BajaNomad - Whats your favorite fish and why?

Whats your favorite fish and why?

baitcast - 10-13-2012 at 11:47 AM

We did this 2 3 years ago and had some fun,I should have said fresh/salt or both.

Mine are as follows,fresh.
Rainbow only if they come from a cold fast moving mountain river where they are strong,willing jumpers,picky,beautiful and the scenery ain,t all that bad.
I have to add the Smallmouth bass,as tough as they come,never say die,never ever turn belly up great jumpers when the temp is right and a added bonus they love topwater!!

Saltwater where does one start their are many I haven,t caught,I love the whole jack family,the tuna,caught all but the Big Eye and a zillion others but here goes.
1...Dorado met this guy in the navy,a beautiful fish that can jump with anyone,the only problem his has is many are hooked when people are trolling for billfish and tuna and are over-rigged so they are unable to show their true style but hook them with the right tackel

doesn,t get much better and on the table

2.... The Bluefin Tuna my first encounter was in 63 at Guadalupe island this fish doesn,t waste his energy jumping a true power house who doesn,t tire a he is pleasing to the eye.

Well thats mine,What your favorite fish fish and why?
Rob

DENNIS - 10-13-2012 at 11:51 AM

Whatever my neighbor brings home after a day on the water.....not counting Bonito or Jurel. They're cat food.

woody with a view - 10-13-2012 at 11:57 AM

spotfin, calico, tuna, dorado and wahoo.....

windgrrl - 10-13-2012 at 12:01 PM

Flying fish - they always make me happy when they flutter up in front of my windsurfer and we go speeding along together!

Bajaboy - 10-13-2012 at 12:15 PM

Here are my favorite fish:
http://www.ballastpoint.com/beers-of-ballast-point-brewing-a...

woody with a view - 10-13-2012 at 12:21 PM

you are a bad man, man!

yellowtail pale ale is my fave beer on the planet!!!!

Russ - 10-13-2012 at 12:39 PM

I'm the only one I know that considers yellowtail a favorite. But almost any fresh, bled & cooled right after it's caught, fish that isn't mushy. And I love tuna salad sandwiches!

weebray - 10-13-2012 at 01:20 PM

Hands down - pierna. You can catch sweet bonless fillets for 60 to 70 pesos/kilo at the Bravo market in La Paz.

windgrrl - 10-13-2012 at 02:28 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by whistler
Speaking of yellowtail,flying fish makes for a great bait for them in New Zealand.Sorry, windgrrl.

It's okay...I know they are jumping out of the water for a reason. I always enter the water knowing that I've suddenly dropped way down on the predator hierarchy!

Skipjack Joe - 10-13-2012 at 03:03 PM

Bonefish. Because you have to outwit them. They spook real easy. In fact some call them that - the spook.

Wading-for-Bonefish-1.jpg - 20kB

tripledigitken - 10-13-2012 at 03:17 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Bajaboy
Here are my favorite fish:
http://www.ballastpoint.com/beers-of-ballast-point-brewing-a...

Good one. Had a Yellowtail Ale last night. Their Sculpin is among my top 5 favorite beers period.

baitcast - 10-13-2012 at 03:32 PM

You don,t have to go far for Bones they are catching them in good numbers in Mission Bay of all places,first it was Corvina and now Bones,whats next?
Rob

baitcast - 10-13-2012 at 04:26 PM

I understand what your saying,they are getting them from boats at the bay whats surprising is the numbers? and on a strange jig of some kind,getting right down to it I just like fish :lol:

Rob

Pescador - 10-13-2012 at 04:38 PM

There is no fish on the planet that has the intelligence, tenacity, strength, power, belligerance, and overall challenge to catch as the Sea of Cortez Yellowtail. I have caught yellowtail over on the Pacific side from San Diego to Cabo and they are simply not the same animal as the reef dwelling Yellowtail on the Sea of Cortez from La Paz to Bay of Los Angeles. These fish will hurt you in ways unimaginable with bursts of strength that will hold you spellbound and unbeliveing. When you think you are pretty hot and can catch them whenever you want, they get lockjaw and show you who is the king.

