CHAPTER XVI 



ADVENTURES WITH THE BIGGEST BASS 



WHEN the angling habitue of the Pacific 

 coast of Southern California speaks of fish- 

 ing grounds he has in mind conditions 

 entirely different from those in the East Here the 

 smart catboat is bounding along over the water in a 

 fresh wind, trolling perhaps for bluefish, or the 

 angler is anchored, as I have often been, ten 

 miles off the Maine coast, in a dory, holding on hard 

 in the heavy sea which is often present; but on the 

 Southern California coast, the angler goes to the 

 string of islands offshore and in deep water, in calms 

 like that which rests on the surface of the Rangeley 

 Lakes or the Adirondacks, fishes for the big game 

 that is on the surface and ready for the lure. Good 

 winds, stiff seas, can be had if desired; but the big 

 island of Santa Catalina is sixty miles around, and 

 on its northeast side affords miles of lee where the 

 water is almost always smooth. 



This is to some extent essential for the kind of 

 sport found on the Pacific Slope, where the fish are 

 big and hard fighters. Some comparison may be 



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