Baja Bytes update September 11, 2024. Coronado Islands seems to have started to produce a few bluefin and yellowfin along with the usual yellowtail and barracuda as the late summer action settles in Below the Border.
Ensenada reported the first marlin. Chris Wheaton filled in a few more blanks at San Quintin on the Tournament held there recently. Though some potholes are being filled, we are still hearing lots of grumbles about the condition of Mex 1, backed up by photos of potholes. BOLA seems to be experiencing a killer of a late summer bite! In Baja Sur, the West Coast from Bahía Asunción to Magdalena Bay, every sentence seems like it begins with yellowfin and ends with wahoo, while Loreto and La Paz seem to be shaking off the summer doldrums and are trying to get back up to speed. Farther down the Coast from East Cape to Cabo, the tuna/wahoo bite mantra is accompanied by a chorus of “blue, striped, and sail” billfish bite.
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Yellowtail, bluefin, and yellowfin tuna continue biting here! Today, they were right around SKR at South Island again.
There is a good volume of small bluefin and even some yellowfin around the islands. Most of them are found in the lee of South Island and just south of the Tuna Pens, and they are spread from the Lighthouse to SKR. They are popping up under birds working the micro-anchovy.
These bluefin eat fly-lined sardine, and some sometimes bite the surface iron.
Yellowtail fishing at the Islands has been tough, although some are still around.
Sea lions have been a significant problem recently, impacting fishing conditions. The best yellowtail action is at South Island near Ribbon Kelp and SKR, with a few also in the Middle Grounds.
Calico bass fishing remains strong on the boiler rocks near the Middle Grounds and South Island’s backside. Barracuda are biting well around South Island, especially at SKR.
Water temperatures range from 71.5° to 72.4° F, with slightly off-colored blue water. …Fish Dope
First Marlin caught of the season in the port of Ensenada by the ship “Azteca,” Captain Chiwili puts in this great report. Many congratulations, Captain! …Casteando la BAJA Podcast
Last weekend, I trailered the Grady White down to San Quintin for the Dos Mares Fishing Tournament. It felt like we were fishing in Alaska, but we still put fish in the boat. We caught a lot of nice lingcod up to 15 pounds and managed to win one of the jackpots for 26,000 pesos or about $1300 U.S. We took 4th Place overall, so we were just out of the money, but the jackpot was more than 3rd Place, so all good! That paid for most of the trip, and we had a great time. There was excellent food and great fishing. Baja puts on some fun tournaments, and it is always nice to have a reason to head south! …Chris Wheaton
First, I would like to thank Fisharmz Sportfishing Captain Marco A. Peralta for an incredible experience. This was our second year going to Bahía de Los Angeles, and we killed it! Good vibes, fantastic scenery, and kick-ass fishing! It was a blessing to see a place where everyone helps each other. The unity between captains was something incredible to see, especially when everyone came together for one purpose—to catch fish! And of course, we can’t forget the best part! Once it was all said and done, we were blessed with sashimi and a refreshing swim!!! @BDLA – Bahía De Los Ángeles.
Target species acquired: Yellowtail/Black seabass on dropper loop, 300 feet on 50-pound Mano on a fathom, 30 paired with an 8-foot 30/60 Rainshadow rod. Dorado was caught on trolling feathers on 80-pound Mano with an Okuma Cavala 12, paired with a 7’6″ 40/80 Rainshadow rod… Aaron Aguilar
Cooler weather is upon us, so be sure to book your dates for the upcoming weeks for some excellent fishing! … Meza’s Sport Fishing
Great news! All the significant
potholes are filled with asphalt from KM 0 (airport road) to around KM 29! (Two
are marked for repair at KM 30 but have not been fixed.) They are even
fixing the road by the marina. As of this morning, they were grinding the
southbound lane. Also, the big potholes south of La Poma are filled with sand
and some asphalt. There are still a few between KM 30 and Alfonsina’s turnoff,
so keep your eyes open. We are pleased about the changes!…Jen
Farnsworth Jessop
One of the most prominent target species is the California yellowtail, a feisty member of the Jack family that tends to fight harder and grow more significant here than most other places on the Pacific coast.
