 |
 |
|
|
|
|
 |
| Around 10% of the world's total fish species can be found just within the Great Barrier Reef. |
|
|
|
| Starfish can re-grow their arms. In fact, a single arm can regenerate a whole body. |
|
|
|
| Starfish do not have blood. Their blood is actually filtered sea water. |
|
|
|
| Starfish don't have brains. Special cells on their skin gather information about their surroundings |
|
|
|
| Not all animals with the word fish in their names count as fish. |
| Though their names may suggest otherwise, cuttlefish, starfish, and jellyfish aren’t actually fish. Generally-speaking, fishes must have skulls, gills, and fins. Surprisingly, though, not all fishes have proper spines. |
|
|
| In three decades, the world's oceans will contain more discarded plastic than fish when measured by weight, researchers say. |
| |
|
|
| As of 2020, there were 34,000 known fish species around world. That’s more than the number of species in all other vertebrates: birds, reptiles, mammals, and amphibians combined. |
|
|
|
| Just how man species of fish are there? |
| As of 2020, there were 34,000 known fish species around world. That’s more than the number of species in all other vertebrates: birds, reptiles, mammals, and amphibians combined. |
|
|
| Even Catfish are finicky |
| Taste Buds ? Catfish have a more refined sense of flavor than humans. Our 10,000 taste buds may seem like a lot, but catfish can have as many as 175,000. This helps them find the exact location of their next meal. |
|
|
| A bit of Humor |
| My brother has 2 German Shepherds named Rolex and Timex. You guessed it they are Watch Dogs. |
|
|
|
|
|
From Jan 01, 1999 To Sep 21, 2025
|
Mar 23, 2009; 10:44AM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
March 16-22, 2009
WEATHER: There was no rain this week although a few mornings felt as though some rain could happen. What made the week different was the onset of our springtime winds. It actually started the week before but now we are seeing the normal three or four days of wind then three or four days of calm. There is no predicting it but at least there is usually a calm day sometime during the week. Our daytime highs were in the low 90’s and high 80’s while the nighttime lows were in the high to mid 60’s.
WATER: On the Pacific side the water close to the beach remained cool at 65-67 degrees. Out across the San Jaime Bank and the Golden Gate Bank the water was 69-70 degrees. The 75-degree water was pushed farther away to the south by the strong currents and now lays 20 miles out. On the Cortez side of the Cape the water is decently warm at an average of 75 degrees north of the 1150 spot. Surface conditions on the Pacific remained choppy due to the strong winds that blow for a few days but has still been fishable. The Cortez side has been much better with small swells and light wind effects. The water throughout the area has been a bit off-color this past week with greener water than last week.
BAIT: There was a mix of Mackerel and Caballito available this week at the normal price of $3 per bait.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: We may have seen the last of the red-hot Striped Marlin bite for this season as the fishy have moved off of the Golden Gate Bank along with the bait that was holding there. With the bite having have lasted since last November it is surprising that it lasted as long as it did. Now we are most likely going to be doing the normal fishing, casting live bait in front of tailing fish as they move through the area. A good day this past week would have been a five fish day; the average seemed to be one or two releases. With the water cooling down and turning a bit green, we might start to see a few Swordfish soon, but they have not appeared yet.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Yet again another poor week for Yellowfin Tuna with only a few fish being caught. There were plenty of Bonito to be hooked up, and in those schools Yellowfin were reported as well, but they just would not bite. The presence of red crab in the area made having something in a red or dark orange color very important in lure selection, and those colors did much better than others on the few fish that were caught.
DORADO: There were some Dorado to be found in the warmer waters on the Cortez side of the Cape this past week. The waters just offshore of the Westin and at the Inman Bank held fish that were not large, but there were some decent numbers. With an average size of 12 pounds, smaller live bait such as large Sardinas worked well. Offshore just a few miles there were larger fish to 40 pounds, but they were few and far between.
WAHOO: I did not hear of any Wahoo being caught this week.
INSHORE: Sierra and Yellowtail continued to dominate the inshore action this week. While not large, the Sierra were in great numbers once the schools were found. There was great action just outside the beach on the Pacific side at Pueblo Bonita Sunset resort and on the Cortez side outside the Cabo Del Sol Golf Course. Most boats were able to get limits for their anglers using Sardinas as live bait, but blue/silver swimming plugs and hootchies did well also. There were not great numbers of Yellowtail found this week, but they were showing up in the fish boxes of the Pangas. Most of them were firecracker fish in the 8-10 pound class, but there were a few nice fish to 25 pounds and an occasional fish that could not be stopped. Added to the mix of fish caught were the occasional Pargo and Amberjack as well as some small Roosterfish.
