A Roadie in Baja - Inflatable Boat Adventures

Disclaimer - I really don't know what I'm doing when it comes to fishing from a boat in Baja. Most of my time here over the years has been camping off a dirtbike with a little travel rod to fish from shore. So all you experts that have been fishing Baja since long before I was born take it easy on me.




I do however have The Baja Catch book and will be an expert (in my own mind) soon enough.




Last year I towed a 14' Gregor down and that was my first time on the water fishing here. Having a capable 4x4 I felt towing in Baja was certainly not for me so traded it for an inflatable, the 12'6" Newport Vessels Catalina flavor with a mighty 15hp motor.
It's been a blast taking it all over the place in the states, fished Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Powell and countless smaller lakes. Camped on Catalina Island with it as well.
No trailer, life is good now.



Here's my tales as I work my way down Baja, updates when possible.




Crossed in Mexicali 11/2 at 6am without any issues or searches (no trailer!), got my visa and off to BOLA. I had the boat in the water and was fishing by 4pm, the hell with the typical yet somewhat light winds.
Now, as I said I'm a Baja fishing rookie, not here paying a local captain for targeting big game fish - I like catching anything, especially the delicious ones. It's all an adventure and learning experience for me.

Within 10 minutes of leaving La Gringa the barracuda (or whatever they are that look like one) were plentiful, a fun way to start the trip.





Crossing the whitecap filled channel to get over to the lee side of Isla Coronado I got into a bit more variety of fish. Trolling, casting, jigging. What did Neil say about this area?...














A whole bunch of two for one's, these are what I will keep and eat. It's catch and release for everything unless I can eat it or give it away, not many people camping at La Gringa so a few little fish was all I kept.















The tide had gone out while away but I have a plan for that using my truck instead of dragging by hand it back to camp.







Ceviche for dinner tonight, life is good!





















Next installment, Bahia de Conception.

when towing the blow-up hook two tow straps over the top of the transom so its cradled when attached to the tow vehicle and yeah keep the cochito, our favorite eating fish

Quote: Originally posted by 100X

If you released the triggerfish, should try the next one!

Quote: Originally posted by Cancamo

"That barracuda looking fish a a Sierra" Nope, it's a Mexican Barracuda, (if the tail is dark), Pacific Barracuda if not, (less likely). Only similarity to sierra is it is elongated.

Thank you for the kind words and suggestions folks.

advrider, hell yes the good ole days in DV!



Tuna Time.


Not really ever wanting to spend much time in BofLA I packed up and head south, breezing through the checkpoints with no searches or issues, as normal.

This year was quite different than last around bahia de conception. I spent all of October last year at Playa La Escondida, on the weekends local families were there enjoying the beach and not a soul there during the week. On saturday I made my weekly trip to town leaving my boat and everything out.
No beach side local sales, no large caravans of massive RV's to surround you with generators running (yay!). It was weird but I'd imagine I was able to experience Baja in ways not seen for a generation and for that I am grateful.
Just the rhythm of nature to get lost in.

This year it seems back to normal if not a bit busier but luckily I found an empty palapas near the south end where I like to be. Great neighbors, a younger Chicago couple in a camper truck who had just came from 4 months travel the mainland and some expats/locals from Mulege on the other side. Down the way there was a couple bicycling to South American, one from France, the other from the USA. They had just met on the road and were a very cute couple.

An eclectic mix of cool people and what makes traveling here memorable.




Up before sunrise I headed out if the bay to get to deeper water and it didn't take long to get on the Tuna right off the fish camp on the east point at the mouth. The first 4 back to back were all similar sized skippies, caught on trolling a magnum deep running rapala on my "heavy" rod.
Last year in the same spot I was able to get a few decent sized big eye's but it seems I was now in a school of these skipjacks.
I switched up to lighter tackle, no need for 60lb line and started casting some slow pitch jigs. It didn't matter if they were shallow or even counting down to 30, back to back fish. While generally small these were fun on the lighter rods and eventually started to wear me out.

Switched up again and fast trolled some 8" squid skirts around 14mph, looking for a different bite, maybe I would get lucky with a lone Dorado still in the area. Same thing, still lots of fish, all the same even though I was now about 6 miles offshore in deep water.
A real first world problem to get tired of catching fish!


























A short video of the typical fight.

https://vimeo.com/645761253/4e7959ac29





I kept two fish with the most damage to eat and share, life is good!

Poke' and grilled Tuna for everyone on the beach followed by shenanigans.










Good fishing, good company, perfect weather.
la vida es buena en baja







[Edited on 11-14-2021 by Lost Roadie]

what are we looking at in the last photo

Quote: Originally posted by Don Pisto

what are we looking at in the last photo

I'd love to hear a description of your inflatable setup -- type, the motor, any mods you made, any tips on setting up and running it.

I'm still using kayaks to get out and fish Baja Catch style, but I can see the writing on the wall as my distances decrease and backaches grow. Looks like I might need a fishing platform that is still portable and manageable, but powered by a motor. Maybe you can sell me your rig when you upgrade

And great stuff BTW! I should be down around Christmas, but those delicious bonito are hard to find by then. Envy.

