Freshwater FishingFreshwater fishing rods, gear, and fish to catch

Charter Fishing Marina Del Rey , Ca?

This will be my first time fishing ever. I am in my late 20s and would like to go fishing on a charter boat. I would like to have my own gear. What do I need to bring? A cooler, if so how big? Bait, what kind? Are the fish i catch in los angeles area safe to eat? Will the charter throw away and of the fish i catch?

There are open party boats all along the coast. These are boats where they take anyone who pays for a ticket. (A charter is an operation where you and a group of friends hire the whole boat, skipper, and crew, and therefore it costs more.) I assume you’re interested in going on a party boat.

Most boats or landings have fishing gear available for rental ($10 at Marina Del Rey). Bait is provided on the boat. You’ll need a license (this time of year, get a one-day license, $13.40, those are generally available at the landing). Generally coolers aren’t allowed, fish are kept in gunny sacks (bring one or buy it on board). Dress for the weather, sunglasses, a hat, sunscreen, and shoes which won’t get ruined by salt water. The boats sell breakfast, lunch, snacks, and drinks onboard.

The fish are generally safe to eat, though if you get tomcod (white croaker) toss them back. There are a lot of fishing laws (minimum sizes, etc., ask the crew if you don’t know if a fish you’ve got is legal.) At the end of the day, they’ll clean your fish for a few bucks.

Anyway, right now the catch is mainly rockfish and sculpin. Both of these are good eating, but sculpin have poisonous spines, so handle them carefully (or ask a deckhand to unhook them for you). In the summer there are larger surface fish like barracuda and bass (and others), but now the water has started cooling off, it’s mainly the bottom fish.

Finally, if the crew is helpful, tip them $5 or $10 at the end of the day.

437 Los Angeles Dodgers Fan Fishing Trip with Dan Hernandez