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| Around 10% of the world's total fish species can be found just within the Great Barrier Reef. |
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| Starfish can re-grow their arms. In fact, a single arm can regenerate a whole body. |
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| Starfish do not have blood. Their blood is actually filtered sea water. |
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| Starfish don't have brains. Special cells on their skin gather information about their surroundings |
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| 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. |
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| In three decades, the world's oceans will contain more discarded plastic than fish when measured by weight, researchers say. |
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| 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. |
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| 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. |
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| 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. |
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| A bit of Humor |
| My brother has 2 German Shepherds named Rolex and Timex. You guessed it they are Watch Dogs. |
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From Jan 01, 1999 To Sep 22, 2025
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Sep 1, 2003; 12:06PM - Cabo Fishing Report
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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Capt George Landrum
Fly Hooker Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
CABO SAN LUCAS FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 23 TO AUGUST 30, 2003
WEATHER: Thank goodness that Hurricane Ignacio is gone! We received just enough rainfall
from it that the desert was well watered and there was no heavy runoff. Just to the north in San
Jose the rain came down harder and even further, up toward La Paz, they got up to 19 inches in
24 hours. The Port opened on the 25th at 10 am after the Port Captain decided the storm was
past. Belaboring the obvious, the beginning of the week was cloudy with rain, the end of the
week was sunny and dry. Lows in the high 70’s and highs in the mid 90’s.
WATER: Rough water at the beginning of the week, but good enough to fish on when the Port
opened. We did not receive any large storm swells. Once the wind went away the water was
almost perfect. I say almost because there has been an area that has moved along the Sea of
Cortez coast that has been very cold, as low as 68 degrees, and has been a dirty green color. This
area has covered an easy 10 square miles and has moved from along the coast up at San Jose,
along the coast to Cabo and has now eddied off to the southeast. It is slowly warming and is now
in the high 70’s and moving away. There has been a very distinct debris line associated with it as
well. On the Pacific side, the winds have left the water slightly choppy but there has been a very
distinct temperature break running from just off the front of Cabo out past the San Jaime Bank
with 81 degree water on the north side and 85 degree water on the south side. The break has
been over a very short distance.
BAIT: It was almost impossible to get any bait in the early part of the week and almost all of the
boats went out baitless. A few of the Pangas were able to net a couple of Mullet and a few more
caught some slipmouth (a bony snapper looking fish) and they were better than nothing, but not
much. The big bait boat came in from the Mag Bay area on Thursday and unloaded into the
receivers so everyone had fresh Mackerel on Friday. The bait had not cured yet and on Friday
almost half the bait sold died within 4 hours. On Saturday the bait had settled down and very few
of them died (other than from being eaten!). The price on all bait this week was the normal $2
per bait.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: We were not sure what kind of effect the Hurricane was going to have on the fishing
but the effects did not last as long as we had feared. Marlin were being caught on the day the
Captain re-opened the port and the bite just seemed to get a little better each day. Most of the
fish were caught in the area of the temperature breaks and where there were color changes in the
water. A great area this week for Striped Marlin was on the east edge of the cold water eddy in
the Sea of Cortez and the Blues were scattered in there as well. Another area that seemed good
was 24 miles to the south of the Cape where there were some reels spooled by big fish. The
Pacific side lighthouse had fish 7 miles out and it was a mixed bag with both Striped and Blue
Marlin as well as some Yellowfin Tuna. The Blue Marlin off the cold water eddy loved light
colored lures as there were large numbers of big squid in the area. Live Mackerel on the Stripers
was the ticket, but you had to toss to a lot of fish to get a bite.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: East of the 95 Spot and west of the Pacific lighthouse were the Tuna
locations this week. Past the 95 spot there were some larger fish found, with a few over #150,
but most of them in the 36-60 pound class. The Pacific side fish were a bit smaller with many of
them footballs but there were some nice 40 pounders in the mix. In both areas the fish were
associated with Porpoise. Cedar plugs and feathers were the ticket.
