AREA FISHING BARGES EXTINCT; ISLE OF REDONDO WASLAST OPEN.

Byline: Dave Strege Orange County RegisterThe end of an era came without warning, without fanfare, without so much as a goodbye.

Which is probably why today, more than 10 months after the end, anglers still call RedondoSportfishing sport?fish?ing??n.The sport of catching fish using a rod and reel.

Noun 1. sportfishing - the act of someone who fishes as a diversionFree Fishing Games

field sport, outdoor sport - a sport that is played outdoors ?and inquire about the Isle of Isle of??

Fornamesofactualisles,see

the specific element of the name; for example, Wight, Isle of. ?Redondo - the last fishing barge tooperate in area saltwaters.

It ceased operation last Aug. 24 after the Redondo Beach Redondo Beach?(r?d?n`d?), city (1990 pop.60,167), Los Angeles co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1892. Once a commercial port for LosAngeles, it is a residential and resort city with a protected harbor and an excellent marina. ?Marinasold it to Sea Breeze sea breezen.A cool breeze blowing from the sea toward the land.sea breezeNouna breeze blowing inland from the sea

Noun 1. ?Cruises, a company that operates casino boats from Panama City Panama City,?city (1990pop. 34,378), seat of Bay co., NW Fla., on St. Andrews Bay; inc. 1909. A Gulf Coast resort withamusement parks and excellent fishing, it is also a port of entry. The city's industries produce paper,clothing, and chemicals. , Fla., and has designs on making the barge a floating restaurant.

So that's what happened to the Isle of Redondo.``There was no warning to the fishing public that it was closing,'' said James Caton Jr. of LaderaHeights, who worked as a deckhand on the barge for 10 years.

``It's a shame,'' said Caton, who is obviously passionate about the customers he catered to duringhis tenure. He recalls a father and son from Barstow who patronized pa?tron?ize??tr.v. pa?tron?ized, pa?tron?iz?ing, pa?tron?iz?es1. To act as a patron to; support or sponsor.

2. To go to as a customer, especially on a regular basis.

3. ?the barge at least every other month. ``A lot of youngsters won't ever get to know the joy offishing on a barge.''

The Isle of Redondo was not only popular with kids but with families, retirees and those who got tooseasick to fish off sportfishing boats. The $16 adult fare and $8 ticket for children 11 and youngerappealed to lower-income anglers, Caton said.

They would catch mostly mackerel mackerel,?common name for members of the family Scombridae,60 species of open-sea fishes, including the albacore, bonito, and tuna. They are characterized bydeeply forked tails that narrow greatly where they join the body; small finlets behind both the dorsaland . Bonito bonito:?see mackerel.

bonitoSwift, predaceous schooling fishes (genus Sarda) of the mackerel family (Scombridae). Bonitos,found worldwide, have a striped back and silvery belly and grow to about 30 in. (75 cm) long. , too,when they were running. The occasional bass, croaker croaker,?member of the abundant and variedfamily Sciaenidae, carnivorous, spiny-finned fishes including the weakfishes, the drums, and thewhitings. The croaker has a compressed, elongated body similar to that of the bass. ?and halibuthalibut:?see flatfish.

halibut

Any of various flatfishes, especially the Atlantic and Pacific halibuts (genus Hippoglossus, familyPleuronectidae), both of which have eyes and colour on the right side. ?also were caught.

Notanymore.Thefinalcha

pter of a storied past seems to have been written.The first fishing barge in Southern California was off Long Beach in 1921 and the first off Redondoin 1922, according to ``Tales of the Golden Years of California Ocean Fishing: 1900-1950.''

Author Ed Ries, 79, of. The 859ci HD Combo features a super bright LED backlit 7" display. Thiswide screen 800H x 480V, 16: 9 Color provides bright, crystal-clear images for convenient viewing inharsh sunlight. The DualBeam PLUS sonar with SwitchFire has 4000 watts PTP power output, GPSChartplotting with built-in Humminbird fishfinder ContourXD map and Ethnernet Networkingcapabilities. Includes a unit cover, dual card reader and Immediate Access preset buttons.San Diegodetails a boom in barge fishing in 1925. By the following year, 21 barges were doing business fromSanta Barbara to San Diego. People descended upon the vessels, which typically were convertedships. Redondo became home to more barges than any other spot along the coast.

When regulations became stringent on having watertight compartments throughout the old hulks,most barges were forced out of business because of the prohibitive cost to conform. The outbreak ofWorld War II finished off the industry.

Ries wrote that war surplus vessels resurfaced after the war, but by 1960 most anglers flocked tothe increasing numbers of sportfishing boats.

Still, three barges continued to operate in the '60s and '70s. Nancy Gray, 49, of Long Beach was acook on the California, Sacramento and Sea Coaster.

``They were all out there at the same time and you used to purchase a ticket and go from one bargeto the other,'' said Gray, who works at Redondo Sportfishing. ``They were full. We used to havepeople waiting on the pier to go out to the barge.''

The Isle of Redondo, a flat barge 60 by 120 feet and built to hold 230 anglers at a price of just under$1 million, went into operation in 1980. Another barge, the Annie B, opened for business off LongBeach in 1982. They were the only operating barges in recent years.

The Annie B closed in fall 1994 because of poor business. The Isle of Redondo lasted a few moreyears. It was moved to a better spot at the beginning of last year and fishing was good at the start,Gray said.

``Slowly but surely the fishing slowed down,'' she said. ``We had such a bait problem.''

All that was available were sardines, especially with El Nino's tepid waters pushing anchoviesanchovies

a cause of diarrhea, vomiting, salivation, lacrimation, depression, miosis, polypnea, tachycardia,hypothermia in cats. ?to cooler environs. Business slowed and it became unfeasible to continue. Thebarge was sold.

Alas, the local fishing barges are probably gone for good, too costly to run.

``If a landing ever http://www.dfg.ca.gov/fishing/ does one again,'' Caton said, ``I'll be amazed.''

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

PHOTO (1) The Isle of Redondo fishing barge operated from 1980 to 1997 before it was sold tobecome a floating restaurant in Florida.

Special to the Daily News

(2--Color) Luis Bernal of Montebello boated a 15-1/2-pound California halibut aboard the Isle ofRedondo.

James Caton Jr./Special to the Daily News

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There was a roumor out of Las Vegas that the barge was open again there in Redondo Beach. Butwhat I have read here today, that must be all it was is a rumor. Doggone it !! I sure miss it.Sincerly......Sean Doyen