Quote: Originally posted by eguillermo

... those delicious bonito are hard to find by then. Envy.

Quote: Originally posted by Bajazly

Quote: Originally posted by eguillermo   ... those delicious bonito are hard to find by then. Envy. We caught a bunch of bonito a couple days ago and I kept 4, what are some good ways to prepare them? I have no experience with them but heard they are pretty good. I'll can them is all else fails.

Quote: Originally posted by Don Pisto

Quote: Originally posted by Bajazly   Quote: Originally posted by eguillermo   ... those delicious bonito are hard to find by then. Envy. We caught a bunch of bonito a couple days ago and I kept 4, what are some good ways to prepare them? I have no experience with them but heard they are pretty good. I'll can them is all else fails. ......got a smoker?

Quote: Originally posted by eguillermo

I'd love to hear a description of your inflatable setup -- type, the motor, any mods you made, any tips on setting up and running it. I'm still using kayaks to get out and fish Baja Catch style, but I can see the writing on the wall as my distances decrease and backaches grow. Looks like I might need a fishing platform that is still portable and manageable, but powered by a motor. Maybe you can sell me your rig when you upgrade And great stuff BTW! I should be down around Christmas, but those delicious bonito are hard to find by then. Envy.

Thanks!

The mightly little boat that could is a Newport Vessels Catalina, 12'6" The hull weighs about 100 pounds and the floor weights around 50 pounds, the motor is 103 pounds.

I customized it to be a better fishing machine, with trips like this in mind.

https://newportvessels.com/products/inflatable-dinghy-boat-c...





One of the first things I did was cover the flooring with this $69 EVA foam from Amazon, better grip, soft on the feet and classy! :mrgreen:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08X77HZ35?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_d...










Along with the EVA foam I used a seat pedestal I had making it quick release for transport using imbedded tee nuts (sealed up) in the flooring and knobs - no tools needed. The mesh seat also has a quick release to separate from the pedestal for easy packing.

A total of six Scottys base mounts installed, four glue-on bases - one on the bow for camera mount or Navisafe light, port and starboard in the center for rod holders and one on the port side at the stern for a quick release transducer mount. Two screw on bases went on the transom for net, rod holders and trolling when in saltwater.







Newport Vessels launch wheels, transducer mount from fishfindermounts (with DIY splash shield) and a 2021 Mercury four stroke 15 EFI with a SE Sport SE200 Hydro Foil. I added a RPM/ hour meter to stay on top of the maintenance.
It's amazing how quiet these new motors are.
I made a spacer out of wood to get the motor raised 1" so it's just right on the transom, where I also used knobs for the bolts to attach the motor.




All the knobs, Nav light and tools/patches go into a Pelican case I installed a 18Ah battery for the Garmin EchoMap Plus with an SAE port for use and charging.
The Battery charges from a DC - DC charger while traveling in my truck and is good for 4 days of use in between charges. Battery box and fuel goes under the bench for better weight distribution and space around the stern, I put some leftover EVA foam on the bottom of both to help with sliding around.



https://www.fishfindermounts.com/product-page/glue-on-transd...










A full morning of fishing with a fair amount of trolling is usually less than 1.5 gallons of fuel. In good conditions at a cruising speed of 17-18 mph it gets about 16 miles a gallon, top speed 22-23 mph with just me in it.



The Garmin unit is attached with a 1.5" RAM ball bolted to the bench seat.



The motor lives on an insert I made from wood to slide it in and out of the truck, using dense case foam like is used for heavy gear in concert touring (Roadie!) for the head and a foam yoga block for the prop. The insert for the motor also fits in a cargo basket I can put on the front of my truck but for Baja I wanted everything inside the vehicle to be lower key.
It fits next to my fridge/freezer in the bed of the truck.






The boat itself goes in the back set, with the seats removed and a flat carpeted wood platform instead.


It's proving to be perfect for me, easy to manage, takes about 30 minutes to set it up or break it down.
One key addition was a battery powered electric pump, that allows me to work on putting it together while it's being inflated, a must have as the foot pump is a buzz kill but I still carry it for a backup, sometimes in the boat if on a longer island exploring voyage.


I really can't believe how well it handles big water when I get caught a bit further out than I should be when the winds kick up.
I would have been quite nervous in my old Gregor in some conditions I've had this boat in without stressing it - life jacket on, tethered to boat and kill switch, no problem. Troll my way back to camp.


Phewwww, I talk too much!

Now on with the fishing tales...

I scooted on down to La Paz, again a normal trouble free drive from Mulege.
First stop was my favorite camp spot, away from the masses at Tecolote.






OK, I lied, first stop was at what used to be the Sunset Bar and is now a fancy Cortez Club.... another neat place gone. But I had to have ate least one very expensive margarita.





Fishing, eating drinking and general shenanigans. Though admittedly the fishing was slower here, or at least I was having trouble catching fish.

Quote: Originally posted by Lost Roadie

Great thread. We have an 11 foot Zodiac. Probably my favorite toy of all time.

Have spent countless days out on the ocean with the kids. Getting up close to rocky areas in shallow water is really cool. They let you visit remote places you'd never see otherwise.