DORADO: The debris washed into the water by the Hurricane has begun to hold Dorado and
there were a few boats that found good logs to work. The fish have been averaging 15 pounds
but there have been a few nice 40 pounders in the mix. Live bait worked around the debris was
the way to go and a few boats did well getting chunk lines going in areas of debris.
WAHOO: Most of the Wahoo action seemed to come from the Pacific side this week and it was
from boats working the temperature break. The fish were not giants but most of them were in the
30 pound range. Marlin lures seemed to get lost on a regular basis as few boats were specifically
looking for the fish.
INSHORE: With the water inshore being cold and green, there was very little action. Most of
the Pangas were working offshore since the water on the Cortez side was so nice. Jack Crevalle
was the catch of the day for boats that insisted on trying the inshore opportunities.
NOTES: Big Squid at the 1150 and 95 Spots this week were an opportunity many of the boats
in the area could not pass up. The fish were running from 15 to 40 pounds. Not surprisingly,
many of the Marlin caught in the area had Squid hanging from their mouths! White Iron worked
vertically hooked many of the Squid, as did chunk bait. A few boats pulled off the concentration
and started chunking with cut Squid and hooked into large Dorado. Here is a quick reminder for
those of you looking to book a charter in Cabo (or anywhere else). I had a couple come to me
this week complaining about a booking they had made with another company. They had booked
a day when the port was closed by the Captain, and had booked the date a few months in
advance. Upon finding that they were not going to be able to go fishing they asked about getting
their 50% deposit refunded and were told to check their paperwork. The company would not
offer any refund for any reason but instead offered to apply the deposit to another booking within
the next year from the canceled trip. Wow, what if you are only able to get here every other year?
Anyway, just a reminder, check out the refund policies before you book. This weeks report was
written to the Surf Guitar Music of Dick Dale on his 1994 album “Unknown Territory”. A client
of mine was nice enough to burn about 30 albums for me and bring them down, but since they are
copies I don’t have all the information on them yet. I am working on it though! Thanks Charlie!
Until next week, tight lines!
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Aug 25, 2003; 10:51AM - Fly Hooker Daily Fishing Reports
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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“FLY HOOKER” WEEKLY FISH COUNT
2 Blue Marlin released (#200, #200)
2 Striped Marlin released (#120, #100)
10 Yellowfin Tuna (#15-#35)
1 Bruiser Y.T. unintentionaly released (#180 est.)
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 19, 2003
Joe A., Joe B., Don and Rich are fishing again today, will take a day off tomorrow and then
fish again on Thursday and Friday. If you read last weeks dailys, you may remember that Joe A.
caught his Blue Marlin on Sunday. Today Juan and Manuel went to the same area, just a little
further out than we had gone on Sunday, and worked the area hard. They saw several Striped
Marlin in the morning but could not get any of them to bite. Around mid morning they found a
school of Tuna and caught one small Yellowfin and a Skipjack. Juan rigged the Skipjack as a live
bait and it was only out in the water for about 10 minutes before a Blue Marlin, estimated at
#200, came up and inhaled the bait. The fight took around 40 minutes and it was Don (Rico) who
put the pressure on the fish this time. This fish did everything that Joe A.’s fish did not, lots of
jumping all over the place, plenty of video proof on this one! Juan was able to tag the fish and
make a successful release. That was it for the day. Two days gone, two Marlin, two days to go
and two Marlin to go!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 20, 2003
Today we have Devon Boatman and his girlfriend Jennifer fishing on the “Fly Hooker” and
they will be fishing on Saturday as well. Devon would love to catch a Marlin but is perfectly
willing to get anything to fight. Jennifer does not have much experience so she is interested in
seeing what it is about. Well, she ended up thinking that it (Marlin fishing) is pretty boring. Lots
of water was covered today and it was not until the tail end of the trip that the guys were finally
able to get a fish to hook up. Devon was able to put the rod to the fish and had it alongside the
boat for the tag placement within 17 minutes! A good tag and release and Devon had the fish he
had been dreaming about, again a Blue Marlin estimated at #200. Jennifer said it was great
watching the fight, but she wanted more action on Saturday, and now that Devon had his Marlin,
maybe they could try for Tuna on Saturday, and maybe change the full day trip to a half day?
