Okay, I'm trying to learn how to catch these guys. I have some mirrolures to troll but am unsure of the speed. I have a 14 foot inflatable with a 15
horse Honda. I know you need to troll fast but at what speed? 10 knots is about where I start planing, I think. I don't have any instrumentation on
my little boat and usually fish "baja catch style". We will be fishing north of Loreto.
We will also try dropping iron and yo-yo. But where in the world are yellowtail hanging out. I caught yellowtail in BOLA before on a panga but we
were not that close to shore. Are rocky points my best bet? Any hot tips on colors and sizes for lures and iron?
I can't wait to go.
Thanks,
Martyman
Jurel = Yellowtail to us gringos
Pompano - 12-3-2004 at 02:55 PM
Well Martyman, here's what you do:
If trolling Mirrolures do so with the lightest line you figure you can keep the big buggers on with..say 30-50 lb test...lighter the line, the
deeper and better action you will have on those Mirrolures. Also tie the lure directly to the line..no swivels or snaps..those will impede the action
considerably. Use a palomar or blood cinch knot. (check 'fishing knots' on internet if you don't know how to tie one). You can troll the 9" mirros
up to about 7-8 mph and then they start to pop. Fast troll is best..triggers a strike. Never troll a straight course...zig-zag, slow down, speed
up...changes in speed and direction will generate more strikes. Set the rod in a holder..never hold it. Set the drag semi-tight...not too
tight!..but enough to set the hooks. Look for birds diving, charter boats nearby, troll over known rocks, humps, near sharp dropoffs, you want some
kind of structure.
" 14 foot inflatable with a 15 horse Honda" is a little small for those waters...but you already know that. Be careful, it can get rough
fast. You will have to stick in close with that small a craft. Long points, underwater ledges, etc.
Your best fishing would be done with live bait. Bigeyes or green mackerel caught just before dawn. Use a 4 oz. sliding weight and a Circle
hook...free line it to the bottom...leave in free spool and set the clicker. Sit back with a Pacifico and listen for the buzzzzzzzzzz.....grab rod
and hang on! Good Luck...Bueno suerte! We are headed out manana too...also for big yellows.Tommy A - 12-3-2004 at 03:09 PM
If you haven't alraedy, get a copy of "The Baja Catch" 3rd Edition
IFP = I Follow Pangas!
That is how I learned to fish yellowtails and all the other fish in the Cortez,some 30 years ago and it is still an approved method.
First, go out a few times with a pangero in the area you want to fish. Second, watch what he does. Third, buy a cheap handheld gps, file an IFP plan,
mark the spots where they fish on your gps and have fun.
Back when I was learning there were no P-nche gps units. I tried to learn to use the landmarks the pangueros had in their heads. What a joke. I could
never figure out how they knew so many landmarks for so many spots. Hell, half of the time I couldn't even see what landmarks they were trying to
teach me! I was in awe.
Tom Millers, I think itas called, "Anglers Guide to Baja California" is a great book and does a great job covering technique.
Senor Pompano gave proven, solid advice on trolling and fishing live bait but, real men catch yellows with iron. White, white and blue, chrome and
chrome and blue are the standard colors. Use in sizes heavy enough to get to the bottom quickly. I use Salas jigs. 6x, 6x jrs, 7x and even their
bigger stuff. Big baits, big jigs catch big fish.
Current conditions dictate how heavy a lure to use. Drop to the bottom and real up as fast as you can. High speed reels loaded with 40, 50 or even 60
pound line are a must for iron fishing.
Good luck!Don Jorge - 12-7-2004 at 11:50 AM
Whistler,
Indeed they do. In fact, one quickly learns when first learning to fish from your own boat, the hardest part of catching fish is finding them. Here's
a picture of our kids during a lesson on fish the men found!Tommy A - 12-7-2004 at 01:48 PM
Quote:
Senor Pompano gave proven, solid advice on trolling and fishing live bait but, real men catch yellows with iron
There are lure guys and live bait people,I love to see a live bait streak form the boat and get nailed by a rooster, sierra etc. Plus fishing for bait
is fun also.
Last year north of Loreto...
vgabndo - 12-7-2004 at 04:13 PM
the hot ticket for iron was a Tady 4/0 in Green and Yellow. The yellows had just come up and started feeding on the surface in the days after we
arrived, and my line never got to more than about a 45 degree angle before those buggers would be bruising my knees against the gunnels!!! Sort of
like yo-yoing, but without the second yo
I follow birds, and pangas too, if conditions allow it in my 16' tin boat.
T-minus 50 days and counting.....
If you thought 'Grumpy Old Men' .....
Pompano - 12-7-2004 at 04:49 PM
was a documentary, than you are probably a died-in-the-wool fisherman like me. Baitfishing, trolling, pitching one of a 1000 irons, mooching,
yo-yo-ing, spinning, fly-lining, downrigging, jigging, surfcasting, from shoreline, boating, and once from a hot air balloon over Conception Bay
....In Baja, I do them all. Why? Like Thorieau said, "Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after."
