La Paz sportfishing area dorado gaining weight;

Dodos won't quit at Mazatlan

Mexico Fishing News, June 25, 2007

LA PAZ FISHING REPORTS

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LA PAZ, MEXICO: Gerardo Hernandez of Tortuga Sportfishing at La Paz reported good dorado action on the Las Arenas side around Punta Arena de la Ventana and some larger dorado to over 45 pounds caught outside Isla Cerralvo around the 88 bank. "Our fishermen are happy that the dorado have finally arrived," Hernandez said.

Mixed pargos and wahoo were also caught off the south end of Isla Cerralvo despite poor water clarity in that area. "There are also a lot of marlin there," Hernandez said, "but our anglers decided to go after dorado and the fishing for them has been excellent."

Anglers scoring dorado into the 45 to 50-pound class during the week included Deniss Grammer and Chris Hagerty and their group. La Paz fishing area weather was pleasant in the 90s, with evenings cooling to the 70s in the city.

LA PAZ, MEXICO: Leonard Phillips of Baja Pirates Fleet said water clarity was poor on the La Paz side but 8 to 12 boats fished per day and they did find some dorado to about 40 pounds during spotty action in the gap between Islas Espiritu Santo and Cerralvo.

"Dorado are showing one day and gone the next," Phillips said. "There are lots of dorado in the water but they are not on a full bite yet. Everything is in place to break open any day."

In other mainland Mexico and Baja fishing action this week:

ENSENADA FISHING REPORTS

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ENSENADA, MEXICO: Ivan Villarino of Vonny's Fleet reported a consistent 1 to 2 yellowtail of 18 to 23 pounds for his pangas fishing at Ensenada's Punta Banda last week, plus mixed rockcods and bottom fish, calico bass, and some barracuda limits.

Ensenada fishing area weather over the weekend was sunny in the afternoons at 70 degrees, with light winds and the water temperature at Punta Banda averaging 61 degrees. Panga anglers fishing with Vonny's Fleet Capts. Beto and Hector during the week included Ricardo Ramell of San Diego, Calif., Dennisse and Scott Cramer of Solana Beach, Calif., Lester Ellet, and Joe Rodriguez of Los Angeles, Calif.

ENSENADA, MEXICO: Steve Ross of the boat Bad Dog at Ensenada's Marina Coral reported 2 albacore to 21.9 pounds plus a Humboldt giant squid landed on a triple jig strike in 63.8-degree water. "There was no live bait available," Ross said.

PUERTO SANTO TOMAS FISHING REPORTS

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PUERTO SANTO TOMAS, MEXICO: Sam Saenz of Puerto Santo Tomas Resort south of Ensenada said strong offshore winds blew most of the week except for Friday and Sunday. Pangas fishing the Baja coast around Punta Santo Tomas found bottom fish limits for lingcod, whitefish, and rockcods, and some new surface action for bonita and a few yellowtail. David Arambula landed a 15-pound yellowtail and Saenz said, "Lots of boils were seen around Soledad Bay but the surface fish were not too anxious to bite."

ERENDIRA FISHING REPORTS

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ERENDIRA, MEXICO: Tere Castro of Castro's Camp said Baja coastal fishing weather was good all week off Erendira, with the water temperature at 58 to 59 degrees in the main fishing area 5 miles out. During the week 26 boats fished in windless, sunny conditions for good counts of lingcod, rockcod, bonita, barracuda, and some yellowtail.

SAN QUINTIN FISHING REPORTS

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SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Marita Melville of Don Eddie's Landing said about 27 boats fished during the week for consistent bottom fish limits and many good catches of yellowtail, including 16 forkies of 10 to 20 pounds brought in Monday by the charter boat Mona Lisa with Capt. Juan Cook. "Fishermen this week were extremely happy with their catches," Melville said. "We had a great fishing week here in San Quintin." Other outings during the week produced 5 to 7 yellowtail, halibut to 16 pounds, a few barracuda, more bottom fish limits, and 1 yellowtail weighed at 37 pounds after a sea lion grabbed it.

San Quintin boats fished south at Socorro and also at Isla San Martin. San Quintin fishing area weather was cloudy in the mornings, with sunny afternoons, calm seas, and clear water at 57 to 61 degrees. Anglers fishing out of Don Eddie's Landing during the week included Ed Actkinson and Ron Thornton.

SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Ken Jones of Long Beach, Calif., reported on a Baja fishing run with his group to San Quintin, fishing on Monday with Capt. Juan Cook of Don Eddie's Landing for good numbers of troll yellowtail in the 10 to 20-plus pound range, and the usual bottom fish including sculpin and nice rockcod and sandbass. "It was a really fun day of fishing on the Pacific and great thanks to Captain Juan who I would highly recommend to anyone heading to San Quintin," Jones said. "He has a great mix of patience, knowledge, and the knack of when to step in to help and when to let everyone do their thing." San Quintin fishing area weather was partly cloudy, with afternoon sun and wind and water temperatures in the lower to mid-50s. Fishing with Jones at the kelp beds south of the San Quintin boca were fellow anglers Bret Hambrick and Chris Gessel. Jones' group stayed at San Quintin's Old Mill Hotel. "Nancy treated us fantastically," he said.

SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Kayak fishing DVD producer Jon Schwartz of Carlsbad reported on a 2-outing panga supported kayak fishing trip out of San Quintin with Pedro's Pangas last week, for a catch of 2 white seabass to 22 pounds and a couple of yellowtail per day to about 12 pounds. "The yellowtail were breezing all over the place. You could see them on top," Schwartz said. "I brought down a pro photographer, Taylor Abeel, as I am trying to get some magazine quality shots and it was neat working with someone like that." Schwartz fished with Capt. Miguel Cervantes on the Pedro's Pangas boat Pelicano and stayed at the Old Mill Hotel. A dock report for yellowfin tuna turned out to be for just a few small fish sighted about 35 miles out, Schwartz said.