When the guys on the Pacific side think they are really fishermen because they can land a 50 pounder on 20 pound line, then they come over to our side and find out that 80 pound line is really an undergunned line and the yellows over here at 30 plus pounds can make a fool out of you on 80 lb.

I once caught a 30 lb. Yellowtail and wondered why I managed to keep it on the rod in only 50 feet of water, but when I opened up the fish I found that it's heart had split in half during the fight. These fish give everything they have to get you down to the rocks and coral where they know that they can cut you off.

Curt63 - 10-13-2012 at 04:42 PM

Lenguado .... delicious, firm meat, easy to clean and fight hard!

David K - 10-13-2012 at 04:56 PM

I love them all but my favorite is the corbina because I grew up with my dad catching them in front of our beach house in Del Mar then we found them south of San Felipe and the corbinas and croakers kept us coming back!

Udo - 10-13-2012 at 04:57 PM

Copper River Salmon

and

Golden Trout

are my favorite fish.

baitcast - 10-13-2012 at 05:46 PM

These were another favorite of mine a little off the wall but fun as hell,Bellmont Pier and Seal Bch tackle shops would have Bat Ray and shark contests every summer,Mud Marlins are a bunch of fun,make long runs and jump if hooked in shallow water/surf,Penn 68,s and 500,s in the surf with 4/0 senators off the jetties.
The pic is one of my winners 125# won another with a Hammerhead off the Seal Bch jetty south.

The good looking one on the left is Baitcast girls :lol:

[Edited on 10-14-2012 by baitcast]

acadist - 10-13-2012 at 05:55 PM

The one in my taco!! :light:

Russ - 10-13-2012 at 06:14 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by David K
I love them all but my favorite is the corbina because I grew up with my dad catching them in front of our beach house in Del Mar then we found them south of San Felipe and the corbinas and croakers kept us coming back!

I also grew up on corbina & abs from Crystal Cove (N. Laguna). What a great place to grow up (mostly). Corbina baked in garlic butter. Better than lobster. Red & pink abs sliced thin, pounded and fried in garlic butter, sometimes dusted with flour to suck up the garlic & butter. Only memories now

Russ - 10-13-2012 at 06:18 PM

Sorry about the high jack but I guess shellfish counts?
I tried the canned abs from Asuncion and I thought they sucked. Tried two different priced cans and a can of caracol. Tasted about the same... Canned... yuck!

Skipjack Joe - 10-13-2012 at 06:23 PM

Neil Bohanon from the Fly Hutch had "The Top 3".

Steelhead, Tarpon, Dorado.

He only flyfished. Having caught all 3 I would rate tarpon as the best. But I've had dorado days that were better than tarpon days.

I like the lenguado suggestion. It's all so personal. Sometimes you're wading the surf for flatties and swear it's the best day of your life.

It's like that quote -
She: "Don Juan, finally you know what love is"
He: "Not finally. But once again"

Huh?

monoloco - 10-13-2012 at 06:33 PM

Wahoo. Fun to catch, good tasting, and yield more meat pound for pound than almost any fish.

mulegemichael - 10-13-2012 at 08:13 PM

steelhead, baby, followed closely by dorado...both on the fly...makes yer heart stop!

Skipjack Joe - 10-13-2012 at 08:13 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by whistler
Oh,another friend uses his trawler as a tender for salmon up in Alaska.The seiners off load their catch and he delivers it to the market.178 grand for 45 days.He use to make big bucks fishing "black cod".Sold his permits.

Is "black cod" sablefish or black rockfish? I see it in the supermarkets all the time.

We used to catch sablefish off the redondo barge in the 60's, although I wouldn't rate it as a great gamefish. It's strange because Ray Cannon's book says they don't occur south of Monterey.

A great eating fish. We'd bring up 2 or 3 at a time sometimes.

Feathers - 10-13-2012 at 08:19 PM

Scorpion fish or Mexican Hogfish. Both delicious!!!

Marinero - 10-14-2012 at 06:28 AM

Alaskan Steelhead on a fly. Big and fresh from the ocean. Haven't killed one in years, but have caught lots of them.

