SPECIAL TO PVT DREW CALVERT LANDED THIS WHITE SEA BASS NEAR CATALINA ISLAND IN CALIFORNIA. TESTING SHOWED THE FISH TO BE 12 YEARS OLD, AND THE GRANDDADDY OF ITS TYPE, IN THE AREA. DAN SIMMONS SPORTSMAN'S QUEST MORE COLUMNS Advertisement

The bite is on and my fishing fanatic friend, Drew Calvert, came by to tell me about it. He even brought pictures, just in case I doubted this account of his latest trip.

The word was out that conditions were right for the white sea bass to start biting. Drew hadn't been out since last fall and his wife, Anna, saw that he was getting a bit of cabin fever. So when he suggested it might be time to give them a try she responded, "I'll pack your bag." After many long years she knew it was time for him to get his "fishing fix."

He was on his way to Pierpoint Landing in Long Beach to meet some pals on the 42-foot six-pack charter boat, Dreamer, skippered by the legendary Captain Allyn Watson.

The moon was full, and that was good. He had fished the full moon the previous three years and found the fish hungry. The coming storm and small craft warnings were less good, but that wasn't going to stop him, and besides, the Dreamer had a reputation of being a "dry boat."

At 10 p.m., they were headed for the sheltered waters on the inside of Catalina Island, but first had to cross open water with waves crashing over the bow and pilot house.

The fishermen were comfortable below the deck in their dry bunks. That is, all of the fisherman except friend Chad, who had slightly opened the hatch above his v-berth to sneak a smoke and neglected to seal it when he had finished.

Well, he awoke to a wet berth and whined for the remainder of the trip, but his fellow fishermen didn't share much sympathy. They were dreaming of big fish.

At 2 a.m., they started fishing and struck the first white sea bass an hour later. They had found them. From then on the fish got bigger and bigger; 12 pounds then 20, then a big 30-pounder. Success continued and at 6 a.m., Drew had a really big fish, and it ran straight for the kelp. He was using 65-pound Spectra line with a 50-pound fluorocarbon leader on his new Accurate, 2-speed Boss Magnum reel.

He could feel his line cutting through the kelp, then it went slack, "Oh, shucks" (or something like that) he exclaimed. Then it took off for deeper water, still hooked.

The fish was headed for Long Beach and it would be hard to imagine who was more surprised, Drew or the fish, when it came to the end of a slack line. It was still very much alive.

It would be easy now in deep water, right? Wrong. As he brought the fish to the boat, it discovered a new trick, and wrapped itself several times around the anchor line.

Perhaps this had worked for the fish before, thus his great size, but Captain Watson was way ahead of him. He just winched the anchor up a bit. It wasn't over yet, though. It was still moving -- fast, but after three passes was gaffed perfectly.

It then took two guys and three supervisors to haul the still lively fish over the gunnel. Forty plus pounds of fresh delicious white sea bass was on deck. That was one big fish.

It was later determined, through the otolith (ear bone) aging program managed by California Fish and Game, that the majority of the fish were in the three- to four-year age class. Drew's was the granddaddy at over 12 years old. Yep -- one big ol' fish.

It wasn't over yet though. I told you Drew is a fishing fanatic. He was scheduled to go out the next night, but the storm grew worse. So, he jumped in his truck and headed north to Oxnard, on the central coast of California.

A few hours later he was on the Channel Island Sport Fishing's charter to San Miguel Island and jigging for ling cod and red snapper.

It looks like the season has begun for Drew, but you can bet Anna's honey-do list will be waiting for him between trips.

For more information on fishing charters go to www.thebiggame90.net, www.freedomsportfishing.com or www.dreamerfishing.com and for on-line daily fishing reports go to www.976tuna.com.

If you have a story or comment about this or other articles, please contact me at dansimmons@usa.net or give me a call at 775-727-9777.

What's new

The yellowtail are starting to arrive on the west coast of Southern California. A few have been landed, weighing up to 40 pounds. So, following the white sea bass explosion that we are experiencing you can get your 20- to 40-pound fishing line ready for their arrival.

You can follow the action with current fish reports from H & M Landing at www.hmlanding.com, or at the Big Game 90 website www.thebiggame90.net.