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Baja winter yellowtail are hitting north of Loreto
Mexico Fishing News, February 2, 2004
LORETO FISHING REPORTS
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LORETO, MEXICO: Pam Bolles of Baja Big Fish Company said winds have been a problem, but good numbers of 25 to 30-pound yellowtail were caught last week, feeding about halfway down a 200-foot deep water column, 14 miles north of town at San Bruno.
Yellowtail were also caught on the surface in the same area by running to birds, chumming with sardina, and casting metal. “They haven't been caught trolling, as they're spooky,” Bolles said. “The sardina incitement is the best ticket.”
LORETO, MEXICO: Don Bear of Loreto said he and Frederico Murillo helped Capt. Paulino Martinez christen his new charter fishing super panga with a trip for two yellowtail of 25 and 30 pounds at La Cholla plus four or five lost.
“I was impressed with the spaciousness of Paulino's panga and the ease of fighting fish from it,” Bear said. “It will be great for dorado.”
Bear also reported one boat from Arturo’s Sportfishing returning by noon from San Bruno with 12 yellowtail. Loreto weather was calm in the mornings, but whitecaps by 10 a.m., with some days unfishable. Mackerel baits were caught southeast of Isla Coronado since none was for sale at the marina.
LORETO, MEXICO: At Villas de Loreto Wendy Wilchynski said many anglers stayed at the hotel last week, and they caught lots of yellowtail north of town, from Isla Coronado all the way to San Bruno, with Capt. Goyo.
LORETO, MEXICO: Ty Miller of El Fuerte Sportfishing at Puerto Escondido said yellowtail fishing picked up on fish in the 30 to 40-pound class: “Over at Smorgasbord the yellows along with red snapper are suspending in around 150 to 200 feet off the high spot. Farther outside, Miller said yellowfin tuna of 80 to 110 pounds were mixed with smaller fish. Weather over the weekend was calm in the low-70s, with water temperatures averaging 65 degrees.
In other mainland Mexico and Baja fishing action this week:
ENSENADA FISHING REPORTS
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ENSENADA, MEXICO: Sammy Susarrey of Lily Fleet said the Tamara and Amigo fished two days at Punta Banda Bank, finding nice whitefish, salmon grouper, and a few lingcod 250 feet deep, plus some Humboldt squid to 15 pounds on the bottom, and one 40-pound Mako shark. Beginning this week, the Amigo will be in dry dock for two months, getting a new deck and “many new goodies,” Susarrey said.
ENSENADA, MEXICO: Ivan Villarino said Vonny’s Fleet pangas at the tip of Punta Banda continued to find steady action on mixed bottom fish. Capt. Beto Zamora of the Vonny I also caught another Humboldt squid, this one a 17 pounder, Susarrey said.
ENSENADA, MEXICO: Celia Diaz of the nonprofit Binational Emergency Medical Care Committee in Chula Vista (619-425-5080) reported the evacuation of a six-year-old boy to the UCSD Burn Center after he suffered second and third degree burns when a container was thrown into a bonfire. The San Diego resident was transported across the border within about two hours after a call was received from his family, Diaz said.
SAN QUINTIN FISHING REPORTS
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SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Pete Hillis of Pedro’s Pangas said very few anglers were in town for Super Bowl weekend, but bottom fishing action was steady: “We had three boats out. All brought back limits of rockcod, whitefish and lingcod.” San Quintin weather was windless but cold in the early mornings, with water temperatures averaging 58 degrees.
SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Earlier, Capt. Kelly Catian of El Capitan Sportfishing said he went out to the 15 spot, but found only lingcod and bottom fish. Chris Peirce ran his boat to the 240 spot and got rocked by a yellowtail on 30-pound. “We showed up soon after, along with a herd of sea lions, and shut down the bite,” Catian said. “I think there are yellows holding at the island and Ben’s Rock but the sea lion thing is getting so bad I haven’t gone near the place!”
SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Tony Marquez of Don Eddie’s Landing reported water temperatures of 56 to 59 degrees, and four pangas landing yellowtail, out of only a few fishing last week. The yellowtail were caught on iron jigs tipped with squid, “but it takes patience and hard work,” Marquez said. Bottom species were plentiful.
SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Joe Martin of Santee said water temperatures were 57 to 59 degrees when he and his wife Juanita fished with Capt. Bear out of Don Eddie’s for limits of red rockfish, whitefish, two lingcod of about 10 pounds, and two bonito on trolled Rapalas near Isla San Martin. “The reds and whites were caught on cut mackerel and squid, and the lings on live mackerel,” Martin said. San Quintin weather was “way cold in the morning on the way out, but light sweatshirt in the afternoon.”
MAGDALENA BAY FISHING REPORTS
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MAGDALENA BAY, MEXICO: Gary Graham of Baja On The Fly said the grey whale migration continued “by leaps and bounds” last week, and fair action was found on yellowtail at the entrada. In the mangroves, fishing was slow but steady on mostly corvina. San Carlos weather was clear in the high-60s, with water temperatures of 66 to 74 degrees. A few smaller snook were caught north at Devil’s Curve.
CABO SAN LUCAS FISHING REPORTS
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CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Benjamin Ortega Rodriguez of Solmar Fleet reported on 46 boats with a catch including released fish of: 36 striped marlin, 47 yellowfin tuna, two wahoo, and four bonito. Solmar boats found the best action at the Jaime Bank on the Pacific side. Capt. Adalberto Agundez of the San Lucas VI was top skipper for the week, with eight striped marlin, 13 yellowfin tuna, and six dorado.
CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Tommy Garcia of Cabo Magic reported on 74 boats with a catch including released fish of: 36 striped marlin, 64 dorado, 246 yellowfin tuna, two wahoo, one mako shark, and lots of sierra and giant squid.
CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters said Gaviota Fleet averaged one billfish per departure, but still not up to par for the season. “While there's an occasional boat that has a terrific day with multiple billfish catches, that is usually the norm for this time of year,” Edwards said. The Juanita VIII scored a quadruple release, as Gaviota Fleet reported a combined catch including released fish of: 24 striped marlin, 14 dorado, three wahoo, and 36 yellowfin tuna. Cabo weather was sunny but cool in the mid-70s, with cool water temperatures of 68 to 70 degrees inshore, and up to about 74 degrees, 30 miles southeast of the arch.
CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: Capt. George Landrum of Fly Hooker Sportfishing said yellowfin tuna of 10 to 25 pounds set the pace for most boats: “You had to put in the time, and there were not a lot of multiple hookups, but it was steady once you got into them.” Most of the tuna were found on porpoise at the Jaime Bank or 95 spot. Dorado action was slow, but some boats scored on three or four fish in the 20 to 40-pound range.
CABO SAN LUCAS, MEXICO: At Pisces Fleet, Nancy Chaloner said 69 striped marlin were landed last week, and some boats had good catches of yellowfin tuna to 40 pounds, plus one 120 pounder.
SAN JOSE DEL CABO (LOS CABOS) FISHING REPORTS
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SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: Eric Brictson of Gordo Banks Pangas said Capt. Chame landed another large golden grouper last week, this one by yo-yoing an Anchovy Dart. At the Gordo Banks, pelagic red crabs were sometimes thick on the surface, and were netted for pargo of 6 to 10 pounds. Bottom fishing was improved on cabrilla, pargo, and amberjack of 10 to 20 pounds. Offshore fishing was not consistent.
Brictson said work is progressing on the new San Jose del Cabo marina: “Across the street from my house is the gathering area for all the heavy equipment. The noise level and dust is not fun. We are just going along with daily life, waiting to see what is next. The engineers say they will start building rock jetties in February, one of which is slated to start directly in front of our fleet. It will be challenging to see how we will launch our pangas directly alongside the huge boulders.”
Brictson said the beach front La Playita Inn is still in operation, but it was unknown if it would be allowed to remain.
