GONE FISHIN’ : A Good Time Sometimes Is the Catch of the Day

The clean white ship rolled into its slot and deposited a herd of tired faces onto the dock at Balboa Harbor. This particular bunch paid $17 apiece for a half-day (six-hour) excursion into the Pacific that has yielded the usual assortment of bonito, sea bass and barracuda. The trip has also brought an unusually high number of yellow tail--six.

Rods and reels are stocked on board and can be rented for about $10. The ship has a fully stocked galley, and the crew is more than capable of helping to land a fish for a patron. Roughing it this isn’t.

But then fishing, when it is neither vocation nor competitive sport, will never draw comparisons to boot camp. It has never attached much importance to results.

Fishin’ Philosophy. He who can spend a totally useless day, accomplishing absolutely nothing, has truly learned how to live.

Is there a more American way to play hooky than to go fishin’? Tom Sawyer did it. So did Opie Taylor and Spanky. Fishing’s lure is based in its simplicity. It offers the chance to spend some time alone with someone you might have a lot to catch up with: yourself.

“There’s nothing spectacular about fishing, except that it allows you to think and daydream and imagine,” said Bernie Roque, manager of a Newport Beach tackle shop. “Most places and things these days are so loud or so crowded that you can’t hear yourself think.”

Ever try to contemplate life in the middle of aerobics class? Fishing many times offers the solitude that is hard to come by in everyday life. It also offers the chance to get away with some friends and enjoy each other’s company.

According to Rouque there are two kinds of fishermen: Those who want to have a good time and catch some fish and those who want to catch some fish and have a good time. Most people, he says, come under the first heading.

“Of course, if I spent half a million dollars on a fishing boat and a ton of money on gear, I’d probably be pretty serious about catching fish, and probably be pretty upset if I came home empty-handed.”

As in anything, there is that element that takes fishing seriously, very seriously.

“If I don’t catch something, I don’t have a good time,” said George Brice of Laguna Beach. “I’m not the greatest guy to get along with after a bad day fishing.”

Brice estimates that he spends close to half his waking hours thinking fishing, purchasing equipment or planning fishing trips.

“I love it, and I want to get the most I can out of it,” he said. “I guess you could say I take it pretty serious.”

Which means Brice would not reveal some of his favorite fishing spots. The spots that are known in Orange County attract their various types for the kind of fish they offer. Partial to trout and catfish? Two of the most popular areas for these are the Santa Ana River Lakes, located in Anaheim, and Irvine Lake in Orange.

Each lake charges a $9 gate fee for adults, $7 for children, and each offers day and night fishing. Motorboats can be rented for $30, rowboats for $18.

Night fishing usually attracts working types who make use of working-type methods to catch fish. At Santa Ana River Lakes there are two mechanics who have been known to marinate their bait in motor oil. And another fellow whose method of attracting fish is to simply cast a line and yell: “Hey, fish! C’mon, let’s go. Haven’t got all night!” Well, time is money.

Pier fishing, the art of productive leaning, gives the fisherman a chance at sand bass, perch, halibut and bat rays. Two of the most popular piers are in Huntington Beach and San Clemente. No license is required on either pier, and there is no admittance fee.

You should be advised to take along a pair of sharp elbows and a hip ready to box out.

“It’s like basketball sometimes,” said Tom Hubert of Fountain Valley, a veteran of the Huntington Beach Pier and a few scuffles. “Every now and then you have to throw your weight around to make sure you get a spot on the rail. Usually it’s pretty laid-back, but there are those moments you have to assert yourself.”

Shore fishing, popular at San Onofre, Huntington Beach and Seal Beach, is for those who search for corvina, croaker, halibut and sand bass. Anyone over 16 years of age is required to have a license.

Fishing licenses can be obtained at all tackle shops and most sporting good stores. A yearly saltwater license runs $11.50, a combination of salt and fresh water is $18.50.

Outfits such as Davey’s Locker in Balboa offer one-day licenses for $5. Davey’s Locker is a charter company that specializes in what some term big-game fish: bonito, sea bass and yellow tail.

“A lot of people dream of catching the big fish; it’s a test of wills and strength,” said Skip Cornwell, a deck hand on the ship Western Pride. “They just want to conquer something in the sea. A lot of people don’t much care what happens to the fish after they catch it.

“I had one guy come out here from the Midwest. He caught a sea bass and when we got to shore, he left it here on the boat. I grabbed him as he was leaving and was about to give him the fish, but he said, ‘Keep it. I’m staying in a hotel. What am I going to do with it? I just wanted to get a big one.’ I guess it’s something people who don’t have an ocean nearby dream about.”

Basic equipment--rod, reel and lures--will probably cost a little more than $100. Much of it depends on what kind of fishing you want to do and how you approach the tackle shop salesman.

“If you go in there and just say, ‘I want to fish, gimme some stuff,’ the salesman will skin you alive,” Cornwell said. “You should first figure out where you’re going to fish and what is caught there. Then you can tell the salesman specifically what you’re after, and he can sell you equipment for that.”

Said Roque: “Don’t try to get fancy. Just buy what you need. The rod and reel and such. From there you can build.”

For practically every type of fish there is, there is a different rod and reel to catch it.

Brice said he knows fellow fishermen with as many as 40 rods and reels. Besides the basics, big on the gadget market these days are the Bite Buzzer, which signals a hit with a screech; numerous videocassettes that instruct on techniques or educate about exotic fishing odysseys; and the bass computer that, by pushing a few buttons, informs the fisherman of the proper line weight and lure to catch the bass.

But what is basic to fishing remains in the people, not their equipment.

“One of the best times I had fishing is when I was 5 years old,” said Roque, who grew up in the Philippines. “My dad took us out and I caught something. I don’t remember what I caught, but it was a big thrill. I just stuck it (the fish) on a stick and cooked it over an open fire.”

Roque, 28, has since become an accomplished fisherman, specializing in bass. He spends a lot of money on his hobby.

“But that might be the biggest thrill I’ve ever had. Being with my family, laughing, talking--that’s what it’s all about.”