BAJA COASTAL FISHING REPORTS

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BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO: Steve Ross of the Ensenada boat Bad Dog reported on a 5-day fishing cruise along the Baja California Sur coast from La Paz to Cabo San Lucas aboard Tom McInally's boat Wide Open, trolling jigs for a total catch of: 1 jack crevalle, and 1 striped marlin. "The coastal water is cold and green," Ross said. "We got hooked up to the marlin on the 88 spot. They called me out of my stateroom to let me know I was bit. I reeled up probably 500 yards of mono without screwing up anything. On Saturday, we're fishing in the Western Outdoor News tournament in Ensenada."

BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO: Paul Montgomery of Vista, Calif., reported on a Baja run to fish 3 days with partner Tom Kingsley and Capt. Lee Moreno at Camalu, just north of San Quintin, finding red tide conditions and none of his targeted white seabass, but rockfish action that "couldn't have been much better" for large lingcod and quality red rockcod. "We also had very good calico bass fishing in the kelp using sardine-colored swim baits and Megabaits," Montgomery said. "Overall it was a great trip. Lee and his son both work very hard to put you on fish. We fished for 3 consecutive days and tried different areas each day, trying for white seabass but we couldn't find any that wanted to bite." Some small yellowtail were seen on the kelp around Isla San Martin and local commercial fishermen had caught 12 white seabass in their nets. "There was a serious red tide near shore and the water in most areas we fished was dirty brown," Montgomery said.

BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO: Derek Arneson of San Diego reported a second place finish with a 17.86-pound yellowtail during the Marina Puerto Salina fishing tournament at Puerto Salina on the Baja coast north of Ensenada on June 16, 2007. Arneson fished aboard his father Richard Arneson's 17-foot boat just north of Isla Todos Santos. "We landed 5 fish in 2 hours, then went to fish the bottom. We wanted to get some fish for the bottom category," Arneson said. "All the fish were taken on surface iron." About 100 anglers fished in the competition. "The entire tournament was excellent," Arneson said. "The new management is great and they really worked hard to make sure everyone had a good time. It's really a nice place to fish."

BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO: Sportfishing writer Mike Babbidge announced the publication of his new Baja fishing book, Catch Fish Now! "It has just been published in the U.S. and is already getting rave reviews in the fishing and travel media," Babbidge said. The book is available on Amazon.com by searching for "catch fish now." Information: catchfishnowbooks.com.

MAGDALENA BAY FISHING REPORTS

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MAGDALENA BAY, MEXICO: Gary Graham of Baja On The Fly said Magdalena Bay fishing area boats found good bird school surface action for bonita and yellowtail at the San Carlos entrada last week, plus some good-sized grouper hooked just above the bottom. The Magdalena Bay mangrove channels produced just a few pargo in addition to the usual spotted bay bass. Some halibut continued to be caught on sandy beaches. Magdalena Bay fishing area weather was sunny in the mid-80s, with water temperatures at 64 to 73 degrees.

CABO SAN LUCAS FISHING REPORTS

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CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters reported on 18 outings by Gaviota Fleet and the Cabo San Lucas charter boats Fish Cabo and Fish Cabo I, with a catch including released fish of: 16 striped marlin, 6 dorado, 1 wahoo, and 3 yellowfin tuna. "It was another week of difficult fishing for Cabo San Lucas boats," Edwards said. "A few boats fared well one day only to suffer the next. Water temperatures were as low as 64 degrees close to the beach." Cabo San Lucas fishing area weather was in the mid-90s, with water temperatures changing daily and some wind. Offshore boats fished about 20 to 35 miles out. "Live bait has been best on the drop-backs, tailers and sleepers," Edwards said, "but it's been very difficult to entice the fish to bite at all."

CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Jim Dillon of Salvador's Sportfishing reported on 10 outings by the Cabo San Lucas charter boats El Budster, El Budster I, and El Budster II, with a catch including released fish of: 10 striped marlin including 1 fish at 220 pounds, 1 yellowfin tuna of 40 pounds, 6 dorado of 20 to 45 pounds, 1 wahoo of 25 pounds, and 1 red snapper of 25 pounds. Fishing improved dramatically at the end of the week following several days of slow action.

CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Jorge Navarro of Pisces Fleet said 61 striped marlin were landed during the week and 100 percent were released. Overall, 60 percent of Pisces Fleet charters released marlin during the week as boats fished the Cortez side of Cabo San Lucas from Chileno to as far north as Los Frailes. Yellowfin tuna and dorado were still very slow. Inshore boats landed yellowtail, skipjack, roosterfish, red snapper, and some barracuda.

CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Ramon Druck of the Cabo San Lucas charter panga Cheer's reported on 2 outings during the week, with a total of 6 clients fishing in very slow conditions for a catch including released fish of: 4 roosterfish of 0.5 to 1 pounds, 7 yellowtail of 1 to 6 pounds, 1 jack crevalle, and 1 barrilete of 0.5 pounds. The Cheer's fished on both the Pacific and Sea of Cortez sides in some wind and rough seas and with the water temperature as low as 69 degrees. "We tried to go outside one day, but it was windy and we decided to come back in," Druck said. "The water was very cold and green and for this reason we didn't have many fish this week." Anglers fishing aboard the Cheer's during the week included: Jorge Chalita, Jorge Chalita Jr., Luis Perez Flores, Oscar Perez Flores, and Carlos Espinoza.

CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: For the previous week, Cabo San Lucas fly fishing guide Grant Hartman of Baja Anglers said local action included a hot session on 7 red snapper landed on fly tackle plus twice as many lost for anglers Ernie Denison of Redding, Calif., and Matt Goff of San Jose, Calif. "Keeping them out of the rocks was the hard part," Hartman said. "They had one of the monster snapper cooked up at Solomon’s Landing and they thought the fish was to die for! They also had some great shots at yellowtail but they wouldn’t take the fly."