I've been hooked since my Dad first took me catfishing by hand under the banks of the Missouri River. I was 6. The technique there was to wade along
(I swam) the bank's overhang and feel for the big cats with your hands, slide your fingers into his gillrakers and pull him out, whiskers, shaking
tail and all. Great fun..left lots of scratches on your skin..and sometimes a little bonus ride along the muddy bank. The bad part was spooking a
paddlefish...these guys got 6-7' long, were armorplated, and could bust your leg or arm in a flash. Those were great moments for a youngster and I
did the same thing with our boys and sons of friends. A mudbath while the fillets are cooking is just the ticket for kids!
Now the world is much bigger, the water is a whole lot clearer, and the catfish have been replaced by yellowtail, dorado, tuna, and a host of
other Baja catch. Thanks, Dad. You're still a part of it all..from the Missouri to Baja.
Mudbath boys........
Pompano - 12-7-2004 at 04:59 PM
Hey! anyone know where to find a good mudbath in Baja?
REAL MEN
Capt. George - 12-7-2004 at 06:34 PM
Don't eat quiche!!!!
Real men use live bait just for the pleasure of driving a hook through them..
Real men use the long wand for self-
flaggulation.
Real men cry when they get a shot of penicilin.....
Real men sleep a lot..... rts551 - 12-7-2004 at 06:34 PM
whistler
iron, rapala, sardinas.... Its all fun...
lets go at xmas... got 15 last year
you know where
????????????????
Capt. George - 12-7-2004 at 06:36 PM
not without me banditos!!!!!
Vikingorts551 - 12-7-2004 at 06:38 PM
george
sounds like the voice of experiencerts551 - 12-7-2004 at 06:39 PM
george
we'll go before glen gets there and tell him al the stories
Thanks, guys!
bajalera - 12-7-2004 at 06:59 PM
I don't know diddly-hoot about fishing, but this is sure an entertaining thread.
bajalera
GLENN WHO????
Capt. George - 12-7-2004 at 07:04 PM
He'll be sleeping anyway or polishing his
long rod........or is that wand??
see you soon 15 or 19??
told Nacho 19rts551 - 12-7-2004 at 07:08 PM
fishing with a rod is always entertaining
19thDon Jorge - 12-7-2004 at 07:21 PM
I'll take my tongue outa my cheek now and admit my Blackman has 2 bait tanks! Just kiddin around cuz its too muddy to plow and too windy to go to San
Clemente Island and catch some local yellows!
Keep the fish stories comin boys, I mean men.. Did I tell you the one about the 300 pound blue marlin I caught, stand up on a panga, no belt, 6/0 Penn
with staight 50 pound line, 3 hours to leader and I cried when I watched her swim away?Don Jorge - 12-7-2004 at 07:38 PM
The Mexicans love our boat's name. It makes them smile and laugh, something I like to do too! Here it is docked at the Coral.
Pompano
vgabndo - 12-7-2004 at 10:10 PM
Is that what they call a "Barred Pargo"?
Photo of big bull....
Pompano - 12-8-2004 at 02:41 AM
I am just learning how to use tif versus jpep photos, so bear with me....I could help here, so if you have any suggestions, fire away! Hope this is a
viewable photo...I scan badly.
Longer Arms
Capt. George - 12-8-2004 at 07:07 AM
Use a gaff or get shorter, all my fish look big being I'm 4'10"...ask Whistler, if he's awake.....W ya know ya can't stay away much longer, ya miss us
toooo much.
Yellowtail Machaca
Don Jorge - 12-8-2004 at 05:10 PM
This photo was taken outside of Puerto Ecsondido back in the 80's. Shortly after this trip I lost my Nikon FM to salt water and basically took no more
photos for 10 years.
Ice was a total pain to deal with so the fish we caught were always made into machaca, excepting cabrilla, which we ate that day. Hence the
disregard for the fish condition after catching.
We would hang the filets wrapped in cheesecloth out on the barb wire fences to dry. It was good, but of course, machaca de manta raya was the best.
I miss those little machaca tacos in handmade flour tortillas stored in aluminium.
One thing, I could never get those darn manta rayas to bite the iron so we only ate the best when local fisherman were kind enough to share. They were
the real men in those parts.
Thanks to All!!!
Skeet/Loreto - 12-9-2004 at 11:09 AM
Sure like all the good stories and Pictures~
How too.
In early January when the firecrackers come up on top of the Water, take a smallCastMaster, 17Lb. Test line on a Spinning Reel, go off of Pulpito and
cast across the School and enjoy sdome good fishing.
He the Guy with the large doroda, Did you measure his Head{Top to Bottom}? My wife has me beat with a large one that was 18 inches, last time I
checked I was still a Real Man!!!
My largest was a a 800 Lb. Tintidira Shark, caught at San Nicholas on 125 Lb. Line and a 9 Ft/ Rod. Largest yellow at 42 lbs, heaviest Dorado, Pinto
Cabrilla 40 Lbs 55 Lbs, AmberJack, 80 lbsCarmen island}
It is not quite fair as I have been fishing The Cortez since 1968, you youngins are just gettin started.
Keep Fishing.
Skeet
Ah ha Skeet
jrbaja - 12-9-2004 at 11:44 AM
So you're the one that depleted all those stocks
thanks for all
Martyman - 12-14-2004 at 07:32 PM
Thanks for the yellowtails tips and all the other stuff. Pompano, did you get those big yellows you were looking for? When I go in feb it sounds
like there might be some surface trolling/casting and also deeper fishing. I'll be prepared (it's the freekin' boy scout motto!!)