BajaHawk - 10-14-2012 at 11:12 AM

Yellow tail. Fun to catch, good to eat.

vacaenbaja - 10-14-2012 at 07:41 PM

One year I was fishing Bahia Asuncion in November. I was Trolling very large
rapalas for yellowtail. I caught a lot of very large Calico Bass.
as we passed the rocky areas.
They were all well larger than 5 lbs. It looked like this was the place
where all lunker calico went to die. As for that 10 pounder you
may want to ask Shari if such a beast exists there. For pound for pound fight Jack cravel puts a real mean bend on the pole.
For table fare I like the Huachinago al mojo de ajo.
Light takle- for good fight and good eats the trigger fish.

willardguy - 10-14-2012 at 08:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by whistler
This is my theory.
Locally lighter line is warranted because of the bait used.I have a friend with a 49lb.yellow on his wall.He caught it at Rocky Point in Santa Monica bay,fishing from a 16ft. skiff.He said the fish swam out,away from the rocks.Because of the lighter line,I don't think the knew it was hooked or was aware of it's predicament.He was guided out.
I seen the same thing on party boats.I seen a women(a regular) land yellows at Catalina faster with a spinning outfit than people fishing heavier line. same thing.When you pull hard ,the fish goes into panic mode.Like pulling a halibuts head out of the water.
I don't think there is any difference between Cortez yellows or Pacific yellows.It depends on how you fish them.Heck,Harry Kime became well known for fishing Loreto yellows on flyrod.

I agree that fish sense more drag and pull harder but I believe it has more to do with water temperature.
with cold water metabolism slows down and fish become sluggish,water warms up and these fish eat,digest and reproduce quicker. water gets too warm and becomes oxygen poor and fishing suffers. I think this is the difference between SOC and pacific fish.
but of course JMHO

fish

captkw - 10-14-2012 at 08:50 PM

HOLA, for myself I have to many fav's !! but if you ever get to eat "chino miro"" aka.. clown fish..damn good eating !! no one seems to know the trick's to catching them !! 7 strand berkley leader and sally's crab parts for bait !! let it run with the tide surge,,in the rock's valleys with no weight... and when hit,,set the hook !! then,,,,,wait..and I mean up to a minute !! they hang in crevice's and expand there pic fin's like anchor"s and you think your snagged !! not !! and I'm talking about in the breaking surge in less than 5 feet of water in the rock's !! sorta like sheephead and parrot fish..in less water than you would ever think that you could catch dinner!! sorta ,,but better than lobster..since thats part of there diet !! "tight lines" K &T :cool:

willardguy - 10-14-2012 at 08:56 PM

you ate nemo?

ate nemo !!

captkw - 10-14-2012 at 09:02 PM

HOLA, ? what did indians call lousy hunters?? vegaterians :lol:

Skipjack Joe - 10-14-2012 at 11:05 PM

Quote:

That's absolutely true. It's like a bucking horse. Sit on it and he'll buck. Get off and he's all calm. Wild things hate and fear being restrained. It's important to understand this because many people believe that fish fight so hard because of the pain they feel. It has very little to do with that.

sd - 10-15-2012 at 05:27 AM

Skipjack Joe -
Answer to your question-

Is "Black Cod" known also as sablefish or black rock fish? Black Cod is not really a cod, and is also known as sablefish and butterfish. I do not know about black rock fish. My source for this answer was this weekends ad from Santa Monica Seafood in Costa Mesa, California.

baitcast - 10-15-2012 at 06:30 AM

This is great!!! nothing lke a fishin gabfest,all the junkies get together and argue.

So far it looks like the Steelhead fresh and the Dorado salt,we need to do this more often fish reports are fine but pic,s are better,stories we need more stories which reminds me :lol:

Got a pic of one of our members I think I,ll show he doesn't get all that involved,you will see him in the off-road,but on this thread his gone wild which is great,I know one thing he knows the beach!!!!!!!!!! these are beach caught WSB

[Edited on 10-15-2012 by baitcast]

willardguy - 10-15-2012 at 10:15 AM

I particularly like the copper colored ones with the convex tails!

castaway$ - 10-15-2012 at 12:19 PM

Favorite fish to catch? Well in Oregon I would have to say Albacore, I live in the heart of Salmon/Trout/Steelhead country and I do enjoy catching them but after fishing Baja there just isn't any comparison to the burning runs of a Yellowtail or a Wahoo which by the way are my favorite fish in Baja to catch.
As far as eating goes its hard to beat Wahoo or Halibut~Yummmmm

Cisco - 10-15-2012 at 12:39 PM

Sculpin or small calico's. Barely legal, not the bull bass. Eat.