EAST CAPE FISHING REPORTS
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EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Chris Moyers of East Cape Smoke House reported on 18 boats from combined fleets including the Van Wormer resorts of Palmas de Cortez, Playa del Sol, and Punta Colorada, with a combined catch including released fish of: 11 striped marlin, one sailfish, and 116 dorado. East Cape weather was cool and occasionally windy in the low-70s, with water temperatures of 66 to 71 degrees. Most fishing was north toward Punta Pescadero and Isla Cerravlo.
EAST CAPE, MEXICO: At Baja On The Fly, Gary Graham said up and down wind made fishing tough on the beaches, with sierra the best bet. Few roosterfish were reported, and other species were also scarce.
EAST CAPE, MEXICO: At Rancho Leonero, John Ireland said limits of quality dorado were caught off Isla Cerralvo under a dead sea lion. Inside, Ireland said roosterfish were biting early, along with a strong sierra bite.
EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Don Ballentine of San Isidro, eight miles north of Punta Pescadero, said he didn’t go out last week, but local shark fishermen reported seeing little action at their buoys six to 18 miles offshore. “They are doing fairly well on the sharks,” Ballentine said. “Thankfully, they use the whole shark and do not just de-fin them. The meat is usually sent to the mainland where it is used for machaca. I have seen them catch as many as 16 in a day.” Ballentine said the commercials were catching tiger shark, bull shark, hammerhead shark, and other species.
EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Paul Roos of San Jose del Cabo made a road trip from La Ribera to Los Frailes: “The coast road to La Ribera is bumpy but no washouts, decent all the way to the beach at Los Frailes which is smothered in campers. The commercial fish camp takes up most of the left side of the bay facing the sea.
“Pulmo itself was quiet. The Castro family has closed off access to free camping but allows paid camping access. Juan Castro's palapa restaurant on the beach is excellent. The second night they cooked an 8-pound cabrilla I had caught, stuffed with garlic and vegetables much the same as you would do salmon.
“The wind died Saturday and a Mexican panga came back with three 20-pound tuna and a 30-pound amberjack caught outside the boundary of the Marine Park. Water is about 70 degrees.
“Juan Castro lost his wife, Maria, to the dengue fever epidemic that hit Pulmo right after hurricane Juliette. Many people in the village had the dengue, but only Maria, 53, died. On the upside, there hasn't been a reported case of dengue in Pulmo for two months, though there is standing water in some spots down toward Frailes and the lakes at Las Lagunas are full.”
EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Mark Rayor of the Vista Sea Sport dive service said water temperatures at Cabo Pulmo remained cool at 68 degrees, but visibility improved to “fair.” Sea life was abundant, with snapper, grouper, and jacks.
Rayor also reported either gill nets or cimbra set lines a few hundred yards off shore in front of his house in Buena Vista. “No inspector around,” Rayor said. “We need a sheriff!”
LA PAZ FISHING REPORTS
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LA PAZ, MEXICO: Gerardo Hernandez of Tortuga Sportfishing reported only a couple of pangas per day fishing the Las Arenas side, in partly cloudy, fairly windy conditions, and water temperatures averaging 70 degrees inside Ensenada de los Muertos and 68 degrees close to the coast towards Punta Arena. Sardina bait was abundant, but fishing was slow on small cabrilla and snappers. No roosterfish were caught, but the Giggling Marlin reported some medium fish along the beaches south toward San Isidro.
LA PAZ, MEXICO: At Tail Hunter International, Jonathan Roldan said all anglers were coming back with fish, but there weren’t enough of them to get a read on conditions, as scattered sierra, cabrilla, yellowtail, smaller roosterfish, and even a few dorado were caught, “but there was nothing consistent in the bite in terms of species.” Bait was plentiful on both the La Paz and Las Arenas sides.
SANTA ROSALIA FISHING REPORTS
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SANTA ROSALIA, MEXICO: San Marcos Mike Kanzler of Isla San Marcos reported near-perfect water conditions last week, with strong winds only on Tuesday, and the rest of the week either calm or at least fishable. Water temperatures were holding at 59 to 61 degrees, with cold morning air temperatures in the high-40s.
