportunity to go on a fishing trip in June 2014 and after some research we decided that Santa Catalina Island would offer a rich diversity of species in a new habitat that neither of us had ever fished. The kelp forests and cool water of this island, located about 20 miles south of Long Beach, CA made for an attractive fishing destination, and the rugged scenery, quaint Avalon, and excellent hiking trails sealed the deal. We booked our airfare in February and I purchased several fish identification guides that helped plan for the trip. Advice from several fellow anglers ensured we brought the right gear and helped us hone in on various species when we arrived.
To maximize our access to different habitats and therefore fish species, we also built in a full day of fishing at Belmont Pier in Long Beach toward the end of the trip. Joy and I managed to catch a total of 19 species on the trip (I got 19 and Joy managed 14 new species). Here’s a breakdown of the trip, with lots of photographs.
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After months of planning and working hard to save up for the trip, June 6th arrived. After a long day at work we tried to get some sleep but were too excited for the trip. We had to hit the road at midnight to catch our 6am flight out of Detroit. Then we had a 4 hour layover in Chicago before boarding the next plane to LAX. After collecting our luggage we caught a bus to the Metro Train terminal ($1.50 fare each vs. $80 for a taxi to Long Beach made public transportation the way to go). An hour later we arrived in downtown Long Beach, which was very nice and easy to get around. We grabbed gyros at a Greek deli before catching a bus to the ferry terminal.
By around 6pm Pacific time we finally reached Avalon, the main city on beautiful Santa Catalina Island. Immediately we saw dozens of brilliant orange Garibaldi hovering in the clear turquoise water. We checked in to Atwater Hotel, relieved ourselves of our baggage, set up our travel rods, and spent the last two hours before dark fishing. Despite running on essentially no sleep in the past 36 hours we were to eager to wet our lines to not begin fishing.
We immediately began to catch Kelp Bass off the Green Pleasure Pier. We each took lots of photos of our first ones, but we would catch about 100 total Kelp Bass including some larger ones over the next few days. I also got a big initial phase Rock Wrasse from the Green Pleasure Pier on the first night. Then at dusk we dropped a couple lines in at the Cabrillo Mole pier and caught several more small Kelp Bass. While bottom fishing, I also caught a big Garibaldi. These are a protected species in California (mostly because they are a charismatic and easy-to-see species that is important to the glass bottom boat tours and SCUBA/snorkeling tourism industries there). We caught several incidentally as they are a ubiquitous and aggressive species along the Avalon harbor.
At dark we stopped fishing, had a celebratory beer, and got some needed sleep. I got up early the next morning and began fishing the Cabrillo Mole pier, which led to several new species. I caught many Kelp Bass, including my personal best, and I added Senorita, California Scorpionfish, and Kelp Perch to my lifelist. Here’s a collage of some of the species I caught from the piers in Avalon, Catalina Island.
In the afternoon we walked around the marina and past the iconic Catalina Casino to the rocky Descanso Beach, scoping out sites to fish. The ocean side of the marina on that side was a Marine Protected Area so fishing wasn’t allowed, but we did some snorkeling there and saw lots of fish. We would end up fishing the area inside the marina, pictured below ,for morays later in the trip.
We grabbed a flight of craft beer and the next morning we went on a hike up into the hills, passing through a really cool botanical garden along the way.
The photos below are from a morning hike we took into the hills. We stopped at the visitor center at the Wrigley Memorial Garden, too.
The trail wound up into the hills, providing expansive views of Avalon and the ocean beyond.
We rented a boat to try fishing deeper water. Without an anchor, we were limited to sheltered areas where the wind and currents couldn’t push us too far too fast.
We caught a lot of Ocean Whitefish, like the one pictured below, along with a few Rock Wrasse, California Sheepshead, and Kelp Bass. A seal ripped a whitefish off my line at one point, and slapped it around on the surface like a rag doll as if to taunt me.
The last day of fishing in Avalon was from shore. I caught a brittle sea star on a baited jighead. One of the most unusual things I’ve every hauled up on hook-and-line.
The Garibaldi is California’s State Fish and a protected species. We couldn’t keep them from biting our baits, though, and incidentally caught three of them. They’re a pretty fish!