SAN JOSE DEL CABO (LOS CABOS) FISHING REPORTS

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SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: Eric Brictson of Gordo Banks Pangas reported on 73 combined La Playita fleet pangas fishing off San Jose del Cabo, with a catch of: 124 yellow snapper, 31 red snapper, 9 dog snapper, 18 roosterfish, 19 jack crevalle, 3 striped marlin, 2 dorado, 2 mako shark, 15 cabrilla, 11 pompano, 17 amberjack, 22 sierra, 25 Mexican bonito, 32 triggerfish, and 4 halibut. San Jose del Cabo fishing water temperatures dropped into the mid-60s as persistent southerly winds to nearly 25 m.p.h. at times pushed cool water up the Cortez side as far north as Los Frailes. "This influx of cold, off-colored water had a dramatic affect on the fishing," Brictson said. "It scattered any inshore action that had been going on and forced sportfishing fleets to travel long distances in search of more favorable water. Panga fleets found few options besides searching for any available action close to shore or off rocky high spots. The cold water brought any roosterfish activity to a standstill. It appears this will be one of those years when the weather pattern will not normalize until mid-July."

SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: San Jose del Cabo species fishing specialist John Snow reported green water at 65 degrees, tough wind, and big swells on Tuesday. Fish species caught or collected during the week included: Pacific spotted scorpionfish, reef lizardfish, flag cabrilla, and 1 finescale triggerfish. "That's all, folks," Snow said. "No one fishing here. There were several acre-sized pockets of red tide in and around Punta Gorda this morning. The only people fishing are a crazy Gringo, that would be me, and a handful of tourists."

SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: Bob Lewis of San Jose del Cabo said after an outing on his boat Dos Gueros, "The San Jose area has been cursed with cold and very green water. We ran way east past the Iman bank but strong current and opposing wind made it very difficult. I caught 1 small pargo. Anyone coming in the next few days should prepare for bottom fishing and a very picky bite. Skunks have been common. We are due for an improvement." San Jose del Cabo fishing area water temperatures were measured as low as 66 degrees, but Lewis said, "It feels like 60."

EAST CAPE FISHING REPORTS

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EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Chris Moyers of East Cape Smoke House reported on 330 charter boats from combined fleets including Hotels Palmas de Cortez, Playa del Sol, Punta Colorada, Buena Vista Beach Resort, Rancho Leonero, and Martin Verdugo's Beach Resort, with 941 anglers and a catch including released fish of: 106 striped marlin, 149 dorado, 94 yellowfin tuna, 6 pargo, 6 cabrilla, and 85 roosterfish. East Cape fishing area weather was in the mid-90s, with some afternoon wind and water temperatures variable at 66 to 84 degrees. "The fishing stinks right now," Moyers said. "But we know it can turn on a dime down here on the East Cape. The inshore fishing for roosterfish was decent and there’s some nice poundage there."

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: For the previous week ending June 14, 2007, Moyers reported on 282 boats, with 818 anglers and a catch including released fish of: 106 striped marlin, 1 sailfish, 202 dorado, 687 yellowfin tuna, 4 pompano, 35 roosterfish, 27 triggerfish, and 1 mako shark. East Cape fishing area water temperatures were at 69 to 83 degrees.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Fly fishing guide Jeff deBrown of The Reel Baja reported East Cape fishing area weather with some wind at midweek, air temperatures at 74 to 91 degrees, and water temperatures at 72 to 84 degrees. East Cape beach fishing was spotty but with some good shots at large roosterfish available for the fortunate. "For those who were not so lucky, it consisted of walking many miles of beach with just a few shots," deBrown said. "We have good concentrations of mullet and ballyhoo bait on the beaches and if you are willing to put in the miles you will get some good shots." Inshore fishing was limited by a lack of sardina chum, but did produce some ladyfish, jacks, and smaller roosterfish. Offshore boats fished mostly in warmer water to the north for slowly improving action on dorado, striped marlin, and some blue marlin beginning to show up. Yellowfin tuna continued to be a pick bite far offshore.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Scott Mars of Phoenix, Ariz., and his group made their 10th trip to Los Barriles and fished 4 days out of Hotel Palmas de Cortez on the East Cape charter boats El Loco II with Capt. Julio and J&B with Capt. Alberto for a catch including released fish of: 5 striped marlin, and 9 dorado to 52 pounds. "The first 2 days of fishing were in unexpected windy conditions with swells and heavy chop," Mars said. "Bait was limited to live mullet and dead ballyhoo in Palmas Bay, but sardines could be found north near Cerralvo Island. Yellowfin tuna was almost nonexistent for most charter boats out of Palmas de Cortez." Anglers fishing on the trip included Pat Burke, Robert Casagrande, and Gregg Mitchell."

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Gary Graham of Baja On The Fly said fishing water was found as cold as 71-degrees in the East Cape area, bringing slower action for beach, inshore, and offshore anglers. "A cold water current sweeping around the tip of Baja from the Pacific invaded the East Cape area," Graham said. "And windy conditions turned some inshore water off-color. Most offshore boats had to run 12 to 24 miles to find action." Good numbers of striped marlin were sighted but were not biting. Inshore fishing produced some smaller roosterfish of about 5 pounds, but sardina chum was scarce. Mullet baits were plentiful and some bait boats were also selling bonefish. "There seems to be lots of bonefish around," said Baja On The Fly guide Lance Petersen. "Some anglers have reported good results trolling these bonefish although I have yet to have much luck with them as fly fishing teaser bait." East Cape fishing area weather was partly cloudy in the mid-90s.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Marisol Verdugo of Martin Verdugo's Beach Resort said some striped marlin plus dorado to about 40 pounds were being caught off Punta Pescadero and south off Punta Colorada. Yellowfin tuna were slow. Good numbers of roosterfish were caught at La Ribera. "The water temperature is 74 to 76 degrees, a little cold for this time of the year," Verdugo said. "Hopefully the cold green water will start to go away and clean up."

