tattuna
Junior Nomad
Posts: 61
Registered: 1-29-2008
Location: In a van, down by the river
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Gonzaga kayak trip
Headed down from L.A. with about 10 other friends. Rossman made the drive from Asuncion and met up with us. The wind was up! Way up. We were able to
set up camp at Campo Beluga before it got too bad though.
Fishing was a bit slower than years prior but still good. The group caught a mix of sierra, various pargo, shortfin corvina, sculpin, leopard grouper,
and hogfish. My only focus is leopard grouper when I fish the area and I mostly caught them from shore for the first time.
I found a small patch of structure that was holding, but the drift was too fast to fish it from the kayak, so I went to shore and waded out. Tried
various lures but the only thing that worked was jerkbaits on a quick retrieve with short pauses.
The Daiwa SP Minnow produced the bigger fish, but I should've upgraded the hooks and split rings. I was lucky to land this guy. The front hook was in
his mouth and the split ring was nowhere to be found.
The tide came in and I couldn't cast to the spot any more so I paddled out just as the wind kicked into high gear. I couldn't paddle against it so I
headed towards shore and walked my kayak back towards camp. I took this picture of my kayak a couple hours before it was swept out to sea.
The wind let up a bit and I was able to paddle back to camp. I set my kayak well above the water line. I went to Alfonsinas for lunch and the tide was
so high that the runway and road were under a few feet of water. I didn't think much of it but when I got back to camp Rossman ran up and told me my
kayak was swept away. There was another guy camping there who tried to swim out and save it but it was moving too fast for him to catch it. The wind
was blowing near 40 mph by now.
I'm sure it's long gone by now. Someone is going to score big time. It was fully loaded with, a fish finder, digital scale, Boga grip, pfd, hand pump,
Accurate pliers, tackle box stuffed with top notch lures, paddle, etc. I have my name and info written on the underside of the center hatch, but I
don't expect to see it again. Hopefully some local kid finds it and fishes the hell out of it.
A shot of Ranch Grande from camp after I got back from lunch. That's not fog out there...
The rest of the group launched from Papa Fernandez to be more protected from the wind but ended up having to beach their yaks on the island for a
couple hours as the wind and water spouts ripped through the channel.
The next day the wind laid down a bit and everyone paddled to the island. Now that I was without a yak to fish from I walked the beach back to where I
caught fish the day before and was able to stick a smaller grouper before the tide got too high.
The winds came up again but this time from the northeast and about 15-20 mph.
We met a couple girls at camp from Whistler BC who drove down from there and were on a trip driving the whole peninsula from Mexicali, down to Cabo,
then back up the Pacific side and back to Canada. They were really cool and great company. I forgot to ask if they were writing a report or blog, but
if anyone happened to see them I really like to hear about their adventure. Christine and Sarah I think their names were.
The following day my buddy was a bit under the weather so he let me take his kayak out. I only caught a couple small leopard grouper and some
spotties. I had a school of yellowtail come up near by but they wouldn't eat anything.
Everyday Rossman is the first to launch around 5 a.m. The oldest of the group and as hardcore as they come. Caught a shot of him just as I was waking
up
Even though I lost my kayak I had a great time and a much needed getaway. We had marooned kayakers, a lost kayak, broken gear, someone stung hard by a
stingray in the foot, kayakers flipped at sea, severe winds, lost gear, etc. It was a true Baja adventure. The drive down and back was the smoothest
yet with fast checkpoints and only a 30 minute wait at the Mexicali border.
I've been kayak fishing the area since 2004 and I always warned everyone about the "bad wind". The wind you can't paddle against. We've been really
fortunate the last 4 years we've been going as a group with good weather every trip. After this trip they now know what I was warning them about.
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BornFisher
Super Nomad
Posts: 2107
Registered: 1-11-2005
Location: K-38 Santa Martha/Encinitas
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Very sorry about your yak.
Beautiful pics and report, thanks.
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Rossman
Nomad
Posts: 205
Registered: 10-6-2013
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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Great seeing you again Charles! Very impressed with the quality of the photos from that phone. What phone is that?
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Udo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6346
Registered: 4-26-2008
Location: Black Hills, SD/Ensenada/San Felipe
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Mood: TEQUILA!
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Too bad about your Kayak, Tattuna! I think I would have at least anchored the yak to a rock before i left to eat.
The dangers of launching at low tide. I have witnessed vehicles being gone between low and high tide...never to be seen again.
Udo
Youth is wasted on the young!
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tattuna
Junior Nomad
Posts: 61
Registered: 1-29-2008
Location: In a van, down by the river
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Quote: Originally posted by Rossman  | | Great seeing you again Charles! Very impressed with the quality of the photos from that phone. What phone is that? |
Great seeing you too Ross! It's the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge. Just got it and I dig it.
We always leave our kayaks on the beach without incident. I just left mine a little too close to the water. Lesson learned.
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Rossman
Nomad
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Registered: 10-6-2013
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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BTW I saw the girls again at Chapala They had their air compressor out and we're airing up after their Gonzaga to Chapala trip. The rest of the
Nomads should keep an eye out for them should they need assistance. Their first trip to Baja but seem very prepared and confident and very much into
the go with the flow attitude down here. Black Ford F450 with a couple surfboards strapped to the to of a small camper shell. They were going to
spend some time in the Conception area before heading further south. Easy on the ears and a veritable smorgasbord for the eyes.