NOTES: The Whales are starting to move north and we are seeing fewer every week. Fishing inshore was where the action was this week but there were some days when the Bonito averaged 15 pounds and provided a good fight on the right gear when fishing offshore. This weeks report was written to the music of pianist Marcus Roberts on his 1990 BMG release “Deep In The Shed”. Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Mar 16, 2009; 11:08AM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
March 9-15, 2009
WEATHER: This was an interesting week as we did receive some rain on Tuesday. It was not just a little spit that dotted the dust on the cars either; it actually rained! Not hard, but enough to collect in small pools. The rest of the week was partly cloudy with highs in the mid 80’s and lows in the low 60’s. The wind really started to blow on Wednesday making it chilly at night.
WATER: On the Pacific side of the Cape this week the water continued to cool down. Along the beach out to several miles the water was 68 degrees and green. Outside that very cool band it warmed up a bit to around 71 degrees. On the Cortez side the water outside Punta Gorda and around the Gorda Banks out to the Cabrilla Seamount was a relatively warm 74-75 degrees. There was a break in the temperature around 15 miles due south of us as strong currents from the Pacific forced the cool water into the 75-degree water to the south and east of us. The water on the Cortez side, and particularly the water just to the east of us was quite green. This was unfortunate for us as the winds really were blowing the later half of the week making fishing on the cleaner Pacific side uncomfortable.
BAIT: There was a mix of Mackerel and Caballito available this week at the normal price of $3 per bait and there were Sardinas available up around the Chileno area at a cost of $25 a scoop.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The Striped Marlin bite tapered off a bit this week as we saw the full moon make its appearance. With the fish feeding all night long, the fish that were caught were biting in the late afternoon. For this reason most of the charter fleet boats were not flying many Marlin flags on their return. The few private boats the braved the weather out there and stayed until 5 or 6 PM returned flying outriggers full of blue flags. With less competition in the afternoon and the fish starting to feed, they were able to do quite well. Catching bait on site was a big key as well, once again the Mackerel at the Golden Gate were a bit smaller than the ones boats were able to buy at the harbor, and the fish definitely preferred the smaller baits.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Once again there were not very many fish caught this week. I did find a small pod of white-bellied dolphin five miles from the arch and metered fish under them, but did not have the time or gear to fish them. The few fish that were caught this week were from either very fast moving small groups of dolphin such as the ones I found, or as a result of heavy chumming with Sardinas up around Punta Gorda.
DORADO: A repeat of last weeks situation, there were scattered Dorado caught among the feeders at the Golden Gate Bank as well as some fish scattered up around the Punta Gorda area early in the week. Without any floating debris to hold them we have just not seen very many this week.
WAHOO: I was quite surprised this week as I only saw a couple of Wahoo flags. With the full moon I thought that the bite would have been good, but perhaps the water cooled too much.
INSHORE: Once again Sierra were the fish of the week inshore, with the appearance of some decent Yellowtail adding to the excitement for those fishing close to the beach. Add in the occasional Jack Crevalle, Pargo and Amberjack, and factor in the conditions offshore, I think that the Pangas were the way to go this past week!
NOTES: We are still seeing Humpback Whales, but very few Gray Whales were seen in our area this season. This weeks report was written to the soundtrack of the movie “O Brother, Where Art Thou?”, one of my favorite movies! Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Mar 9, 2009; 02:31PM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
March 2-8, 2009
WEATHER: Our nighttime lows this week were in the mid to high 60’s while the daytime highs ranged from 84 to 92 degrees with it cooling a bit toward the end of the week. It also felt a bit damper in the mornings and there was condensation on the car windows at the end of the week. We had a bit of wind on Saturday as it blew at around 15 knots from the southwest for around four or five hours in the middle of the day, but it was a local wind and only seemed to affect the Sea of Cortez.
WATER: Just as it was last week, the water on the Cortez side of the Cape was cooler than the water on the Pacific side. The cool water that had been up along the coast from Cabo to Punta Gorda and then broke toward the east moved in a southerly direction over the past week and now the break is from Cabo and due east across the 115o and Cabrillo Seamount. Close to the beach the water is a cool 71 degrees and very green, warming to 73 degrees at the Seamount and clearing up a bit. Five miles due south of the Cape and running in an east-west direction is a temperature break with water on the south side at 76 degrees. This break runs from south of the Seamount to the San Jaime Bank, once at the Jaime Bank the water warms to 78 degrees and the break extends toward the northwest. Inside this temperature break the water averages 74-75 degrees. The water on the Pacific side up at the Golden Gate Bank, where most of the fishing has been taking place has been great with small swells, just a little wind ripple.
