Baja Bytes – October11, 2022
Los Cabos Billfish Tournament Oct. 16-20, 2022
Each October, the Los Cabos Billfish Tournament kicks off the season with a fun, participant-focused event in one of the most action-packed fishing destinations in the world – Cabo San Lucas. Located at the tip of the Baja Peninsula, where the Pacific Ocean and the legendary Sea of Cortez meet, it is the dream destination of the competitive angler. In addition, it provides a plethora of billfish action and world-record-size gamefish to lure the big money and massive fish tournaments, which is complemented by an all-star lineup of accommodations and activities.
Schedule of Events
Bull Ring
Some decent quality 3 to 5-pound bonito are around, but the numbers are down now from what they were just a few days ago. The better area includes the local rockfish area outside the kelp line toward South Island. There are some found along the kelp line too. Try trolling a few small feathers or Rapalas. You should get at least a few jig stops and possibly a few more by casting small Colt Snipers.
Bass fishing has been just so-so.
There are rumors of squid around. Hopefully, some of that stuff moves in and sticks around for a while. It would sure help the yellowtail and seabass bites that are slow right now. …Fishdope.com
Coronado Islands / Rockpile
It is one of the better choices for yellowtail but is far from a slam dunk and challenging for the private boater.
This is because these yellows are deep down, around 125 to 250 feet near the Rockpile, moving around quickly and not holding to any one spot. So sports boats with scanning sonar easily find these schools and figure out where they are going making it easy to drop a heavy yoyo iron like a sala 6X on them.
The Rockpile is also holding bonito, lingcod, whitefish, and sheepshead.
Back up around the Islands, from the weather side of North Island and Pukey Point to the Key Hole and the Middle Grounds, all are jugged with bonito. Most are from 3 to 5-pound units, but there are a few 8 to 10-pounders too. Trolling Rapalas will get you all you want! …Fishdope.com
Here is the rundown. Very little change from yesterday.
The 226-302 area is working. Some good dorado kelp in that area. There is also some decent dorado fishing down in the 425 area.
The best dorado zone, though, is in the 371/390/Upper Hidden Bank triangle. The kelp in this area seem to be holding big numbers of dorado that want to bite.
There are tuna around, both bluefin and yellowfin, but the numbers being found are down from what they were a few days ago. They might still be around and just not bite, or they might have bugged out. It’s hard to say.
These were smaller bluefin in the 20 to 60-pound class and 15 to 30-pound yellowfin. Most tuna signs currently are coming on sonar marks. Very few surface signs. Before the slowdown, guys had good bait stops on yellowfin and bluefin and were pulling yellowfin off pods of dolphin and whales. Sports boats were also having good action on the bluefin at night, dropping the bigger knife jigs down on sonar schools.
The tuna are still around. Some were caught again today. Just fewer signs and they could bite at any moment. …Fishdope.com
Ensenada
Been a fun week fo dorado…Maras Sportfishing
San Quintin
Nice weather as Fall begins to settle in and the yellowtail are hungry…Garcias Pangas
Bay of Los Angeles
A 29-pound yellowtail … Sergio Lopez Costa del Sol Sportfishing Panga Available (Fish Baja Group)
South (Baja Sur)
Cedros Island
Gotta love it! Erik, Bill, and Laura made a bet. If their panga captain produced the largest yellowtail of the trip, there would be a nice payday for Captain Javier. The largest yellowtail of the trip? 37-pounds! …Cedros Sportfishing
This is my favorite time of year here in central Baja – the best weather of the year, the best water conditions, and the best fishing. Of course, having my son visit me for a month is a real bonus! The yellowtail bite here in Bahía Asunción has been good, with limited-style fishing on most days. Unfortunately, we must sort through a dozen jumbo bonito for every quality yellowtail we put in the boat.
Bonito are the bane of my existence! They tear up my gear, mess up my boat, and waste my time. As a result, we have been spending little time chasing ‘tails and more and more time offshore chasing exotics. Yellowfin tuna fishing has been excellent for the past few days, with easy limits every morning. The tuna have been running small this year, ranging from 8 to 18 pounds, but they are reasonably close and eager to bite anything we troll – even small jigs thrown into the spots of boiling fish. Yesterday I was lucky enough to hook and land a nice 48-pound wahoo, one of two or three caught in the area yesterday. It gulped down an Xrap-40 in the Sardine pattern, so we have more than a few pounds of “white-meat-goodness” in my freezer. …Ross Zoerhof
La Bocana
La Bocana, BCS … We had a great fishing day; we headed offshore but turned back at 15 miles because it was too rough and windy. So, we fished inshore and got limits of tails – nothing big but lots of them! The calicos were nice, and we got one gulfy. In Juan’s estimation, it weighed about 60 pounds. On our way in, we got the Parker stuck in an ultra-low tide, and to unstick it took about an hour’s work with help from many of my friends! …fishonnn&onnn…Juan Cook
Loreto
The biggest dorado and roosterfish are all east, north, and south of the Marina!
The best captains can be found hanging out at the Marina launch ramp, bonding and hoping for anyone who might want to go fishing or even go on an island beach trip.
Aaahhhh! It’s Baja in the fall. So mellow out and enjoy the weather, for soon, the winter north winds will pick up, and we’ll have to start a rendition of the “winter northwind blues.”
