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Cabo San Lucas Fish Report and Baja Fishing
Capt. Jerry Chapman
February 18, 2013
Cabo San Lucas - Saltwater Fishing Report
Jc Sportfishing Weekly Fish Report.
As the Admiral Seas It
Fishing Report: 2/10/13 to 2/17/13
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Now is the time to come to Cabo as the fishing is still really good and not only that there is some really good deals on airfares lately as Spirit Airlines has some really good deals. You might want to look into this and also if you are in LA or San Diego you might think about flying out of Tijuana as the rates are much cheaper for TJ to Cabo. Just something to think about.
Jc Sportfishing Charters is a family owned and operated business and has been fishing in Cabo San Lucas for the past 18 years. Jerry, explains that his charter business is geared more for families and novice anglers, making sure everyone who charters a boat with him has a great time and lots of fun. We welcome families and groups. We want everyone who fishes with us to take all the sites in and have memorable experience. This is what is most important to us. We have and do a few tournaments each year and can cater to fisherman who might be interested in tournament fishing. Lets get on with the report for this past week.
WATER: The water has been pretty much the same as last week with temperatures in the low 70,s in most areas. There are reports of green water and temperatures in the ladder 60,s on the pacific side in some areas. We did have the warm water move in over last couple days picking up the fishing.
WEATHER:.The weather has really been good over the last week it did drop the temperature at night to where it got a little chilly but the days have been really nice. Some light breezes in the afternoon but nothing major as far as wind. There were a few days over the last week that even dropped into the low 50,s at night. Then in the day time it went back up to mid 80,s. So all in all its great weather really typical Cabo weather this time of year.
BILLFISHING: We are still catching good numbers of Striped Marlin from the Light House to the Golden Gate. Our own Bob Marlin did have a really cool and unusual day a few days ago with catch of a Swordfish this was the first one for us in 8 years and it tipped the scales at 175 pounds and took 2 and a half hours to land with 4 anglers fighting the fish. The Swordfish are really big fighters and this was a great surprise and lots of fun for the guys on the Bob Marlin. We do not have a lot of Swordfish caught here in Cabo but there are times of year where there are a few landed.
SWORDFISH:
The swordfish has a stout, fairly rounded body and large eyes. The first dorsal fin (rising from the back of the fish) is tall and crescent-shaped. The second dorsal fin is quite separate from the first and very small. Both are soft-rayed—having thin, bony rods that extend from the base of the fin and support the fin membrane. The anal fins approximate the shape of the dorsal fins, but are noticeably smaller. Ventral fins, found on the underside of fish, are absent. There is a strong, longitudinal keel, or ridge, on either side of the caudal peduncle (the base of the tail where the tail fins project from), which leads to a broad, crescent-shaped tail. Adult swordfish have neither teeth nor scales.
The swordfish snout elongates into a true sword shape. Measuring at least one-third the length of the body, it is long, flat, pointed, and very sharp. The lower jaw is much smaller, though just as pointed, ending in a very wide mouth.
The bodies of swordfish fry (recently hatched fish larvae) are quite different form those of the adults. Their upper and lower jaws are equally prolonged; bodies are long, thin, and snakelike; they are covered with rough, spiny scales and plates; tails are rounded; and they have just one long dorsal and anal fin.
Swordfish coloration varies greatly among individuals. The dorsal side can range from dark brown to grayish-blue. This dark shading can extend anywhere from halfway down the side to almost the full extent of the body. The remaining area of the skin is tinged silvery white.
Other billfish, including marlins, inhabit Northeast waters, but only the spearfish bears a strong resemblance to the swordfish. It is distinguished from the swordfish by its rounded sword, small teeth, a long, continuous dorsal fin, and ventral fins.
Size
While the largest swordfish recorded in the North Atlantic ocean weighed 550 kg, fish over 200 kg are unusual. Today, the average fish caught in the commercial fishery weighs between 90 and 150 kilograms (1 kilogram equals 2.2 pounds). The largest fish to be caught on a tackle weighed 274 kg. These larger fish measure approximately 4.5 meters in length (1 meter equals 3.3 feet)—with a 3 meter body and a 5 meter sword.
Female swordfish grow faster, live longer, and are proportionally heavier than their male counterparts. Research shows that by 1 year of age, the female is already almost 4 kg. During the next 2 years, she triples her weight of the previous year. By age 4, the female is likely to weigh 70 kg, and at age 5, 110 kg. Similar data for males and older swordfish are inconclusive.
Longevity
Swordfish reach sexual maturity at about 2 to 3 years of age, and live for at least nine years. While they may survive longer, no such documentation exists. The majority of swordfish caught in the North Atlantic sport fishery are thought to be 4 to 5 years old.
Distribution
Swordfish are pelagic fish—living within the water column rather than on the bottom or in coastal areas. They are typically found at depths of between 180 meters and 580 meters, and are found worldwide in temperate and tropical waters. They are believed to prefer waters where the surface temperature is above 15°C (58°F), although they can tolerate temperatures as low as 10°C (50°F). There seems to be some correlation between larger size and the ability to tolerate colder temperatures. Few fish under 90 kg are found in waters less than 18°C (64°F).
