You wouldn't think something this slippery and slimy could be so attractive. But sportfishers off the Southern California coast are scrambling to get their hooks into giant squid as they linger longer than usual.
The rush of Humboldt squid began Friday. They have turned sport fishing in Orange County into a "free-for-all," wrote Gary Robbins in his OC Register Science Dude blog.
Anglers aboard the Western Pride out of Balboa Peninsula caught 225 of them. The largest fish weighed 60 pounds (they can get up to 100 pounds). Chris Cunningham, manager of Davey’s Locker Sportfishing, said the catch could be a one day thing. Humboldt squid — which are also called jumbos — are a here today, gone tomorrow creature. Very mysterious, often elusive.
Not elusive enough. The Western Pride hauled in 300 squid Saturday evening. Some were in the 30- to 60-pound range, according to Robbins' post.
More than 600 squid were caught Sunday night.
That's fine with OC sportfishing companies. They reported unusually high bookings for what is often the slowest time of year.
If you're interested, book a boat now because the squid could be gone by the time you're done reading this.