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Simon Cazaly of the Vista Sea Sport East Cape diving service at Buena Vista said water temperatures warmed to about 70 degrees at depth last week, but with visibility still poor at about 15 feet. Two outings at Islote and Las Casitas produced sea life sightings of barred pargo, bumphead parrotfish, Pacific creolefish, Mexican goatfish, larger pargos, corals, and sea fans. At Las Casitas, Cazaly said, "Huge boulders are dotted around just off the coastline and it is possible to swim inside a few of them. It is light inside these caverns as there are several openings letting in the light and making it a safe environment to enter."

LORETO FISHING REPORTS

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LORETO, MEXICO: Patty Zapata of the Hotel Oasis reported water temperatures at 79 to 81 degrees and good weather all week in the Loreto fishing area except for strong winds and waves to almost 8 feet found about 20 miles out on Friday. Thirty-four Loreto pangas fished out of the hotel during the week for a catch of: 20 dorado of 16 to 23 pounds and 5 yellowtail to 28 pounds kept, and another 35 small dorado released by a group of 8 fly fishing anglers. "Plenty of dorado have been found, but the sizes are still small," Zapata said. Pangas fished at Bajo Mercenarios and Bajo Punta Lobos. Anglers fishing out of the hotel during the week included: Mike McNutt, Randy, Jeremy and Erik Solli, Thomas and Joan Radoumis, Thomas Agosto and his son, Ted Fomb, James and Don King, Raul and Anthony Cano, Leo and Gary Todd, Frye Flody, Andrew Paulson, Jose Castanela, David Ingamells, John Ryan, Steve Shaw, Shannon Nelson, Frank Balistrieri, and Ly Kevin. Loreto sportfishing captains working out of the hotel during the week included: Abraham Fernández, Paulino Martínez, Antonio Monzón Jr., Jesús Talamantes, Ignacio Quintero, Plácido Davis, Alejandro Ruiz, Martín Perpuli, Alfonso Susarrey, Antonio Davis Castro, Martín Davis Castro, and Alejandro Amador.

LORETO, MEXICO: Bill Erhardt of Loreto reported on 2 days of fishing aboard his boat Soledad with his son Mike Erhardt for a total catch of 7 dorado caught over the canyon east of town. Erhardt launched over the beach just north of the Loreto downtown marina due to launch ramp repair work still underway at midweek.

LORETO, MEXICO: Troy Cline of Loreto's annual Fishin' For The Mission charity tournament said 65 boats are already entered for the July 12-14, 2007, event to benefit local charities including a school for poor children. Almost $24,000 was raised during the 2006 event. The entry fee is $150 per boat and 5 anglers may fish per boat. Information: fishinforthemission@yahoo.com, fishinforthemission.com.

LORETO, MEXICO: Rich Robinson of San Diego reported a striped marlin released and a 60-pound dorado landed during a double hookup on 25-pound line during an offshore outing with Arturo's Sportfishing that included his son Damon Robinson and fellow anglers Bill and Bryan Lewis. Fishing in 2 pangas with Capts. Antonio and Leonel, Robinson said, "Because of the reported small size of the dorado catch we limited ourselves to 25 and 30-pound outfits, thinking that would be plenty. About 9 a.m. Damon tossed a mackerel to a feeding marlin and began the first shift of a battle which was to last over 2 hours. A second 25-pound outfit screamed from the stern, where our guide Antonio had been creating a chum line with mackerel scales. After 2 hours the dorado finally appeared and Antonio gaffed it and hauled it into the boat." Four other dorado of 15 to 20 pounds were also landed during the outing about 25 miles northeast of Punta Lobos at the north end of Isla Carmen. In 3 days of fishing with Arturo's, Robinson's group kept 8 dorado averaging 15 pounds out of 36 dorado landed. "There were many school-sized dorado in the 6 to 10-pound range that were all released," Robinson said.

LORETO, MEXICO: Bill Sumner of Las Vegas, Nev., reported "essentially a bust" this year for his annual June fishing trip to Loreto with just a few billfish and larger dorado caught. Sumner said he found 6 commercial pangas working the Punta Pulpito area. "They had virtually cleaned out the yellowtail by the time my panga and 3 others got there," Sumner said.

LORETO, MEXICO: Richard Franklin of Los Angeles reported on 2 days of fishing out to about 20 miles with Capt. Jose Torres out of Danzante Adventure Resort at Ensenada Blanca south of Loreto for a catch of 2 dorado of 25 and 30 pounds plus 1 striped marlin.

SANTA ROSALIA FISHING REPORTS

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SANTA ROSALIA, MEXICO: Mike Kanzler of Isla San Marcos reported "hot and getting hotter" weather in the Santa Rosalia fishing area last week, with air temperatures in the mid-90s, inshore waters at 77 to 78 degrees, and offshore water up to 83 degrees. Offshore water was clear with 70-foot plus visibility, but inshore water visibility was only about 20 feet. Two fishing runs to the Isla San Marcos yellowtail bajos and around weed paddies 5 to 7 miles farther out produced a combined catch of 5 yellowtail of 24 to 30 pounds, 1 sailfish released, and 2 dorado of 12 to 15 pounds kept out of a hot weed paddy bite. For the yellowtail, Kanzler said, "I fished the 110 bajo and found it a slow pick. I moved out over the Twin Bajo just inside the Panga Bajo, which sits in 190 to 230 feet of water. Here the fish were chewing a bit steadier and with the whole fleet of pangas making the move it was the place to be with live bait soaked on sliding sinker rigs."

BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES (L.A. BAY) FISHING REPORTS

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BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: Art Whitting of San Diego, Calif., reported on a 6-angler kayak fishing trip to San Francisquito south of Bahia de los Angeles, camping with Beto Lucero at the caleta on the north side of the point and also fishing on a panga with Capt. Ernie Lopez for a 5-day catch that included: about 35 yellowtail of 20 to 30 pounds, twice as many yellowtail lost, 4 grouper to 10 pounds, and "tons" of miscellaneous inshore and bottom fish. "Fishing was steady with yellowtail boiling on bait during the tidal movements," Whitting said.

