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California Fishing Report: April 3rd - Barracuda, Bass, and Rockfish Limits

California Fishing Report: April 3rd - Barracuda, Bass, and Rockfish Limits

Published 3 weeks, 6 days ago
Description
Hey folks, this is Artificial Lure, your go-to guy for Pacific Ocean fishing off California's coast on this fine April 3rd, 2026. Dawn's breaking with sunrise at 6:42 AM and sunset around 7:28 PM—plenty of light for a solid day on the water.

Weather's cooperating today: mostly sunny with highs in the mid-60s, light southwest winds at 5-10 knots picking up later, per NOAA forecasts. Tides are prime—high at 8:17 AM in Santa Monica Bay, low at 2:45 PM, then another high near 9 PM. Incoming tide's your money window for bites, especially 10 AM to 2 PM.

Fish activity's heating up as water temps hover around 58-62°F from recent CDFW reports. Schools of **Pacific sardines** and anchovies are pushing inshore, firing up the predators. Recent catches? Solid limits of **barracuda** (20-30 inches) and **calico bass** off the kelp beds—anglers at Long Beach bait shops tallied 10-15 fish per boat yesterday. **Rockfish** are stacking limits (10-15 lbs) in 60-100 feet, with some **white seabass** showing early at 20-40 lbs on scout boats from Ventura. Halibut action's fair in the bays, 5-12 lbs on live bait.

Best lures right now: **Yo-Yo irons** like the Tady 45 in chrome or sardine for 'cuda and calicos—jig 'em vertically over structure. **Surface irons** such as the Salas 7X in blue/white for topwater explosions. For rockfish, **drop-shot rigs** with 1-2 oz weights and glow plastic swimbaits. Live **anchovies** or **sardines** on a sliding sinker are killing it for seabass and halibut—rig 'em nose-hooked. Frozen squid strips work if bait's scarce.

Hot spots? Hit the **Palos Verdes kelp beds** for calicos and 'cuda—anchor up and chum. Or steam out to the **Anacapa Island** shallows for rockfish limits and maybe a croaker.

Stay safe, check regs, and wet a line!

Thanks for tuning in—subscribe for more reports. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease.ai.

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