Grunion Fishing
A uniquely California fishing experience.
The state of California is well known as a sportsman's paradise. When people think of California, they usually think automatically of beaches, miles and miles of white sand, the blue of the Pacific ocean and high, frothy waves rolling into shore. To be sure, California is the home of lots of beachfront property. Sportsmen enjoy casting their lines and fishing for ocean dwelling fish from California piers. Fishing excursion boats take fishermen out into the open sea, where they can fish for rock cod, giant lingcod, halibut, red snapper, sea bass, barracuda and salmon.
But fishing in California is not limited to ocean fishing. Inland, amidst California's sprawling mountain ranges, the state of California offers a number of lakes, rivers and streams just waiting for avid fishermen and boaters. California lends itself to any number of fishing and boating sports. California sports fishermen pull out their rods and reels and cast their lines for catfish and rainbow trout in California's many lakes. Those interested in fishing as a challenge and an art form fly fish for trout in California's innumerable rivers and streams.
Particularly adventurous fishermen are always looking for new ways to test their skills and to match wits with the creatures of the deep. For sportsmen looking for a new and different fishing adventure, fishing for grunion in California offers a unique, once in a lifetime, fishing experience.
The grunion's existence was discovered only relatively recently in California history, approximately seventy years ago. In fact, there are many who still refuse to believe that the grunion is anything more than a clever hoax. These folks think a joke is being pulled on them when they are invited to go fishing for grunion in the middle of the night. There are many reasons it is difficult to believe that grunion do, in fact, exist.
The first thing that makes grunion fishing a unique experience is the fact that it is limited to a very specific locale. The grunion is a small, silvery fish. It is found only in the waters off of the Southern California coast and the Northern Baja Mexico coast. The best place to fish for grunion is along the coastline from Baja Mexico's Punta Abreojos and traveling north to Point Concepcion in Santa Barbara County, California. California grunion fishermen may have some luck in Morro Bay and Monterey as well, but grunion are generally found in much smaller numbers, if at all, in areas north of Santa Barbara.
The next thing that makes grunion fishing so unique is the grunion themselves. The grunion is not a strange looking fish. It is a slender, silver fish of about five to seven inches in length. The name grunion came from an early Spanish word for "grunter." The fish was so named because of an almost imperceptible, peculiar noise it makes.
However, the grunion is a strange fish with even stranger spawning habits. What makes the grunion a particularly peculiar fish is that it comes up out of the sea and flip flops itself onto the beach in order to spawn. The grunion is the one and only fish that travels completely out of the ocean in order to lay its eggs. Once out of the water, the female burrows herself into the wet sand just on shore, lays her eggs and wriggles her way back up out of the sand. The male likewise hurls himself out of the Pacific Ocean and onto the beach to fertilize the eggs. Afterwards, males and females alike quickly catch the next wave back out to sea.
Another thing that makes this whole thing so interesting is that the timing of these treks from ocean to beach are completely predictable, down to the minute, and up to a year in advance. Grunion spawning season is from about March through August of each year. However, grunion may begin spawning as early as late February and may continue spawning through as late as early September.
Grunion spawning runs take place only on three to four consecutive nights after the very highest tide associated with a full moon or with a new moon. Each grunion run lasts for one to three hours. Studies have shown that it is only on these three or four particular nights after a full or new moon that conditions are just right for grunion to spawn. Factors affecting the tide's ebb and flow create conditions in the sand that are perfect for the grunion to deposit their eggs into the sand without the risk that they will be washed immediately back out to sea.
Approximately ten days after grunion eggs are laid, the sand in which they are buried has been sufficiently displaced by ebbing and flowing tides so that the eggs are freed from the sand and washed out to sea. Within a few minutes of being washed out to sea, the grunion eggs hatch and new baby grunion are born.
On the night of a grunion spawning run, the run will start off with a small trickle of a few fish here and there stranding themselves on the beach. Over a period of about twenty minutes or so, the number of fish will gradually pick up. About an hour into the run, the beach may be covered with literally thousands of grunion. Once the tide begins to recede, the number of grunion will drop off very suddenly and dramatically, and the run is then over for the night.
Finally, the most fantastic thing about the grunion fishing experience is the unique way one goes about fishing for grunion. No fishing pole, rod or reel is required. All a fisherman needs is his or her bare hands, quick reflexes and an adventurous spirit. Arriving at the beach, grunion fishermen wait for the grunion to come up out of the sea to spawn. They wait and watch as the female grunion burrow down into the sand to lay their eggs, and as the male grunion come up onto the sand to fertilize the eggs. Then, as the females and males make their way back up out of the sand and prepare to head back out to sea, grunion fishermen quickly grab them and place them into a bucket, fishing creel or gunny sack. That is all there is to it!
Fishing for grunion is a thrilling experience like no other. The fun part is that grunion fishing or grunion running, as it is popularly called, is a fishing sport that the entire family can enjoy. Children especially love scampering up and down the beach, flashlights in hand, trying to catch the wriggly, little fish that appear before them as if like magic.
Keep in mind that anyone fishing for grunion in the state of California must have a valid, California fishing license. In order to successfully fish for grunion, try to find a secluded spot, away from crowds, and use as little light as possible. You may want to carry a flashlight so you can see the fish after they have come up out of the sea and onto the beach. Grunion generally spawn just after high tide. If you are in a good spot, you may see hundreds or even thousands of sparkling, silver flashes of light reflected in the moon light.
For those who like to cook their catch, fresh grunion are quite tasty prepared deep fried in a flour and corn meal batter. Be sure to first clean and scale the grunion. Keep in mind also that grunion can be quite bony.
Even those who do not want to participate in catching grunion during a grunion run will get a kick out of watching the grunion's spawning process, which is one of nature's most amazing phenomenon. Female grunion catch a wave and then "surf" onto the beach, accompanied by a group of male grunion. If no male grunion accompany a female grunion, she will simply ride the same wave back out to sea. If, as most often happens, however, obliging male grunion make the trip to shore with her, the female grunion will make her way up onto the beach and will then burrow down into the soft, moist sand at the ocean's edge, tail first, to lay her eggs.
Female grunion typically bury themselves in the sand all the way up to their pectoral fins, or perhaps even more. Once they are sufficiently buried, they lay their eggs several inches below the sand's surface. The male grunion then wraps his body around the female's body and discharges his sperm or "milt." Once this is accomplished, the male grunion catches the next wave back out to sea. The male grunion's milt makes its way down to the eggs to fertilize them. At this point, the female's duties are done. She hoists herself up out of the sand, and then she, too, rides the waves back out to sea once more. By the end of the next year's grunion running season, young female fish that were deposited into the sand as eggs the previous year are themselves spawning up to 3,000 eggs at a time.