FOUR DAYS OF FISHING WITH CAPT. PAULINO MARTINEZ FOR 90 DORADO

Oct. 2, 2004, Don Bear, Loreto, Mexico Fishing Trip Report:

My son Doug and I fished with Capt. Paulino Martinez of Loreto on Monday through Thursday with extremely good results. The four-day Loreto fishing total was 90 dorado (also mahi-mahi or dolphinfish) and 1 leopard grouper. (I no longer call them "cabrilla"!) Our worst day was 13 dorado, while our best was 34.

That's the good news; the bad news is that a little over half of the fish were undersized "pollitos", clearly overmatched on 20-lb. line. Doug did get a 48-pounder, and we both lost fish that size or larger. The leopard grouper was 12-15 lbs.

Ninety percent of the our catch was at San Bruno around a buoy put there by Poncho Susarrey; the grouper came from Pulpito.

We had the buoy all to ourselves every day; there were virtually no fishermen in Loreto.

Our bait was primarily sardinas, jurelitos and anchovetas that Paulino netted in the Loreto marina, although mackerel purchased from the carnaderos (not always available) did produce a few fish. The 48-lb dorado came on an anchoveta, while the leopard grouper ate a mackerel dropped to the bottom.

Loreto fishing weather was outstanding: cloudless sunny days in the low 90's or high 80's. A west wind every morning caused some high frequency chop until about 9:30, followed by a light cooling breeze. Paulino says the early arrival of the west winds signals an early beginning of winter conditions in the next few weeks. Water temperature was just over 85 degrees until Thursday, when it dropped a degree and a half.

Putting together the abundance of dorado and the near-perfect weather made for a great time.

There is only one washout left on the carretera between Santa Rosalia and Loreto, it coming about halfway down Bahia Concepcion. However, roadwork to correct partial washouts around Rancho San Juan makes for a couple of spots with only one and a half lanes, the half lane being on the northbound side. All are well signed.

Repair work on the Loreto marina and the malecon is proceeding with unusual speed; much of the seaward side of the Malecon is closed to traffic.

(See "Mexico Fishing News" online for current fishing reports, photos, weather, and water temperatures from Loreto and other major Mexican sportfishing areas. Vacation travel articles, fishing maps and seasonal calendars, and fishing related information for Loreto may be found at Mexfish.com's main Loreto page.