Fresh Seafood Straight From the Source

Question: What food is healthy, delicious and free? Answer: fresh seafood, straight from the source.

Before we get started, let's learn the rules. Each state carries its own regulations and it is your responsibility to know them. Violating the rules will get your gear confiscated and you will be fined or jailed. Shop around for fresh seafood and you'll see how a fishing license easily pays for itself. More importantly, the regulations are in place to make sure the species can thrive so they can provide us with food and fun for years to come. Also, do your homework before you bring any seafood to the table. Sadly, pollution has made fish in some areas unsafe to eat. In other cases algae blooms make shellfish like clams, oysters and scallops unsafe. Check with a local seafood market about what is safe and what is not.

From San Diego to Seattle, Miami to Maine, millions of Americans live within an easy drive of the coast. The oceans, whether the Atlantic or the Pacific, are an amazing resource for relaxation, recreation, and of course great food. No matter the season there are plenty of opportunities to catch a smorgasbord of seafoods. This is just a sampling of what you can bring to the table. Let's start with lobster. The California Spiny Lobster ranges from the southern tip of the Baja peninsula to Monterrey bay on the California coast. From October through March these fabulous crustaceans can be caught by a hoop net trap from a pier or boat, or by scuba divers or snorkelers who venture out at nighttime and grab them by hand. In Florida the open season for spiny lobster is from August through the end of March, with a special two-day season at the end of July. In Maine lobsters can be caught with traps year-round. Like any other fishing, it takes a lot of skill and a bit of luck. Spearfishing is an exciting way to catch a finny friend. Simple "Hawaiian sling" spears are inexpensive but take some practice to be really effective. More expensive spring-loaded spear guns are easier to use and have a greater range. Whatever you use, remember how the refraction of water can make distances and angles deceptive. While you're down there, look for rock scallops. These delicious mollusks can be found on rocks and pilings. Use a flat-tipped dive knife to pry them off of the substrate. North of the San Francisco Bay, snorkelers can gather up to four red abalone a day from April through June and again from August through November. These snails can be found underwater in rocky areas near the kelp that they eat, or in the tidepools at low tide. If you see a discarded can or bottle, put it in your gear bag and keep the ocean beautiful. Look inside it and you might find an octopus.

Fishing with rod and reel in salt water is an exciting game- you never know what you might pull up. From the shore, boat, or pier, the ocean is full of surprises. Fishing from the shore is fairly simple. Ask local anglers what bait works best for the area and use a heavy surf casting rod to get your bait out past the breakers. You'll need a heavy sinker to keep your bait down near the bottom where the fish are. Fish often gather near pier pilings and that makes piers a fine place to fish deeper water without a boat. Again, ask around to see what bait works best and just drop your line off of the pier. The biggest challenge is keeping your fish on the hook as you reel it up from the water to the pier. A boat opens up whole new worlds of opportunity. The ocean is a big place, so you'll need to know where to look for your dinner. In the Pacific, head out from the shore to the kelp forest and try your luck putting bait on the bottom, or use artificial lures to catch faster-swimming fish like bonita. On the East Coast or in the Gulf of Mexico you'll need to learn where wrecks or artificial reefs provide habitat for fish. In either case once you get into a school of fish the action can be non-stop. Flounder, halibut, and bay bass are just a few of the fine-eating fish you may pull up. If the sit-and-wait tactic doesn't do it for you, try hunting for big-game fish by trolling. This involves a special setup on the stern of the boat that holds the line up high while a bait fish or artificial lure is trailed behind the moving boat. A "fighting chair" holds the angler and rod securely while they wrestle in the big ones. Fly fishing is excellent for some species such as weakfish. Rods and reels range from inexpensive discount store setups to precision-made machines costing hundreds of dollars or more. Yard sales and used sporting goods stores are an excellent place to look. If you aren't fortunate enough to have access to a boat of your own, shop around for fishing excursions at the docks. Party boats take out big groups of people for shorter trips, and they cost less than charter trips which take a small group of anglers for big-game fish. Either way, being out on the boat is a blast. If you tend to get motion sickness, check out over-the-counter pills, special magnetic bracelets, or patches. Otherwise you may end up chumming the water with whatever you had for breakfast.

If the fish aren't biting, try for crab. On the east coast you can go for Blue crabs with traps or hand lines in bays and marshes. Watch out, because these suckers pinch HARD. In Oregon and Washington, go for Dungeness crabs in the estruaries, coastal rivers and bays year-round. As always, check the state regulations before you keep anything for the cook pot. In shallow water with a sandy bottom clams can be gathered using a clam rake or just shuffling along feeling the bottom with bare feet. On mud flats at low tide you can use a shovel to dig for them.

Question: What's better than a good day of work? Answer: A bad day of fishing. Anybody who knows anything about fishing can tell you that you won't always be successful. Some days your best bet for fresh seafood will be the sushi bar. Even if you don't catch a thing for the table you can still feast on the other benefits: fresh salty air, beautiful scenery, memories that will last forever, and knowing that every day brings a new chance to bring something to the table.