The few boats fishing reported higher yellowtail counts, Kanzler said, with most catching from 3 fish up to full limits. Light surface iron remained more productive than live bait.
On Friday, Kanzler fished off the north end of the island with Kevin Ward of the Searcher and Alan Lewis of San Lucas Cove, and they did well on fish eating pinhead anchovies under birds: “Drives one nuts watching yellows blow right by your live bait and iron. I've seen quite a lot of those days. All you can do is move around to different areas where fish are feeding and keep tying. Once in a while some will give in.” The yellowtail were running in the mid-20 to 30-pound range.
Inshore, Kanzler relayed a report of small halibut and plentiful spotted bay bass from Bill Hamel of San Lucas Cove.
BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES (L.A. BAY) FISHING REPORTS
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BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: At Caleta San Francisquito, Beto Lucero reported weather at 80 degrees, with some north wind, and water temperatures in the high-50s. Fishing action was for yellowtail averaging 20 pounds in the local area.
BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: At Bahia de los Angeles, Capt. Igor Galvan said fishing improved last week on 20 to 25-pound yellowtail at Los Machos and Isla Alcatraz, with all fish caught on jigs. L.A. Bay weather was occasionally windy from the north, and water temperatures averaged 59 degrees.
BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: Hugh Cobb of Oceanside’s Pacific Coast Bait & Tackle said a group from Oceanside Senior Anglers fished in two pangas with father and son captains, Guillermo and Igor Galvan. Included on the trip were Cobb, Lee Wood, Gerry Aldridge, George Ruble, Ed Dennis, Fred Kaczmarek, Vern Francis and Ray Stapp. Cobb said they ran out to Isla Angel de la Guarda where each boat caught 15 to 20 small yellowtail. They moved north to Baja Guadalupe and some other spots, but caught only a few bottom species. All fish were caught on jigs in 59-degree water.
BAHIA DE LOS ANGELES, MEXICO: Roark Ludwig of San Diego stayed off the water at L.A. Bay, due to winds, but fished from shore and got good results on catch-and-release fishing with blue-white-silver lures: “On every cast I hooked something. The surprise of the day was that most were barracuda in the 2 to 3-and-a-half foot range. Another surprise was a 30-inch halibut. At first I thought I was stuck in the weeds.”
Ludwig said this year’s Guillermo’s yellowtail tournament will be held on May 22-23, with a welcome party on May 21.
SAN FELIPE FISHING REPORTS
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SAN FELIPE, MEXICO: John Tillander of Las Vegas fished at Punta Bufeo in perfect weather, “but the only fish we caught were what the locals, Gringo and Mexican, call golden eye, and some nice triggerfish. The golden eye were 2 to 5 pounds.” Tillander said the road north to San Felipe was “as good as we have seen it” after being recently graded.
SAN FELIPE, MEXICO: At San Felipe, Catalina Meders of the Title Company Bookstore overlooking the bay said the weather was clear and blue in the mid-70s over the weekend, but cool winds have been picking up by midmorning. Meders said “dozens and dozens” of sea lions were killed last week by nets near Puertecitos, as evidenced by someone who came into the store with photos.
SAN CARLOS (SONORA) FISHING REPORTS
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SAN CARLOS, MEXICO: Bob Blair of San Carlos said he didn’t fish last week, but local reports were for good yellowtail action on jigs and bait. The Pro-Shop reported a “boat load” by 10:30 a.m. at Punta San Antonio, just a mile and a half outside Marina Real, and other boats reported similar action, including the Taco. The Rod Holder caught nice grouper out of Marina San Carlos. The weather was cool, with water temperatures of about 60 degrees.
MAZATLAN FISHING REPORTS
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MAZATLAN, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters said Aries Fleet boats out of Marina el Cid had a catch including released fish of: 54 striped marlin, one sailfish, one mako shark, three dorado, 145 red snapper, 10 corvina, and 51 yellowtail. Mazatlan weather was sunny but cool in the high-70s, and the best fishing was 25 to 35 miles out of Marina el Cid on headings of 200 to 250 degrees.
