Best Place for Fishing in Southern California: Newport Beach

I have recently gotten into fishing and have been fishing for about a year now. I live in the Los Angeles vicinity and have gone to various places to fish, from private ponds to city parks, but my most favorite place is Newport Beach.

Personally, I prefer saltwater fishing over freshwater. I tend to have better luck catching fish from saltwater environments. In California, there are beaches everywhere, and although all are nice, some are much nice than others. Newport Beach is one of those nicer beaches to fish at. My friend and I have been there several times to fish and it never gets old. There are times we will catch twenty or more fish in a couple of hours, but even if we catch less than that we will always catch something. That is what I like. The most common fish to catch there is Opal Eye, Spotted Bass, or Surf Perch, but Halibut, Mackerel, and other kinds of fish can also be caught. Girabaldi, the California state fish cannot be kept if caught and if a spotted bass is caught and it is under a foot in length, then it needs to be returned back to the water as well.

The state of California requires fishing license for fishing in Freshwater and Saltwater. Saltwater license cost around $40 for a year (if you purchase a license in the month of July it will still expire in December of that same year you purchased it, so make sure get one early on). However, if you choose to fish off the pier than a fishing license is not required. You just cannot cast if you are fishing off the pier because of the dangers of hooking someone with your rod while other pedestrians are walking by.

Newport Beach is located at the end of the 55 Freeway South. The 55 Freeway can be accessed from the 5 Freeway and 405 Freeway. Neighboring towns and cities include Costa Mesa, Laguna Beach, and Irvine. The only complaint I have about going to Newport Beach to fish is if you go during prime beach season, traffic upon entering the town will be heavily congested and finding a place to park will be a real pain. If you park on the city streets you will have to pay at the individual parking meters, so if you can find a spot in the residential areas, then you won't have worry about putting enough change for extra time.