Photos

San Diego Bonefishing

The bonefish of San Diego Bay are plentiful and eager to fight.

By Jim Hendricks

Updated: November 7, 2012

Distant Cousins: Bonefish on the Left Coast are a little-known fishery but plenty sporty.

California Style: The San Diego version is known as the Cortez bonefish.

Drift Away: Strategy is to drift to find the depth where fish are feeding.

Use a Carolina rig with tungsten bullet weights that slide through eelgrass and shed weeds.

Ghost shrimp are a top bait for California bonefish. Use a “slurp gun” to suck up crabs from the mud.

Go Light: San Diego bones are well sized for light tackle.

This map of San Diego Bay shows the best areas to bonefish, along with nearby boat ramps.

Captain James Nelson uses a slurp gun to capture ghost shrimp – one of the best bait for San Diego bonefish.

The best place to find ghost shrimp is on mud flats at low tide.

San Diego bonefish don’t give up easy, despite their diminutive dimensions.

SWS West Coast Editor Jim Hendricks bows to give line to a Cortez bonefish hooked on light tackle.

Cortez bonefish are surprisingly strong, usually uncorking two or more blistering runs and then fighting hard closer to the boat.

SWS West Coast Editor Jim Hendricks battles a Cortez bonefish at boatside.

Cortez bonefish have beautiful coloration, which seems to change depending on the viewing angle.

Cortez bonefish in San Diego Bay grow to a maximum length of about 17 inches.

The bonefish in San Diego Bay have a heavy slime coat that gets thicker during spawning season – usually around April and May.

Nelson releases all bonefish to help sustain the population in San Diego Bay. Moving water across the fish’s gills help revive it prior to release.

While bonefish in San Diego don’t “tail” like those in the tropics, they are still fun to catch on light tackle. This one darts away from the boat.

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