Saturday morning couldn’t have started soon enough for some members of the FIB’ers Christian Fishing Club as we were all anxious to cast our fishing lines into the surf and apply what we learned from Pastor Jeff Lee (Lighthouse Community Church, Costa Mesa) who shared his surf fishing knowledge at our club meeting this past Thursday.
We met Pastor Jeff at Tower 65 in Newport Beach around 6:30 a.m. who came supplied with bait and fresh sand crabs he caught for us the day before. After a few minutes with Pastor Jeff giving everyone a few pointers as to what to look for and where/how to fish the surf, everyone found their place at the surf line on the beach to try their luck at catching. Unfortunately, we did not have ideal fishing conditions as we were trying to cast over 3-5 foot waves which might be good for the surfers who were also there but not good for us trying to get the fish to key in on our bait that was churning around in the abundant whitewater created by these waves. We were also fighting a pretty good uphill current which made it difficult to fish in one spot for more than three seconds before our fishing lines were pulled to the right up the beach. Even a heavier sinker was not keeping our bait in the “strike zone” long enough to get bit.
We fished as best as we could despite the off conditions from about 7-9 a.m. Some fished longer than others like Shirley Bruhl who was probably the last one out there making one cast after another. Her determination resulted in getting one fish to bite her bait but she couldn’t hook it. Paster Jeff walked further up and down the beach to see if he could locate any biters….no such luck. So…. if all else fails, bring out the food! Everyone brought something to share and what better way to end a morning fishing on the beach than with a pot luck brunch.
Again, a very special thanks to Paster Jeff Lee for sharing his surf fishing knowledge with The FIB’ers and for all his preparation to make this event happen. Also, thanks to everyone who came out – Bernie Clayton, Paula & Ken Kunkel, Tom & Valerie Handzus, Steve & Susie Bermudes, Shirley Bruhl, Art Gomez and Nephew “Rocky” and his son. Maybe we can all try our luck again at surf fishing in the near future!
God Bless!