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The rockfish season is over, the salmon season hasn’t started yet and the giant squid fishing has been very spotty in the Monterey Bay area. If you just want to catch some scrappy, good eating fish – and don’t like to pursue sanddabs, halibut and crabs in a boat - light tackle fishing for perch is about your only angling option until the salmon season begins on April 7.
To celebrate the opportunities that anglers have to catch perch in Monterey Bay, the Let’s Go Fishing Radio Show and a group of affiliated sponsors are hosting the 3rd Annual Sand Crab Classic Perch tournament at the Santa Cruz Harbor on Saturday, March 3, 2007. All proceeds beyond expenses for the event itself are donated to the Monterey Bay Salmon and Trout Project.
The first derby, on January 8, 2005, produced the most variety of fish, in spite of stormy weather. In the words of perch derby founder Mike Baxter, the 163 anglers who participated in the first ever "Sand Crab Classic " Perch Derby in Santa Cruz caught "way more fish than we had ever imagined.”
During the inaugural tournament, anglers took prizes for their five biggest fish’s length combined. Robert Hirsch of Santa Cruz won the derby by catching five barred perch measuring 64-3/4 inches, with the largest one going 15-1/4 inches. He fooled the fish with grass shrimp in the south end of the bay near the Monterey Beach Hotel in Seaside.
Gualberto Ponce won first place in the youth diversion with five barred surfperch measuring a total of 53-3/4 inches. He also fished in the bay’s south end.
However, Baxter and his co-host in 2006 decided to change the date to later in the year, February 9. They also changed the rules by awarding the prizes for the single largest fish, rather than the longest combined inches of five fish limit. The purpose for this was to encourage catch and release and to make measuring the winning fish easier. The derby was also limited to 100 entries.
Ron Honda of San Jose won first place in the 2006 event with a 15-1/16 inch barred perch caught on shrimp south of Capitola. Kris Patterson topped the kid’s division of the event with a 14-1/4 inch barred perch while fishing a mussel off the East Cliffs area when he hooked his fish.
The event continues to evolve. This year the event will take place even later in the year, March 3, a prime time for perch in the bay.
Perch fishing was very good both in the 2005 and 2006 derbies – and I see no reason why it shouldn’t be great again this year. Weather really shouldn’t make a difference. In fact, I saw nine varieties of perch weighed in 2005, in spite of heavy wind and rain, whereas I only saw four varieties of surfperch taken in 2006, when calm weather prevailed.
Monterey has an amazing variety of this popular family of fish, including barred, rubber lipped silver, walleye, striped, rainbow, redtail, black and shiner perch. Although each angler has his or her favorite spots, the winning fish have been caught from a wide area, so any “honey” hole you fish, including the Capitola and Santa Cruz wharves, could yielding a winner perch.
At press time, anglers reported catching “very good” fishing for barred perch, along with some bonus stripers, while fishing 1-1/2 inch motor oil Kalin plastic grubs off Manresa Beach, according to Todd Fraser at Bayside Marine.
The event will begin at 7am with a briefing at the Harbor Meeting Room by Bayside Marine. The derby will officially begin at 8 am and weigh in time will be at 2 pm at the Santa Cruz Yacht Club.
The tournament will be restricted to the first 100 entrants due to space restrictions and fire code at the Santa Cruz Yacht Club. You need to get your entry in now to ensure your spot in the tournament because these spots are filling up fast!
The entry fee will be $35.00 per person. $60.00 for an adult/junior (under 16 yrs old) team. What do you get for your entry fee? Tournament Categories will be 16 and under division (junior) and 17 and over division (senior) The tournament, like last year, will be judged by the largest single perch measured. Top-level prizes and a trophy will be given out in both categories. Should two or more fish tie for greatest length, whichever fish weighs the most will be determined as the winner A raffle will then distribute the rest of the giveaway items and prizes.
You must be present to win and have your tournament tag with you. All entrants must attend the morning briefing and check-in at the Harbor Meeting Room near Bayside Marine at 7 am on March 3, 2007.
“You may fish wherever you want, with whatever you want (within current DFG regulations),” said Mike Baxter. “You must return to the Santa Cruz Yacht Club by the 2pm cut-off time with your catch and your tag to be eligible for any prizes. From 2-3pm, we will measure all fish and determine the winners.”
The winner in each category will be awarded a trophy and prize. During dinner, all prizes and giveaway items will be raffled off to the remaining contestants. The single fish of greatest length will determine the winner.
To enter, download your entry form at www.theletsgofishingradioshow.com or grab an entry form at Bayside Marine or The Angler’s Choice Tackle Shop and fill it out completely.
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