Tag: sportfishing

• Maintenance is a must…

  My grandfather lived his entire life in cold weather states. He was born in Minnesota, the land of 10,000 often frozen lakes, then moved to Michigan, the Great Often Frozen Lakes State. Yet in all his years, he never went ice fishing. He just never cared for the sport, he’d tell me the fish would […]

  John Darling – Author

  February 25, 2021

  Shakespeare ATS 350, Shakespeare Contender, sportfishing, Ventura Pier

  fishing, Shakespeare ATS30, Shakespeare Contender, sportfishing, Ventura Pier

• The Off Season

  I have not posted anything in a while for one simple reason: I have had nothing to post about. I have fished in the Pacific Ocean off and on for nearly 40 years and to date, this is the worst fishing season I can remember after last season being one of the best. I guess […]

  John Darling – Author

  October 28, 2020

  Bait, Calico Bass, California White Croakers, Cormorant, Dungeness Crab, fishing, fishing pole, fog, Goleta Pier, Mackerel, Pacific Ocean, Pelicans, Perch, Port Hueneme Beach, Port Hueneme Pier, Professional Fisherman, Sand Crab, Santa Barbara, CA, Sea Gulls, Sharks, Skate Ray, smelt, Stearns Wharf, Ventura Pier

  fishing pole, Pacific Ocean, sportfishing

• The Pacific and the Pandemic

  I haven’t been out to the Ventura Pier since all hell broke loose because of the current worldwide pandemic even though I know fishing out there is not prohibited under California’s Marshall Law. The fishing has been way off due to the cold Pacific water anyway, but I had been checking in now and again. […]

  John Darling – Author

  March 30, 2020

  Uncategorized

  Egret, fishing, Goleta Pier, Pacific Ocean, sportfishing, Stearns Wharf, Ventura Pier

• The Return of the King

  In an unusual occurrence, my part of SoCal experienced King Tides in back-to-back months. Last month I went out to the Ventura Pier to see if the fishing picked up despite the cold Pacific Ocean water and for the most part the catch was better although still below what it is like when the water […]

  John Darling – Author

  February 10, 2020

  Uncategorized

  fishing, King Tides, Pacific Ocean, Santa Barbara, smelt, sportfishing, Stearns Wharf, Ventura Pier

• King Tides and Cold Water

  Earth’s ocean tides rise and fall in relation to how strong the Moon’s gravitational pull effects the planet at any given time. When it is strong, tides rise, when it is weak, tides recede. This high and low tide change happens twice a day and since the Earth moves in the same orbit while the […]

  John Darling – Author

  January 7, 2020

  Uncategorized

  Climate Change, fishing, King Tides, Pacific Ocean, sportfishing

• “Are you a professional fisherman?”

  Even before I started wearing my shirt, hat, and hoodie which advertise my blog, I have been asked this question. In response I always say, “More or less, I guess.” This non-response usually ends the inquiry, but if someone asks me to explain, I tell them that after 52 years of working, I have managed […]

  John Darling – Author

  November 21, 2019

  fishing pole, Pacific Ocean, Professional Fisherman, Santa Barbara, CA, sportfishing, Stearns Wharf

  fishing, Pacific Ocean, Professional, Santa Barbara, sportfishing, Stearns Wharf