BAIT: There was a mix of Mackerel and Caballito available this week at the normal price of $3 per bait and there were Sardinas available up around the Chileno area at a cost of $25 a scoop. Most boats fishing the Golden Gate were catching their own bait in order to “match the hatch”, so to speak.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The amazing Striped Marlin action continued this week as the Golden Gate area went red hot early, it tapered a bit toward the end of the week then turned on again at the weekend. It was combat fishing most of the time with boats running to the feeders as they popped up. At the beginning of the week there were so many birds and such large numbers of bait balls coming to the surface that catching fish was no problem. Later in the week, Thursday and Friday, the numbers coming to the surface declined and the boats were really competing for the fish. Many boats caught good numbers by drifting with live baits set deep while the rest of the fleet ran around chasing the bird piles. Getting your live bait on site was the key to getting good numbers. While early in the week the Marlin would eat almost anything you threw at them, they became picky later in the week. I did well using dead Sardines thrown into the feeding boils. Every time we came to a boil there were scales drifting around so the little bait balls they were chasing were Sardines. Using a Sabiki rig with hagi skin flies (clear wings) caught Sardines; Lucky Joes with red and yellow yarn caught the small Mackerel. Of course the problem was the Sardines do not stay alive in the bait tank, and since they are lightweight the birds often got to them before the Marlin did. A Ľ ounce egg sinker rigged under the chin got the dead bait down away from the birds and then getting bit was easy.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Not this last week but the week before there was a very, very nice Yellowfin caught at the Golden Gate Bank by one of the fleet boats. They were fishing a deep bait when they hooked up to the Tuna that later weighed 380 pounds at the main dock scales. The anglers were a local chiropractor and his family. Other than that bit of news, there is not much to report on Yellowfin. An occasional school of fish has been found with Porpoise, but the fish never reappear in the same area, and they have been moving through very quickly.
DORADO: There were scattered Dorado caught among the feeders at the Golden Gate Bank as well as some fish scattered up around the Punta Gorda area early in the week. Without any floating debris to hold them we have just not seen very many this week.
WAHOO: I did not hear of any Wahoo being caught this week.
INSHORE: Sierra continued to be on a wide-open bite this week with limits being easy to get. The fishing for other species was good as well with Pargo, Amberjack and Yellowtail biting lures and live bait. The fishing seems to have moved over to the Pacific side for the most part, as the water is so green on the Cortez side.
NOTES: Little pup Mako sharks have been biting on live and dead baits at the Golden Gate Bank; thankfully most of them are being released. These guys have been small, from 10 to 30 pounds, not sexually mature yet. There are still whales around, but not in the numbers we were seeing so most of them have moved back toward the north. This weeks report was written to the music of David Foster on his CD/DVD release “Hit Man, David Foster and Friends”, a 2008 Reprise release. Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Mar 2, 2009; 10:08AM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
February 23 – March 1, 2009
WEATHER: A sunny week in Cabo this last seven days as there were only a few clouds that traveled through. Our nighttime lows were in the mid 60’s while the daytime highs managed to get into the mid 90’s a few days. Overall it was a bit warmer than last week, reminding us that summer will be here soon, but there was not the humidity that we see in the middle of the year.
WATER: At the end of the week we had green water along the coast from Cabo up to the north on the Cortez side of the Cape at Gorda Banks and the green water then extended toward the east. This green water was 69-70 degrees. The water on the Pacific side cleared up quite a bit over the week but the temperatures didn’t change much except for a band of cool water that ended up running along the 1,000-fathom line south of the San Jaime Banks. This cool band of water was 5-8 miles wide and the temperature was 69-70 degrees while to the south it was 73 degrees and to the north it was 72 degrees.
BAIT: There was a mix of Mackerel and Caballito available this week at the normal price of $3 per bait and there were Sardinas available up around the Chileno area at a cost of $25 a scoop.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: Last week the bite at the Golden Gate Bank dropped off considerably, this week it turned on again. The Striped Marlin decided that they were hungry and the flags being flown by the returning boats showed it. One friend went up by himself and had released 10 Marlin before noon and quit while his arms still worked! With the bite returning the boats returned as well. At times it seemed that you could almost walk across the bank by going from boat to boat, one angler reported counting 74 boats working the area at 10 am but almost everyone had left at 2 pm. He said the fishing was much better and also easier without the crowds. Mackerel were the baits of choice and the ones caught on site using Sabiki rigs or Lucky Joes got bit much better than the baits purchased outside the marina, the only problem was getting the baits the to surface without having a Marlin, Shark or seal taking them. Elsewhere there were Marlin reported but not nearly in the numbers as at Golden Gate. Outside the Gorda Bank and off of the Westin Resort were small concentrations of fish and there were fish scattered on the surface around the 1150 area as well.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: There were some decent quality Yellowfin being reported from the Gorda Banks and around the Inman area, but while the quality was good it was scratch fishing with only a couple of decent bites per boat in the morning. Most of the fish were in the 30-50 pound class but for every Yellowfin bite you got there were 15 to 20 Bonita and Skipjack to go through. Chumming with Sardinas brought the fish up towards the boats but putting a lively one down at 50-60 feet was what it took to get the Yellowfin to bite, and going down to that depth usually resulted in the other fish picking up the bait first. The band of cool water along the 1,000-fathom line south of the San Jaime Bank produced some decent fish on Friday and Saturday as a few pods of Porpoise moved through. Small dark colored feathers, cedar plugs and diamond jigs worked deep ahead of the pods worked fairly well, a few boats reported getting limits for their clients using these methods. The smallest fish were reported at 12 pounds while the average size was 20-25 pounds. How long this bite might last is unknown as there was a purse seiner anchored in the bay on Saturday.
