Hey All,
My wife and I have been invited to stay on Catalina in mid April.
Does anyone know of any fishing opportunities from the Island? I'm most interested in yellowtail and White Sea bass, but any fishing is okay with me!
Jack
Prime time for sea bass. Be good to have access to a boat though
Maybe start someplace like here: https://www.lovecatalina.com/things-to-do/by-sea/fishing/
Sorry I can't be more help. I use to have a good friend who lived in Avalon but he moved to the mainland. If you dive, I would suggest setting up a dive trip for your first day because you will learn a lot about the U/W terrain and you could ask the dive people for fishing suggestions. I've seen some really big Black Sea Bass while diving but not the WSB. The WSB are so spooked by bubbles and scuba sounds. We don't call them 'ghosts' for nothing.
How many days are you planning to be in Avalon?
If you don't scuba; do some snorkeling at two places in short walking distance from Avalon. The dive park at Casino Point is great. Nice stairs into the water for easy entry and exit. I've seen BSB in there and if you go in the evening the nocturnals will be coming out so you'll see lots of lobsters and octopus.
The other good snorkel site is on the other side of Avalon and is called either Lover's Cove or Pebble Beach. This is also a preserve but it is loaded with some of the biggest Calico Bass you will ever see and lots of them too. The glass bottom boats and submarine make their rounds here and they are scooping fish food the whole time. The fish are very bold and are also use to being fed by divers. Keep your fingers tucked in because the bass will nip at your fingers.
You can also rent kayaks but I don't think they are rigged for fishing. Maybe make some calls?
For yt & wsb, you need a boat & pref live bait. There are/were a couple charter ops (Google Catalina fishing charters) who mite still be in operation. For smaller stuff, you can do it urself & rent a skiff in Avalon or Two Harbors. Chum w/cut squid & the perch/sheepshead/calicos will find you.
I'll be there 3 nights. I'm looking for a boat that's based on Catalina for a full day or overnight trip. I'm hoping to avoid the barge with 4,000 passengers scene.
I've looked online, but I keep finding mainland boats that fish Cat and the other islands.
I don't dive, in fact I'm more of a sinker than a swimmer.
Thanks for the responses so far,
Jack
https://icatalina.com/
"Afishinados" never used em but their website is active.
Maybe a mainland boat could pick you up there? I hope you find a ride. I've had some great times over there.
Tight lines, Brendan.