San Diego & SoCal Fishing Forums

I think most use 1/2 oz for normal conditions… I throw 3/8 oz, because that’s what the max my rod is rated for.. I’ll occasionally go smaller, but usually just in bays.. I love my lighter weight rod for fighting perch or even larger game like small bat rays or leopard sharks.. And is perfect for ...

When I used to use a c-rig, I matched the weight to the sweet spot of my rod which was 3/4oz. For me, it was more about casting and feeling the weight on the retrieve. I like to cast long for croaker and then see what bites when it gets closer.

I'd say, find a weight, line and leader length that ...

I use mostly 1 ounce for my Carolina rigs in the surf, sometimes 3/4 ounce. That sounds like more than others, but I’m also probably using a heavier line (14 lb). The 1 ounce does well for me until waves get over 4ft, and I’d rather surf than fish if waves get bigger than that. I’ll still use 1 ...

I primarily look at the tide, wave height and wind. For beaches with webcams, I'll look at those too. Here's what I like at my local beaches (Palos Verdes to Manhattan) for corbina and yellowfin croaker with sand crabs:

1. Tide: I prefer to fish around high tide, although if I only have time to ...

I agree with Mike.. Less wind is important to me.. Unless it’s off shore, then I don’t mind a heavier breeze.. Weeds are a pain to deal with… I usually just fish when I can… Mostly mornings until noon, tides are what they are, even though they do affect the bite…
Butch

I agree with Mike M with one difference. I prefer low tide, but I will fish any tide because I fish mornings 99% of the time. I’m relatively new to the area and have only fished pacific beach for the last couple summers. PB gets crowded on summer evenings so I’m almost always fishing early mornings.

Agree with all the earlier comments & just to add my 2 cents. I try to always fish 2 hours on both sides of a high or low. My experience has been the bite slows /shuts off during the middle 2 hours of the tide swing. I usually don't fish if the swell/wave interval is forecasted to be less than 10 ...

RBFishing wrote: Fri Feb 27, 2026 4:50 pm I found my way to North Ponto beach. Caught 1 hand sized BSP. Tide was -1.1 at mid day so I was able to wade out far.

One is better than none... Congrats on the skunk breaker...
Butch

I was entertaining myself on the I.B. pier when I saw 'Francisco' reel in the biggest BSP I have personally seen. He had 2 others in this size range in his bucket. I made such a big deal out of it that he insisted I pose with *his* fish for a photo! Since I didn't ask permission to use his face on ...

I found enough crabs to fish with and casted long for these 2 croakers yesterday afternoon.