bajafly - 11-6-2003 at 03:45 PM
REPORT FROM GARY GRAHAM'S BAJA ON THE FLY:
PROVIDING QUALITY SALTWATER FLY-FISHING 365 DAYS A YEAR IN BAJA FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: bajafly@usa.net; USA toll-free (800) 919-2252; Mexico
011-52-624-14-10373
Thursday, November 06, 2003 Report covers the period Sat.-Thurs. (10/31 - 11/06)
EAST CAPE, MAGDALENA BAY, ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO; AND IZTAPA, GUATEMALA CONDITIONS
EAST CAPE, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: The dreaded North winds have begun and between that and the big tuna
tournament in Cabo, few were fishing locally. Howard Tuthill and Cliff Thompson,
visiting from Denver, put together four solid days of fishing with a species-laden list including yellowfin tuna, skipjack, bonito, dorado, small jack
crevalle and sierra before the wind began to howl. Good news is the dorado were under a buoy in front of Palmas, the sierra were in front of La Ribera
and the jacks were both at Palmas and in front of Punta Colorada.
I drove back to the States on Tues. (11/4) and the wind was blowing all the way up to Santa Rosalia.
AIR & SEA -
Water temperature 78?-84?
Air temperature 68? - 88?
Humidity about 51%
Wind From the North at 12 mph
Conditions Mostly Cloudy (BKN) : 21,900 ft
Visibility 12 miles
Sunrise 6:26 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:37 p.m. MST
Nov.8 Full, Nov. 16 Last Quarter, Nov 23 New, Nov. 30 First Quarter
o OFFSHORE: Beginning to sound redundant as the tuna and sails continue
to be the best bet.
o INSHORE: The mooring buoys in front of the hotels, receivers at La
Ribera are all yielding a mixed bag including a few dorado, jacks and even sierra.
o BEACH: Those not deterred by all the wood and debris strewn along the
beach are finding fair action for ladyfish, small jacks and roosters.
BILLFISH - Fair on sailfish but only a few stripes and blues.
YELLOWFIN TUNA - Good if the wind isn't blowing.
DORADO - Finally a few under the mooring buoys.
ROOSTERFISH - Pretty tough except for a few small guys.
JACK CREVALLE - La Ribera and Punta Colorada the best bet.
BARRILETE OR MEXICAN SKIPJACK - Same as the tuna, stop the wind and they
bite.
PARGO AND CABRILLA - Good if you have the chum. Some of the boats are
catching large (read 20-35 pound squid) and saving some to use as chum for the pargo.
SIERRA - They're back.
MAGDALENA BAY, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Pudge Klienkauf's Women's Flyfishing? group finished up their first
estero expedition and she is already back in Alaska telling everyone what a great trip
it was. The gals had lots of new species to play with including snook, corvina, cabrilla, pompano, grouper and even a linga. Several members of the
group spent most of the trip
experimenting with floating lines and surface poppers and the results were encouraging. Weather and conditions were as good as it gets in the
mangrove-lined esteros.
Meanwhile, on the outside the Pacific was showing her cranky side and it was pretty much victory at sea for the few yachts venturing out. More yachts
are heading down the coast so the action should heat back up this week as the winds and high seas subside.
Water Temperature 67?-78?
Air Temperature 58?- 80?
Humidity 62%
Wind NW at 2 mph
Conditions Haze
Visibility 5 miles
Sunrise 6:37 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:43 p.m. MST
Nov.8 Full, Nov. 16 Last Quarter, Nov 23 New, Nov. 30 First Quarter
YELLOWTAIL - Entrada and Punta Hughes producing a few.
CORVINA - You gotta love the take on the poppers. Pompano loved them too!
SNOOK - Caught the smaller ones and lost the big uns. Sound familiar?
HALIBUT - Chartreuse Clousers and sandy beach, slow retrieve along the bottom
equals action.
SIERRA - Under the bird schools in the open water of the bay if you care.
ZIHUATANEJO, MAINLAND MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Conditions are definitely improving as we head into our winter
"high season." Unlike the Baja Peninsula, this southern part of the Mexican
mainland is basically known as a winter fishery. Nov. is usually the first
month to give it a kick start.
The 84? clean water is only 5 to 6 miles out and the game fish are starting to respond. The sailfish action is improving, with at least two to three
releases per boat. Whenever we get to talking, all the captains are very optimistic about the upcoming weeks of fishing.
