OUTDOORS / PETE THOMAS : No Strings Attached on Saturday

If you’ve ever wanted to give fishing a try but didn’t want to spend the money to buy a license for something you might not like, then Saturday is for you.

As one of two designated free fishing days this year--the second will be Sept. 25--prospective anglers can wet a line without a license and without risking a hefty fine for being caught without one.

No catch. Just part of an effort by the state to get more people interested in fishing, and thereby generate more revenue for a financially strapped California Department of Fish and Game.

The DFG has planned several events for Saturday, including one in the South Bay’s Alondra Park Lake. Experts will be on hand at the Torrance reservoir throughout the day to give clinics on how to catch the trout, largemouth bass and bluegill that live in the lake.

Additionally, the DFG said it will plant 600 catfish before Saturday.

Fishing equipment will be available, according to the DFG’s Candace Lake, who said children will be able to fish for prizes. Activities are scheduled from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Information: (310) 590-4835.

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The barracuda bonanza is in its fourth week, with multiple hookups and 10-fish limits the rule. Daily counts per boat are still in the hundreds.

But there is a catch. You have to go all the way to Catalina to find them, which means you should expect somewhat slower fishing aboard the half-day boats.

The good news is that a band of cold, dirty water that had been acting as a barrier to any migratory fish that might otherwise cross the channel to the mainland is slowly warming and clearing. Subsequently, there have been signs of improvement.

“Conditions are starting to change for the better,” said Ray Duane, owner-operator of the Matt Walsh out of 22nd Street Landing in San Pedro. “The water’s trying to clean up and we’re starting to pick a few sand bass.”

And barracuda are beginning to filter to local waters, so it could only be a matter of time until they arrive in force.

The best fishing is in the Santa Monica Bay, where boats from Marina del Rey to Malibu have been putting their passengers on sizable schools of calico bass and sand bass.

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From the South Bay to the Eastern Sierra went Doug and Mike McCarter, who found the post-Memorial Day crowds way down, the scenery excellent and the fishing almost as good--especially when the weather was cooperating.

“On the first day, it was victory at sea and we almost got blown off the lake,” said Mike McCarter, 35, of Manhattan Beach. “We tried to fish but almost didn’t make it back to the landing.”

That was June 2. In the ensuing days, Mike and his father, Doug, using various mixtures of Power Bait, caught rainbow trout ranging from 1 1/2 to three pounds fishing from a boat in Crowley’s Hilton Bay in the morning. In the afternoon, the anglers fished the banks of picturesque Convict Lake, where pan-size trout were willing enough to fill their stringer.

The anglers also checked the higher-elevation lakes that had only recently become accessible.

“There were eight-foot snow drifts, but getting there was no problem,” Mike McCarter said. “Twin, Mamie and Mary (lakes in the Mammoth area) are still partially iced but fishable. (Lake) George is about a third iced over, but fishable.

“But there was hardly anyone around. We saw brown bear and some deer.”

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Big fish honors go to Orlando Woolridge of the Detroit Pistons. The Palos Verdes resident, an avid fisherman, spent the day recently at Castaic Lake near Magic Mountain and successfully battled a 10-pound 12-ounce largemouth bass.