DORADO: Dorado lost their title as fish of the week as the bite dropped off. This was probably the result of less floating debris being found, or it could be because most of the boats were focusing on the Striped Marlin bite at the Golden Gate Bank. Boats that worked the warm water between the 95 Spot and the 1150 and out to the Cabrilla Seamount did fairly well on fish that averaged 20 pounds, but there were no large numbers, the best catches were around four or five fish per boat, one or two was the average. Finding Frigates working and then slow trolling live bait in the area was the method of choice for most of the boats but a few were doing well trolling 6-8 inch lures at 9 knots.
WAHOO: I did not hear of any large fish this week but there was a bite on baby Wahoo on the Cortez side of the Cape close to shore. Some small 6-8 pound Wahoo were caught by Pangas fishing for Sierra and they were quite the surprise for most of the fishermen.
INSHORE: The bite on Sierra averaging 6 pounds was wide open on both sides of the Cape this week. Best results were had by chumming with Sardinas once the schools were found, then drifting a live one on a very light wire leader. Mono leader got bit more often but more of these were lost than were landed. Fly fishermen had a blast with these fish! There were scattered Amberjack, Roosterfish, Pargo and Jack Crevalle to be had as well as a few Pacific Barracuda and Needlefish.
NOTES: Well, it looks like things are really kicking in on the fishing front, the bite is good both inshore and offshore. The Whales are still out there, as a matter of fact a few boats have had very close encounters, including a 60 foot Viking that had one come up under it while traveling at 22 knots. My golf game did not improve as I did not break 100 last week, but I have returned to the range this week, maybe I can do better my next time out! This weeks report was once again written to the sound of James Hunter on his 2008 release “The Hard Way”. Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Feb 23, 2009; 11:08AM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
February 16-22, 2009
WEATHER: This was a beautiful week in Cabo with our nighttime lows in the mid 60’s and the daytime highs in the mid 80’s. We had a few days with light clouds, no rain and light winds.
WATER: Warm water moved into our area during the week and almost everywhere you went the temperatures were around 75-77 degrees. It was just a slight bit cooler on the northern edge of our fishing area on the Pacific with the area between the northern San Jaime and the Golden Gate Banks around 74 degrees and the Finger Bank at 71 degrees and greenish water. On the Cortez side there was a pocket of cool water at the Gorda Banks at 72 degrees.
BAIT: Mackerel were the bait of the week this week and they were the usual $3 per bait. Sardinas were available as well from bait boats up at the Palmilla area at $25 a bucket.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: There were still Striped Marlin at the Golden Gate but they were not very hungry this week. You could throw a live bait in front of 20 fish before finding one that would bite. Other areas experienced the same type of results, but the fish were even more scattered. Almost every place you went you could find Marlin on the surface but their mouths remained closed. At a guess, success rates on Striped Marlin were probably around 30% with 3 out of 10 boats releasing a fish.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Once again the Yellowfin bite remained fairly poor with fish being found in the Gorda Banks and the Inman Banks all week and only a few schools are being found outside. The fish on the banks were quality fish between 30 and 60 pounds, but you had to work your way through all the Bonita to get to them. Sardinas were the ticket with chumming steadily bringing in the fish. Small hooks with light leader had to be used in order to get the Yellowfin to bite, but the light tackle also resulted in quite a few fish being lost.
DORADO: 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 40-50 pounds. Both sides of the Cape produced fish, and working the current lines was the best way to find floating debris.
WAHOO: I only heard of a few Wahoo being caught, but the couple that I did hear of were very nice fish at around 60 pounds each. These were caught in the open water out 15 or more miles due south.
INSHORE: Inshore fishing this week remained a repeat of last week. Sierra continued to be the inshore fish of the week as the number caught continued to climb. Most anglers were able to catch limits on fish that ran to 8 pounds. There were also quite a few small Roosterfish and Jack Crevalle as well as Amberjack around but live bait was the way to go for them, if you could get really small Mackerel or Caballito. Most captains for all the species available preferred heavy chumming with Sardinas.
