Roosters…Yellows…Dorado!

Endless Season Update 03/26/2009
REPORT #1159 "Below the Border" Saltwater Fly-Fishing reports since 1996
East Cape


Inshore action dominated this week. Sierra and a few good quality yellowtail were found from Cardonal to Punta Arena, with the largest concentration of sierra from Punta Pescadero to El Cardonal. Warmer water produced a few jacks and roosters as well.

Rumors of offshore dorado some distance from the beach failed to entice many out there. There didn’t seem to be much concentration, so it made for a long boat ride.
The recent nice weather has been favorable for fishing from the beach and the few that tried it reported good signs of bait, particularly from La Ribera to Punta Pescadero.

Palapas Ventana (Las Arenas area) report: “Mackerel are gone locally - but there are plenty of sardina that will do the job to get those yellowtail for those using live bait. Just keep them out of the rocks please --no slack line ever -- I just bent a spear shaft up good by playing with a 30 pounder too long -- now imagine what a 50 pounder will do to you and your gear!

Now the weird thing is that dorado just showed up and they are good size. Why? Sea surface temps have spiked a little outside towards 88 - I guess that’s why... but under the backside buoys, the dorado are congregating…waiting for flies and baits!! Too much fun!!

Winds are up and down this time of year but the lulls are lengthening and the weather is warming up fast!!” Tim Hatler

Water temperature 67-73
Air temperature 56-86
Humidity 75%
Wind: ESE 6 to 8 knots
Conditions: Mostly Sunny
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:17 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:32 p.m. MST

Magdalena Bay, Baja Mexico

As early as it is the dorado and football sized tuna are showing around the shark buoys according the commercial fishermen. Inside was pretty much the same story with little sportfishing activity. The Entrada is still providing some decent action for small yellows and sierra. Most of the sandy beaches have small halibut in shallow water.

Up in the Esteros, surface action for corvina was widespread from Puerto San Carlos to above Lopez Mateos. Down deeper it was a slow pick for both grouper and mangrove snapper.

Water temperature 67 - 73
Air temperature 51 -83
Humidity 77 %
Wind: WNW 10 to 13 knots
Conditions: Partly Sunny
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:32 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:37 p.m. MST

Zihuatanejo, Mainland Mexico

The 80º blue water has moved out to about the 12 mile mark, with the offshore action slowing down a bit. The boats are only averaging 1 to 2 sailfish a day each. Few dorado are being caught, and the blue marlin bite has even slowed. No tuna were reported.
The one highlight is the jack crevalle action has really turned on big time. Adolfo, on the panga Dos Hermanos, reported the big jacks are running between 20 and 25 pounds. He is getting them as they crash on bait about a 1/2 mile off the surf line. These are very hard fighting fish and excellent on light gear or the fly rod. He also reports a lot of sierra.

Ed Kunze

Water temperature 78 - 83
Air temperature 72-90
Humidity 60%
Wind: Calm
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:45 a.m. CST
Sunset 7:58 p.m. CST

Cabo San Lucas

The wide open billfish bite on the Golden Gate that began last November seems to have finally come to a close. Now we are most likely going to be doing the normal fishing, casting live bait in front of tailing fish as they move through the area. With the water cooling down and turning a bit green, we might expect to see a few swordfish in the next few weeks.

There has been very little yellowfin tuna action with only a few fish being reported for the entire fleet. Most of the dorado action is in the warmer waters on the Cortez side and inshore most of the fish taken were in the 12 to 15 pound class with a few larger ones up to 40 pounds occasionally found offshore.

Sierra and yellowtail continued to dominate the inshore action. While not large, the sierra were in great numbers once the schools were located. Though not in great numbers, a few yellowtail have been showing up in the fish boxes of the pangas. Most of them were firecracker-sized fish in the 8 to 10 pound class, but there were a few to 25 pounds and an occasional large fish that could not be stopped. Added to the mix of fish caught were the occasional pargo and amberjack as well as some small roosterfish. The fishing action has mostly been inshore, but there were some days when the bonito averaged 15 pounds and provided a good fight on the right gear when fishing offshore.

George & Mary Landrum

Water temperature 75 – 78
Air temperature 56 – 86
Humidity 67%
Wind: WNW 11 to 14 knots
Conditions: Partly Sunny
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:18 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:33 p.m. MST

Nicer Weather…Better Bite

Endless Season Update 03/19/2009
REPORT #1158 "Below the Border" Saltwater Fly-Fishing reports since 1996

East Cape
















The recent nice weather was favorable for fishing from the beach photo Mark Rayor
Inshore action dominated this week. Sierra and a few good quality yellowtail were found from Cardonal to Punta Arena, with the largest concentration of sierra from Punta Pescadero to El Cardonal. Warmer water produced a few jacks and small roosters as well.