Swordfish are summer and fall visitors to New England waters, entering the warming Atlantic coastal waters from far offshore in the Gulf Stream around June and departing in late October. Evidence suggests that such onshore-offshore seasonal migrations are more prevalent than are migrations between the northern feeding areas off Cape Hatteras and the southern spawning grounds off Florida and the Caribbean.
Behavior
Swordfish are not schooling fish. They swim alone or in very loose aggregations, separated by as much as 10 meters from a neighboring swordfish. They are frequently found basking at the surface, airing their first dorsal fin. Boaters report this to be a beautiful sight, as is the powerful jumping for which the species is known. This jumping, also called breaching, is thought by some researchers to be an effort to dislodge pests, such as remoras or lampreys. It could also be a way of surface feeding by stunning small fish as they jump out of the water, making the fish more easily captured for food. Swordfish feed daily, most often at night when they rise to surface and near-surface waters in search of smaller fish. They have been observed moving through schools of fish, thrashing their swords to kill or stun their prey and then quickly turning to consume their catch. In the western North Atlantic, squid is the most popular food item consumed. But fish, such as menhaden, mackerel, bluefish, silver hake, butterfish, and herring also contribute to the swordfish diet. Swordfish are vigorous, powerful fighters. When hooked or harpooned, they have been known to dive so quickly that they have impaled their swords into the ocean bottom up to their eyes. Although there are no reports of unprovoked attacks on humans, swordfish can be very dangerous when harpooned. They have run their swords through the planking of small boats when hurt. The adults have few natural enemies, with the exception of large sharks and sperm and killer whales.
BAIT: Bait is the standard 3.00 dollares a piece and there has been plenty around. DORADO: We have experiencing some very good Dorado fishing this past week but it seems to be good for a couple days and then bad for a day or so. This pattern has been going on for awhile now. The Dorado have been caught from the Light House to Margarita over the past week. Really this time of year the Dorado should be gone by now but it doesn't seem that way this year even today and yesterday warm water moved in making for some really good Dorado fishing over last couple days. It has been hot up around the Los Arcos area about 1 to 2 miles offshore. Normally this time of year we would be fishing more for Snapper, Jack Crevell, Sierra and Yellowtail. So were hoping for more of the same good fishing to last into this coming week.
INSHORE: Some Yellowtail still in the area but not the numbers we expect to see when water cools some. There even has been numbers of Dorado close to shore being caught off of the Pangas. Most Dorado being caught close to shore are in the area of Solmar to the Pump House. Good numbers of Sierras being caught off of the Solmar all the way up to Los Arcos. A few Jack Crevells were also being caught off of Solmar.
TUNA: We had a couple days of Commercial Tuna boats moving in on us and cleaning out the Tuna for a couple days. The Tuna fishing hasn't really been that bad lately. We were catching some outside of Jamie Banks before the commercial guys showed up. We expect it to get back on track when they leave the area.Cedar Plugs and Spreader Bars have been being used to catch the Tuna. Most were 15 to 30 pounds with some going to 50 pounds.
WAHOO: I haven't heard of any Wahoo this past week.
BEWARE: Remember if your not renting charter boats from companies who have been established in Cabo for the past 20 years ( Jcsportfishing, Pisces Sportfishing, Minervas, Redrum, Picante Fleet) you might have problems. There are many sportfishing fleets on the internet who are really not established business, who are operating illegally. Lots of these outfits are renting you a boat they have never even looked at and don't even know where you would board the boat, leaving you the task of trying to find the boat. They don't even have an office you can go and confirm your charter boat. You do not want to spend a day walking around looking for the boat and where you board. If you wait till the day you are fishing and go to the dock where your boat is many times people will mislead you to another boat or dock trying to put you on a boat that was not meant for you. You need to have a person guide you to your boat, who is from a reputable charter company. This way there is no confusion or misleading. Lots of vendors renting boats in the hotels are not reputable and don't care about your interest and care more about a commission . 75% of the Cabo Fishing websites on Google are not even in business anymore or might be just brokers who don't have an office in Cabo. Some of the Google websites are misleading and not established .Please remember when renting Sport fishing boats in Cabo that you rent your boat from reputable and established business. Walk into a fishing fleet office and ask questions about what you are getting and what are the costs. You dont want to rent boats from vendors in the streets and you do not want to book through shady websites offering you the world. You need to go to the fishing fleet office, while in Cabo and book your boat. Check through travel forums about reputable fishing fleets to deal with. Look for testimonials about the fleet your booking your charter with. Ask about what will the boat be supplying? Will it include beverages or lunches? How much does it cost to fillet your catch? Check to see if charter boat is insured? Ask about getting your catch smoked? Check cost of fishing license. These are just a few things to consider when booking your charter boat. We will be talking more about this in next weeks fishing report. Until next time good fishing and we hope to see you in Cabo soon. Come by the office here in Cabo and get all the latest up to date fishing report.
http://www.jcsportfishing.com
http://youtu.be/AkA6VO5B6iY
Cabo San Lucas Fishing Forecast:
Hoping for more of the good fishing for this coming week.
Target Species:
marlin,dorado,wahoo,grouper,sierra,sailfish
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