REPORT #1155 "Below the Border" Saltwater Fly-Fishing reports since 1996
2009 FLY FISHING SHOW AT Pleasanton, CA
Southern California fly-fishing fanatics will converge at the Alameda County Fairgrounds this February 27th, 28th, and
March 1st for the annual Fly Fishing Show.
Gary’s Presentation, “Baja and Mainland Mexico Do it Yourself,” will be held in the RELEASE ROOM
Saturday at 1:30 p.m. and again Sunday at 1:30 p.m.
East Cape
Finally a photo, John Alverez is the angler
“We are heading up to Punta Perico…WFO yellows and pargo!” And then later, “We’re back, tough fishing…one twenty
pounder and a few firecrackers. Pargo floated, but none landed.”
Sure, the good sierra bite has been going on for a while. However this week the fishing from the beach yielded more fish
than the tin boat fleet could scrape up. As the word spread, a few beaches looked like some kind of festival was going on.
Locals gathered before the sun came up to get in on the hot bite. Using everything from bait to crocodile lures, the
fishermen’s plastic five gallon buckets filled up fast. For some who figured out a hand-lined, slow-retrieved crocodile lure
was the hot ticket, their buckets filled much faster. A few of the alert fly guys went to slow retrieved chartreuse Clouser
and matched the Mexicans fish for fish…
Dorado have been feeding along the color line but there has been little or no concentration.
There’s plenty of tuna to look at outside of Las Frailes, but unfortunately there are not many hungry ones. Some quality
yellowtail in the 30 to 40 pound range are showing near Rancho Leonero. Hopefully, the yellowtail will stick around and
give us some good action like they did last year.
Striped marlin are being taken by anglers using live bait fishing deep on the bank outside of La Ribera.
Though there are plenty of sardina and mullet around, the North winds are still an issue; early mornings are mostly calm
but the winds usually pick up around noon and remain through sundown.
Water temperature 67-73
Air temperature 61-91
Humidity 66%
Wind: NNW 10 to 14 knots
Conditions: Partly Sunny
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 6:44 a.m. MST
Sunset 6:22 p.m. MST
Magdalena Bay, Baja Mexico
Still plenty of the crowd pleasing whales cruising about for the crowds arriving each day. They are not disappointed, as
the mommas and their young-uns frolic in the bay.
Still grumpy seas on the outside preventing much pre-fishing for the next big tournament in Puerto San Carlos. Enrique
Soto reports a good yellowtail bite out at the Entrada. According to his shark fishing buddies, there are some dorado
outside the Entrada up to the west out as far as twenty miles.
Puerto San Carlos Copa Gobernador Tournament will take place March 6 and 7, 2009.
Clicerio Mercado, the event coordinator, promises a BIG Band during the awards’ lunch around 3:00 pm at the weigh
station.
Water temperature 67 - 73
Air temperature 54 -92
Humidity 89 %
Wind: NW 13 to 18 knots
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 6:52 a.m. MST
Sunset 6:27 p.m. MST
Zihuatanejo, Mainland Mexico
[img]http://www.bajafly.com/report/image2009/Rob_Morton[1].gif[/img]
2/25/09 Rob Morton, Portland OR Jack Crevalle Taken on a 10wt fly rod while being teased in off a hookless Yo-Zuri
Popper. Caught in the Saladitas area about 25 miles North of Zihuatanejo. We were fishing out of Majahua with Ramon.
Photo and fly fishing guide: Ed Kunze
The blue water is still just a few miles off the beach, but a cooler 79 degree area is moving down from the North. The
division between the 79 degree water and 82 degree water is right in front of Zihuatanejo. What is the significance of
this? There will be fewer sailfish, and more blue marlin with the yellowfin tuna not far behind These two species prefer
the water a bit cooler than the sailfish.
And, this has been what was happening this last week. Most boats were raising 4 sailfish each day, and one blue marlin.
Margarito on the Gaby averaged 4 sailfish raised and 1 blue each day, with Martin on the Nautilus, fishing with fly fisher
Pat Dunlap of Oregon, raised 5 sailfish and two marlin in two days.
The one day total high boat in the fleet was the panga Huntress with 8 sailfish hooked and released.
Inshore action is picking up with the larger jack crevalle, and even a couple of roosters were caught this last week. Adolfo,
on the panga Dos Hermanos caught an estimated 60 pound rooster off Playa Buena Vista slow trolling a large live
mackerel, plus he said he took a couple of smaller ones on smaller live bait.
Pat Dunlap, fishing with Martin on the Nautilus also took 6 large jacks between 18 and 22 pounds near the White Rocks.
They were all taken on Rapalas. Fly fishing client, Rob Morton of Portland Oregon, took a very nice jack the on the fly
while we were fishing up near Saladita. He also got a small rooster.
Ed Kunze
Water temperature 78 - 83
Air temperature 71-90
Humidity 59%
Wind: NE at 2 mph
Conditions: Mostly Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:07 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:51 p.m. CST
Cabo San Lucas
Though there were still some striped marlin at the Golden Gate, they were not very hungry this week. You could throw
live bait in front of at least twenty fish before finding one that would bite. Other areas experienced similar results and the
fish were even more scattered. Almost every place you went you could find marlin on the surface but their mouths
remained tightly closed.
Dorado remained the fish of the week as most boats were returning with between five and ten fish. Anything found
floating in the water was likely to hold at least a few dorado and some of the fish were a very respectable 40 to 50
pounds. Working the current lines was the best way to find the floating debris and both sides of the Cape produced fish.
There were a few wahoo (in the sixty pound class) caught in the open water 15 miles or more due south.
Sierra dominated the inshore action. Most anglers were able to catch limits of these fish that ran to 8 pounds. There were also quite a few small roosterfish, more than are normally seen this time of year. In addition to the sierra and roosterfish, inshore action also produced jack crevalle and amberjack and the pargo bite in the rocks just keeps on going!
George & Mary Landrum
Water temperature 75 - 78
Air temperature 61 - 91
Humidity 66%
Wind: WNW 10 to 14 knots
Conditions: Clear
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 6:44 a.m. MST
Sunset 6:22 p.m. MST