Recently, longtime clients Albert and Silvia Tejidor returned to Cedros with a party of 12 anglers. One of them, Aram Sexenain, started out on the right foot with a beautiful yellowtail (as seen above). The trophy-grade forktail weighed out at just over 50 pounds. …TOM GATCH
🎆 The “Sportfishing” weekend promoted by BCS FONMAR’s “Fishing in the Five 2023-2024” resulted in three days of fishing and lots of fun!
The winners 🏆 of the offshore, kayak, and beach competitions that took place on September 7 and 8 were as follows:
Offshore:
🥇1st Place, 250 thousand pesos and jackpots, “Los Renegados,” 28.03-pound Yellowtail.
🥈2nd Place, 150 thousand pesos, “Popeyes,” 26.80-pound Yellowtail.
🥉3rd Place. 100 thousand pesos, “Los Chitinas,” 19.84-pound Yellowtail.
🏅4th Place, 50 thousand pesos, “Sin Rodeos,” 19.09-pound Yellowtail.
Bisbee’s Tournament Coordinator, Clicerio Mercado Hernández, presented the “Los Renegados Team” a Free Entry to participate in Bisbee’s “Los Cabos Offshore” tournament held October 14th – 19th,2024.
The tuna jackpots went to the “Sonora Team” with an impressive 74.67-pound Yellowfin.
Kayak:
🥇1st Place, 30 thousand pesos went to Hiram Murillo for a 5.64-pound Croaker,
🥈2nd Place, 20 thousand pesos went to Pedro Lieras for his 4.49-pound Croaker,
🥉3rd Place, 10 thousand pesos went to Agustín Aguilar for his 4.38-pound Croaker.
Shore: Women
🥇1st Place, 10 thousand pesos went to Blanca Leticia Martínez.
🥈2nd Place, 6 thousand pesos went to Bricen Solís.
🥉3rd Place, 4 thousand pesos went to Zulma Solís.
Shore: Men
🥇1st Place, 10 thousand pesos to Andrés Velázquez.
🥈2nd Place, 6 thousand pesos to Misael Velázquez.
🥉3rd Place, 4 thousand pesos José Raymundo López
Shore: Children
🥇1st Place, 10 thousand pesos went to Ismar Villegas.
🥈2nd Place, 6 thousand pesos went to Renata Romero
🥉3rd Place, 4 thousand pesos went to Kiyoshi Santiago.
Thanks to the support of the Governor, Víctor Castro Cosío, and FONMAR’s “Fishing in the Five 2023-2024, La Bocana, in the municipality of Mulegé, was brought to the attention of sports fishing enthusiasts helping to further establish and promote the development and growth of sportfishing in this northern municipality
The yellowfin tuna continue to the big story here. Adding to the excitement was a wahoo the was caught last week by a local…Shari Bondy, La Bufadora Inn
Punta Chivato
No Report
Bahía Concepción
No Report
Slow days in Loreto partly explain the bait situation. It’s a “no sardina” summer, and the mackerel are not being offered because there is not enough demand. There are no fishermen, so who’s gonna’ buy my macks? The “T” word we never say in Loreto was quietly being mumbled past Punta Lobo and a mix of medium dorado. Inshore, the action is slow, and Sara of Tours Loreto summed it up as, “I guess fish don’t like jellyfish, either!” Both diving and those who were swimming have rewarded the vacationers with stinging red spots. The best spots for rod bending action would be a long ride to the east of town or a long drive to the Pacific side for yellowfin (T’s). Humidity and midday temps are in the 90s, with glassy mornings and a few afternoon rolls. Baja summer! I’ll send a photo or two if a Wi-Fi password comes up. …Rick Hill
.Anyway, fishing in Lopez has slowed WAAAYYY down. Water is green and currents are wrong. Still a few good sized Yellowfin Tuna around. No sign of Wahoo yet.
