San Diego & SoCal Fishing Forums

Did a brief 6 hour session this overcast Sunday without much todo. This was a break-in trip for the new SUP yak and it preformed well. Started off at the Ski Beach Boat Launch and fished my way (regrettably against an incoming tide) from Dana to Quivira without a bite. Eel grass is heavy around Dana. Quivira had some sea puppies barking which made for a pleasant departure from the lack of bites. Made my way back the same route and as I was about to call it snagged my only bite that day under the Ingraham bridge. It was caught on a 2.5" Z-Man Slim Swimz in Space Guppy with a 1/6 oz chartreuse ned head; just swimming it. Tough day out there. Highlight was coming back alive after some trust fund baby nearly ran me over with his super yacht.

Oooh damn I'm not one to question a mans fishing areas or style but why of all the days did you choose today to test out a new rig? I know the urge to fish but F the bay fishing, go to a lake first especially these next few days

I fished the big bay on Saturday with two coworkers, it was painfully slow down there as well.

Next time I would launch from fiesta Island or South shores. Less boat traffic. That's where I launched my canoe from over there. Better chance of catching fish too.

***** DANGER! INVISIBLE FISHERMAN AHEAD *****


That SUP is all Camo color and looks like it's made for duck hunting .... It exactly matches the color of the water - see your third photo and imagine being a boater who likes to drive FAST with a BAC of 1.5 with a beer in each hand.

Its not surprising at all that you almost got T-boned unfortunately. In open water, you are a sitting duck. I would be expecting a lot of similar experiences in an invisible boat, with a dark grey shirt and a khaki life-preserver.

Perhaps a signal light or two will increase the visibility

With all that engine noise in the water I would assume that would shut off the bite until later that night honestly. I would say you would have probably caught a couple more next to the pilings but that is a dangerous spot to sit and I always hate it when those bay boat rental guys drop anchor right between the two pilings on a mild day

professionull wrote: Sun Jul 02, 2023 3:23 pm Oooh damn I'm not one to question a mans fishing areas or style but why of all the days did you choose today to test out a new rig? I know the urge to fish but F the bay fishing, go to a lake first especially these next few days

There are very few options for using an SUP on lakes in San Diego. SUPs are allowed at Lake Hodges and San Vicente. San V has haul-ass SKI BOATS everywhere, wake-boat big wakes, not to mention the bass boaters on our lakes that like to drive 70 mph everywhere. It can be very scary even in a kayak out there with lots of bright colors.

I would second the recommendation for using very secluded no-wake areas in the bays. Like Spanish Landing - Liberty Station or backside of Fiesta Island. The other SUP fishing options are the N County lagoons or local beaches. Its difficult to fish the productive bridge areas from a paddle SUP due to the currents, the biggest drawback being that you'd have a paddle in your hand about 70% of the time. I've always compared it to fishing from a rowboat without an anchor.

blackcloud9 wrote: Mon Jul 03, 2023 10:11 am

professionull wrote: Sun Jul 02, 2023 3:23 pm Oooh damn I'm not one to question a mans fishing areas or style but why of all the days did you choose today to test out a new rig? I know the urge to fish but F the bay fishing, go to a lake first especially these next few days

There are very few options for using an SUP on lakes in San Diego. SUPs are allowed at Lake Hodges and San Vicente. San V has haul-ass SKI BOATS everywhere, wake-boat big wakes, not to mention the bass boaters on our lakes that like to drive 70 mph everywhere. It can be very scary even in a kayak out there with lots of bright colors.

I would second the recommendation for using very secluded no-wake areas in the bays. Like Spanish Landing - Liberty Station or backside of Fiesta Island. The other SUP fishing options are the N County lagoons or local beaches. Its difficult to fish the productive bridge areas from a paddle SUP due to the currents, the biggest drawback being that you'd have a paddle in your hand about 70% of the time. I've always compared it to fishing from a rowboat without an anchor.

Did Hodges disallow SUPs recently? I know they allowed it in 2019, but I was there on Sat and there's a big sign at the concession stand saying no SUPs.

Neuroshima wrote: Mon Jul 03, 2023 10:32 am Did Hodges disallow SUPs recently? I know they allowed it in 2019, but I was there on Sat and there's a big sign at the concession stand saying no SUPs.

Oh, I forgot due to runoff, they (Hodges) have posted a temporary no water contact activity due to water quality which Laina said may be lifted when the water quality is better. They are testing it regularly.

blackcloud9 wrote: Mon Jul 03, 2023 10:11 am There are very few options for using an SUP on lakes in San Diego. SUPs are allowed at Lake Hodges and San Vicente. San V has haul-ass SKI BOATS everywhere, wake-boat big wakes, not to mention the bass boaters on our lakes that like to drive 70 mph everywhere. It can be very scary even in a kayak out there with lots of bright colors.

I would second the recommendation for using very secluded no-wake areas in the bays. Like Spanish Landing - Liberty Station or backside of Fiesta Island. The other SUP fishing options are the N County lagoons or local beaches. Its difficult to fish the productive bridge areas from a paddle SUP due to the currents, the biggest drawback being that you'd have a paddle in your hand about 70% of the time. I've always compared it to fishing from a rowboat without an anchor.

I wasn't trying to bash on his rig but the timing of testing it out wasn't ideal. I wouldn't even launch my small boat to fish the bay even if my presence is a lot more noticeable with the amount of morons I have to navigate through just on normal weekends in MB

Would that setup fall under an SUP technically? If kayaks are allowed and that could fall under that category regardless there are still the No-wake days designated to San V that are always in place. Hodges doesn't allow it currently even though I heard a ranger tell someone on Saturday they're not allowed then come Sunday saw someone else going full forge without incident. I will say from their own words, they're "trying to change a lot of the city reinforced rules back to how it was before the closure."

Either way I was just making my comment based on a safety concern

blackcloud9 wrote: Mon Jul 03, 2023 10:11 am There are very few options for using an SUP on lakes in San Diego. SUPs are allowed at Lake Hodges and San Vicente. San V has haul-ass SKI BOATS everywhere, wake-boat big wakes, not to mention the bass boaters on our lakes that like to drive 70 mph everywhere. It can be very scary even in a kayak out there with lots of bright colors.

Circling back to this, I got clarity from San Diego Resovior and Lakes Program Manager, and despite the SUP-like appearance, so long as you're sitting down and using a traditional kayak paddle, it meets the regulatory definition as a kayak and is allowed on any county lake which allows both kayaks and inflatables. Had some concern about that myself, but it's good to go by their determination.

Zach wrote: Wed Jul 19, 2023 11:43 am Circling back to this, I got clarity from San Diego Resovior and Lakes Program Manager, and despite the SUP-like appearance, so long as you're sitting down and using a traditional kayak paddle, it meets the regulatory definition as a kayak and is allowed on any county lake which allows both kayaks and inflatables. Had some concern about that myself, but it's good to go by their determination.

Great to hear that the city is rightly considering this craft in the same class as a sit-on-top kayak/inflatable and that will offer you many more options for local freshwater fishing than a 'traditional' SUP! Awesome.

It’s a “good thing” kayaks have zero jurisdiction in Navigable waterways per federal regs…they were referred to as speed bumps in the 100 ton class. Be safe an aware!