Well, we will try and see if the Tuna move in range of a half day trip. Keep you fingers crossed!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 21 AUGUST, 2003
Joe A., Joe B., Don and Rich are aboard for the third day booked with us. Yesterday was
supposed to be a day off for them, but as they were sitting out on their patio watching the boats
leaving in the morning, Joe B. said “Hey, you know, we should be out there fishing” and off they
went to book a boat. I won’t mention the fleet name or boat name, but it was a different trip than
the ones they have had with us. Neither the Captain or Mate spoke English, and while Joe B. got
to fight a #200 Blue, the mate and Captain would not release the fish and instead, gaffed and
clubbed it and brought it into the boat. The bilge switch was not working so they had to get the
deck hatch open every 30 minutes and pump out the water, and on the way in the transmission
started to slip and the Captain had to lower the speed they were cruising at. They guys let us
know that they much preferred fishing on the “Fly Hooker”! Anyway, they were off to an early
start this morning and instead of going out to the Pacific side as they had been doing, Manuel
pointed the bow of the boat to the East and they cruised for almost an hour, getting to an area 5
miles past the 95 spot. When Manuel saw porpoise the slowed down and out went the lures.
They were the first boat to the fish and quickly proceeded to get 9 Yellowfin Tuna, all between 15
and 30 pounds. Then a big one hit! Joe A. fought this fish, which struck a Hi-5 lure in
Black/Green, for 30 minutes before they got color. Now the next part of this is on video
(actually, all of it is). Juan has two stick gaffs set up (he said Manuel told him not to use the
flying gaff) and as the fish came to the side of the boat he grabbed the leader, pulled it closer and
took the first shot he could at the fish. The gaff went into the fish in the belly area and the fish
took off. Juan lost his grip on the gaff and lunged over for it and ended up in the water, holding
on to the swim platform. The fish went down and back bringing the tight line (Joe forgot to back
off the drag when Juan grabbed the leader) across the bait bag frame and then, “pop” went the
line. Based on what Juan said, the guys said and the video, that Tuna would have been close to
the #200 mark, we placed it at a conservative #185 . Joe said the fight was great and he was just
glad that Juan did not get hurt! That was it for the Tuna and they went in search of a Marlin for
Rich, but did not even see one for the rest of the day. Ok, tomorrow is another day, and it is Rich
who will get to fight the big one!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 22, 2003
This is the last day of fishing for Joe A., Joe B., Don and Rich, and Rich has to get his Marlin
today, I mean he has to! Juan and Manuel go back to the Pacific side of the Cape and continued
to work the are off the Lighthouse. I was worried when Juan called at almost 10AM and said that
they had only seen one Striped Marlin so far. Thank goodness their luck held out. As has been
the case every day except yesterday, they hooked into fish between 10AM and the end of the trip.
Rich got his fish when a tailing Striped Marlin was spotted and Juan tossed a bait. This fish was
hungry and ate the bait right away! What a change from the attitude of the Striped Marlin they
had seen so far this week! It was a battle but Rich was able to get his fish to the boat eventually
and Don was able to get some great video of the jumping Marlin and the sweating Rich! While
this fish was being fought they spotted two other Striped Marlin swimming around. I am not sure
exactly when the second Marlin of the day was caught, it may have been right afterward, but Don
go the rod and fought the fish. Another good battle and they guys ended up with four Marlin for
four days on our boat, all tagged and released, plus one fish killed on another boat. Oh yeah, lets
not forget the great Tuna action yesterday. A good trip all the way around! Thanks guys, we
look forward to a chance to have you fish the “Fly Hooker” again.
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 23, 2003
We were supposed to have Devon Boatman fishing the “Fly Hooker” for his second day today
and his girlfriend Jennifer was going to stay in town and shop because he met Lange, from the
Venice, LA area at the hotel and they decided to share the boat. Well, that was the idea anyway.
