Thresher shark gives angler a fight

Great white sharks have been on the minds of many since the recent fatal attack on a swimmer off Solana Beach, but another type of shark is grabbing the attention of anglers off nearby La Jolla.

Thresher sharks, which pose no threat to humans unless they stand too close to the predators' scythe-like tails, are becoming active in the La Jolla submarine canyon and other marine trenches off Southern California.

La Mirada's Terrence Berg, while fishing on the Wide Load out of San Diego, caught a 220-pound thresher that was corralling mackerel, as gulls and pelicans soared erratically overhead.

He hooked his prize with a slow-trolled mackerel and fought it for 30 minutes on stand-up gear: a Seeker rod and Avet Pro EXW 30/02 reel spooled with 50-pound Ande line.

Berg will not go hungry any time soon.

Coronado Islands

Capt. Ryan Bostian of the three-quarter-day San Diego, out of Seaforth Sportfishing, reported 40 bonito and eight yellowtail for eight anglers Thursday.

The same boat on Saturday, but with a different captain, returned with 120 bonito and two yellowtail. The islands, though in Mexican waters, remain a Southland hot spot.

Channel Islands sea bass

The search for white sea bass has shifted temporarily to San Clemente Island, where anglers have enjoyed sporadic success. The Toronado out of Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach on Sunday picked up 10. The Dreamer, from the same landing, got nine.

Says Michelle Murray of Phantom Sportfishing: "Unfortunately, the only sea bass we got [Sunday] was a 20-pounder in the belly of a 200-pound mako shark they got on the way back to the dock."

Catalina calicos

The three-quarter-day Freelance out of Davey’s Locker in Newport Beach on Sunday hit the calico bass jackpot while fishing in three spots on the island's east end and backside.

Capt. Norris Tapp turned in a count of 119 legal-sized calicos but says his 39 anglers released at least 400 sub-legals.

They then tried an area on the front side and caught 50 bonito and seven barracuda.

Austin Smith, 11, a first-time ocean angler from Corona del Mar, caught nearly a dozen fish.

Tapp says the water is 62 degrees around most of the island, which may signal an impending sea bass or yellowtail bite.

Eastern Sierra tidbits

-- Convict Lake, which produced the largest rainbow on opening day, received 800 pounds of Alpers trout last Tuesday, with the smallest fish weighing about 3 pounds.

-- Ice fishing at Lake Sabrina essentially lasted one day. Several people fell through the ice a day after the April 26 opener but were OK. Now the ice is almost gone. No large trout caught recently, but pan-sized fish are biting on night crawlers.