"Tight drags are a must. There are no peanuts in the mix." Whitting's group stayed at Beto Lucero's cabin on the shore of the caleta. "Beto's cabin is topnotch. He even has cots and mattresses that are really nice, propane grill, shower, and flush toilet," Whitting said. "Ernie Lopez is a superb fisherman and skipper, ernesto_lz@hotmail.com." Also fishing on the trip were: Bill Coyne, John McVey, Colin McVey, Adam "Trout" Traubman, and Neil Bentley.

BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: Pat Wheaton of San Diego, Calif., reported on 3 days of Bahia de los Angeles fishing out of a 14-foot inflatable boat with Tim Collins of Ventura, Calif., plus a day of fishing on the charter panga Heidi out of Daggett's Camp with Capt. Alonso Daggett for very good action on yellowtail of 8 to 15-pounds along the north shore of Smith Island, around Isla Ventana, off the west side of Smith Island, and at the south end of Isla Angel de la Guarda. The total catch including released fish for 4 days was about 45 yellowtail, over 30 cabrilla even though they were not targeted, and over 15 miscellaneous fish.

Wide-open yellowtail conditions were found on iron during most sessions. At Isla Smith, Wheaton said, "We caught 18 yellows in 2.5 hours, on the drop and the retrieve as well as on the surface when casting to boiling fish. We had 4 double hookups." At Isla Angel de la Guarda with Capt. Daggett 15 yellowtail of 10 to 15 pounds were caught while cranking blue-white Salas jigs to the surface and another 2 were caught by Daggett with live bait. Cabrilla fishing was also very good. "Tim has been going to L.A. Bay for 25 years and called our 3 days of fishing out of his inflatable the best inside the bay yellowtail fishing he has experienced in all those years," Wheaton said. "It was my first trip there and I think it will be hard to match." Bahia de los Angeles fishing area weather was mostly flat in the 80s, with water temperatures in the high-60s and low-70s.

BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: Ruben Daggett of Daggett's Camp reported good supplies of mackerel bait and white seabass biting in 67-degree water south of Bahia de los Angeles at Roca Bernabe.

BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: John Carroll of Chula Vista, Calif., relayed reports for sluggish fishing results at Bahia de los Angeles the previous week. "On Saturday they got right into some yellows right off the beach but there was no size to them," Carroll said. "On Sunday they went south for lots of bird activity and only a handful of fish for the 2 boats. On Monday the fog rolled in, only 3 fish were caught this day and of no size. They did see others doing a lot better."

SAN FELIPE FISHING REPORTS

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SAN FELIPE, MEXICO: Tom Ward of The Longfin Tackle Store reported on 6-day Midriff Islands fishing trips by the Tony Reyes Fishing Tours panga motherships Jose Andres and Tony Reyes, returning to San Felipe early on the morning of June 16, 2007, with a catch of:

Tony Reyes, with charter master Steve Enright of Tustin, Calif., and 27 anglers: limits of yellowtail to 37 pounds, limits of cabrilla to 20 pounds, 55 bass, 56 pargos, 4 sheephead, 1 grouper, 3 whitefish, and 95 miscellaneous and released fish including 3 golden cabrilla released. "They fished in great weather the entire 6 days," Ward said. "They caught lots of yellowtail on the surface with jigs and MirrOlures."

Jose Andres, with charter master Jeff Clary of North Tustin, Calif., and 18 anglers fishing in 73.4-degree water: 154 yellowtail to 33 pounds, 2 grouper to 65 pounds, 5 black sea bass of 75 to 300 pounds, 6 white seabass to 46 pounds, 152 cabrilla to 14 pounds, 30 Humboldt giant squid to 25 pounds, 6 red snapper, 2 sheephead, 41 bass, 3 sharks, and 35 miscellaneous and released fish.

SAN FELIPE, MEXICO: Catalina Meders of the Title Company Bookstore at San Felipe returned from a trip to Hawaii that included a helicopter tour of Kauai. "This was one of the most marvelous things I have ever experienced in my whole life!" Meders said. "What an incredible way it would be to see the Baja canyons around San Felipe. It would be the perfect way to explore Mount Diablo and the national park of San Pedro Martir, as well as Laguna Hansen." Meders noted that highway Mex 5 going north to Mexicali was in rough condition just north of San Felipe. "They are adding 2 lanes," Meders said. "There are cars driving in both directions on all the lanes plus people driving on sections of the road which are still under active construction. At night it is simply a really bad accident waiting to happen."

ROCKY POINT (PUERTO PENASCO) FISHING REPORTS

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ROCKY POINT, MEXICO: Ollie Peltier of Rocky Point reported on a Father's Day run about 45 miles out on a heading of 188 degrees aboard the JJ's Cantina 30-foot boat for a catch including: a leopard grouper or sardinera of about 20 pounds, goldspotted or "calico" bass of 4 to 8 pounds, spotted cabrilla or pinto bass of 18 pounds, 1 red snapper, 6 "rabbit fish," and a skipjack caught on the troll back to Rocky Point. "The seas were flat, with a slight breeze, so there wasn't any need to anchor," Peltier said. "After looking around, I found a pretty good concentration of fish and everyone baited up and dropped in. All in all it was a great day and a good time was had by all." Fishing with Peltier were his 2 sons Tim and Tom Peltier, Tim's friend Mike, Larry "Bubba" Rice, and Harry Florian.

SAN CARLOS (SONORA) FISHING REPORTS

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SAN CARLOS, MEXICO: John Hilderbrand of Jon Jen Charters reported slower action for San Carlos fishing area boats in rough conditions early in the week. "I'm sorry to say fishing was terrible with windy days and sloppy seas," Hilderbrand said. "We fished west 40 miles and south 40 miles and I think this week we only caught 4 dorado, 1 sailfish, and 1 marlin. That's it. The water has turned green and bait is in abundance so the fish are very, very full." Fishing conditions remained rough at the end of the week, although a few fish had been caught including dorado, some sailfish, and 1 small black marlin.