Rumors of offshore dorado some distance from the beach failed to entice anyone out there. There didn’t seem to be much concentration, so it made for a long boat ride.
The recent nice weather was favorable for fishing from the beach and the few that tried it reported good signs of bait, particularly from La Ribera to Punta Pescadero.

Water temperature 67-73
Air temperature 58-83
Humidity 48%
Wind: SSE 5 to 7 knots
Conditions: Mostly Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:24 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:30 p.m. MST

Magdalena Bay, Baja Mexico

Whale watching has begun to wind down and rough conditions outside kept the few anglers inside. There were small bait schools on the surface at the Entrada. With birds diving from above and sierra and small yellows chasing the bait from below, it created quite a commotion, making it easy to see from a long way off.

Punta Belcher even produced a few halibut in the shallows!

Up in the Esteros, it was mostly bay bass with an occasional grouper or snapper. There were a few corvina to be had at high slack under the bridge at the entrance to Puerto San Carlos.

Water temperature 67 - 73
Air temperature 57 -82
Humidity 93 %
Wind: W 10 to 13 knots
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 3 miles
Sunrise 7:32 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:37 p.m. MST

Zihuatanejo, Mainland Mexico

Considering we are in a full moon period, with the 80 degree blue water between 8 and 10 miles off the beach, the sailfish action is holding up as well as could be hoped for. Dorado are sparse, but the cooler water pushing down from the North is still bringing blue marlin into the area.

Plus, because of a strong pelagic crab migration moving through the area, the game fish are not eating off color trolled baits aggressively. If you are trolling bait, it better have a lot of red to match the color of the crab.
Each boat in the fleet is raising 3 to 4 sailfish a day and catching 1 or 2. The blue marlin are still holding with about 30 percent of the fleet getting strikes.
Martin, on the cruiser, Nautilus, hooked two blue marlin in one day, and was only able to leader the smallest. It was estimated to be about 180 pounds. On the second day he fished, they released 3 sailfish.
Margarito, on the cruiser, Gaby, reported averaging 1 or 2 sailfish a day in the blue water. He then went inshore one day and they got into a lot of large jack crevalle near the rock pinnacles in front of Ixtapa.

Mike Buckley and Capt. Francisco on the panga, Huntress, are still holding up to have the best weekly catches of the fleet. Mike reported this: "Capt. Francisco had a good week releasing 9 sailfish and 2 striped marlin on three trips. The fish have moved out past the 16 mile line with most of the action between the 20 and 25 mile lines. Lots of clean blue water all over and multiple strikes are common. Several blue marlin have been landed this week."

Ed Kunze

Water temperature 78 - 83
Air temperature 70488
Humidity 70%
Wind: Calm
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:51 a.m. CST
Sunset 7:57 p.m. CST

Cabo San Lucas

The striped marlin bite tapered off a bit this week as we saw the full moon make its appearance. With the fish feeding all night long, the fish that were caught were biting in the late afternoon. For this reason most of the charter fleet boats were not flying many marlin flags on their return. The few private boats that braved the weather out there and stayed until 5 or 6 PM returned flying outriggers full of blue flags. With less competition in the afternoon and the fish starting to feed, they were able to do quite well.

Once again there were not very many fish caught this week. The few fish that were caught this week were from either very fast moving small groups of dolphin or as a result of heavy chumming with sardinas up around Punta Gorda.

There were scattered dorado caught among the feeders at the Golden Gate Bank as well as some fish scattered up around the Punta Gorda area early in the week. Without any floating debris to hold them we have just not seen very many this week.

Sierra were the fish of the week inshore, with the appearance of some decent yellowtail adding to the excitement for those fishing close to the beach. Add in the occasional jack crevalle, pargo and amberjack, and factor in the conditions offshore, I think that the pangas were the way to go this past week!

George & Mary Landrum

Water temperature 75 – 78
Air temperature 57 – 86
Humidity 50%
Wind: WNW 8 to 10 knots
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:25 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:30 p.m. MST

Puerto San Carlos Tournament a Local Hit

Endless Season Update 03/12/2009
REPORT #1157 "Below the Border" Saltwater Fly-Fishing reports since 1996




Magdalena Bay, Baja Mexico



The composite photo above from the Puerto San Carlos Copa Gobernador Tournament last weekend is irrefutable evidence of how popular this series of tournaments has become in Southern Baja. The photo of families crowded together shoulder to shoulder fishing from the Puerto San Carlos commercial pier is one that many would have never thought would happen.

Clicerio Mercado, organizer of the Copa Gobernador Tournaments in Baja has done an outstanding job of bringing the communities together and introducing sportfishing to families and their kids and it is working. Each year the number of participants grows. Why wouldn’t it? Small entry fees, cash prizes, free stuff…hats, t-shirts, good food and of course the fish.