Barracuda roe is a favorite also.

baitcast - 10-15-2012 at 02:32 PM

That applies to everything in life find a mentor and save a ton of time,on the cattle boats there was always one guy who was hooking up more than most and always if you looked closely you would find Baitcast real close,I always spent a great deal of time watching these guys,it was always some small thing he was doing different.

We are lucky successful fisherman usually are only to happy to help when asked questions as to whats working,can,t shut some up but I always listened and watched anyway :lol:

Rob

Lobsterman - 10-15-2012 at 04:56 PM

Deepwater red rock cod. Sweet, suculant and flaky. Here's a 5 pounder I caught and made sweet & sour whole rockfish in a 14" cast iron skillet.

[Edited on 10-16-2012 by Lobsterman]

baitcast - 5-11-2015 at 10:36 AM

Been going back and checking out some of the old postings that were fun and this was one of those.
Rob

Bob53 - 5-11-2015 at 10:45 AM

Catching... Tuna
Eating (cooked)... Baquetta
Eating (raw)... Salmon, Yellowtail

Osprey - 5-11-2015 at 10:53 AM

Capt. wrong again. The "Chino Mero" is a Hawkfish. Keep it up, you're making all us casual fishermen feel better about ourselves.

Cypress 2 - 5-12-2015 at 10:39 AM

Down here on the bayou they're all good. It's a seasonal thing. Catfish, blue gill, bass, shell cracker, crappie, and google eye during early spring. As the water gets salty, speckled trout, flounder, red fish, sheep head and white trout. Right now the crawfish are mighty good.

monoloco - 5-12-2015 at 03:52 PM

King salmon!

DENNIS - 5-12-2015 at 04:10 PM

Memories taste good too, Russ. [how did you find this ancient thread, anyway]

Pompano - 5-12-2015 at 04:13 PM

I believe 'baitcast' resurrected this oldie...probably in the hopes that someone would mention 'lutefisk'?

baitcast - 5-12-2015 at 04:27 PM

LUTEFISK :?:

David K - 5-12-2015 at 04:34 PM

Quote: Originally posted by baitcast

LUTEFISK

Join the Viking Fish Club or Norway (Norge) Lodge nearest you! Skol!

Pompano - 5-13-2015 at 09:51 AM

A favorite way to cook a fish....'Ponassing'

An ancient tradition learned in Scouting. :rolleyes:

Kind of hi-tech, though...you'll need some sticks and a fire.

But there's a lot to be said for 'Blackened Pinto'...

[Edited on 5-13-2015 by Pompano]

Oh myyy !!

captkw - 5-14-2015 at 02:06 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Osprey

Capt. wrong again. The "Chino Mero" is a Hawkfish. Keep it up, you're making all us casual fishermen feel better about ourselves.

,,Sorry Osprey..But its very seldom I'm wrong about fish that I have been catching since I was seventeen.."Clown Hawkfish aka "chino Mero" is a small,smart fish that very few land..and I prefer a wahoo or WSB (ghost) so I can feed the beach.......K&T :cool:

AndyP - 5-14-2015 at 07:51 AM

Quote: Originally posted by captkw

"Clown Hawkfish aka "chino Mero" is a small,smart fish that very few land..

They are overly confident in their camouflage and like to hide in plain sight when hungry snorkelers come by. But they're so pretty I usually passed them up, even though they're one of the tastier fish hanging out at the reefs.

Pompano - 5-14-2015 at 08:24 AM

Quote: Originally posted by AndyP

Quote: Originally posted by captkw

"Clown Hawkfish aka "chino Mero" is a small,smart fish that very few land..

That was my snorkling experience with them, too, AndyP. I would spy them while snorkling along a rocky ledge as they laid motionless and hugged the rock, trying with their camouflage coloring to blend in with the surroundings. They are the spotted fawn of the oceans. I used a Hawaiian sling and saved my gun's spearpoints from hitting the rocks. One was enough, as it was almost too easy to get one of these guys.