PUERTO VALLARTA FISHING REPORTS
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PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO: Kim Moore of Charter Dreams said excellent sailfish and dorado action was found 14 to 15 miles off Punta Mita, at a color break on a heading of 330 degrees. “Most boats are picking up three to five sailfish a day,” Moore said. Most of the sailfish were caught on trolled dead mullet, and yellowfin tuna to 100 pounds were also caught on trolled lures and live bonita at El Banco. Puerto Vallarta weather was sunny in the high-70s, with water temperatures of 79 to 80 degrees at El Banco, and 75 to 76 degrees in other areas. Moore said the peak season on large marlin to over 500 pounds and yellowfin tuna to over 200 pounds will begin in June or July and continue to mid-December.
IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO FISHING REPORTS
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IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters said 211 boats fished during the past two weeks for a catch including released fish of: 221 sailfish, 32 dorado, seven yellowfin tuna, one roosterfish, one “chula,” 105 bonito, 79 jack crevalle, 16 needlefish, 10 rainbow runner, and two barracuda. Fishing was variable, with some hot days, and others poor.
IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Guide Ed Kunze said the local sailfish tournament was being led by three fish of about 105 pounds. A 140 pounder was disqualified for being late. “This 100-plus boat tournament is significant because it is the first tournament having a release format organized and run by Mexican nationals. All fish under 30 kilos (68 pounds), must be released. All killed fish go to the local orphanage or other charities.”
IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Paul Phillips of the Fintastic Total Tag & Release Tournament said fishing slowed down last week, and runoff from rains pushed the blue water out to about 25 miles. Some nice tuna to 220 pounds were caught, plus a few marlin and sailfish.
IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Gary Graham of Baja On The Fly said Zihuatanejo weather was calm and partly cloudy in the low-80s, with water temperatures of 73 to 86 degrees. At least 10 tuna over 200 pounds were caught last week, Graham said. Boats targeting sailfish average 5 to 10 releases per day. Capt. Luis Maciel also landed a 62-pound dorado.
GOLDEN GROUPER--Gordo Banks Pangas skipper Chame with a nice golden grouper, or golden phase leopard grouper, caught last week at San Jose del Cabo. Photo courtesy Eric Brictson.
EAST CAPE SHARKMEN--Don Ballentine of San Isidro, north of Punta Pescadero, said fishing was slow but the local commercials were doing fairly well on shark at their buoys six to 18 miles offshore. Photo courtesy Don Ballentine.
SAN MARCOS YELLOWTAIL--Kevin Ward fished with San Marcos Mike Kanzler near Santa Rosalia last week for this nice yellowtail caught just off the north end of Isla San Marcos. Photo courtesy Mike Kanzler.
NEW MARINA CONSTRUCTION--The San Jose del Cabo marina project is underway, and Eric Brictson of Gordo Banks Pangas said one of the breakwaters will come to shore right at the La Playita panga launching beach. Photo courtesy Eric Brictson.
Baja coastal fishing reports and articles.
Ensenada fishing reports and articles.
Puerto Santo Tomas fishing reports and articles.
Erendira fishing reports and articles.
San Quintin fishing reports and articles.
Magdalena Bay fishing reports and articles.
Cabo San Lucas fishing reports and articles.
San Jose del Cabo (Los Cabos) fishing reports and articles.
East Cape fishing reports and articles.
La Paz fishing reports and articles.
Loreto fishing reports and articles.
Mulege fishing reports and articles.
Santa Rosalia fishing reports and articles.
Bahia de los Angeles (L.A. Bay) fishing reports and articles.
San Felipe fishing reports and articles.
Rocky Point (Puerto Penasco) fishing reports and articles.
San Carlos (Sonora) fishing reports and articles .
Mazatlan fishing reports and articles .
Puerto Vallarta fishing reports and articles.
Ixtapa Zihuatanejo fishing reports and articles.
Huatulco fishing reports and articles.
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