Report from April 24. UPSAC together with Pierfishing.COM has been hosting the Catalina Classic Pier Fishing Get Together (aka PFGT) since 2002. This was our 9th event. Hosted every late April, the event offers a chance for various members of the UPSAC community to meet many of the board members, enjoy a fishing derby, and a great meal.

Venue is hosted on the Cabillo Mole Pier in Avalon Harbor on Santa Catalina Island, about 1 hr offshore from Long Beach, CA. The event draws individuals and families together and we not only have a catch-n-release derby with junior and adult divisions, but also a potluck lunch on the pier, and a fund-raising raffle with a custom built distance rod and reel combo grand prize. The lure for a lot of attendees has been the annual hunt for bonito – a pelagic tuna-like species that frequents the shores of Catalina Island. But Catalina holds many other prized fish like large abundant opaleyes, big calico bass, humongous sheephead, barracuda, massive batrays, and the possibility of hookups with Yellowtail – all from shore! Event organizers work with Avalon Harbor Master and local merchants and restaurants to plan the event and make sure it goes smoothly.

We’re back and doing eLearning over the phone with Professor Kim who is teaching us about our WordPress content management system. It’s fairly standard as far as publishing software goes and easy to use. All the setup work was taken care of for us by E.Kim. Hopefully, this training will improve the content quantity. BTW, this web stuff is fairly straightforward, even for a Solaris guy like myself.

Learning to manage a fish blog with WordPress

Teaching the next generation of anglers can take many forms. My recipe starts with a bunch of Cub Scouts and their families. I add a 5 hour set of slideshow and exercises for the classroom that covers safety, species ID, conservation, knots and tackle and techniques, and then 2 field practice sessions involving derbies at the local pier with the winners taking home new spinning rod/reel combos, and issue certificates to all kid participants. Pre-requisites include about 15 sets of rod/reel, a tackle bag with a couple of small rigging kits and lots of cheap sabiki rigs. I’m up in the Bay Area and Santa Cruz is close by and has free parking up until 10am on the Weekends.

Parents get excited too because many haven’t fished in years or at all. And no license is required on public saltwater piers. Cub scout requirements for fishing pin and belt loops are online. The system works with older Boy Scouts, but requires a certified/trained Merit Badge Counselor present to sign off blue cards.