Mother nature and the new Port Captain had other things to say about it. The Captain shut down
the port at 6 AM due to the close approach of what has turned out to be Tropical Storm Ignacio,
but last night was just Tropical Depression #9E. It looks like we are going to be shut down
through at least Sunday, hopefully no longer, as the center of the storm is supposed to have
landfall sometime tomorrow morning. Right now the winds 70 miles from the center are
supposed to be at 45 MPH but it is 118 miles away to the southeast, moving northwest at 6 knots
and increasing in strength slowly. It is expected to increase to strong Tropical Storm strength
before landfall and we are expecting 6-12 inches of rain. Shades of Hurricane Juliet! At least our
winds wont be very strong, but that sure is a lot of rain for the desert. The storm is small enough
that we should be back in business by Monday (and our fingers are crossed)! Check in next week
to see how things turned out, as we are booked every day for the next two weeks (bad timing for
a storm).
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Aug 25, 2003; 10:48AM - Cabo Bite Report
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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Capt George Landrum
Fly Hooker Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
CABO SAN LUCAS FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 18 TO AUGUST 24, 2003
WEATHER: Ah, this was a wet week in Cabo! We had about 5 hours of steady rain on
Monday, early in the morning, just a forecast of what was to come. A little more rain on
Thursday and then of course we started to get really wet today as Tropical Storm Ignacio
approached. Just in case you are wondering, I am writing this on Saturday the 23rd, the Port
Captain closed the Port this morning and it is not expected to re-open until Monday morning. We
have been told that the storm is supposed to make landfall sometime tomorrow morning at strong
Tropical Storm strength. It is 118 miles to the southeast and moving northwest at 6 mph with
T.S. winds extending 70 miles from the center, so we should start to feel the wind this afternoon.
The rest of the week it has been muggy with little breeze, our daytime highs in the high 90’s and
night time lows in the low 80’s. (Blond Over Blue)
WATER: Great water this week with swells in the 1-3 foot range and little wind ripple on the
water. This was both on the Pacific side and the Sea of Cortez. The water was in the mid to high
80’s almost everywhere with some really warm spots showing up on the East Cape. The Pacific
was cooler than the Sea of Cortez, and that is normal. There was no really defined temperature
break within reach of the Cabo boats this week so almost everyone was working current lines and
upwellings. (A Minor Variation)
BAIT: Early in the week we had Mackerel and some Sardinas available, at the normal $2 per
bait, along with a few Mullet. At the end of the week, bait was scarce and most boats were only
able to pick up five or six pieces, a few Caballito or Mackerel and then whatever the bait boats
could come up with, also at $2 per bait. (Shades Of Grey)
FISHING:
BILLFISH: This turned out to be a good week for Marlin for many of the boats, but a lot of
them came in without ever seeing a Marlin. It seemed that the concentration was on the Pacific
side within 8 miles of the shore, and ranged from outside the Pedregal houses to the area known
as Los Arcos, up to the north. Most of the fish early in the week were Blue Marlin in the 200-250
pound range with larger fish seen, and a lot of Striped Marlin were spotted as well but were
reluctant to bite. Lures in black/green and purple/black worked well on the Blue Marlin as did
slow trolled Bonito or Skipjack. Live Yellowfin Tuna did not work as well as the other species,
but still got some good results. Later in the week the Striped Marlin began to bite and the action
seemed to be mixed with equal results on both lures and live bait. Other areas turned out Marlin
but the bite was more sporadic and spread out. Best time seemed to be between 10 and 2. (All
About Soul)
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Not the fish of the week for most of the boats, but a few of them really had
great action. We were lucky and got into the fish on Thursday. The Tuna were mixed in with
Porpoise and most of the fish were between 15 and 30 pounds. There were a few larger fish in
the mix however, and we hooked one estimated at #180 before loosing it at the side of the boat,
