Bajabytes Weekly SportFishing Update 12.27.23
Happy New Year!
The following focuses on many fishing updates, photos, and news from various locations up and down the west and east coasts of the entire Baja Peninsula. It provides valuable information for fishing enthusiasts, contributed by local and visiting anglers.
If you and your friends have fished somewhere in Baja and would like to share the results of your trip, our staff and followers would appreciate your info and tips regarding your observations, the location, and the fishing conditions your group encountered. So, let’s get started.
Imperial Beach
There have been no reports of yellowtail in a while, but as some remain year-round, stay alert for birds and any other surface signs and watch that sonar for marks down 75 to 200 feet. You might try slow-trolling a couple of live mackerel—one on the surface and another with a 16-oz torpedo sinker. Also, it is a good idea to have a surface iron rig AND a yoyo iron rig ready to go at a moment’s notice.
Currently, there is good rockfish and sand bass action. The rockfish are on the 9 Mile Bank.
Those resorting to sinkers and dropping into 400 to 700 feet of water also score bocaccio.
If whitefish are your target, Buoy#3 or the Whistler outside the Harbor entrance is as far as you need to go. Use squid strips on little hooks for the best results, as whitefish have a small mouth. Some sheepshead here are biting on shrimp.
Sand bass action is also good in this area currently, with several anglers reporting limits. The IB Pier/Pipe and the Whistler are the best bet for sand bass. The knocker rig with a whole squid is the ticket. …Fish Dope
Coronado Islands/Rockpile
We launched from San Diego Bay around 7 a.m., purchased bait at the receiver in the bay, and headed to the islands.
The water was a little rough; however, once we arrived there, it was pretty nice. I was there both days last weekend.
The sheepshead, whitefish, and lingcod bite have been good on sardines, with steady fishing. Water temps are running 62 to 63 degrees. No sign of yellowtail.
I managed to catch this 9.45-pound sheepshead, in addition to all the other fish I caught. It was a beautiful day. Nobody else was out there.
Pelicans were super aggressive. It was tough to get a bait in the water with your fish out. We accidentally hooked a bird twice. from Reelapeeling on the Nauti Nat.…Fish Dope
Ensenada
Those big 5 to 10-pound bonito are still around. Local pangas catch them by trolling DTX Minnows and Rapalas around Punta Banda and down the coast to Santo Tomas, which also offers good fishing for red rockfish. …Fish Dope
San Quintin
Bonito are thick, according to Garcias Pangas Sportfishing.
Bahia de los Angeles
Quiet…
BAJA SUR
Catch up on the latest news from FONMAR
https://wordpress.com/view/fonmarusa.blog
Guerrero Negro
Awesome !!! We found huachinango today in Guerrero Negro BCS Mexico! It’s a rare fish here in our region, but here it is! Another species we can put on our Pro Hunter Cyclops 220gr next to our Pro Hunter Rod – working slowly but very effectively! …Chema Medina
Bahía Asunción
Shari Bondy is with Peter Wood and three others at La Bufadora Inn.
This Christmas was “hands down” the funniest ever at the Inn with a diverse tribe from the wilds of Colorado, Connecticut, Washington, Vermont, Montana, British Columbia, Sinaloa, California, Japan, and San Felipe. The potluck dinner was delicioso, and margaritas produced dancing and lots of laughs.
As is tradition, we began Christmas Day with mimosas and tamales. Then Peter Wood spotted the first of many humpback whales.
The Polar Bear swim was wonderful this year! The water was lovely and warm, and the day was balmy! We made beach sculptures and played all day, making it a marvelous holiday. Thanks to everyone who shared the celebration and made it special! …Shari Bondy
La Bocana
Quiet
Santa Rosalia
Punta Chivato
Happy Holidays! We are in Arizona for Christmas. So, we don’t have any first-hand reports. However, I received an email from my neighbor, Ron, AKA Fishhead, that yellowtail is biting on the North end of San Marcos. Robin Converse, AKA WoodEye, caught SEVEN Tails yesterday, and Nathan Burby took several at Santa Rosa. I’m reasonably sure all were taken on Iron.
We’re heading back next week and will have a report when we get out on the water. …Craig and Theresa.
Bahía Concepción
If you would like to pick up MILF Flat Falls, check out the link – https://a.co/d/5UNy6nk…Nathan Burbey
Loreto
Excellent days of fishing last Wednesday and Friday (yesterday)!!
Day One: Five yellowtail, two dorado, some skipjack, and a bonito!! At Almeja and San Bruno Banks.