MAZATLAN FISHING REPORTS

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MAZATLAN, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters reported on 32 offshore Aries Fleet charter boats out of Mazatlan's Marina El Cid, with a catch including released fish of: 2 blue marlin, 22 sailfish, and 49 dorado up to 55 pounds. Nine inshore super pangas had continued wide-open catch-and-release action for dorado of 10 to 12 pounds. "It was another incredible week of dorado fishing," Edwards said. "And the fish have grown. The buoys are still offering easy limit fun for light tackle anglers all day long." Mazatlan fishing area weather was cloudy at 90 degrees, with mostly calm seas and water temperatures even at 83 degrees. Offshore boats fished 22 to 26 miles southwest of Marina El Cid and inshore boats continued to load up with small dorado at the buoys.

PUERTO VALLARTA FISHING REPORTS

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PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO: Danny Quinonez of PV Marlin Sportfishing said good numbers of sailfish and dorado were present northwest of Punta de Mita and catches including released fish by the charter boat Lorena included a trip with 20 dorado and 2 sailfish caught with angler Sean Porter. "Some of the boats have been picking up tuna on the longer trips to El Banco, but the main body of fish are not here yet," Quinonez said. "We had a nice blue marlin on during a trip to Roca Corbeteña last week but only for 2 jumps. It was a very quick release." Plenty of roosterfish, pargos, jack crevalle, and amberjack were caught on local fishing trips.

PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO: Danny Gomez of Dhamar Sportfishing said the Puerto Vallarta charter super panga Dhamar fished twice last week with California anglers Jerry Patchen and Charly Wolf for a catch including released fish of 20 dorado to about 30 pounds at Punta de Mita and 1 blue marlin released plus another lost at gaff at El Banco. On Friday, the Dhamar fished again for 15 dorado of 10 to 15 pounds plus 1 sailfish about 13 miles off Punta de Mita. Puerto Vallarta fishing area water temperatures were at 82 degrees.

IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO FISHING REPORTS

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IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Ed Kunze, reporting for Baja On The Fly, said offshore Ixtapa fishing area water temperatures were as high as 87 degrees last week as sailfish, yellowfin tuna, and blue marlin were caught 16 to 20 miles out of Zihuatanejo bay. "The water is really warming up," Kunze said, "and it may just be a bit too warm for most fish species. The coolest water we have now is inshore at 84 degrees." Inshore boats did well on jacks at Los Troncones and Capt. Adolpho on the charter panga Dos Hermanos fished at Puerto Vicente Guerrero for good numbers of jack crevalle, green jacks, and a few roosterfish, despite some lingering red tide condition. "Adolpho told me the best action was on the last day because the red tide had moved on out and further south," Kunze said. "All the fish were taken on surface poppers." Ixtapa fishing area weather was calm in the mid-90s.

IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters reported on a run to Puerto Vicente Guerrero by Capt. Adolpho, saying his client caught 29 jack crevalle, 7 roosterfish to 55 pounds, and 1 African pompano. "The fish were caught on lures because live bait was shut down by the red tide," Edwards said. "There were no bigeyes or cocineros in the bay. It has to be the strangest start to our summer season. At week’s end the red tide had reportedly moved south to Acapulco, but it's too early to say if it is gone for good." Ixtapa Zihuatanejo fishing area water temperatures were reported as high as 89 degrees offshore.

CANCUN FISHING REPORTS

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CANCUN, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters reported on 19 super panga and cruiser outings by the El Cid Caribe sportfishing fleet at Puerto Morelos near Cancun, with a catch including released fish of: 2 sailfish, 5 barracuda, 1 blackfin tuna, 1 wahoo, and 20 dorado of mostly 20 to 25 pounds. Cancun fishing area weather was mostly sunny at 90 degrees, with light easterly winds.

MEXICO COASTAL FISHING REPORTS

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MEXICO: Members of the Baja California Sur sportfishing community, stunned by the recent passage of the Mexican federal government's Shark Norma 029, continued the planning last week of protests against the fisheries legislation, which was considered to contain provisions that will increase commercial fishing pressure on species reserved for sportfishing under the guise of shark fishing bycatch. With hopes for prompt repeal or revision of the federal law slim at best, email chatter was also spammed around the internet that did little to foster confidence in the anti-029 movement's credibility, including an unsubstantiated claim that a commercial Mexican fishing boat had been found with 10,000 dead marlin aboard. Meanwhile, bolstered by the legitimization and liberal provisions of the new fisheries law, as well as a de facto lack of effective enforcement in most areas, both commercial and sportfishing boats in Mexico's coastal waters continued to have widespread freedom to operate without meaningful environmental controls.

MEXICO: Biologist and Baja fisherman Jim Mori of Sonora, Calif., said he recently presented a status report by Bruce Collette of the Smithsonian Institute on the rare Sea of Cortez fish, gulf sierra, Scomberomorus concolor, at an international marine fisheries conference held in Panama. "The gulf sierra will be listed as threatened," Mori said. "That's probably as far as it will go, since to do anything constructive, the Mexican government would have to prohibit the commercial fishing of the Pacific Sierra, Scomberomorus sierra, which swims together with the gulf sierra up in the northeast quadrant of the Cortez when they are both spawning. We know that won't happen. Sport fishermen should release their catches of the gulf sierra, which is definitely in trouble."

Mori said anglers may tell the difference between the rare gulf sierra and the common Pacific sierra, or "sierra" as it is usually called in Baja, by looking for a lack of yellow spots on its sides. "The gulf sierra is basically gray on top and silvery-white below," Mori said. "It lacks any of the yellow spots that are found on the more common sierra. That's the best distinguishing characteristic. Sierra concolor is also somewhat longer and thinner than the common sierra and the mouth is noticeably different when compared side-by-side.

