March 8, 2009
Anglers –
Despite it only being the start of March the weather is already feeling like spring time, actually there has even been a hint of summer in the air recently. Days reached 85 degrees and it appears that the winter season, that we never really had, is all but over. There was thick marine fog in isolated areas for a couple of days, also winds from the north, switching around from the south, strong currents and fluctuating ocean conditions. All this resulted in up and down fish counts, with action being found for a wide variety of species from inshore, bottom and offshore. Water temperatures varied from lows near 68 degrees to highs of 75 or 76, a warmer current started outside of the Gordo Banks and moved towards the 95 spot outside of Chileno.
Inshore action was mainly for sierra in the 2 to 4 pound class, striking most consistently on trolled sardinas, but also on rapalas and hoochies. The same beach stretches produced some spotty roosterfish action and there were a couple of reports of dorado being hooking into right outside the surf zone. With warmer waters shifting offshore and quantities of squid and flying fish now on the fishing grounds, there seemed to be more reports of quality sized dorado being encountered, a handful of them topping the 30 pound mark. Even a few wahoo in the mix, pangueros reported sighting wahoo schools near the San Luis Bank and catching a handful of them on baits and lures, including casting yo-yo type chrome jigs. Yellowfin tuna action was slim pickings, though on Wednesday there was a group of schooling yellowfin found moving with porpoise close to shore, off of the San Jose Del Cabo, Puerto Los Cabos region and then migrated in a northern direction, for the few boats that found this action later in the morning they accounted for nice catches of tuna up to 25 pounds while trolling amongst the porpoise with a variety of lures.
Fleets are now doing a bit more bottom fishing, using a combination of bait and yo-yo jigs they have found a mix of snapper, amberjack, bonito and cabrilla, no huge numbers, but enough action to keep things interested and produce quality eating variety.
The striped marlin activity remains on the Pacific, with the Golden Gate to the Finger Bank producing big time action. Some marlin are spread into the Sea of Cortez, but it has not been consistent, though with reports of some mackerel found schooling on areas outside of San Jose del Cabo, this could mean that action will swift in this direction, as it is all about currents and food source.
The next couple of months will be transition period, a lot can happen from day to day, with options offshore, inshore and off the bottom structure. Following daily reports to determine the best strategy for the next trip, reading the water temperature satellite charts also can provide valuable information on where breaks can be found.
The combined panga fleet launching from La Playita/Puerto Los Cabos sent out approximately 60 charters for the week, with anglers reporting a fish count of:
2 striped marlin, 2 mako shark, 34 yellowfin tuna, 118 dorado, 9 wahoo, 28 cabrilla, 26 amberjack, 58 yellowtail, 39 pargo, 254 bonito, 162 sierra and 25 roosterfish.
Good fishing, Eric