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ehall
Super Nomad
Posts: 1906
Registered: 3-29-2014
Location: Buckeye, Az
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Mood: It's 5 o'clock somewhere
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Sorry about the kayak. We were there at the same time as you. I was with the guy that swamped his boat in front of Alfonsinas. I ended up riding a lot
more than fishing because of the wind. I did end up spearing a trigger at Punta Final ( my first) after missing 9 times in a row.
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tattuna
Junior Nomad
Posts: 61
Registered: 1-29-2008
Location: In a van, down by the river
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| Quote: Originally posted by ehall | | Sorry about the kayak. We were there at the same time as you. I was with the guy that swamped his boat in front of Alfonsinas. I ended up riding a lot
more than fishing because of the wind. I did end up spearing a trigger at Punta Final ( my first) after missing 9 times in a row.
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Bummer about getting swamped. I didn't hear about that. Better to stay off the water no matter what the vessel when the bad wind comes. Congrats on
the tasty trigger!
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ehall
Super Nomad
Posts: 1906
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Location: Buckeye, Az
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Mood: It's 5 o'clock somewhere
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Too bad you missed it. We are still laughing about it. He tied the boat off to the buoy and when the tide went out it turned broadside to the waves.
[Edited on 5-23-2015 by BajaNomad]
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freediverbrian
Senior Nomad
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Registered: 2-24-2007
Location: Papas Gonzaga Bay
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you must be aware in the Gonzaga aera of big tides and fast wind changes they can be deadly. I have been going there for 35 years a still get
surprised by the sea.
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alafrontera
Nomad
Posts: 143
Registered: 11-4-2009
Location: San Diego
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Looks like a good time, going to have to try it  Any trick to anchoring a tent
in soft sand with high wind ? Special stakes or just bring along some weight plates for the corners 
low lattitude attitude
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bkbend
Senior Nomad
Posts: 693
Registered: 11-27-2003
Location: central OR or central baja
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| Quote: Originally posted by alafrontera | | Looks like a good time, going to have to try it Any trick to anchoring a tent
in soft sand with high wind ? Special stakes or just bring along some weight plates for the corners |
Leave the tents stakes that came with the tent at home. I replaced mine with 24" lengths of rebar. That will work in a moderate wind, no guarantees
if it really starts howling. It seems like there was a post years ago on holding down a tent in wind. Try a search???
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David K
Honored Nomad
Posts: 64844
Registered: 8-30-2002
Location: San Diego County
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Mood: Have Baja Fever
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That dust photo says it all about Rancho Grande vs. Beluga! It was a few years ago when it was reported here when Rancho Grande graded away all the
vegetation behind their palapas (why in the world?)?
Thanks for the report on your trip!
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Rossman
Nomad
Posts: 205
Registered: 10-6-2013
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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| Quote: Originally posted by bkbend | | Quote: Originally posted by alafrontera | | Looks like a good time, going to have to try it Any trick to anchoring a tent
in soft sand with high wind ? Special stakes or just bring along some weight plates for the corners |
Leave the tents stakes that came with the tent at home. I replaced mine with 24" lengths of rebar. That will work in a moderate wind, no guarantees
if it really starts howling. It seems like there was a post years ago on holding down a tent in wind. Try a search??? |
Actually of the 10 or so tents that we had there I don't believe we had much problem with stakes getting pulled. The ground at Beluga is compacted
gravel and rocks under a couple inches of sand. Most of the problems that I saw and experienced myself was ripped seams, broken stays and in my
case, the little canvas pocket that the stays fit into got ripped. And of course the sand dunes over the corners.
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basautter
Senior Nomad
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Registered: 7-1-2013
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One of my favorite places in the world....as long as the wind is not blowing. Looks like u made the best of it!
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AKgringo
Elite Nomad
Posts: 6025
Registered: 9-20-2014
Location: Anchorage, AK (no mas!)
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Stake in sand
| Quote: Originally posted by alafrontera | | Looks like a good time, going to have to try it Any trick to anchoring a tent
in soft sand with high wind ? Special stakes or just bring along some weight plates for the corners |
In sand (or snow) I like to girth hitch the center of a stake and bury it as a 'dead man anchor'.
Standard wood survey stakes work well, or drift wood, or watcha got around your camp.
If you are not living on the edge, you are taking up too much space!
"Could do better if he tried!" Report card comments from most of my grade school teachers. Sadly, still true!
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paranewbi
Senior Nomad
Posts: 913
Registered: 4-15-2011
Location: San diego
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We usually carry some of the plastic grocery bags with us for many uses and one of them is to fill a few with sand, tie off the handles, and place
them around the edges of the interior of a tent to hold it down in winds.
As well if you carry large bags for trash these work great for larger volumes of sand and you can shape them into tubes to keep your floor space
available. Once again just place them around that interior perimeter area of the tent.
Once when the winds were flattening out the tent on us in the middle of the night...I took a beach umbrella and opened it up on the inside of the tent
with a folded towel under the post in the center of the tent. The tension of the height kept it centered and the umbrella structure added just enough
to the tent tension rods to keep it pretty much in shape. also created plenty of hanging elements for our damp clothes to hang on.
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