Santa Rosalia, Mexico: Excellent Winter Surface Yellowtail Fishing North Of Isla San Marcos

Feb. 3, 2007, Mike Kanzler, Isla San Marcos, Santa Rosalia, Baja California Sur, Mexico:

This week the Santa Rosalia fishing area had variable weather conditions and some of the best yellowtail action this place has to offer.

The beginning of the week was perfect with no wind and dead flat seas which lasted until about Tuesday.

Then we had a weather system come into the Santa Rosalia area, and this brought westerly winds with cloud cover and winter rain, rare for some years. After the rain passed, westerly winds were still present, but sea conditions were good enough. At the moment, the wind has changed to a more north northwesterly direction and to over 20-plus knots. I just got back from Santa Rosalia and crossed Craig Channel to Isla San Marcos and it's all of six foot seas and 20-knot winds across.

Santa Rosalia fishing area water temperatures were in the 59-61.5 degree zone and likely remain so for the next few months. Water visibility is a bit off with only 25 feet or less and it's pea green.

My week starts on Sundays here. With the long run of good weather, I made a fishing trip with COMSA's Carlos Garces and my son Michael. The plan was to fish Isla San Marcos. I had been skunked the day before after putting 12 yellowtail on the boat the day before that. It took all of 10 minutes and we had a double on. After putting those fish in the box, we decided to stay put and fish home water, and we ended with another two fish for total of 4 yellowtail in the 25 to 28 pound class.

Fishing on Tuesday, Alan Lewis, Danny "Piojo Loco" Chiquete, and I made a run with the same plan in mind. After an hour at Isla San Marcos, with the weather starting to change to westerly at 10 knots, we made for Isla Tortuga. The bite was decent, but the wind was making the boat drift right into shore and shallower water. We managed 4 nice yellowtail in the 20s, 2 yellowtail in the 15 pound class, and one rat of 5 to 7 pounds. Did get to fish at Isla Tortuga and see what that island has to offer for this time of year. It's all about research and doing it.

Okay, if anyone ever tells me again that you can't catch Yellowtail on a full moon I'll pimp slap them!

Piojo Loco and I were running in the direction of that setting moon over the cliffs south of Santa Rosalia to the bait grounds. At the same time, we had the red sky of the sunrise behind us. We made bait in 140 feet of water at that very location, all Spanish mackerel, locally called platinos or charitos. We just call them brown baits and at this time of year they are the bait of choice.

Once in sight of the Isla San Marcos bajos, I noted a few commercial pangas already on the spot. But in the distance I saw the one thing I'm always looking for in the winter, birds! Brown gulls, white headed gulls, terns, brown bobbies and sea gulls, all of them, working hard.

I was puzzled to as why no one was running that stuff down. Maybe it was the rough water, or the fact you could get bit by sitting and soaking.

We, on the other hand, like to run and gun chasing down the bird pile ups. Yellowtail were chewing everything and anything! Our take was by flying baits on the slide, and we did give the surface iron a go, any color! We finished the morning with 18 yellowtail at the dock before 11 a.m., all nice fish from 23 to 28 pounds. This was one of the better days I've seen in well over a year.

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