NOTES: There are still plenty of whales to be seen out there. The water warmed up this week so there could be a continuation of the Dorado bite for a while. I really hope that the Striped Marlin start biting again! I am golfing this afternoon, my fingers are crossed that I can do well and break 100. Maybe it would help if I took some lessons! Mark Knopfler and his 2000 Mercury Records release “Sailing To Philadelphia” were the background for this report.
|
|
|
Feb 16, 2009; 10:27AM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
February 9-15, 2009
WEATHER: Once again we had partly cloudy skies this week, not enough of them to block the sun, but enough to make for great sunsets. Our daytime highs were in the low 80’s while the lowest I saw in the early mornings was a cool 58 degrees.
WATER: The wind was still blowing at the beginning of the week but as the days wore on the speed and intensity dropped so that at the end of the week the water was once again almost flat with small swells and very little wind chop, at least most days. Everywhere we looked the water was in the 72-73 degree range and there was no dark green anywhere.
BAIT: Mackerel were the bait of the week this week and they were the usual $3 per bait. Sardinas were available as well from bait boats up at the Palmilla area at $25 a bucket.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The bite at the Golden Gate Bank for Striped Marlin remained slower than it has been with good days bringing release numbers of 3 or 5 fish per boat. The bite at the Finger Bank was reported to be excellent, as there is much less pressure up there. Other than the Golden Gate, Striped Marlin close to us were scattered, a few were found off of Los Arcos, a few off of El Faro, a few off of Palmilla, you get the idea, right? Most boats were getting at least a strike or two but the focus for a lot of the boats changed with the drop in the number of bites, the Captains preferring to go for numbers instead of size and targeting other species.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: I did see a few Tuna flags this week but did not see any of the Tuna that were brought in. I was told that they were mostly football and small school fish to 30 pounds. There were some found up around the Inman bank and out toward the Cabrilla Seamount as well as a few scattered schools mixed with Dolphin on the 1,000 fathom line south of the San Jaime Bank. The fish at the Inman bank were caught with heavy chumming of Sardinas, and Sardinas used as live bait, the other fish were caught on small feathers in dark colors.
DORADO: There were quite a few more Dorado caught this week than I had expected, but the results were because of the finding of three objects in the water. A dead whale was found in the middle of the week around the 1150 spot and delivered a large number of decent sized Dorado to the boats when live bait was used around it. There was a large section of rope found just off of the Solmar Beach that produced a great number of fish until someone decided to pick it up and take it home. Also found in the same area a bit later was half a bucket, the number of fish around it kept quite a few anglers happy that day.
WAHOO: I thought I was seeing a larger number of Wahoo flags this week than last week, but on closer inspection they proved to be shark flags. Quite a few pup Makos were caught this week, with most of them released. Very few Wahoo were reported being found, and those that were found were in the usual spots off of Gray Rock and up around Punta Gorda with the Inman Bank being the most productive area.
INSHORE: Sierra continued to be the inshore fish of the week as the number caught continued to climb. One of the best spots this week was off of the El Dorado development on the Cortez side of the Cape. Most anglers were able to catch limits on fish that ran to 8 pounds. There were also quite a few small Roosterfish and Jack Crevalle around but live bait was the way to go for them, if you could bet really small Mackerel or Caballito. Most captains for all the species available preferred heavy Chumming with Sardinas.
NOTES: There are still plenty of whales to be seen out there and they have been putting on quite a show most days. The whale harassment league of small water taxis and glass bottom boats seems to have tapered off a bit, good news for the whales. This weeks report was written to the music of James Hunter on his 2008 Concord release “The Hard Way”. My favorite song on this English bluesmans album is the last track, “Strange But True”. Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Feb 9, 2009; 12:32PM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
February 2-8, 2009
WEATHER: The week started out nice and sunny every day and along came Friday and the clouds tried to move in, giving us partly cloudy skies over the weekend. We knew it was coming as the winds really started to pick up on Thursday. Our nighttime lows for the week averaged in the low 60’s and the daytime highs averaged in the mid to low 80’s.
WATER: The water continued to cool down this week. At the end of the week we were seeing temperatures in the low 70’s, mostly around 72 and 73 degrees along the shoreline on the Cortez side of the Cape. The water about 5 miles out on the same side was around 75 degrees. The same conditions occurred on the Pacific side of the Cape except the temperatures averaged one degree less. We had great conditions on the surface at the start of the week but by the weekend the winds had really started to howl and the Pacific side ended up almost un-fishable on Saturday. The wind seemed to die down over Saturday night but the water was still very rough on the Pacific side. On the Sea of Cortez the water was great up outside of San Jose.