Nine longtime friends from the Seattle area are here on their annual sailfish fly fishing trip. They are fishing five days on pangas, with fishermen
rotating to a different panga each day. Currently, at the end of their second day of fishing, Martin on the ?Isamar?and Calli on the ?Zapatita? each
have three sailfish caught and released.
Arturo on the panga ?Janeth? and Adolpho on the panga ?Dos Hermanos? are both
fishing with clients from France and averaging about 3 roosterfish a day. The fish are running 30 to 40 pounds.
Water Temperature 75?-86?
Air Temperature 79?-90?
Humidity 66%
Wind SW at 7 mph
Conditions Scattered Clouds (SCT) : 25,000 ft
Visibility 9 miles
Sunrise 6:46 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:12 p.m. CST
Nov.8 Full, Nov. 16 Last Quarter, Nov 23 New, Nov. 30 First Quarter
For more Information on Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo trips, go to:
http://www.bajafly.com/Zihuatanejo.htm
Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo report by Ed Kunze
IZTAPA, GUATEMALA
IN GENERAL: In the last week, only two of the local fleet ventured out. One fly party went out for four days fishing, and one group of local anglers
fished for a day. The fly
party experienced three really good days fishing, and had one day called due to bad weather. In the three days they had 37 sails come up to teasers
and they caught and released 20 of them; they also caught seven dorado. The party of local anglers went three-for-three on sails and also caught a
couple dorado. Inshore, there was no one out, but the fish are present.
Water Temperature 80?-85?
Air Temperature 73?-91?
Humidity 66%
Wind Calm
Conditions Clear
Visibility
Sunrise 5:59 a.m. CST
Sunset 5:34 p.m. CST
Nov.8 Full, Nov. 16 Last Quarter, Nov 23 New, Nov. 30 First Quarter
For more Information on Baja on the Fly's Guatemala trips, go to:
http://www.guatemalafly.com
Baja on the Fly's Guatemala report by Brian Barragy
. . .
CHECKLIST OF THINGS TO BRING TO THE EAST CAPE
(We?ll continue to publish this every month or so for new recipients of our report, but we suggest you print it out and keep it handy.)
? _______ FISHING CLOTHING - Lightweight, fast-drying technical clothing.
Long sleeve shirts and long pants if you burn easily.
? _______ TENNIS SHOES, BOAT SHOES OR RUBBER SOLED SANDALS.
. _______ HAT - For protection from the sun.
? _______ POLARIZED SUN GLASSES. (All dark glasses are not polarized. Be sure yours are.)
? _______ WINDBREAKER OR SWEATSHIRT.
? _______ SHORTS.
? _______ SWIMSUIT.
? _______ COSMETICS OR SHAVING GEAR.
? _______ SUN PROTECTION (lotion or block.)
? _______ LIP BALM.
? _______ SEASICKNESS MEDICATION.
? _______ TYLENOL OR ASPIRIN.
? _______ BENEDRYL SPRAY OR OINTMENT.
? _______ FLASHLIGHT (For walking on the beach at night.)
? _______ CAMERA, EXTRA FILM.
? _______ VIDEO CAMERA AND TAPES (Optional.)
. _______ EXTRA BATTERIES.
. _______ SNORKEL EQUIPMENT (Optional. Can be rented there.)
. _______ U.S. $1 DOLLAR BILLS (For tips.)
SHIRTS AND SHOES ARE REQUIRED IN THE DINING ROOM
FISHING GEAR YOU MAY NEED:
See Gary Graham?s ?No Nonsense Guide to Fly Fishing Southern Baja? or his website: www.bajafly.com.
? ________8-, 9-, or 10-weight rod for surf fishing and casting. A 9-weight is ideal if you are bringing only one rod. Add a 12-weight if you are
fishing from a boat. Rental tackle is available, but must be reserved.
? ________Reel(s) direct or anti-reverse, anodized. Good disc drag and plenty of backing. Reels with a quick take-apart feature are ideal for
cleaning.
? ________Lines - Beach and Inshore: Intermediate or sink-tip for rocky areas. Full line (350 grain) or shooting head for sandy areas. Offshore: 10-
or 12-weight rod. Full flyline (650 grain) shooting head/intermediate. For marlin and big tuna: 14-weight, quality reel, lots of backing 125#, and
36-inch bite tippet. Extra fly lines and shooting heads -- better safe than sorry.
? ________Leaders and Tippet.
? ________Stripping Basket.
? ________Flies. Contact your fly shop for the most current flies in use.
? ________Hook sharpener.
? ________Foot protection for the rocks.