Corvina, mojarra, cabrilla and yellowtail showed up in good enough numbers to make it a contest. As the winners were announced everyone whooped and hollered for their friend and neighbors who won the cash prizes.

According to Mercado, much of the events success was attributable to API office in San Carlos.

Congratulations to our good friend Captain Sergio Garcia from Lopez Mateos for his win in the grouper division.

Results

Water temperature 67 - 73
Air temperature 52 -73
Humidity 82 %
Wind: NW 13 to 17 knots
Conditions: Partly Cloudy
Visibility 7 miles
Sunrise 7:39 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:34 p.m. MST

East Cape

Local Jim Gray with yellowtail caught near Rancho Leonero photo provided by John Torres
Unseasonably calm weather produced an uptick in the fishing action. While there were few boats and anglers to capitalize on the good bite, a couple of pangas found a drifting dead seal and the fly fishermen racked up some double digit numbers of dorado…some of them up to forty-five pounds. It was literally fish till you drop or until you can’t lift a rod anymore.

The warmer water below the light house also had a few striped marlin but there were few anglers who cared.

The inshore was the place to be or maybe no one was willing to go any farther. Roosterfish cruising well within casting range could be seen at several different beaches all week with the lack of wind.

The big news was the ongoing yellowtail bite that keeps going off sporadically. One day it is over the top and the next it is all about pelicans sitting on the water. When it does go off, it is ‘bendo’ for yellows all the way up to fifty pounds. The fifty pound ones are probably the ones that got away…you know how fisherman are.

Don’t forget the sierra that are a nuisance when they buzz through at the same time as the yellows, leaving you with a line fluttering in the breeze as they bite through the line and all.

Water temperature 67-73
Air temperature 60-75
Humidity 77%
Wind: NE 4 to 5 knots
Conditions: Partly Cloudy
Visibility 7 miles
Sunrise 7:31 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:27 p.m. MST

Zihuatanejo, Mainland Mexico

This week we are averaging about 1 or 2 sailfish a day per boat. Dorado are sparse, but the blue marlin bite is heating up. The 81º blue water is still only 5 or 6 miles off the beach, but the boats that are getting in on most of the action are getting their fish from 18 to 20 miles out. The cooler 78º water is still holding to the North, but should move in within the next couple of weeks. This will bring in the blue marlin in force.

At least 30% of the boats are getting a shot at the big blues, and a few of them have been leadered every day this week.

The super panga, Huntress, with Mike Buckley and Captain Francisco, is still holding up to be the high boat in the fleet, and has been for this last 4 weeks. When they find the fish, they are still getting double and triple hook ups, with one day being a double on sailfish, and a blue marlin taking the third bait. However, as with all the boats, the fish are not aggressive and are short-biting the baits. The total for the Huntress was 30 strikes for 5 days of fishing, and 10 sailfish released. They also got a nice 40 pound dorado.

Santiago, on the panga Gitana, is averaging 2 sailfish a day released, and got a nice blue marlin yesterday (Tuesday).

Early in the week, the private boat Moonlight, out of Marina Ixtapa, fishing with Arturo Ramirez of Morelia, Michoacán, caught a nice 500 pound blue marlin, and then the next day took a huge 56 pound dorado.

Ed Kunze

Water temperature 78 - 83
Air temperature 70-88
Humidity 78%
Wind: ENE at 3 mph
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:56 a.m. CST
Sunset 7:55 p.m. CST

Cabo San Lucas

The amazing striped marlin action continues as the Golden Gate area went red hot again. It was combat fishing most of the time with boats running to the feeders as they popped up. Many boats caught good numbers by drifting with live baits set deep, while the rest of the fleet ran around chasing the bird schools. Getting your live bait on site was the key to getting good numbers.

Dorado were scattered among the feeders at the Golden Gate Bank, and there were a few fish up around the Punta Gorda area as well. The lack of floating debris to hold them makes them harder to find.

Limits of sierra are the norm now, and there is also a good showing of pargo, amberjack and yellowtail on the Pacific side.

While there has been an extraordinary showing of whales this year they seem to be beginning their northward migration.

George & Mary Landrum

Water temperature 75 – 78
Air temperature 61 – 84
Humidity 75%
Wind: WNW 13 knots
Conditions: Partly Cloudy
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:31 a.m. MST
Sunset 7:28 p.m. MST

A Flash of Yellow

Frank Fink displays his East Cape flash of yellow photo John Torres










Endless Season Update 03/05/2009
REPORT #1156 "Below the Border" Saltwater Fly-Fishing reports since 1996

East Cape

Much to the disappointment of Baja on the Fly’s client, Peter Gell, grumpy weather returned just in time for his trip. Pete toughed it out though and came back with a sierra and a few small skipjack. Our guide Lance Peterson credited Peter’s success to his strong casting skills.