After a few hours of fishing the Cabrillo Mole Pier the next morning I decided to try the Green Pleasure Pier. Joy came out and we enjoyed a cup of coffee and Cliff bars before fishing together until lunch time. I fished without success at a school of Shiner Perch, which completely shunned me throughout the trip. I failed to catch any Shiner Perch, despite my fish ID books stating how they are easy and common catches they are. Oh well… We saw Harbor Seals swim close in, and lots of avian life. We also observed some Bat Rays off the Green Pleasure pier but they showed no interest in squid.
We began fishing for the Opaleye that were lurking under the pier pilings. They showed no interest in squid, but when we tried frozen peas they began to gobble them up with gusto and we were able to catch several of these unique fish. They put up a great fight for their size. Kelp Bass, Rock Wrasse, and California Sheephead also eagerly attacked the frozen peas.
Later in the afternoon Joy and I tried fishing near the Catalina Casino.
While Joy was micro-fishing she suddenly shouted out to me that there was an eel. In fact, there were two California Moray in a rock crevice near where she was fishing. I rigged up a line with wire leader and half an anchovy on a big hook and let her try for it. It took the bait, but retreated into its crevice where it became hung up and the line broke. Joy tried again, this time luring it up away from its lair and she was able to pull it up and allowed me to grab the leader with a pliers and hoist it from the water. It rolled relentlessly as we tried to photograph it on the pathway, and a group of passersby stopped to gawk. After the brief photo shoot we released it unharmed.
Then I wanted one bad! I rigged up for a moray and dipped my bait into various rock crevices to draw them out with the scent of anchovy. I spotted a large one, and even coaxed it fully into the open before it took the bait. I set the hook and pulled hard, but it was a giant Moray and it outmuscled me and my medium-action travel rod, reaching the safety of the boulders, where it disappeared into its lair. There was nothing I could do but maintain tension, but it wasn’t coming out and eventually I broke off.
A half-hour later I found another large California Moray and I again lured it out and got it to take the bait. This time I had a 30 foot leader of 65-pound test PowerPro and a heavy wire leader, and I palmed the reel and pulled up hard. This time the eel could not get to its rocky cavern, but unfortunately the hook came loose just as I got the big Moray to the water’s surface. It disappeared in the boulders but I baited up and tried again. I patiently waited for the eel to go for the bait, which it reluctantly did but this time it would not come out far from the rocks. I let it take the bait anyway, and again pulled hard and steady to hook it and try to pull it up. This time there was a loud CRACK! My travel rod had shattered.
I removed my shoes and socks and waded onto a shallow, wetted ledge that would give me a better angle to try and pull the eel out by handlining, but after many minutes of losing ground I finally had to break off. Joy suggested we take a break and I reluctantly stopped for a meal. Later in the day I convinced her to come down to the area once more to give me a final shot at my California Moray. This time we both scanned the water, which had risen with the tides, and chummed with anchovies to draw them out. I targeted a small one this time, and that paid off as I was able to lift it out of the water. YES!
In Belize, on our 2012 trip, I had hooked a Spotted Moray several times, and failed to catch it. I also hooked the same Purple Moray twice, and had lost it both times when it became entangled in a wall of wooden posts. Losing those Morays has haunted me since, and I really would have regretted not getting a California Moray, especially after sacrificing a precious rod in the attempt. I took a few photographs and then released it unharmed into the water.
After getting a moray, I was done with them. I tried some microfishing there and got this Woolly Sculpin.
After dinner I tried one last time for another new species. I caught more Kelp Bass and enjoyed the pleasant sea breeze that evening, but caught nothing new for the lifelist.
We caught the ferry to the mainland the next day and waved goodbye to Catalina Island. I was able to get 14 new species there, but we weren’t done fishing yet…
We fished the pier in Long Beach during the evening hours through dusk. I was able to catch five additional fish species there including California Halibut, California Lizardfish, Barred Sand Bass, Spotted Sand Bass, and Pacific Chub Mackerel. There was some excitement at the far end of the pier as an angler hooked and lost what may have been a Thresher Shark. I tried some heaving gear and cutbait for sharks and rays but had no takes on the big game rig.
We grabbed dinner and craft beers to celebrate a successful fishing week. The rest of our trip was spent doing non-fishing touristy things. We visited the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach and caught a train to Hollywood to stroll Hollywood Boulevard, since we were there.
It was a great first trip to California, but not the last! Check out my 2018 trip to San Diego recap here!