FISHING : Area Fleet in Search for Rock Cod This Winter

South Bay Sportfishing boats will be targeting rock cod during trips in the winter months.

There are more than 50 species of rockfish that can be caught, including lingcod, cow cod, salmon grouper and red snapper.

Local day boats will be fishing in depths of 200 feet. Outer island boats will fish in depths of 600 to 800 feet.

After being hooked, many of the deep-water cod will float to the surface, making it easy for anglers using heavy weights or jigs to reel in their catch.

South Bay Sportfishing schedules have been announced.

The Redondo Sportfishing boat Sea Spray will work shallow areas in search of rockfish on Sunday through Wednesday. The Blackjack will fish outer islands Saturday through Tuesday.

L.A. Harbor Sportfishing will send the Sportking on cod trips Thursday through Sunday. The boat will work several areas in search of the best bite.

The 22nd Street Landing’s Freedom will work the outer islands Wednesday, Friday and Sunday.

Long Beach Sportfishing will send the Southern Cal on daily cod and surface trips. The Aztec will fish the outer islands on weekends.

The Freedom, on its first rockfish trip of the season, returned last weekend with an impressive catch.

Anglers reached their limits with 480 rock cod and 48 cow cod that weighed 15 pounds and up.

All the landings will send boats to the Cortez Bank each weekend in search of yellowtail and rockfish. Anglers fishing at Horseshoe Kelp and Rocky Point have been catching calico bass and rockfish. White seabass remain in the area, but with the recent rough seas, anglers have been unable to work areas near the shore kelp.

The calico bite at Catalina and San Clemente islands continues to be excellent. Good-sized blue perch and some yellowtail have also been caught.

The blue perch have been overshadowed at Catalina by big sargo that have moved into the area.

On a recent trip, anglers aboard the Sportking caught 44 sargo that weighed up to four pounds.

Sportking captain Cookie Cook said that in more than four decades of fishing off Catalina he has never seen the abundance of sargo that have schooled recently with the blue perch.

Light winds last weekend failed to halt the halibut bite in Santa Monica Bay.

Anglers aboard the Del Mar and Sumo from Marina del Rey Sportfishing caught some good-sized halibut.

Mike Shane and Joe Horvatch of Inglewood caught two 26-pounders.

Skip Odell of Venice caught a 24-pound halibut.

The only Cortez Bank trip reported last weekend was from the Outerlimits, which returned ahead of the heavy winds. The 20 anglers aboard caught 51 yellowtail and all the fish weighed 25 pounds or more.

The jackpot went to Frank Kuys of Long Beach, who pulled a 45-pound yellowtail out of the Cortez rocks.

South Bay Catches: Don Warren of Carson, aboard the First String off Catalina, caught a 38-pound lingcod.

Mark Herman of Long Beach, aboard the Aztec at the Cherry Bank, caught a 33-pound lingcod. Helen Marsh of Wilmington, fishing aboard the Hitless Miss at Horseshoe Kelp, caught a 23 1/4-pound white seabass.

Steve Steffenson of Long Beach, aboard the City of Seal Beach at the Rock Pile, caught a 22-pound lingcod.

Mike Fawley of Torrance, fishing at Rocky Point aboard the Victory, caught a 17-poundsheepshead.