Mid-week there was a flash of yellows that dazzled the locals. Everyone was looking for something that floated to use to get out to the bite. Tin boats, kayaks, and even surf boards were all crowded around the “hot spot”. It looked like the old days at the Coronado Islands before the gillnetters wiped out the yellowtail there.

Lance Peterson reported this morning that the weather is amazing again today so far. Flat seas and no wind! There was a lot of whale activity yesterday with many seen breaching and tails slapping. Near the beach there were a few frigates on the hunt. Below them the bait would scatter on occasion…ballyhoo of the size-large variety. A few obvious rooster combs and even a large school of milling jacks spotted. Looked promising…

Water temperature 67-73
Air temperature 58-88
Humidity 62%
Wind: NNW 8 to 11 knots
Conditions: Partly Cloudy
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 6:37 a.m. MST
Sunset 6:24 p.m. MST

Magdalena Bay, Baja Mexico

Whale watching is into its final month and the number of mothers and calves in the bay is beginning to dwindle.

There is still a good showing of yellows and sierra beneath the birds at the entrada.

Even the Esteros have perked up a bit with a few leopard grouper, corvina and supposedly a couple of decent-sized snook at Devil’s Curve.

Rumors of tuna and dorado offshore have everyone fired up for the upcoming Tournament this weekend. But the way the locals see it, if the fishing action is slow, the BIG Band and good food promised by Clicerio Mercado, will make up for it. Mercado is the event coordinator for the Puerto San Carlos Copa Gobernador Tournament which will be held March 6 and 7, 2009.

Water temperature 67 - 73
Air temperature 58 -87
Humidity 56 %
Wind: WNW 11 to 15 knots
Conditions: Partly Cloudy
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 6:52 a.m. MST
Sunset 6:27 p.m. MST

Zihuatanejo, Mainland Mexico

Baja on the Fly’s fly fishing client, Pete O'Neil from Boise, Idaho, was fishing with Mike Hollern of Bend Oregon and caught his first sailfish ever, without even taking a practice cast with the guide's 14wt rod...Maybe that is the secret to success (?).
Location: 9.4 miles off the point at Puerto Vicente Guerrero.
Captain: Jose Pino
Boat: The panga Angelica
Guide and photo by Ed Kunze




The 82º blue water is still just 6 miles off the beach, with the cooler 79º water which was pushing down from the North, retreating a bit. This has led to better than expected sailfish action this last week.
Mike Buckley and Captain Francisco, on the panga Huntress, are still maintaining their high boat in the fleet average with three to five sailfish releases each day.
Most of the boats in the fleet are averaging about 2 to 3 sailfish a day. The blue marlin are still a possibility, with a few reported strikes every day.
Fly fishing clients Mike Hollern of Bend Oregon and Pete O'Neil of Boise fished with me down at Puerto Vicente Guerrero for a day. While we did not raise many sailfish, we did get one to eat Pete's fly, and after a 25 minute fight, the sailfish was tagged and released.

Ed Kunze

Water temperature 78 - 83
Air temperature 70-98
Humidity 78%
Wind: N at 2 mph
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:02 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:53 p.m. CST

Cabo San Lucas

Last week the striped marlin bite at the Golden Gate Bank dropped off considerably and this week it turned on again. At times it seemed that you could almost walk across the bank by going from boat to boat. One angler reported counting 74 boats working the area at 10 am but almost everyone had left by 2 pm. He said the fishing was much better and also easier without the crowds. Elsewhere there were marlin reported but not nearly in the numbers as at Golden Gate.

There were some decent quality yellowfin being reported from the Gorda Banks and around the Inman area, but while the quality was good, it was scratch fishing with only a couple of decent bites per boat in the morning. Most of the fish were in the 30 to 50 pound class but for every yellowfin bite, there were 15 to 20 bonita and skipjack to go through.

Dorado action slowed this week, probably the result of less floating debris being found, or it could be because most of the boats were focusing on the striped marlin bite at the Golden Gate Bank.

There was a bite on baby wahoo on the Cortez side of the Cape close to shore. Some small 6 to 8 pound wahoo were caught by pangueros fishing for sierra and they were quite the surprise for most of the fishermen.

Sierra averaging 6 pounds was wide open on both sides of the Cape this week. Mono leader got bit more often but more of these were lost than were landed. Fly fishermen had a blast with these fish! There were scattered amberjack, roosterfish, pargo and jack crevalle to be had as well as a few Pacific barracuda and needlefish.

The whales are still out there. As a matter of fact a few boats have had very close encounters, including “Bad Company” a 60 foot Viking that had one come up under it while traveling at 22 knots.

George & Mary Landrum

Water temperature 75 - 78
Air temperature 61 - 90
Humidity 54%
Wind: W 8 to 11 knots
Conditions: Partly Sunny
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 6:38 a.m. MST
Sunset 6:25 p.m. MST