Mission Beach 9/26 - 9/27
Posted: Mon Sep 29, 2025 8:43 am
Grass. Traffic.
That's my report for the weekend. Grass and traffic.
I'm sure this was partly my fault, as I was only able to get to the beach on Friday and Saturday late afternoon/early evening as the tides were receding and/or already out, but they were WAY out at MB when I arrived. I also stupidly assumed traffic would be light because of the northbound I-5 shutdown between the 8 and the 52 but it was quite the opposite, ha. Traffic was snarled, but I made the most of it with music blaring and the windows rolled down
The yucky-ish inland weather Thursday and some of Friday must've scared everyone away because the beach itself was beautiful. Eerily calm, no crowds whatsoever which is a bit unusual for a Friday evening at south MB. Of course, if you're into the beach for water play, why would you be there? I didn't last more than an hour because of how well the salted clams were working at catching the grass in the water. It was almost immediately snagging my line, giving me quite the workout reeling it in. I regrettably had to cut my line at some point because of how heavy it was, as it appeared as if it my entire reel was going to get spooled. Oh well, still better than not being at the beach at all!
Fool me once... I headed back out Saturday evening, a bit better equipped to handle traffic and heading all the way to Sunset Cliffs before turning north, telling myself I'd fish wherever I first found parking. I don't recall exactly where I ended up (somewhere around tower 19-20), but the tide was again very far out, and very calm. Stunningly beautiful for relaxing and enjoying the sunset, not so much for fishing. I did snag one smaller perch, but again spent most of the short time I was there battling grass.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to test the salted clams much as I was literally casting directly into giant balls of grass for most of my sessions. I did manage the one perch on Saturday. As for the durability of the bait, it stayed on the hook throughout the whole ordeal, so there's that? And it did catch the one fish so I know it has potential. Even as it took on moisture it was still durable. Lots of crab beds, too, on Saturday although they were mostly large and without roe.
That's my report for the weekend. Grass and traffic.
I'm sure this was partly my fault, as I was only able to get to the beach on Friday and Saturday late afternoon/early evening as the tides were receding and/or already out, but they were WAY out at MB when I arrived. I also stupidly assumed traffic would be light because of the northbound I-5 shutdown between the 8 and the 52 but it was quite the opposite, ha. Traffic was snarled, but I made the most of it with music blaring and the windows rolled down
The yucky-ish inland weather Thursday and some of Friday must've scared everyone away because the beach itself was beautiful. Eerily calm, no crowds whatsoever which is a bit unusual for a Friday evening at south MB. Of course, if you're into the beach for water play, why would you be there? I didn't last more than an hour because of how well the salted clams were working at catching the grass in the water. It was almost immediately snagging my line, giving me quite the workout reeling it in. I regrettably had to cut my line at some point because of how heavy it was, as it appeared as if it my entire reel was going to get spooled. Oh well, still better than not being at the beach at all!
Fool me once... I headed back out Saturday evening, a bit better equipped to handle traffic and heading all the way to Sunset Cliffs before turning north, telling myself I'd fish wherever I first found parking. I don't recall exactly where I ended up (somewhere around tower 19-20), but the tide was again very far out, and very calm. Stunningly beautiful for relaxing and enjoying the sunset, not so much for fishing. I did snag one smaller perch, but again spent most of the short time I was there battling grass.
Unfortunately, I wasn't able to test the salted clams much as I was literally casting directly into giant balls of grass for most of my sessions. I did manage the one perch on Saturday. As for the durability of the bait, it stayed on the hook throughout the whole ordeal, so there's that? And it did catch the one fish so I know it has potential. Even as it took on moisture it was still durable. Lots of crab beds, too, on Saturday although they were mostly large and without roe.