I don't have any big fish saltwater stories but have fished it a bit off the piers in southern California and off of Catalina, channel islands, etc.
First fish ever caught saltwater was a 36" barracuda, i was 12. Caught a couple 12lb Sand Bass, a lot of grouper. But nothing overly huge. 20lbs at the max.
My favorite saltwater catch however was at Balboa Pier in Newport. I was fishing with my girlfriends family including her 4 year old twin cousins. We had the poles set up, my deep sea rig with the Penn Jigmaster 500. A few freshwater poles I had rigged with sandcrabs for yellowfin croaker and corbina. And the twins poles, a spiderman pole, and a tinkerbell pole.
I was hanging out with the kids as i notice the tinkerbell pole try to jump the side of the pier. I grab it and end up having to hand line up a 1 and a half foot leopard shark because the reel couldn't lift the weight.
The look on the kids faces was priceless. I ended up letting the shark go down in the water, it was pretty cool.