BAIT: Mackerel were the bait of the week this week and they were the usual $3 per bait. Sardinas were available as well from bait boats up at the Palmilla area at $25 a bucket.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The Finger Bank was still reported to be a wide-open bite on Striped Marlin by the boats that went there early in the week. Many of these boats reported releasing up to 20 fish per trip. The fishing at the Golden Gate Bank dropped off quite a bit as the fish have appeared to have moved off in search of baitfish, but there were still quite a few being caught, definitely better fishing there than anywhere else in easy reach. A good day at the Gate resulted in 4-6 fish per boat while the average was 2-3 fish. Water conditions allowed only a few brave (or foolish) anglers to get to the fish on Friday and Saturday and while they hooked up while at the Gate, the water conditions made fighting the fish problematical. There were Striped Marlin reported off of the ledge at the Westin and a few boats were doing all right drifting live bait at depths of 50-100 feet.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: I saw almost no Tuna flags on boats returning to the harbor this week but a few Captains reported hearing of fish up in the Punta Gorda area, just like last week, but the bite was definitely slower according to what was heard on the radio. A couple of boats reported catching several small Tuna to 20 pound in the blind while trolling around the 1150 area looking for Dorado, but there were no schools to be found.
DORADO: Water conditions on the Pacific at the end of the week forced many of the boats to fish on the Cortez side of the Cape and as a result there were many more Dorado caught that last week from the same area. Most boats were coming in with at least two, and often as many as five Dorado. Average size was 18 pounds and there were a few that went as large as 40 pounds. Blind trolling with bright colored lures at speeds averaging 8.5 knots worked well on these fish to first find them, then slow trolling live bait in the same area often produced more.
WAHOO: I talked to one angler this week that told me he had caught a dozen small Wahoo, after asking a few questions I had to tell him they were large Sierra. There were a few fish taken however, and the bite was scattered between the Gray Rock and Punta Gorda, only a few fish were reported on the Pacific side early in the week.
INSHORE: As listed above, the Sierra bite has really begun to take off, at least it had started too until the wind kicked in. The same goes for the Pargo in the rocks, most of the activity had been on the Pacific side. The Cortez side still delivered a decent amount of these fish, but not to the number count from the Pacific side. Amazingly enough, there have still been quite a few Roosterfish caught. While not the large fish we get later in the year, these fish have been in the 6-12 pound class and have been biting well on slow trolled live bait, if the bait survives the Sierra attacks!
NOTES: Last week I reported on seeing my first Gray Whales of the year. A fellow Captain reported seeing a mother and her calf being harassed by the little boat fleet just outside the rocks, with about 10 boats right on top of the two whales. They separated the calf from the mother and the calf was repeatedly breaching and looking for its mom, to the point that it was exhausted. There are laws on the books about this, but apparently no enforcement, sigh. This weeks report was written to the music of Norah Jones on her album, “Feels Like Home”. Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Feb 2, 2009; 12:47PM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
January 26-February 1, 2009
WEATHER: We had some wonderful skies at the end of this week with almost (Monday through Wednesday saw some clouds) every day being mostly sunny to cloudless. The daytime highs were in the mid to low 80’s and the nighttime lows to the low 60’s. Winds were light and variable most of the time with an occasional few hours of winds to 10 knots from the southwest during the middle of the week.
WATER: Almost everything within reach of the fleets this week was between 75 and 78 degrees with the warmer water running from right off the point and to the southwest. The water was clean and blue as well. With light winds most of the week fishing conditions were great on both sides of the Cape.
BAIT: Mackerel were the bait of the week this week and they were the usual $3 per bait. Sardinas were available as well from bait boats up at the Palmilla area at $25 a bucket but some of them were reported as being really small.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The bite slowed down close to home for the Striped Marlin this week. Last week it was a wide-open bite at the Golden Gate Bank. This week the Golden still held fish but they just were not as hungry as last week. A few boats ventured up to the Finger Bank and reported excellent action there. Scattered strikes were reported almost all over the place but the normal fishing areas for the Stripers still produced better than others, Golden Gate Banks, the ledges off of the lighthouse on the Pacific side and off of Red Hill in the Cortez as well as the point off of Los Arcos on the Pacific. Average catch this week was two to three releases per boat and good days were releases totaling 8 or more.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: The Inner Gorda Bank produced a few fish to 50 pounds on live bait early in the week and there were Tuna to 35 pounds found at the same time up in the Punta Gorda area. At the end of the week the fish had moved off and there were reports of some Yellowfin to 30 pounds being caught by blind trolling 10 miles south of Cabo. Other than that there was little to find out there. Perhaps in a few weeks things will pick up on the Tuna fishing.