Day Two: 14 yellowtail, three dorado, one cabrilla, and released two roosterfish! At Pulpito and Punta Colorada.
#nemenchassportfishingandtours
López Mateos
Good fishing inside with live bait – shrimp. Pargo, grouper, and corvina for limits. It’s pretty slow with the Holidays.
Happy Holidays to all from Lopez Mateos Sportfishing and the crew. …Cheri King
La Paz
East Cape
The area has enjoyed an unexpected December bonus as our great sport fishing season stretched through the Christmas holidays.
Striped marlin and sailfish were caught and released aboard the few boats that were out fishing. PLUS, dorado in the 10 to 20-pound range are still hanging out under anything that floats can be added to the catch.
For anglers choosing to stay closer to shore, the roosterfish, whose unusual dorsal fin gives them their name, can often be found close to the beaches. Plus, several varieties of jacks known for their strong fighting tendency can be added to your list, and last but not least is the toothy sierra, considered the prime ingredient for homemade fresh ceviche. – a welcome dish at many local New Year’s Parties! …Van Wormer Resorts.
San Jose del Cabo
December 24, 2023
Many vacationing families are beginning to arrive in Los Cabos for the Christmas and New Year holidays. However, only a moderate number of anglers are visiting, even though the wintertime climate has been ideal, with little wind and some cloudy days. The ocean water temperatures range from 76 to 79 degrees, and we still see excellent action from some of the most popular pelagic gamefish species.
The main target species continues to be dorado, with a good chance of catching yellowfin tuna and wahoo. Some fortunate anglers are catching a grand slam of all three during one outing.
Most of our charters this week focused on the inner Gordo and Punta Gorda. Many boats began their day trolling Rapalas and ballyhoo at Punta Gorda to catch wahoo. While some boats came in empty-handed, others caught a few wahoo with this technique. The wahoo bite slowed down this week. Some days, we only saw a couple. Usually, after a few hours of trying for wahoo, the boats moved towards the inner Gordo for dorado and tuna.
This week, we saw many nice-sized yellowfin tuna caught at the Gordo, with most fish ranging from 70 to 110 pounds. Most of these fish were taken on squid strips or dead sardina when available. Big dorado continues to be seen on the same grounds, with many of them in the 30 to 40-pound range. The biggest dorado this week was closer to 50 pounds and was caught on a squid strip while looking for tuna. On some days, these large schools of dorado feed off the squid chum line and do not allow us to fish for tuna efficiently. The tuna bite seemed better for the local pangeros later in the day.
Later this week, boats encountered a tuna bite at Punta Gorda. These fish were primarily in the 30 to 40-pound range. For the last three days, these tuna have been biting for brief periods, usually around 30 to 40 minutes, with the best action coming closer to midday. In addition, these Punta Gorda tuna have been hooked on squid and sardina.
The dorado bite continues to be very productive on most grounds, with many of our boats reaching their limit daily. Our boats stayed mostly at Punta Gorda and inner Gordo this week, though we did hear of many boats finding big schools of dorado at Iman, La Fortuna, and Cardon. Many of these boats also saw tuna feeding at Iman while chumming for dorado with live sardina.
We are starting to see a more significant number of striped marlin caught. There is not much inshore or bottom action going on currently. However, we did see a few Mexican bonito and snapper caught while jigging on different structures. More whales are now arriving, providing extra entertainment for anglers and their families.
Next week should be an even slower week in terms of anglers. Our captains will enjoy a few days of quality time with their families. We hope that you have a great Christmas with your loved ones.…Good Fishing, Brian …Gordo Banks Pangas
Cabo San Lucas
Another great week with a 98.5% Catch Success Rate for the fleet! We’ve had the marlin bite pick up a bit, with the boats out TODAY releasing up to seven striped marlin each, and they stayed close by. There are still some decent dorado around, with the last two weeks pushing through some 40-pound bulls! Last week, we had over 500 dorado for the fleet! This week, those numbers are lower, but the tuna bite is ON!!!
Boats targeting tuna today caught upwards of 10 fish each, and again, some decent-sized ones! Pisces 31′ La Brisa had a tuna close to 80 pounds last week, and tuna catches this week totaled close to 400 fish caught, compared to about 80 last week.
PLUS, there’s the fact that the Wahoo are still biting; 20 to 40-pounders are coming through; roosterfish releases, and some sierra mackerel, too! Water temps are around 78 degrees F. …Pisces Sportfishing Fleet.
That Baja Guy