WAHOO AND MARLIN MISSING, BUT PLENTY OF DORADO OUT OF PUERTO LOPEZ MATEOS

Nov. 12, 2006, Bill Erhardt, Puerto Lopez Mateos, Magdalena Bay, Baja California Sur, Mexico:

I fished four days of the last eight on the Pacific coast of Baja California outside of Bahia Magdalena. Each day I fished alone, launched at Puerto Lopez Mateos and entered the Pacific through Boca de Soledad.

Nov. 4, 2006:

On Saturday, November 4th, I fished on the Baja Pacific ridge 20 miles north of the Thetis Bank. I went in search of wahoo, but found instead wall-to-wall schools of small yellowfin tuna and dorado. Dragging lures selected to appeal to wahoo and not the voracious yellowfin and dorado, I caught no wahoo and had no wahoo bites. Although trying to avoid them, I did catch 13 yellowfin tuna and 8 or 10 dorado. The yellowfin were 12 to 20 pounds and the dorado about the same size, not keepers but big enough to be difficult to release. On the way to the bank I passed many seiners scooping up schools of yellowfin tuna. One large yacht and one other sportfishing boat were fishing on "the 23's".

Nov. 7, 2006:

On Tuesday and Wednesday I was joined by Barry Wilkerson who trailered his Parker boat, "Rocket", from Loreto to join me in some solo fishing. Tuesday morning we went directly to the 23's to try again for wahoo. We found only schools of dorado (also mahi-mahi or dolphinfish). Before repairing to Bahia Santa Maria to anchor for the night we trolled an hour or so over the Thetis Bank. As has been the case for the last month or so, there was no action on the Thetis.

Nov. 8, 2006:

On Wednesday, we ran out of Bahia Santa Maria to Petrel Bank, near the edge of the shelf. On Petrol we found schools of nice sized dorado, but nothing else. On the way back to Puerto Lopez Mateo we again passed over the Thetis Bank and again found no activity. Although we covered a lot of territory Tuesday and Wednesday we saw few other sportfishing boats. Throughout the area we fished there were occasional circling frigate birds, single and in groups, that generally signaled schools of dorado. The dorado averaged around 20 pounds or so and provided enough action to more than make the trip worth while.

Nov. 11, 2006:

On Saturday, November 11th, I fished south of Cabo San Lazaro and east of Punta Entrada. I made the 50-plus mile run south from Boca de Soledad because others fishing out of Puerto Lopez Mateos had found marlin there the day before. I did find marlin in the area, but could not get them to bite. There were schools of dorado, however, and the dorado were larger than those caught earlier in the week. I caught one bull over 30 pounds and others averaged around 25 pounds.

On the way back in, between 4 and 7 miles outside the boca, I found yellowfin tuna and caught four between 20 and 25 pounds.

Notable events during the fishing week of Magdalena Bay included a shark that appeared to be about 7-foot following a hooked dorado to the boat, and the sailboats from the Baja Ha-Ha, that must have number over 100, that were anchored Tuesday night at Bahia Santa Maria. When the sun went down and dark descended the lights from the sailboats against the backdrop of the bay was truly spectacular.

I caught no marlin or wahoo during the period and heard of no wahoo taken. Only more dorado than I bothered to count and yellowfin at the beginning of the week and at the end after the seiners cleared out.

The dorado seem to be bigger in the southern part of the area and that also appears to be where the marlin are concentrated.

The water temperature off Magdalena Bay continues abnormally high, between 80 and 84 degrees, which probably accounts for the abundance of dorado. The water in the Magdalena Bay fishing area is clear and blue and light winds have provided excellent fishing conditions.

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