DORADO: While Dorado continued to be slower than last months fishing there were some nice fish this week. The flats up off of Punta Gorda were giving up two to five fish per trip, the point off of Los Arcos had two days of excellent fishing with many boats getting their anglers limits of two Dorado each. The ledge off of the lighthouse on the Pacific also produced quality of averaging 15 pounds close to shore.
WAHOO: I actually talked to some people who caught Wahoo this week! There were fish to be found on the flats at Punta Gorda as well as a few from the rocky points on the Pacific side. These fish were not big, most of them 15 pounds or so. Trolling swimming plugs such as Braid Marauders had best results or Rapallas but there were a few bites on live bait.
INSHORE: Once again a repeat of last week, there has been very little change in the inshore fishery this week. The Sierra bite is picking up and the fish are very nice size, between 8 and 10 pounds when you find the right areas. There are a few nice Yellowtails starting to pop up occasionally off of the Rocky points as well as some Pargo to 25 pounds right in the rocks.
NOTES: I saw my first few Gray Whales of the year this week in very close to the beach in 30 feet of water. There are still plenty of Humpback Whales out there and the glass-bottom boat/water taxi fleet has been right on top of them, unfortunately. Yesterday there were two whales right out front that had 11 boats right on top, I thought one of the boats was going to hit one whale with its props, sigh. Overall the fishing this week was very good with plenty to choose from. I get to play golf this coming week; it’s been so long that I am going to have to go to the range the day before! This weeks report was written to the music of “Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes” on the album “I Don’t Want To Go Home”, a 1976 Epic Records release.
|
|
|
Jan 26, 2009; 11:23AM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
January 19-25, 2009
WEATHER: Once again we had mixed weather this week. The week started out slightly overcast and cleared up at the tail end of the week and then Sunday came on with mostly cloudy skies in the morning. The early days in the week had a little bit of spitting rain with the clouds, just enough to spot up the car windows, not enough to knock the dust off of the plants. Our daytime highs were in the mid 80’s and nighttime lows in the mid to low 70’s.
WATER: This week we did have a bit of wind but it did not last for long and was not steady from any one direction. The swells did kick up a notch toward the end of the week though and we were seeing some 3-5 footers on the pacific side of the cape. On the Cortez side it remained at 1-3 feet until you got toward the Punta Gorda area then they grew to 2-4 feet. Water temperatures on the Cortez side were in the 73-74 degree close to the shoreline, 74-75 degrees from three to ten miles out and 75-76 degrees farther than that. On the Pacific side close to shore was 71 degrees and there was a band of this cool water running in a southwest direction across the south side of the San Jaime Banks from the shore just north of the lighthouse and extending at least 50 miles in a band 10 miles wide. North of this band of cool water it warmed up to 73 degrees and just to the north of the Golden Gate Bank there was a warm spot of 74 degree water.
BAIT: Mackerel were the bait of the week this week and they were the usual $3 per bait. Sardinas were available as well from bait boats up at the Palmilla area at $25 a bucket.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: Once again the Striped Marlin remained the fish of the week, as every boat that tried for them was able to get hooked up. The best bite for the boats that stayed local was at the Golden Gate Bank. The fish were coming up on small bait balls. As soon as the Pelicans and Frigates started to dive on the bait the seals started feeding as well and then suddenly there would be a half-dozen or more marlin swirling on the bait. Sometimes they remained up for 15 or 20 minutes, other times they would disappear almost as fast as they showed up. Live bait tossed into the feeders almost guaranteed a hook-up. I had anglers who were not experienced on Thursday and in less than 2 hours we released 4 fish and lost three others. One of my friends fished all day on his boat and between himself, one friend and his wife they managed to release 23 Marlin. There were also plenty of fish found at the Finger Bank, but with hot action at the Golden there was little reason for boats to travel that far. Some fish were showing up on the ledge at the lighthouse and on Friday evening I was seeing quite a few scattered singles feeding just outside of Cabo San Lucas Bay.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: I heard of a spot of fish found in the area of the San Jaime Bank early in the week that ranged in size from 20 to 50 pounds but I went and looked there on Thursday and could not spot anything. I also heard reports that the Pangas working out of the San Jose Marina were coming in early after limiting out on decent fish up in the vicinity of Punta Gorda, but I never saw any of the fish.
DORADO: The Dorado bite definitely dropped off for almost all the boats this week as the water temperature continued its slow but steady drop. I fished the area from Los Arcos and 10 miles north of there with no touch at all, but did hear of some fish found just off of the lighthouse and out in front of Grey Rock in slightly warmer water. A good catch of Dorado this week seemed to be two fish, but most boats did not catch any.
WAHOO: What Wahoo?
