Hi everybody... I have been fishing in differente places here in Central California: Avila, Cayucos, Pismo... and NEVER have caught something decent. I have used all the possible methods: moon phases, low and high tides, sun rise and sun set, minor and major, etc.. you name it. And still havent catch something I would eat or at least take a picture. So, am I doing something wrong, is it because of the season or time of the year? I have no idea. Any comment will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.

I'm not familiar with California waters as I'm a Minnesota guy but I'm an avid angler who's fished many bodies of water in the U.S. and Carribean which has allowed me to fine tune my tactics. Majors, minors,lunar phases (lunar impacts predatory fish like musky, bass and pike more) and seasons all play a roll in catching fish but air pressure also plays a major role in finding fish. If the air pressure is not right the fish lay on the bottom and are reluctant to bite. A good rule of thumb is stable pressure, gradual increase/drop in pressure or a stable dramitic high (30+)/low (28 or less) is ideal for fishing. If the air pressure is on a dramitic rise or drop avoid fishing.

Now on to species, tackle and location. Are you just fishing in general or are you targeting a specific species? If you're looking for bass you are in luck, I fish bass tourneys and leagues every year and have gotten pretty handy pulling out picture worthy fish on bad days. Let me know what you target or would like to target and what you typically use for lures/bait/tactics. I have a few pointers for you to try. If you like to fish particular lakes, let me know which lakes. I'll review the lake maps and let you know spots I would single out. Lastly, are you shore fishing or casting from a boat?

Best of luck,

Nate

It sounds like you may be ocean fishing, pismo beach is kinda central calif and
if you are that far north you should concentrate on a couple of species. That area is great for rock cod sculpin and ling cod, but that is a deep water right off the bottom affair with a bait like fresh cut squid and mainly in the winter months. for the summer months you should try on the edges of kelp beds with cut squid or mullet or live anchovies hooked through the nose. you should
also use scampi shrimp softbaits with a leadhead calico bass love these and they hang in the kelp beds. a bonus may be a sheephead or a occasional yellowtail cruising thru but the calico is great tablefare. Of course this is on a boat or kayak platform. If you are surf casting use a 1 thru 1-1/2 oz sinker and a one or two hook leader and any cut bait. you never know what you might catch in the surf, rays shovelnose sharks croakers sheephead its a grab bag in the surf. but alot of folks dont know that rays and sharks of any brand are very good to eat, hope this helps you out! we wanna see a photo!

I was reading this post and I was wondering can you do the same for me? I live in Kissimmee, FL I fish at Brinson Park which is a part of Lake Tohopekeliga. I am targeting Largemouth Bass and Bluegills. I do not know what it is I am doing wrong I have used just about everything from wriggly worms, nightcrawlers, shinners, to crappie nibbles, homemade dough bait, to berkleys scented nightcrawlers, to lures such as rattlers, to yums worms. So far i have caught next to nothing. Please help me get a better understanding of tactics. Thanks

Nyasha

Nyasha, http://www.orlandobass.com/PDF/In-Fisherman_29-2_.pdf
here is an article from 2004 on the lake you are working on. There is alot of great tactical info in this article about bait, hooks, line, time of year to work on largemouth, and rods and reels to use. I dont know if you are fishing from shore or a boat, boats are always better cuz they can reach so many more types of cover and positions to fish from. However dont be discouraged you can catch alot of fish from the shore, and in this article they mention there is a ten lb bass for every 10 acres of water. I hope there is a place locally to find the shiners or shad they mention here as this sounds like the bait of choice. I have never fished freshwater in Florida only ocean waters but I can tell you for sure that during summer months where I have fished for bass here in Nevada and in Texas and Arkansas, hooking a live shad through the nose and casting it out with no weights(flylining)to areas known to hold fish is one wild ride when they hit it. The fish love a live bait and I am sure they can tell the difference between that and a hard lure if they have enough time to inspect it. This article also mentions that the fish in this lake are very sensative to the solunar activities so make sure you go on a day that is rated high on your fishingreminder.com site for your area.....GOOD LUCK! copy and paste the url on the line after your name into browser.

ask your local tackle store or down the local pub what works and how to 'target' species.
my personal advise would be live or fresh bait and use lighter gear.