Baja Fishing Heats Up as the Weather Gets Warmer
http://www.fishrapnews.com/news/newsArticles.aspx?x=12425
By: Tom Gatch
6/9/2011
“California wahoo” is a name that Southern California anglers sometimes jokingly use to describe the Pacific barracuda — a toothy game fish that is
capable of putting on a spirited fight. It not nearly as highly prized as table fare as is the real thing: Acanthocybium solandri, which is actually a
member of the mackerel family. Nonetheless, when you are looking forward to the arrival of the summer surface fishing season, cashing in on an early
run of these flashy, voracious feeders is a good way to get yourself in the mood for pursuing more popular species in the months ahead.
As it turns out, Jay Springer at ensenada.com reports that almost all of the local charter boats in the area are picking up copious numbers of
barracuda, and they are now so plentiful that they are presently being targeted almost to the exclusion of other species. The largest recent catch was
taken by No Limitz 1, with 40 barracuda in the 5- to 8-pound class coming over the rail.
From Fly-Hooker Sportfishing in Cabo San Lucas, Capt. George Landrum reported that the billfish action is beginning to pick up significantly. “Striped
marlin, occasional blue marlin, some sailfish and even a few broadbill swordfish have been appearing on the scene over the past few weeks. Of course
there were a lot more striped marlin than any of the others, but they were there.
“Most of the action has taken place at the 1150 and the San Jose Canyon,” Landrum added. “The best baits have been rigged ballyhoo trolled at about 4
or 5 knots. The best colors for lures have seemed to be either very bright or very dark.
“Most of the blue marlin reported this last week have been in the 200 to 250 pound class, and almost every one of them came in on lures,” Landrum
said.
At Gordo Banks Pangas in San Jose del Cabo, Eric Bricston reported, “Warming waters have brought in more exotic species, such as dorado and wahoo, but
still not in any significant numbers. But these fish are being found daily by trolling lures and drift fishing with bait.
“A few wahoo between 30 and 50 pounds have been taken on Rapalas, yo-yo jigs and live sardinas, but many an angler’s line has also been quickly
sheared in half by their sharp teeth,” Roldan said. “Most of the dorado now being encountered have been in the 15- to 30-pound class, with a few
larger bulls mixed in.
“Yellowfin tuna have been a main target species,” he said. “Fish ranging from 15 to 250 pounds have been found schooling on the San Luis Bank and have
been hanging around schools of porpoises farther offshore. (Sardinas) have been the bait of choice for drifting over the banks.
“Besides the yellowfin tuna, there have been dorado, wahoo and an occasional billfish encounter,” he added. “Striped marlin have been found in big
numbers anywhere from 2 to 15 miles from shore. The most recent hot spot has been directly off San Jose del Cabo — and more often than not, midday has
been best. These billfish are aggressively striking lures and readily taking dropped-back baits; at other times, they would act like they were not
interested, apparently preferring to gorge on the available natural food supply. The majority of these stripers have been in the 80- to 120-pound
range.”
From the sunny East Cape on the Sea of Cortez, fly-fishing guru Jeff deBrown said, “The weather down here in Baja Sur is currently excellent ... No
matter where you wanted to fish; whether it be the beach, inshore or offshore, your chance of catching fish was very high.
“Those roosters are getting a lot of pressure,” deBrown added, “as many anglers, both fly and conventional, have been pursuing these fish. But if you
are patient, persistent, and work hard, you will fool a few of them. We have had a couple of bigger fish in the 20- to 50-pound range.”
“It’s amazing what a difference a week can make,” remarked Jonathan Roldan at Tailhunter International in La Paz. “Take away a full moon, strong
winds, green seas and inconsistent water temperatures — little things like that — then, wham: The fish start biting.
“For the first time, the dorado bit consistently under some of the nice patches of sargasso weed that are building up in the surrounding channels,”
Roldan said. “And while many of the fish were firecracker punks in the 5- to 10-pound class, there were still some nicer fish in the 20- to 40-pound
grade that really got folks excited.”
One of Roldan’s recent adventures was with Chad Schearer, host of the outdoor television show “Shoot Straight,” who was filming here for an entire
week. “Chad, who had never gone fly-fishing in Baja before, tossed his streamer into a school of boiling bonito — and a huge 40-pound-class dorado
charged in to grab the offering,” Roldan recalled. “It was definitely ‘fish on’ with his 10-weight fly rod, and the ensuing battle lasted over two
hours before the exhausted TV host was able to bring that big mahi to the rail. By the time he got the fish to the boat, he was almost speechless in
front of the cameras.
“We’ve gotten into some incredible roosterfish action, as well,” Roldan added. “Some stops with both our La Paz and Las Arenas fleets have resulted in
double and triple roosterfish hookups. Fish ranged from 10 to as large as 80 pounds this week, with some incredible battles on light tackle, fly rods
and spinning gear.”
Other game fish species during the week included big cabrilla, jack crevalle, barred pargo, striped marlin, sailfish, pompano, bonito, barracuda and
some late yellowtail in the 10- to 15-pound class, Roldan said. “We even got a huge 9-foot mako shark that ate a small dorado that had been hooked by
one of our amigos. They got it to the boat, but then wisely decided to cut it loose.”
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