I quickly chatted with a couple of the captains and received some valuable local “intel.” There were ” sierra caught yesterday, none today, and probably more will be caught tomorrow.” My Spanish is not superb, but that was the insight.
The other topic was the Marina upgrades and the previously closed launch ramp situation. The intel points to the probability of it being finished in December, but until then, all is good with half of the ramp open. (The “busy season,” i.e., “whale sight-seeing season,” happens in late January!)
As always, the commercial handline guys have been bringing in the usual reds and a few ‘tails.
October in Baja! …Rick Hill,
Lopez Mateos
Photo 2
Fishing with Rodrigo García MagBay Puerto Adolfo López Mateos Baja California Sur, October 2022, contact me 613-109-1127 Boats: 28-f00t súper pangas Rodrigo García
La Paz
https://youtu.be/eV09FSn7g8Q
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ FISHING REPORT from Tailhunter Sportfishing for the Week of September 28 – October 5, 2022
East Cape
Great fishing during the 28th Annual Let’s Talk Hookup Fishing Tournament at Van Wormer Resorts
The water has been clear, flat, and clean at 87 degrees.
The weather has been very pleasant, with highs in the low 90s, cooler fall weather.
This 2022 season, we have had very, very good fishing! The best fishing has been close, directly offshore from La Ribera. Limits of dorado for all anglers, mixed with lots of striped marlin. Some good-sized yellowfin are being taken daily, and some nice-sized wahoo are coming to the cleaning table daily. There are also lots of good-sized sardina helping the bite!
The dorado are thick, directly on the La Ribera Banks to the Lighthouse, with limits for almost all anglers. Fish are from 7 to 40 pounds, taking smaller, bright lures, and live sardina trolled 1 to 4 miles offshore.
Most boats release at least one striper, with lots of boats enjoying multiple releases. The stripers are mixed with the dorado on the Banks and south to the Lighthouse. They are taking lures and ballyhoo with quite a few on sardina. Lots are around.
All the boats are staying inside enjoying the wide-open dorado bite. No boats are outside looking for the yellowfin tuna under the porpoise. Tuna to 100 pounds were taken off Vinaramas closer to the hotel, mixed with the dorado.
Boats running into the wahoo boated multiple fish. Our hotel boat El Capitan, boated five in two days, weighing 25 to 60 pounds. Some were taken off Punta Pescadero, La Ribera, and Vinaramas. Marauders and Rapalas worked best! …John Ireland, Rancho Leonero
Puerto Los Cabos
The latest storm threat of Hurricane Orlene did not amount to much locally, as this system shifted course to the southeast, striking the mainland below Mazatlan. The local Port closed Monday morning as a precaution but reopened later that same day. We never felt much wind, had no rain and swells only increased slightly. The weather is now changing to the typical fall pattern, cooler mornings, and next week’s forecast is for increased north winds. Water temperature averaged from the 82 to 84-degree range, with some warmer currents farther offshore and towards Los Frailes.
Crowds of anglers were increasing, as is typical for this season. The available bait was sardina, slabs of squid, ballyhoo, and limited caballito. As a result, most sportfishing charters concentrate on the grounds from Cardon, Iman, San Luis, and north to Vinorama.
The main action has been for surface species, such as dorado, wahoo, and yellowfin tuna, plus some sailfish and many striped marlin. Most numerous were the dorado, in mixed sizes, averaging in the 5 to 10-pound range, with a few bulls up over 20 pounds. Limits were standard, with lots of catches and releases going on.
The yellowfin tuna were more sporadic than last week. They were striking best on squid strips and, at times, the sardina! Vinoramas and San Luis Banks were a few better areas for these tuna. Sizes averaged 10 to 50 pounds, with a few larger specimens brought in. The bite changed daily as to when and where these fish would appear.
Wahoo were found on the same grounds, but more so around Cardon, a small area where boats congregated, heavy pressure on these elusive gamefish. Again, the bite was hit or miss, with some charters landing up to three wahoo! The largest we weighed in was a 42-pound fish. They were striking on rigged ballyhoo and trolled Rapalas.
Sailfish weighing up to 80 pounds were mixed on the same grounds. Not much bottom action was being done, as most anglers targeted the surface action! …Good Fishing…Eric Brictson, Gordo Banks Pangas
Cabo San Lucas
2022 Los Cabos Offshore Schedule of Events
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 19 – PRE-REGISTRATION
3:00-7:00pm Pre-Registration on the Marina side of Puerto Paraiso Mall. No bag distribution on this day.
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 20 – REGISTRATION
3:00-7:00pm Registration and distribution of team bags on the Marina side of Puerto Paraiso Mall.
7:00pm Captains Meeting, Puerto Paraiso Mall. One team member must attend.
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21 – SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22 – FISHING DAY 1 & 2.
8:00am Shotgun Start. Must be behind the line at 7:45 am.
8:00am-5:00pm Tournament Fishing. Lines must be out of the water by 5:00pm.
2:00pm-9:00pm Weigh Station is open in front of the Puerto Paraiso Mall. Boats inside the harbor entrance by 9:00pm can weigh.
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23 – AWARDS CELEBRATION
7:00pm Awards Celebration at Maria Corona Restaurant.
Color them caught…Pisces Sportfishing Fleet