INSHORE: A repeat of last week, there has been very little change in the inshore fishery this week. The Sierra bite is picking up and the fish are very nice size, between 8 and 10 pounds when you find the right areas. There are a few nice Yellowtails starting to pop up occasionally off of the Rocky points as well as some Pargo to 25 pounds right in the rocks.
NOTES: Still no Gray Whales to report, but plenty of Humpbacks. Wide open on the Striped Marlin, if you want some fast action on these fish averaging 120 pounds, now is the time to get here. My golf game is not happening, I have had little time to get out there and play! No complaints though, working is a good thing. This weeks report was written while listing to the “Echoes, The Best Of Pink Floyd”. Until next week, tight lines!
|
|
|
Jan 19, 2009; 12:46PM - Cabo Bite Report
|
|
Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
|
|
Author Name: George Landrum
|
FLY HOOKER SPORTFISHING
Captain George Landrum
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
Cabo Fish Report
January 12-18, 2009
WEATHER: We had two very nice clear days this week, the 15th and 16th, the rest of the week was partly to mostly cloudy. Daytime temperatures were averaging the mid to low 80’s while the nighttime lows ranged from a low of 58 degrees on Monday to a high of 68 degrees on Saturday. Winds have been slight to non-existent this week.
WATER: With no wind this week the water remained almost like a pool, we did have one day, Friday, where the swells picked up just a bit in the afternoon, but most of the week we saw conditions that were perfect, swells at 1-3 feet and just a light breeze. On the Pacific side the water seemed a bit warmer at an average of 74-75 degrees as far west as 20 miles past the San Jaime and the Golden Gate Banks. This warm water extended to the south as well, as far as any of the fleet went, at least 60 miles. On the Cortez side of the Cape things were a bit cooler at an average of 72-73 degrees for water east of a north-south line through San Jose.
BAIT: A repeat of last week and the week before, Caballito and Mackerel were available at the normal $3 per bait, most of the Caballito were small ones, and the mackerel were larger. You could still catch plenty of Mackerel at the Golden Gate Bank if you ran out. Sardinas were available at Palmilla for an average of $25 a bucket.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: Once again Striped Marlin were the top fish, giving angler all the action they could wish for on most of the boats that worked the Golden Gate Bank. Not every day was a red-letter day though; we saw a definite slowing of the bite right around the full moon, several days either side of it seemed to be better. The same held true for the action we had been having on the Lighthouse ledge as the bite went from red-hot hot cool over three days. At the Golden Gate the better catches were had just before the full moon and boats that had experienced anglers were releasing double-digit numbers per day. That bite died to two or three fish per day during the full moon, and as of Saturday things had picked up very well. We had one group of non-experienced anglers release 6 Marlin between 8 am and 10:30 am, and then they went inshore for Dorado. Live Mackerel caught on site seemed to be the best bait by far, rigged dead bait came in just ahead of artificial lures, and those did not catch very many fish this week.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Yellowfin remained scarce this past week. A few boats managed to get into some fish ranging from 20 to 50 pounds working due south of Cabo on Tuesday. On Wednesday the fish had moved north about 15 miles and on Thursday they could not be found again. Boats that got into the fish had great action, catching limits using cedar plugs and dropping live bait ahead of the moving fish. Elsewhere the Tuna bite was sporadic, with occasional small schools found scattered throughout the area.
DORADO: Once again the best action for Dorado appeared to be close to the beach on the Pacific side of the Cape. With an average size of 15 pounds, most boats were able to get two to five fish trolling live bait under areas where the frigate birds were hanging out, or trolling bright colored artificial lures within a mile of the beach. An occasional 35-pound fish added spice to the catch as well.
WAHOO: I have heard reports of a boat that has been getting several Wahoo every morning at gray light while fishing on the Cortez side just off the beach, but I have not been able to confirm that. Right now for most of the boats a Wahoo is a mystery fish!
INSHORE: There has been very little change in the inshore fishery this week. The Sierra bite is picking up and the fish are very nice size, between 8 and 10 pounds when you find the right areas. There are a few nice Yellowtails starting to pop up occasionally off of the Rocky points as well as some Pargo to 25 pounds right in the rocks. Many of the Pangas have been working just offshore for Dorado and Striped marlin and doing fairly well.
NOTES: We are still seeing plenty of Humpback Whales outside of the beach area but have not seen any Gray Whales yet, at least I haven’t. The Whale harassment fleet (whale watching charters, the small Panga guys) can be spotted right on top of the pods, often 10 boats at a time. Don’t forget, the price of fishing licenses has risen, even thought the price printed on the license has not changed. Until next week, tight lines! This weeks report was written to the music of Norah Jones, man what a voice that woman has!
|
|
|
|
