San Diego & SoCal Fishing Forums

I couldn’t stay away. I got breakfast at Mission while the highest morning tired receded a bit (pic below of the high mark, halfway up the beach to the bike path!!) and made my way to the water.

All things considered, the water was relatively calm. The current was a little strong but not as strong as recent weeks, and the grass/kelp was minimal. I caught three small perch in a 30 minute window between 9:30-10:00; one on mussel (tied with elastic) and two on gulp camo worms. I got bites throughout the morning but only those three early takers.

Weather couldn’t have been more perfect, aside from the incredibly high - and rapidly receding - tide. I stuck around to see the low tide and it was equally crazy to see how far out it went! I even made a quick stop at Mission Point park and saw lots of little fish hopping out of the water close to shore but nothing that took my bait.

The mussels were fun to use with the elastic tie and they definitely got more action than any other non crab/gulp baits I’ve been using lately. I still struggled at times with keeping it on the hook but I suspect that’ll just be a bit of a learning process with regards to how much elastic to use, how tight to pull it, etc.

All in all a better day than I’d anticipated.

Sounds like some good outdoor time .
The picture conveys the sense of a beautiful day .

Try adding some Cotton to your Mussels. You can really “ bag it” in the threads. Stays on plus grabs the Perches teeth upping your hook set ratio.

There is a product called spawn net . Small mesh fabric , mostly used for salmon eggs ,but should work for Mussel as well . One brand I remember ,Atlas Mikes .

That's a pic of one of my favorite places.. Beautiful day on the beach... It's cool you didn't let the tides detour you.... Nice fishing..
Thanks Bendo and Bill for the mussel suggestions...
Butch

Midnightpass wrote: Wed Nov 05, 2025 8:09 am That's a pic of one of my favorite places.. Beautiful day on the beach... It's cool you didn't let the tides detour you.... Nice fishing..
Thanks Bendo and Bill for the mussel suggestions...
Butch

I absolutely love north/south Mission Beach; it's a nice blend of the vibes of all of the other neighboring beaches. Fun, walkable bike path and sidewalks with all sorts of food options, generally available parking depending on the time of day and willingness to walk a few blocks, bay availability if you're looking for something a bit more calm, and the drive in and out, especially in off-peak hours, really makes you appreciate everything about this part of the world. And the fishing ain't bad, either

Try finding some bigger mussel and use the lip. You can feed it up the hook, like a worm, and it will both stay on the hook well and look like a worm as you retreive it slowly toward shore. I've also found that if you crush mussel you can use the meat with a bit of shell attached...as this is how fish find mussel when washed from the rocks and not cleaned and on a hook.