and another boat caught one that weighed #180 on Friday in the same area. The fish showed
strong for a few day around 5 miles to the southeast of the 95 spot and bit well on cedar plugs
and dark feathers. Gee, it seems that every week when I write about the fish, they seem to like
the same thing as the week before. Hmm, maybe I should just eliminate what they have been
biting from the report entirely! There were other fish scattered around the area, but almost every
one of them that was caught was Porpoise associated. Our big fish hooked up on a Hi-5 lure in
purple/black run on the short rigger. (Lullabye)
DORADO: Just like the past two weeks, the Dorado have been a bit scarce and the ones that
have been caught have been large fish, averaging 35 pounds. They have been incidental catch
for the most part, found while working the porpoise for Tuna or while looking for Marlin. (The
River Of Dreams)
WAHOO: See “Dorado”, above. (Two Thousand Years)
INSHORE: With the water as nice as it has been, most of the Pangas have been focusing on Tuna
and Marlin, but a few have been actively searching for Roosterfish. There were some very nice
ones caught up on the Pacific side early in the week, many of them in the 40 pound range. Slow
trolled Mullet were the key, and as far as I am aware, everyone of the fish were released. There
were some nice bottomfish caught as well, but only a few boats were trying for them. Grouper
and Snapper to 12 pounds on both cut bait and Sardinas were found around rocks in 120 feet of
water. (Famous Last Words)
NOTES: There were some of the intermediate size giant Squid caught this week, with a fairly
strong showing of 3 to 4 foot long fish about 1/2 to 1 mile off the lighthouse on the Pacific side.
A few big Blue Marlin in the #500 class were landed (unfortunate, sure wish they had been
released) and as I said above, there were some bruiser Yellowfin out there. Clients of ours went
on a last minute trip on another boat this week since we were already booked, and even though
they asked that the Marlin they caught be released, the captain and crew ignored them, gaffed and
landed the fish. Please, please, please, if the crew ignores your request to release, don’t tip them!
You are the client, you are paying good money and if they want to go commercial fishing, let
them do it on their own dime! Also, I met another group who booked a boat from one of the
coyotes on the beach, gave him a $50 deposit and them wondered why the guy never showed up
outside the Kentucky Fried Chicken store at 6 in the morning to take them to the boat! Come on
folks, some guy you have never met before, out on the beach, not even at a storefront location,
renting you a 46’ Hattaras for $1,100 the next day and only asking for a $50 deposit? Get real,
sorry, but that’s not very smart. This weeks report written to the music of Billy Joel on his 1993
Sony Music release “River Of Dreams”.
NOTES: Well it’s Monday morning. Lost a weekend of fishing. Not too much damage, mostly
a little wind. All the boats are still floating. What we call a banana storm. Only strong enough to
knock over the banana trees and break a few branches. Not much rain hit us. Cabo is fine!
Back to fishing tomorrow.
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Aug 18, 2003; 11:40AM - Fly Hooker Daily Fishing Reports
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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“FLY HOOKER” WEEKLY FISH COUNT
1 Blue Marlin Released (#250 est.)
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 11-16, 2003
Instead of a fish report for this time frame, I am giving a little update on the work done to the
boat. New bottom paint, replaced the old bronze shaft logs with fiberglass ones because the last
time the port engine and transmission were removed they were not re-aligned when replaced and
we wore a hole in the side of the old bronze one, that caused us to take on a lot of water and also
warped the shaft a bit so we got a lot of vibration. Both shafts were cut down by 2 3/4” and new
packing sleeves installed. Shaft couplings turned and trued. New props. The rudders were
removed and taken to a shop where they had bronze added to the shafts and were turned so the
shafts were equal in diameter all the way through, no rudder rattle and smoother turning. New
hardware for the rudders. Hull and topsides compounded and waxed and the binini tops re-sewn
(next time we will have new tops), just have to save the money! A pretty busy week all in all.
