Baja Mexico: Magdalena Bay, Baja Sur & East Cape.
Capt. Gary Graham
January 17, 2004
Baja Sur - Saltwater Fishing Report
Winds Plague East Cape Zihuatanejo, Guatemala Sizzle
REPORT FROM GARY GRAHAM'S BAJA ON THE FLY:
PROVIDING QUALITY SALTWATER FLY-FISHING 365 DAYS A YEAR IN BAJA FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: [email protected]; USA toll-free (800) 919-2252; Mexico 011-52-624-14-10373
Fri., Jan. 16, 2004. Report covers the period Sat.-Thurs. (1/09 - 1/15)
EAST CAPE, MAGDALENA BAY, ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO; AND IZTAPA, GUATEMALA CONDITIONS
EAST CAPE, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Still a few dorado and marlin when the boats can get out. Sporadic wind conditions continue with a few good days and then you need rocks in your pockets just to walk the beach.
AIR & SEA -
Water temperature 67°-73°
Air temperature 62° - 69°
Humidity about 83%
Wind NNW at 9 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility 15 miles
Sunrise 7:02 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:54 p.m. MST
Jan. 21 New, Jan. 28 First Quarter, Feb. 6 Full Feb. 13 Last Quarter
o OFFSHORE: Punta Pescadero is the best bet for dorado under the shark buoys and further outside an occasional marlin.
o INSHORE: Begin with the early morning sierra bite and then head up to Punta Pescadero.
o BEACH: Tough. There’s sierra at gray light and a few jacks to be found at Punta Arena and La Ribera.
BILLFISH – Still a few to be found.
YELLOWFIN TUNA – No sashimi to be found these days.
DORADO – Plenty of buoys strung out to the north, the trick is to find the right one.
ROOSTERFISH – Don’t hold your breath.
JACK CREVALLE –Look for birds and bait.
BARRILETE OR MEXICAN SKIPJACK – A few bonito and that is about it.
PARGO AND CABRILLA – Try a popper on the rocky points.
SIERRA - Gray light just at dawn is best before the sun gets too high.
MAGDALENA BAY, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Pssst! I know where all the yellowfin tuna went. They are 6 - 8 miles out in front of the entrada. The few pangas venturing out have reported a wide open bite. Not to be outdone, the esteros have produced good catches of corvina, grouper, pompano and all the cabrilla you can handle.
We will soon be offering trips out of Lopez Mateos as well as Puerto San Carlos. More on the new trips in the next few weeks.
Water Temperature 66°-74°
Air Temperature 64°- 71°
Humidity 100%
Wind Calm
Conditions Haze.
Visibility 3 miles
Sunrise 7:13 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:58 p.m. MST
Jan. 21 New, Jan. 28 First Quarter, Feb. 6 Full Feb. 13 Last Quarter
YELLOWTAIL – Entrada and bird schools should do the trick.
CORVINA – Poppers, streamers either will work.
SNOOK – Almost every week one of our clients gets dusted. Use some heavier fluorocarbon as bite tippet and hang on is the only advice I can give!
HALIBUT – Every sandy beach has a few.
SIERRA – Not being targeted much.
ZIHUATANEJO, MAINLAND MEXICO
IN GENERAL: It sounds like the proverbial “broken record,” but it’s a repeat of last week: The 80º blue water is still holding at around 6 miles and the sailfish are cooperating. Almost every boat is jumping between 8 and 12 fish a day, with many boats hooking as many as 7 to 8 fish each.
There are 25- to 30-pound class dorado are being caught, but mostly by trolling. There are few concentrated pods.
Water Temperature 79º-86º
Air Temperature 73° - 84º
Humidity 83%
Wind SE 4 mph
Conditions Scattered Clouds (FEW) : 6,000 ft
Visibility 10 miles
Sunrise 7:19 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:30 p.m. CST
Jan. 21 New, Jan. 28 First Quarter, Feb. 6 Full Feb. 13 Last Quarter
Baja on the Fly’s Zihuatanejo report by Ed Kunze
IZTAPA, GUATEMALA
IN GENERAL: The bite is really starting to turn on in Guatemala, and the action has moved closer to shore with the run to the fish being 14-20 miles. Boats are averaging 25 releases on sails out of 40 shots, and quite a few boats in the latter half of the week experienced over 100 bites per day. The high boat for the week released 81 of 106 for sails. There were also several marlin released during the past week. Dorado action is steady. Inshore, there were two groups out, and the action on 20- 30-pound roosters was steady in the afternoon.
Excerpts of notes or e-mails from recent visitors:
I can't believe how good sail fishing can be. 21 sails and a large dorado in one day . . . signed/ [outdoor writer/photographer] Ray Rychnovsky
We really missed the bite by one day. The high boat the day you left released 81 sails for 3 anglers and the #2 boat released 48 of 116 . . . signed/ Brian and Lissa
Today (Jan. 13) a record was set!
My three students Don Trexler, John Willis Steve McManus and I set a new world record by catching and releasing 27 sailfish on fly. We had released 22 before noon and it began to slow down. We left to go fishing 1/2 hour late and arrived at the dock 40 minutes early. With over 50 fly bites, the potential is there to catch more on a day like this! . . . signed/ Jake Jordan
Water Temperature 80º-85º
Air Temperature 78°-82º
Humidity 100%
Wind SE 11 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility 8 miles
Sunrise 6:30 a.m. CST
Sunset 5:54 p.m. CST
Jan. 21 New, Jan. 28 First Quarter, Feb. 6 Full Feb. 13 Last Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Guatemala report by Brian Barragy and Lissa M. McFarlin.
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