{"id":1033,"date":"2023-04-07T05:35:53","date_gmt":"2023-04-07T05:35:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americangunpeople.com\/?p=1033"},"modified":"2023-04-07T05:35:53","modified_gmt":"2023-04-07T05:35:53","slug":"spearfishing-for-white-seabass-in-southern-california","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americangunpeople.com\/?p=1033","title":{"rendered":"Spearfishing for White Seabass in Southern California"},"content":{"rendered":"


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YOU\u2019RE NOT<\/span><\/strong> a\u00a0true spearfisherman<\/a>\u00a0in California until you\u2019ve speared a white sea\u00adbass. And after you\u2019ve done that, you\u2019re still not legit until you\u2019ve killed a fish that tips 70 pounds.<\/p>\n

These are the accepted, if unofficial, rules of SoCal\u2019s spearfishing bums, a relatively small but hardcore group of sportsmen and -women who hunt the elusive fish year-round. WSB show up in the strongest numbers from March to June, when they start slipping into the kelp beds along the coast to spawn. Spawning peaks during the new moon, when you hunt the fish by listening for them.<\/p>\n

\u201cBass\u201d is a misnomer, as this species actually belongs to the croaker family. Some WSB calls sound like a frog and a cat trying to mate, but the croaking of a spawning male is akin to a boat misfire\u2014you feel it in your chest. Croaks usually mean you\u2019re closing in, but most of the reverberations my buddies and I heard during this year\u2019s spawn led to nothing. This was the slowest season in the 11 years I\u2019ve been going, and we fought hard for the two bass pictured on these pages.<\/p>\n

White seabass hunters are free divers, which means we rely on our lung capacity. This is because scuba equipment is loud. It scares fish and turns you into an alien in the underwater environment. But free diving lets you become a part of the ocean. You\u2019re able to observe, hiding in silence or interacting with animals naturally. And that\u2019s important, because these chrome-colored fish are called gray ghosts for a reason. They may be the largest prey in the kelp, but they\u2019re also the most challenging to find. So there\u2019s a certain frustration\u2014not to mention danger\u2014in free diving for them. But that\u2019s half the fun.<\/p>\n

This cove in Baja looks like a washing machine on the surface, but underneath, the sea is calm. Even so, only experienced divers should fish here. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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The best place to hunt white seabass is in the kelp beds, like this one. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Visual concealment\u2014usually achieved with a camouflage pattern and by sticking to shadowy kelp for cover\u2014is just one thing spearfishermen have to keep in mind when chasing white seabass. Because the fish can both hear noise and feel vibrations, divers must take care not to, say, bump their speargun on the bottom while listening for croaks. Even bubble control when exhaling is key\u2014and don\u2019t even think about \u00adfarting in your wetsuit. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Salema fish are a good indicator that WSB are in the neighborhood. It\u2019s wise to swim carefully when they\u2019re near so you don\u2019t spook them or the seabass. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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After nearly two months of hard hunting the new moons and chasing disembodied croaks, I watched diver Chris Okamoto shoot this 55-pound white seabass from just 10 feet away. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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One quick incision near the gills to bleed the fish will keep the meat fresh and untainted. Another thrust to the brain will dispatch it quickly. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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More sevengill sharks seem to appear in our hunting grounds each year. I don\u2019t worry about them, as they\u2019re indifferent to us\u2014but not to the fish we spear. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Boating allows us to hit multiple spots in one day, although anchoring offshore in turbulent waters can sometimes get dicey. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Diver Ryan Moore\u2014\u00adfollowed by the family dog, Luna, who will sit on the rocks with Moore\u2019s wife while he fishes\u2014carefully descends to the coast by way of a steep strip of public land. Some residents of the nearby multimillion-dollar homes are attempting to shut down access to prevent spearfishermen like us from frequenting the spot. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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White seabass can be found from 5 to 70 feet deep. Here, the sun reflects off Okamoto\u2019s mask as he makes one last lung-\u00adbusting push to the surface with his WSB. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Hunting WSB can require up to 100 dives in a single day. Most spearfishermen max out at two minutes when swimming, or as many as five minutes when still. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Sharks may not bother us, but they\u2019ll make quick work of unclaimed fish. Scott Blumer recovered his WSB minutes after shooting it, but sevengills got there first. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Packing fish may require fewer trips than an elk, but it can be just as grueling. Here, Moore takes a shift hauling Blumer\u2019s 56-pounder up a cliff. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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Just as hunters save elk ivories, spearfishermen pry the two otolith stones from the inner ears of WSB. This collection is annotated with the weight of each fish. Michael Raabe<\/i><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Read more\u00a0OL+<\/a>\u00a0stories.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n