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 17, 2003
Joe Antenucci, Joe Baron, Don Ridolfi and Rich Walters are our anglers for today and they will
be fishing on Tuesday, Thursday and Friday as well. The idea is for them to get Marlin, at least
for Joe Antenucci. That is the game plan for the day and that is what we set out to do. It was
Juan and myself on the boat today. Manuel asked for Wednesday through Sunday off so he could
travel with his baseball team for competition up and down the peninsula (got out of a lot of the
dry dock work as well). Yesterday one of the boats had gotten a #600 Blue Marlin 6 miles from
the arch so we headed out toward the lighthouse on the Pacific side first. Oops, maybe not the
first thing. The first thing was to take care of a problem at the fuel dock. As I went into the store
to get our ice, the shaft on the port engine backed out of the coupling and all of a sudden we had
no port propulsion. We determined the problem quickly and 30 minutes later Juan had everything
re-attached and tightened and we were on our way. One of the little things that we did not pick
up on during the sea trials yesterday when the boat returned to the water. Oh well, no harm done
and just a little bit late. When we reached the area about four miles off of the lighthouse we put
lines in the water. It was perfect Marlin water, 2-3 foot swells with lots of wind chop. At a
distance of six miles offshore and eight miles for the arch, we had a look at our first fish. A
Striped Marlin came up on the lure in the long position and followed it. Juan gunned the engines
as I ran down and dropped a bait back. The fish disappeared and did not come back. That was at
8:45. I told the guys when we started this morning that the best time for the Blue Marlin was
going to be between 10 AM and 2 PM and that dead on noon would be the best shot of the day,
the tide would be about an hour and 15 minutes before high. Well, I was wrong because at 11:20
we had a Blue Marlin show up on the lure in the long position, off of the bridge rod. I was
scanning the water when out of the side of my vision I caught the bridge rod beginning to bend.
Then the reel gave a short scream. Juan was on it in a flash as I went down to drop back a live
bait. I had the bait halfway back in the pattern when Juan yelled that it was a big Blue, not a
Striped, so I reeled in the bait. The Blue struck at the lure four times, and each time missed. On
the last shot, Juan had the rod tip raised and as the Blue came in behind the lure, he dropped the
rod tip and let the lure right back into the Marlin’s mouth! Hook Up! We managed to get the rod
passed down to Joe and he settled into the fight. Don had the video cameras going, needing to
document the fish for friends and family back home. The only jump the Marlin did was just after
Juan had set the hook, and the fish lunged from the water going from left to right across the
pattern. Nice fish. Joe had steady pressure on the fish the whole time, not backing the drag off a
bit. After ten minutes his fingers were getting tired of holding the rod with all the pressure on it
and after 20 minutes had said he had enough, he was not able to hold onto the rod any longer.
That was when I remembered that we had a belt harness on board. My fault entirely, I should
have had it out from the beginning. We got Joe strapped into the harness and he was able to
continue the fight. This fish never got more than 200 yards of line out, we never got into the
backing on the reel. The last twenty minutes of the fight was all at a distance where we could
occasionally see color. Joe went to low speed on the reel and I coached him on the short strokes
and we finally got the fish close enough for me to get leader in hand . As soon as I had wraps
with both hands I told Joe to back off on the drag and he did it. The fish held along the port side
of the boat for 5 seconds, long enough to have tagged him had I three hands, then turned away
from the boat, I was able to get him turned back and we had a great jump on leader at the back of
the boat. The fish turned to the starboard side and as I followed it around the leader got hung up
on the bait bag frame for a second. That was long enough to halt the fish short of clearing the
boat and pulled him under. That is when the prop touched the leader and all of a sudden we had
released the Marlin. Estimated at 250 pounds, it was a great 45 minute job by Joe! That was it
for the day and we were lucky, as a lot of boats did not catch anything today. After watching Joe
fight the Marlin, I am not sure if the other guys really want to catch their own Marlin or not, but
we have three more day to do it in! Keep your fingers crossed for us!
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Aug 18, 2003; 11:26AM - Cabo Bite Report
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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Capt George Landrum
Fly Hooker Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
CABO SAN LUCAS FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 8 TO AUGUST 17, 2003
WEATHER: We are in that time of the year when things don’t change very much as far as how
warm it gets, and the only excitement we get on the weather scene is if we happen to get a
hurricane approaching. Thank goodness there is not one on the horizon! Our nights have been
warm with the temperatures around 80 degrees and during the day the thermometer has been
recording temperatures as high as 101 degrees. Warm and humid, the words for the week. We
did have a bit of a breeze from the northwest and a few hours from the east, so it was not all bad,
but if you went up the coast towards San Jose you got cooked. (Heat Wave)
WATER: Pretty much smooth water everywhere, perhaps only a light chop on any one day.
