Stearns Wharf Bait & Tackle offers new lure

The owner of Stearns Wharf Bait & Tackle—the furthest store off shore at the end of the wharf, first visited the store when he was 12 years old.

“I remember walking into this store at 12 years old,” said owner Frank Drew. “The man behind the counter at the time had a hole in the floor so he could fish while he helped customers. I thought that was the coolest thing. I want to help make fishing cool and appealing to kids and adults now, too.”

Mr. Drew does more than sell lures, rods, reels, bait and tackle; he also rents fishing gear and offers free fishing advice.

“We’d rather help you catch a fish than watch you not catch anything – it’s more fun for everyone when the fish are biting,” he said. To help the fish bite more frequently, Mr. Drew recently started stocking a new lure, called an imitation Krocodile.
“As the lure flashes and wobbles in the water, it attracts a lot of fish,” Mr. Drew said. Even though the lure functions like a name-brand Krocodile to help people catch about 30 percent more fish, it is half the price, Mr. Drew said. Stearns Wharf Bait & Tackle is located at the end of Stearns Wharf, which is at the end of State Street between East Beach and the Santa Barbara Harbor.”

  
Frank Drew, owner of Stearns Wharf Bait & Tackle, holds a 31-inch halibut and poses next to a thresher shark, both of which he caught off Stearns Wharf

For more information, call 805-965-1333 or visit www.stearnswharfbaitandtackle.com.