The plus side was...

...you had one of the better eating fish on the reefs. We always enjoyed a great dinner when I'd bring one back to my old cruiser.

AndyP - 5-14-2015 at 09:21 AM

"...the spotted fawn of the oceans."

Haha, I love it!

Tomas Tierra - 5-14-2015 at 09:30 AM

I always thought that "Chino Mero" was mushy and tasteless.. Like a sheepshead (CA variety).. Batter fried in a taco would work though. To each their own..

I sure like catching a Broomtailed Grouper in the mangroves from the yak...the bite is insane! And it takes some skills...then mojo de ajo that mofo!

TT

AndyP - 5-14-2015 at 10:06 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Tomas Tierra

I always thought that "Chino Mero" was mushy and tasteless.. Like a sheepshead (CA variety).. Batter fried in a taco would work though. To each their own..

I sure like catching a Broomtailed Grouper in the mangroves from the yak...the bite is insane! And it takes some skills...then mojo de ajo that mofo!

TT

Could you be thinking of the Mexican Hogfish (as opposed to Hawkfish)? I think they're related to sheepshead and I thought they were a bit mushy as well, but still okay. The Hawkfish seemed like such a perfect eating fish to me it's hard to imagine anyone who liked fish wouldn't like it.

Tomas Tierra - 5-14-2015 at 10:17 AM

Never eaten a hogfish.. Caught one last trip but had o plenty grouper in the cooler so I put it back...

It's been a while on the chino mero for me but that's what I remember.. I fish commercial rod and reel for a living so I'm a bit of a snob lol :biggrin:

woody with a view - 5-14-2015 at 10:28 AM

sheephead/hogfish have a crab type flavor to me. big ones are damn good.

David K - 5-14-2015 at 10:35 AM

That giant spotfin croaker you caught must rate up there pretty high?

Skipjack Joe - 5-14-2015 at 11:57 AM

Quote: Originally posted by Tomas Tierra

Never eaten a hogfish.. Caught one last trip but had o plenty grouper in the cooler so I put it back...

It's been a while on the chino mero for me but that's what I remember.. I fish commercial rod and reel for a living so I'm a bit of a snob lol :biggrin:

Have to agree. It's hard to beat grouper. I've eaten mostly leopard grouper.

This one was one of the best altime junkie gabfest.

baitcast - 2-10-2022 at 12:25 PM

next best thing when not fishin is a junkie gabfest.

gonetobaja - 4-24-2022 at 01:18 PM

Ive been on a Halibut kick lately. In northern gulfo de CA there are some decent sized ones. Pretty tricky to catch and most of em are small and I let em go but when you get a decent one, YUM!! Great eating!!

basautter - 4-24-2022 at 03:42 PM

Corvina is up there for me. Not too big, not too small, easy to catch and fillet and great tasting!

mtgoat666 - 4-24-2022 at 03:55 PM

I recently had my best ceviche ever. Real simple, just a few ingredients. I think all it had was:
callo de hacha, sliced very thin
Red onion
Chiles
Lemon juice

Not a fan of pan fried callo de hacha that is always tough, but I am convert to this ceviche.

AKgringo - 4-24-2022 at 04:39 PM

Quote: Originally posted by mtgoat666

I recently had my best ceviche ever. Real simple, just a few ingredients. I think all it had was:
callo de hacha, sliced very thin
Red onion
Chiles
Lemon juice

I made ceviche from Sockey Salmon once. The recipe I used called for soaking white onions in brine overnight, then coarse chopping them with the fish, peppers, cilantro and Key Lime juice. it was excellent!

[Edited on 4-24-2022 by AKgringo]

liknbaja127 - 4-24-2022 at 05:32 PM

Had some great Halibut 2 weeks ago in San Quintin.

Bajazly - 4-24-2022 at 09:12 PM

I've been eating the dorado, yellow tail and yellow fin I caught back in November as sushi, both rolls and nigiri and it is the bomb. Cooking some YT tonight on the grill for a change up. Have another trip to Bahia de Los Angeles in late June to restock the freeze.

BajaTed - 4-26-2022 at 01:03 PM

PARGO

Don Pisto - 4-26-2022 at 02:03 PM

for me, Ono!