FISHING SEASON HUNG UP BETWEEN YELLOWTAIL AND DORADO

Nov. 28, 2004, Rick Barber, Mulege, Mexico Fishing Reports:

Fishing this week in Mulege, when we could get out, is best described as a "tweener". That is, we are "between things". The Mulege dorado are all but gone and the yellowtail (the schoolies) aren't here yet. They are up at Isla San Marcos but, since that's Mike Kanzler's territory, I won't go into details except to say that if you want 'tails, go north with live bait. All the guides and many of the locals from Mulege are doing just that.

A Ham Radio friend of mine who has a family here in Mulege reported that they caught three dorado during the week. I don't know where or how they were caught but that's the report.

Much of the first part of the week was gnarly and not too many Mulege fishing boats went out.

Thursday through Sunday were fishable but not many fish were being caught. I tried everything on Saturday at every spot imaginable and couldn't come up with anything worth writing about. I did run into some roosterfish just south of Punta Concepción and they are always fun to play with. Cabrilla and the rest of the grouper family were not to be found... or at least they wouldn't hit MirrOlures and I tried from Punta Concepción south to the "Palms" and then inside the Bay in front of Rickey's, the microwave tower and el Gallito to the north.

If you like barracuda, however, Mulege is THE spot! Troll the smallest broken-back Rebel you can find, s-l-o-w-l-y, and you'll get a boatload. My father-in-law, Chichi Meza, who fishes commercially for triggerfish, takes about 10-15 minutes to pull in about 12 "slimers" every day from about 75-100 yards in front of the Mulege lighthouse in about 20 feet of water. He uses them for bait for the triggers. Dad says it works better than calamari. Troll parallel to the beach.

The usual Mulege fishing spots, such as in front of the mine in 250 feet of water, are yielding some pinto bass but they don't have much size right now. Two or three will make a tasty meal though. One of my neighbors, Don Kemp, who has a vacation house here, loves to go after them. He went out off the mine on Saturday and got a few but no biggies.

There are some very nice pargo to be had around any of the myriad of rocky points in the Mulege area. The Mulege commercial guys are pulling up a lot in the 15-20 pound range with an occasional one in the 30s. Just dunk a whole sardine or a large piece of cut bait in anywhere from 15 to 50 feet of water and sit back. This is leisurely fishing at its best! One hint... if you use a whole bait, use a trap rig with a second hook, preferably a treble, in the tail. That's a surefire cure for "short strikes".

Wish I had more success stories to tell you about but I'd still rather go fishing and not catch anything than sit around and do nothing... or work!

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