KELP PADDY GOLD--Jack Fauquier with a nice kelp paddy dorado caught on Mike Schmidt's boat Seawolf about 30 miles out of Ensenada's Marina Coral. Photo courtesy Mike Schmidt.

OFFSHORE ENSENADA FISHING CATCH INCLUDES
A BIG DORADO FOR THE BOAT SEAWOLF

Oct. 17, 2004, Mike Schmidt, Seawolf, Marina Coral, Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico Fishing:

Jack Fauquier and I take my 30-foot Proline, Seawolf, to the Hotel Coral at Ensenada for a week every year to catch some exotics, and we always get 'em. This day, in the last week of September, we were 20 SW out of the Coral when we were called in by a skipper on a paddy that was holding Yellow Tail, Yellow Fin, Big Eye and Dorado's, all you wanted!!!

So we picked up ran South 10 miles past the Worm. And boy was it worth it. The skipper Ernie on his boat a (Mako) said put Iron on to get past the Yellow Tail so as to get to the Big Eye and Yellow Fin. As I was pulling in, all three on the other boat were all bendo.

Off the topside of the paddy dorado's were jumping. This paddy was the one dreams are made of. There were hundreds of Yellowtail under it and hundreds of Yellow Fin. We started hooking Yellow Fin on the Iron the first cast out. The Yellow Tails were hard to get past and the Dorado's were popping off as they do. We were in Heaven!

Jack and I put Yellow Tails and Yellow Fin over the rail non stop. I really wanted to get one of those Dorado's in a bad way, as I could see jumping often but the YT were hard to keep off the baits. The water temp was 71.5 degrees.

The Mustang pulled in with a full load of passengers and must have put 100 to 200 or better of Yellow Fin tunas on the deck. This paddy was wide open.

Now with the three boats on this paddy we all fished side-by-side. Everyone was bendo! I could not believe how close I was to the Mustang. Almost hit once. On one of the drifts we all said hi and I jokingly asked for some hamburgers to go! Hookup!! Jack yells, he's on...Dorado!! Jumping and jumping, what a fight that fish gave him on 20lb.

After a couple of maneuvers away from the Mustang, Jack lands this nice Dorado. On the next pass the skipper of the Mustang asked if Jack and would like some hamburgers and we quickly agreed of course. On the next pass the skipper tosses us two full lunches with hot hamburgers. What a trip. Thought I would never see the day where I would order food from a party standing on the deck of my boat only a few feet away hooked on a fish. Well after the nice hot lunches were eaten we were done for the day with a full stomachs and a full load of fish on the deck.