RAY CANNON

“Man’s quest for the goal of complete pleasure can be achieved. But it is seldom blundered into.”

That is the opening of Raymond Cannon’s book “How to Fish the Pacific Coast.” Sunset Publishing released it in 1954 to enormous acclaim. Cannon’s book sold out of its first printing in two months and is one of a handful of epic outdoors books published in the last century. The book helped define Cannon as a preeminent communicator and fishing legend across the western United States.

Ray Cannon lived in Southern California and Baja, Mexico. He became well known as the founding outdoors columnist for Western Outdoor News out of Huntington Beach. He evolved into legendary status for his columns on Baja, as well as the success of “How to Fish the Pacific Coast” in the 1950s and beyond. Cannon developed a vast following across the world of the outdoors and appeared across Southern California to draw crowds to learn his expertise. He was an expert angler with a reach that spanned from Mexico to California, Oregon, Washington, Canada and Alaska, and he inspired a generation of anglers to follow and take part in his adventures.

Cannon’s book is a rare, outdoors classic. It was written with great style and a unique mastery of the sport. Rare, well-thumbed copies are found online or in bookshops occasionally, thereafter to be treasured as one of the finest outdoors books ever published. He covered the Pacific coast from Baja north to Alaska, with many of his favorite spots detailed along the entire route. His 150-page “Fish Identification” details 203 species that include: names, drawings, size, color, range, bait, tackle, and whether common or rare. In the character of the era, he referred to a Great white shark as a “Man-eater.”

Though not as famous as John Muir, Raymond Cannon held similar renown among anglers as the poetic scribe of Southern California and Baja waters.