Shrimp season opens here Sept. 15, so inside the Bay fishing should be picking up. Corvina, Pargo, Grouper, Snook, Trigger fish – …Cheri King, Lopez Mateos Sportfishing +52 613 114 8044, <sannichick@gmail.com>
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ FISHING REPORT from Tailhunter Sportfishing for Week of Aug. 29-Sept 5, 2024
The Wahoo Gold Cup and Tuna Shoot Out tournaments will be combined into one spectacular competition! Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 21, 2024, and prepare for an unforgettable fishing day.- Date: Saturday, September 21, 2024
– Entry Fee: $600
Registration day is September 20 at Hotel Palmas de Cortez from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.- Grand Prize: A Brand-New Volkswagen Polo for the heaviest Wahoo or Tuna catch
– Optional Jackpots: $200, $300, $500, $1,000, $2,000 buy-ins for Wahoo and Tuna (each one)- Reserve your spot today for a day of exciting fishing, camaraderie, and big prizes!
San Jose del Cabo
GORDO BANKS PANGAS
September 8th, 2024
We are closely monitoring weather conditions and are seeing storm development in the Pacific. We will most likely get a decent amount of rain and 20 to 30-kt winds for the upcoming weekend, primarily Friday night and Saturday morning. If you are down in the Los Cabos area, please follow the forecast and take the necessary precautions.
The main highlight this week was more dorado action. Many of the boats were able to catch their dorado limit (two per license). The bite started towards the end of the week, and it seems to be spread out, with most boats fishing Iman, Cardon, Gordo, Punta Gorda, and Palmilla. All these spots have been holding big schools of dorado, though most are on the smaller side, averaging around 8 to 10 pounds. This week, the bait guys were able to net some sardina throughout the shoreline from Palmilla to our marina; this has contributed significantly to finding the schools of dorado. We did find larger dorado offshore while targeting marlin on lures and ballyhoo.
Earlier this week, a few wahoo were caught in San Luis and Iman while trolling Rapalas and rigged ballyhoo. A handful of wahoo were also seen offshore with marlin lures. These wahoo’s most popular lure colors are red, orange, green, and yellow. Most boats start their day closer to Gordo and continue trolling towards 1150 and Cabrillo. This week, we had many reports of big schools of small flying fish, but little activity was around them.
The inner Gordo is showing promising signs for the upcoming weeks. A few boats reported chumming sardina and strips of skipjack and seeing dorado, tuna, and wahoo feed on the chum line. A few small tuna were also caught at the Gordo while trying to catch skipjacks for bait. At the same time, chumming strips of skippies, dogtooth, and yellow snapper were also caught, though it was difficult to fish the bottom on some days due to the currents. A local pangeros landed a 354-pound Black Marlin this week between the inner and outer Gordo on a live skipjack.
We had some unexpected rain and wind this Saturday, and most boats decided to fish closer to shore. A couple of our charters focused specifically on Punta Gorda, less than a mile from shore, and it was full of action. One of the boats caught 12 dorado (only kept their limit and released the rest), a couple of Sierra, one sailfish, and lost a nice wahoo close to the boat. …Good Fishing, Brian Brictson
Cabo San Lucas
Pisces Sportfishing Fleet Update August 23-29,2024
August 23 to 29, 2024 Overall Catch Success Rate, All Species Combined 98%
Catch Success Rate 98%, Billfish, 74%, Dorado 20%, Tuna 28%, Other 18.18%
The Pisces Fleet had a great week, catching a wide variety of species. Most billfish were released, including blue marlin, striped marlin, sailfish, dorado, yellowfin tuna, wahoo, roosterfish, silky shark, skipjack, and needlefish. The fish were found in various areas and local banks, including the 95 Spot, Los Arcos, Cerro Colorado, San Jaime Bank, in front of the Palmilla Hotel, and Del Barco Perdido. The local weather was typical for this time of year, with air and sea temps in the eighties and some wind in the afternoons…. That Baja Guy
