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baitcast
Super Nomad
Posts: 1785
Registered: 8-31-2003
Location: kingman AZ.
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Mood: good
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Smelt is a big favorite in southern cal in the surf and I,m sure would work on the west side,but there are several rigs that will work better and be
more fun to use in my opinion.
K/M, on a slower retrieve just off the bottom,plastics such as Big Hammers,Scrougers in motor oil and brown,sinking jerk baits mack
finish just to name a few.
Never did worth a damn on the inside targeting Butts,sometimes in the colder water months I done well,the other side all these things will do
well.
Rob
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MitchMan
Super Nomad
Posts: 1856
Registered: 3-9-2009
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Pompano, I hope you are right about the law regarding netting bait. I'm gonna try it. Was on a panga last year out by Ceralvo Island and the
panguero netted our sardinia bait. I was so impressed.
"uni goop", "slurp gun", "hayabusa rigs", "malla"; I love this kind of talk. Reminds of the the local rock station (KLOS I think) when the DJs would
do a mock fish report on the air with Joe Walsh playing guitar live in the background when he was the in-studio guest.
It's almost 11am, sitting here at my kitchen table in front of my laptop ... I want to fish so bad right now, well, I am starting to get a little
hyper!
[Edited on 5-21-2010 by MitchMan]
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Pompano
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8194
Registered: 11-14-2004
Location: Bay of Conception and Up North
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Mood: Optimistic
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MitchMan...I think you have someone's else's post regarding netting bait mistaken for mine. I never posted anything about netting,
although I have done it in the past with some success. Back in the day, I was quite good at netting shoreline lisas for bait. Nowadays my throw-net
is a decor item in my poolroom. I believe they are called a 'tore-ron-ya' or something like that.
Anyway, good luck with your fishing plans. Tight Lines!
I do what the voices in my tackle box tell me.
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Cypress
Elite Nomad
Posts: 7641
Registered: 3-12-2006
Location: on the bayou
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Mood: undecided
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Pompano, Careful what you say. You might be imprisoned, deported, or otherwise penalized for any infractions of Mexican Law.  That net? Seems like interactions with the govt. of Mexico is a one-way street. One
of those dead -end things. Dealing with the people of Baja is a joy.
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Skipjack Joe
Elite Nomad
Posts: 8084
Registered: 7-12-2004
Location: Bahia Asuncion
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| Quote: | Originally posted by dtbushpilot
What would be a good way to rig a live jack smelt for casting from the beach? How big of a bait could I realistically hope to catch something on?
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Actually when the smelt are running, as they are now, nobody actually fishes with live smelt. But they do target them. That is they use artificials
with lime green backs that look like smelt. I just got back from Hi's Tackle Shop (our equivalent to the Longfin) and that's the top seller right now.
We have 2 types of smelt here:jacksmelt and topsmelt. The gamefish really don't molest the jacksmelt because they're too large. But the topsmelt show
up in the surf at this time and guys net them for food (deep fried, yummm). The technique is - you watch for fish in every wave coming in and if you
see them you plant the net into the sand and let the rushing water pass through it as the wave recedes. The stripers are always on the lookout for
them.
I don't know. I just think a hooked smelt tethered to a sinker in the surf just wouldn't last long. Those baitfish are constantly moving with the
flow. Having one anchored to the bottom with the water rushing to and fro would be really tough on the little guys. Although, fresh dead smelt should
get a halibut's attention real well.
The closest thing to live bait in baja I use in the surf in baja are those GULP baits. I've had mixed results with them. The sandworms were a huge
success but the squids were a total dud. They've got these shrimp like critters that look really promising. I'm thinking of experimenting with them.
Oh, I almost forgot... I recently bought these plastic 'slugs' and tried them on largemouth bass. The fish loved them. They don't 'swim' like the
swimbaits. They, instead, have an erratic twisting side to side motion followed by up and down that looks just like an injured fish trying to right
itself up off the bottom. Those should be dynamite in baja. But I think it would require still water. No sinkers required - you just cast them
freeline and let them sink. The Japanese, however, fish them in the surf with sinkers and halibut will take them.
That's the thing about fishing - it never gets boring. Things are always changing.
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dtbushpilot
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 3288
Registered: 1-11-2007
Location: Buena Vista BCS
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Mood: Tranquilo
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Thanks for the smelt info joe and baitcast, guess I'll stick with the scampis and crocodiles. I've had a lot of fun catching flatties on them on the
Pacific side.
"Life is tough".....It's even tougher if you're stupid.....
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ElFaro
Nomad
Posts: 231
Registered: 9-16-2007
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I find it interesting how little attention is paid to "making bait" in Baja amongst fishermen on this site and on the fishing forums generally.
Because there are several fishing environments to be had in Baja...to me getting bait sucessfully is almost as important if not more than successful
fishing.
When I head down I take fishing gear for surf/shore, bay/estuary, near shore gulf/ocean, and deep sea gulf/ocean. Our MO is surf/shore by vehicle
and/or on foot, bay/estuary by kayaks/inflatable, near shore ocean by kayak/inflatable (out to 5 miles dependng on conditions), and deep sea
gulf/ocean by panga/cruiser/mother ship.
With each type there are baits unique to each and there are crossover baits. Of necessity then is the need to bring the tools to making bait for each
type of bait.
Throw net: "Chubbies", Sardina, smelts, etc.
Hayabusa (pescador) rigs: Sardina, smelts, mackerals.
Slurp (ghost shrimp) gun: Langostinos.
Grappling hook: Mussels
Clam fork: Beach Clams
Razor Clam rod: Razor Clams
Shovels: Sand crabs
Diving Knife: Mussels
The Razor Clam rod is like a fat welding rod 2 feet long with an inverted triangle shaped metal piece (1/2" on each edge) brazed to the end in a
notch. You insert the rod in the mud flat and turn 90 deg. and pull up the clam.
Also important to me are tide tables. I found a tide table program via a link from a personal weather station website. The program lists tides for
over 6000 locations and is good out to about 2026. It also lists sun and moon rises and sets.
With the tide tables I can plan my days and hours in Baja around making bait and fishing. I can't stress how critical this is...I have shown up at a
place to camp in the afternoon and knew that the 2nd low tide of the day was within an hour and the sun was also setting so I had to act. I just did
minimal camp setup and went straight out to the mudflats to get langostinos and razor clams for the next day. Basically I had to "strike while the
iron's hot". I also plan my fishing and making bait times around the tides that day. Ex...if the high tide is at 0900 figure start kayak fishing
around 0700 so head out around 0500 to get chubbies and langostinos by 0700.
Getting bait in Baja can be time consuming, tiresome, and incure logistical challenges. I try to gage the day and whether getting certain baits are
"worth the effort" for the time/energy spent vs fishing success. Hope this helps.
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classicbajabronco
Nomad
Posts: 226
Registered: 1-2-2010
Member Is Offline
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both wahoo and jail bait are supposively very good to eat 
Throw nets are illegal? Best tell that to every guide, pangadero, of other fisherman in baja, as well as every tackle shop I have ever walked into.
The guides even make bait in the national parks using throw nets. If it's illegal it is definately not enforced. For that matter, cutting up a fish
for cutbait is also illegal....but when in Rome......
[Edited on 5-23-2010 by classicbajabronco]
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