FISHING / DAN STANTON : Area Captain Was Hooked on Fishing From the Start
Norm Kagawa of San Pedro was 7 when his father Ted took him fishing on the pier in Long Beach. Kagawa returned with a limit of perch and a liking for the sport.
By the time he was 17, Kagawa was an experienced angler. While attending college, he decided that he wanted to become a professional fisherman. After some thought, Kagawa decided that San Diego would be a good place to start his career.
His first job was as a deckhand on the boat Little Searcher that made trips to Coronado Island. He gained a reputation as one of the fleet’s top deckhands. He eventually was hired to work on the boat Searcher 95.
He obtained his captain’s license and became second skipper on three- to five-day tuna trips.
Kagawa, 40, also worked on the Royal Polaris 105, which would frequently go on 15-day tuna trips.
Kagawa eventually joined captains Frank Lo Preste and Ted Dunn and they built the 90-foot Shogun, a boat with luxury accommodations that is designed for long-range trips. They launched the boat out of Los Angeles Harbor Sportfishing.
During the fall and winter, Kagawa guides the boat to waters offshore of San Clemente Island. In the summer, his three- to five-day tuna trips often result in anglers returning with limits.
Each summer the Monterey Aquarium Museum charters the Shogun for 10-day trips to catch albacore or other species to stock their aquariums.
Kagawa said the boat is equipped with special holding tanks to transport the fish to the museum’s aquariums.
The seas were calm and anglers equipped with rain gear got into some good fishing last week.
Anglers aboard Redondo Sport Fishing’s half-day boat Redondo Special returned with rockfish, sheephead and two small white seabass. Nancy Gray of Long Beach caught a 12-pound halibut.
Anglers aboard the L.A. Harbor boat Matt Walsh caught limits of rockfish, sheephead and sculpin.
Ben Brown of San Pedro landed a 25-pound white seabass, one of the first caught in local waters this season.
South Bay catches: Steve Allen of Long Beach, aboard the City of Seal Beach at the drop-off area, caught the whopper of the week, a 37-pound lingcod.
Carl Herrera of Inglewood, aboard the Sportking at the rigs, caught a 17-pound lingcod.
Marc Spartcus of San Pedro caught a 12 1/2-pound halibut during a trip to the flats aboard the Pacifica.
