Its shorelines once covered with marinas, yacht club piers and visitors, the Salton Sea has seen crowds fall off over the last half-century or so. For sightings of movie stars waterskiing, swimming or just plain frolicking in the sun, this was the place to be in the 1950s and 1960s.
Today, the sailboats, yachts and waterskiers are gone for the most part, replaced with a few Jet Skis and fishing boats.
This 30-mile body of water nestled in the middle of the Southern California desert sports a shoreline that looks like a ghost town, but it's still a gem of a fishery. In fact, it's probably the best fishery in the United States, considering the fisherman-to-catch ratio. It's not uncommon to come here and catch hundreds of fish in a day, with several species to choose from.
Don't believe all those stories and rumors you hear — this body of water is cleaner than most of the bays in Southern California. Once on the water you'll appreciate the Sea as one of the state's great fisheries.Flashback
Back in the 1950s, California's Department of Fish and Game planted about 30 different species of fish from the Sea of Cortez into the Salton Sea. This included several strains of corvina, sargo, halibut, grunion, croaker and even roosterfish, to name a few. There was even a rumor of marlin after a Salton Sea local dumped the carcass of one along the edge of her shore one night after returning from Baja.
Orangemouth corvina was the fish that prevailed over the years, along with croaker and sargo. Although the sargo have been hard to find recently, this year they have made a giant resurgence. Shore fishermen have caught quite a few of them.
Tilapia are a strong entity in the Sea, as well. Originally planted in the mid-1960s in irrigation channels to fight the invasion of the waterway-clogging hydrilla weed, tilapia slowly found their way to the Sea.
Hide and seek
More than 100 miles of shoreline rim the Salton Sea, and, as you can see by the map above, there are four areas where you'll find orangemouth are more plentiful: Johnson's Landing north to Desert Shores; North Shore Marina south to Bombay Beach; around Mullet Island and the Redhill Marina Area; and the Navy Target area south to the New River.
All species can be caught from 3 to 30 feet deep, depending on the time of year. Spring and summer usually bring the fish to the shallows, and they tend to move out deeper in fall and winter. But the main zone for fish is in 3 to 10 feet of water year-round — tilapia hang out in this zone, and orangemouth key on them.
On the Salton Sea, you'll need to know what color water to fish. Algae blooms are good for the Sea and the fish, but large die-offs of algae can cause giant die-offs of fish, mainly the tilapia and croaker. Green water means dying algae, and though you might catch a fish or two, look for more brownish water. This is where you'll find orangemouth in larger schools.
Getting bit
The largest population of fish in the Sea is the tilapia. Boat and shore fishermen alike can catch hundreds in a day, and in several different ways. Pieces of night crawler on a small hook under a bobber or just flylined along shore can produce fish as fast as you rebait and cast. Tilapia also like shinny jigs; try scampi coasters, Hopkins spoons or Kastmasters. For rods, a 6½-foot stick with 6- or 8-pound test makes it fun and sporting.
Sargo of the Sea tend to like corn fished similar to the tilapia way. They can be found around structure like old pilings, docks and shallow brush.
From a boat, watch your meter for a cloud of fish. This is usually croaker, and vertical jigging them with small spoons is fast and furious when you find a big school. Drop your spoon to the bottom until your line goes slack, then just snap your rod tip upward and drop it so the lure can flutter back down. If a fish picks it off on the sink, the next snap sets up the hook. A lot of the time the tilapia are mixed in with the croaker. When you catch a few scrappy croaker, and then hook a tilapia, you'll know it — they put on a good fight on light tackle.
I like to use a freshwater triggerstick and with 10- to 15-pound test. This will do the trick for both live bait and plastics.
If you have a live bait tank on your boat, save a few of the smaller croaker or tilapia in the 3- to 6-inch range, as they make good orangemouth bait. Fish them on a regular bait rig. Nose-hook them with the least amount of weight possible to get them down. Usually a small split shot works fine, but more weight may be needed if the wind has you drifting too fast. Mudsuckers are a favorite of the orangemouth as well.
Faking it
Various swimbaits work well for the orangemouth, too. An old regular at the Sea has always been the Lunker Lure by Kalin, now named the Swimmer, but the 4-inch rattling swimbait by Kalin is the new hot bait in colors of chartreuse, oranges or golds. Five-inch Lunker grubs and 6-inch Mogombo grubs in these colors work well, also. A Dorky Shad in Halloween is famous for knocking them dead. Swimbaits and grubs can be fished by bouncing them across the bottom as you drift along, casting and retrieving. You can also use the wind-and-grind method, like many bay fishermen do. Trolling rattling hard baits is a regular way to hook up at the Sea. Lipless crankbaits such as Cordell Spots or regular cranks such as a Bomber Fat Free Shad work well. Troll them back far enough so they just bounce off the bottom, occasionally stirring up the silt and, hopefully, a strike. You can also troll your plastics with your cranks.
At a glance
Location: The Salton Sea is located approximately 2 hours from both San Diego and Los Angeles. There is no closed season at the Salton Sea and it is fishable year-round.
Species: Orangemouth corvina, tilapia, croaker, and sargo are fishable year-round.
Tackle: Light tackle for tilapia, croaker, and sargo. Six- to 8-pound test makes it fun and sporting. For the orangemouth corvina, a triggerstick and round-type reel with 10- to 15-pound test line. Grubs, Kalin Swimmers or rattling swimbaits in chartreuse, orange, golds, and browns. Lipless and regular crankbaits in silver shad patterns or fire tiger colors.
Aftermath: The Salton Sea is about 20 percent saltier than the ocean, but this is not a problem for tackle. Just wash your rods and reels off well when you return home, and they'll be good to go the next trip.
Fees: Some of the launch ramps require a fee. They are on a money-box system and are checked regularly, so remember to pay and post your receipt on your windshield.