"What is left of the gulf sierra population shows up in the spring in shallow coastal bays and estuaries in southern Sonora. They then work north and by July-August they are in the northeast corner of the gulf. This is where they spawn. This is their biggest problem as they are mixed into greater numbers of common sierra and are seriously pounded by the Mexican commercial fishing boats. The Mexican government will never ban the sierra fishery, so the inevitable will happen. Adios, gulf sierra."

La Paz Mexico Fishing Photo 1

BIGGER LA PAZ DODOS--Chris Beckman, right, of Torrance, Calif., fished the Las Arenas side south of La Paz with Capt. Martin Lucero of Tortuga Sportfishing for good results on large pargo lisa and quality dorado including this 44 pounder caught at the buoys. PHOTO COURTESY OF GERARDO HERNANDEZ.

Ensenada Mexico Fishing Photo 1

CONSISTENT ENSENADA YELLOWTAIL--Summer fishing at Ensenada's Punta Banda produced a steady average of about 2 yellowtail per panga for Vonny's Fleet last week. Scott, left, and Dennisse Cramer of Solana Beach landed this pair of forkies plus limits of bottom fish with Vonny's Fleet's Capt. Hector on the charter panga Vonny III. PHOTO COURTESY OF IVAN VILLARINO.

San Quintin Mexico Fishing Photo 1

San Quintin Mexico Fishing Photo 3

LOTSA QUINTIN FORKIES--Ken Jones, second from right, and his group had a great day of San Quintin fishing for yellowtail with Capt. Juan Cook, right, out of Don Eddie's Landing. Also fishing were, from left, Bret Hambrick and Chris Gessel. At right, Jones works a hefty San Quintin forkie on spinning tackle during the outing. Below, San Quintin's historic Old Mill Hotel. PHOTOS COURTESY OF MARITA MELVILLE AND BRET HAMBRICK.

San Quintin Mexico Fishing Photo 4

QUINTIN KAYAK FISHING--Kayak fishing video producer Jon Schwartz got into yellowtail like this one, plus white seabass, during his recent trip to fish at San Quintin on a kayak supported by Pedro's Pangas. PHOTOS COURTESY OF TAYLOR ABEEL.

San Quintin Mexico Fishing Photo 6

QUINTIN CAPTAIN COOK--San Quintin's Capt. Juan Cook, center, at Don Eddie's Landing fished at Isla San Martin with Ed Actkinson, left, and Ron Thornton for good results on yellowtail, halibut, and mixed species last week. PHOTO COURTESY OF MARITA MELVILLE.

Camalu Mexico Fishing Photo 1 Camalu Mexico Fishing Photo 2

RED TIDE ACTION--Tom Kingsley, left, and Paul Montgomery fished 3 days out of Camalu on the Baja Pacific coast north of San Quintin with Capt. Lee Moreno, right, and scored a good catch of bottom fish despite red tide conditions that knocked out white seabass action. At right, Paul Montgomery with a lingcod and calico bass caught during the trip. PHOTOS COURTESY OF PAUL MONTGOMERY.

Baja California Sur Mexico Fishing Photo 1

BAD DOG SUR--Steve Ross, right, of the Ensenada boat Bad Dog, made a trip to Baja California Sur to fish from La Paz to Cabo San Lucas aboard Tom McInally's boat Wide Open, but the fishing was slow for just 1 jack crevalle and this striped marlin landed at the 88 bank. Helping Ross with the marlin is Bad Dog's Marinero Juan Lu.

Puerto La Salina Mexico Fishing Photo 1

LA SALINA TOURNAMENT--Derek Arneson and his father Richard Arneson fished on their boat in the recent Marina La Salina fishing tournament north of Ensenada for a catch of 5 yellowtail, including a 17.86 pounder landed by Derek that was good for second place. PHOTOS COURTESY OF DEREK ARNESON.

Cabo San Lucas Mexico Fishing Photo 1

JALAPENO HOOKUP--Eric Arnette of Athens, Texas, fished at Cabo San Lucas earlier this month aboard the Cabo Magic charter boat Jalapeño with Capt. Gaba Garcia and released this striped marlin landed out of 2 hookups and many marlin sighted. "We saw around 20 marlin, but for some reason they just weren't hungry," Arnette said. "The Jalapeno was an awesome boat." PHOTO COURTESY OF LORI GARCIA.

Cabo San Lucas Mexico Fishing Photo 2

CABO INSHORE PICK BITE--Inshore fishing waters around the tip of Baja were green and cold last week and fish counts were down. With some small yellowtail and a jack crevalle caught aboard the Cabo San Lucas charter super panga Cheer's are Jorge Chalita Jr., his father Jorge Sr., and their friend Mike "El Español." PHOTO COURTESY OF RAMON DRUCK.

Cabo San Lucas Mexico Fishing Photo 3

SNAPPER SLUGGERS--Cabo San Lucas fly fishing guide Grant Hartman, second from right, led anglers Ernie Denison, left, and Matt Goff to a great fly fishing tackle session on 7 huachinango or true red snapper landed and "twice as many lost" with Cabo sportfishing Capt. Nazario, right, aboard the charter boat Flying Fish III. PHOTO COURTESY OF GRANT HARTMAN.

San Jose del Cabo Mexico Fishing Photo 1

SCRATCH FISHING SUCCESS--Strong south wind and cold water temperatures slammed the door on inshore fishing at the tip of Baja last week, but charter pangas working out of San Jose del Cabo's La Playita beach still managed to scratch out some good ones for their clients. Here's Sue Anderson of San Diego with a good eating 8-pound true red snapper, or huachinango in Spanish, caught with Capt. Hector of Gordo Banks Pangas on the charter super panga Ginny. PHOTO COURTESY OF ERIC BRICTSON.

East Cape Mexico Fishing Photo 1

EL DORADO 52--Brian Medhurst hoists his 52-pound dorado caught out of East Cape's Hotel Palmas de Cortez last week during fishing aboard the charter boats J&M and El Loco II. At right, anglers on the trip included, from left, Medhurst, Scott Mars, Robert Casagrande, Gregg Mitchell, and Pat Burke. PHOTO COURTESY OF SCOTT MARS.

East Cape Mexico Fishing Photo 3

ANOTHER FLY SPECIES--David McLeod, left, of Ketchum, Idaho, has caught over 250 fish species on fly fishing tackle, but this was his first-ever roosterfish, 1 of over a dozen landed during a visit to East Cape to fish with fly fishing guide Jeff deBrown, right, of The Reel Baja. PHOTO COURTESY OF JEFF DEBROWN.

Loreto Mexico Fishing Photo 1

LORETO SUMMER DORADO--This summer's Loreto fishing area dorado run is still just beginning, but Mike Erhardt, along with his dad Bill Erhardt of Loreto, scored on 7 dodos while fishing aboard their boat Soledad on Thursday and Saturday over the canyon east of town. "With the launch ramp in Loreto under repair, we launched over the sand north of the marina. Fishing was slow in choppy conditions both days," the elder Erhardt said. PHOTO COURTESY OF BILL ERHARDT.

Loreto Mexico Fishing Photo 2

HOTEL OASIS SUMMER--Gerald, Albert and Brian Lam fished out of Loreto's historic Hotel Oasis last week with Capt. Antonio Monzón, for a good catch of mixed-size dorado north of town at Bajo Mercenarios. PHOTO COURTESY OF PATTY ZAPATA.

Loreto Mexico Fishing Photo 3

LIGHT TACKLE BATTLES--Damon Robinson with a 60-pound dorado boated after a 2-hour battle on 25-pound line during an outing with Arturo's Sportfishing at Loreto that also produced a striped marlin landed at the same time, also on 25-pound line. PHOTO COURTESY OF RICH ROBINSON.

Mulege Mexico Photo 1

BAJA'S PASSING SCENE--Lou Federico, original builder of the Hotel Punta Chivato north of Mulege and author of the Baja history book "One Hell of a Ride," sent this recent aerial photo of the Punta Chivato area, showing the coast line rapidly filling with homes. The buildings of the old Hotel Punta Chivato can be seen among the group of trees lining the upper point. PHOTO COURTESY OF LOU FEDERICO.

Santa Rosalia Mexico Fishing Photo 1

SAN MARCOS SAIL--Raul Samuel Morales of Minera y Metalurgica del Boleo in Santa Rosalia fished off Isla San Marcos with Mike Kanzler for his first-ever sailfish released, in hot summer weather conditions. Dorado concentrations were also in the area around kelp paddies. PHOTO COURTESY OF MIKE KANZLER.

Bahia de los Angeles Mexico Fishing Photo 1

FOUR GOOD DAYS--Pat Wheaton fished 4 days at Bahia de los Angeles together with Tim Collins on Collin's inflatable boat and with Capt. Alonso Daggett of Daggett's Camp for very good yellowtail action that produced about 45 forkies plus a bunch of cabrilla. Here's Wheaton with a yellowtail caught near Isla Smith. PHOTO COURTESY OF PAT WHEATON.

San Francisquito Mexico Fishing Photo 1

BAJA YELLOWTAIL TRIP--Kayak and panga fishing out of Caleta San Francisquito on the Baja Midriff coast south of Bahia de los Angeles produced about 35 yellowtail landed and about twice as many yellowtail lost for anglers, from left, Bill Coyne, Neil Bentley, Colin McVey, John McVey, Adam "Trout" Traubman, and Art Whitting. At right, Beto Lucero's rental cabin on the shore of the caleta. PHOTOS COURTESY OF ART WHITTING.

Rocky Point Mexico Fishing Photo 1

ROCKY POINT PINTOS--Tom Peltier, of Phoenix, Ariz., visited his dad Ollie Peltier at Rocky Point on Father's Day and the fishing included this nice pair of spotted cabrilla or "pinto bass" caught about 45 miles out. At right, Ollie Peltier's other son Tim with a nice leopard grouper or sardinera also caught during the trip. PHOTOS COURTESY OF OLLIE PELTIER.

Mazatlan Mexico Fishing Photo 1

MAZATLAN OFFSHORE ACTION--Irvine Oliver and his sons fished in early June with Mazatlan's Flota Bibi Fleet for a catch including this sailfish, 10 dorado, 3 bonita, and 3 unusual "bacocas" or tripletail. At right, one of the tripletail, Lobotes pacificus, caught at Mazatlan with Flota Bibi Fleet. PHOTOS COURTESY OF TADEO HERNANDEZ.

Puerto Vallarta Mexico Fishing Photo 1

PUNTA DE MITA SAILFISH--Ramiro Adan Gomez of Boulder City, Nev., fished at Puerto Vallarta aboard his cousin Danny Gomez' charter super panga Dhamar for a catch including released fish of 15 dorado to about 15 pounds plus this sailfish in action about 13 miles off Punta de Mita. At right, Charly Wolf and Jerry Patchen of Morro Bay, Calif., scored a great catch of dorado into the 30-pound class while fishing at Puerto Vallarta board the Dhamar. PHOTOS COURTESY OF DANNY GOMEZ.

Jalisco Mexico Fishing Photo 1

JALISCO SHORE FISHING--Juan Mendoza with a nice inshore pargo caught earlier this month at Tenacatita, Jalisco, near Jeff Klassen's sportfishing location at Melanque near Barra de Navidad. "It was caught a few days ago," Klassen said. "It's a fun fish to target while waiting for the first roosterfish." PHOTO COURTESY OF JEFF KLASSEN.

Baja Mexico Fishing Photo 1

EAST CAPE SUNRISE--In a tradition going back over half a century, East Cape charter fishing boats come to the beach at sunrise to pick up their clients for another day of Baja fishing on the Sea of Cortez, here at Hotel Palmas de Cortez during a visit last week by Scott Mars' group from Phoenix, Ariz. PHOTO COURTESY OF SCOTT MARS.

BAJA MEXICO FISHING REPORT ARCHIVES AND FISH PICTURES