The temperature on the Sea of Cortez side have been showing as hot as 90 degrees, far too warm
for me, but the area to the south and the Pacific coast have been just about perfect. We did have
a band of cooler, 78 degree, greenish water along the Pacific coast on Thursday. This band
extended out for about 10 miles and the water outside was about 81 degrees. On Friday it
switched and became the warm band about 4 miles wide, with temperatures as high as 85 degrees
and the water outside was around 81 degrees. Real strange. (Blue Bayou)
BAIT: Mackerel and Mullet at the normal $2 per bait. (It’s So Easy)
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The Marlin bite remains a bit on the slow side but there have been some big ones
taken. Several fish over 600 and 700 pounds have been weighed (I hope that they died during the
fight and were not killed just to show off) and several others were tagged and released. These
fish were all reported as Blue Marlin but there were reports of Black Marlin being hooked. Most
of these big fish were found along the canyon edges on the Pacific side, but several large fish were
also reported from the area of the 95 spot. Blue/Pink/Silver and Black/Green seemed to get
regular mention by the Captains and crews that found Marlin that would bite. There were still a
few Sailfish being found as well as Striped Marlin, but there were not any strong concentrations
of them around. (Just One Look)
YELLOWFIN TUNA: I never did get confirmation on the big Yellowfin Tuna reported last week,
so it may have been just talk. The bite did die off this week as the Tuna either moved farther
offshore or out of the area completely. A few boats have been flying Tuna Flags and they seem to
have been the ones first to a pod of Porpoise, when the Tuna have been found the bite has been
very short before the fish have gone down. Small feathers in dark colors worked well as did live
bait. No concentrations of fish, as I said, but reports are that the fish that have been found have
been to the south of the Cape, around 35 or more miles out. (Poor Poor Pitiful Me)
DORADO: I think the Dorado have become the fish of the week this time. Not because they
have been found in any large numbers, but because most of the boats have been able to get at least
one of them during a trip. The fish have been averaging 15-20 pounds with a few beasts in the 60
pound and over bracket. All I can say about where they have been is they are where you find
them. A scattered bite without any large concentrations was the norm for the week. The usual
worked, as fish were found under Turtles and diving Frigates, but most of the fish were blind
strikes. (Somewhere Out There)
WAHOO: Very few Wahoo caught this week. (Hurt So Bad)
NEARSHORE: Some Roosterfish and scattered bottomfish were found up and down the Pacific
and Sea of Cortez by the boats working the shore. I saw a very large Grouper, in the 100 pound
range, brought in by one boat. Most of the fish were much smaller than that and the special bait
seemed to be small, live Mackerel, dropped to rocky areas in 40 to 120 feet of water. A mixed
catch of Grouper and Pargo was the norm, with most of the fish under 10 pounds. Many of the
Pangas went offshore in search of Marlin because the water was so smooth this week. (Adios)
NOTES: Maybe the reason the Tuna bite dropped as much as it did is that they were worked so
hard by all the Tuna Seiners that were here last week. Now the Seiners have moved on. They
must be following the fish, or else they fished out our area for the time being. If you are coming
down for a shot at a big Marlin, they are here. It just takes time on the water. Don’t expect to
get a chance to tangle with one of the brutes on your first day out. I always recommend that
people book at least 5 days of fishing in order to get a decent chance at a Blue Marlin, and even
then sometimes nothing appears. But when it does, watch out! Make sure the boat you book has
gear that will handle a big fish like that, it can be a once in a lifetime chance! Until next week,
Tight lines! This weeks report was written to the wonderful sound of Linda Ronstadt on the 2002
Elektra release “The Very Best Of Linda Ronstadt”. Finally, song titles that match the notes!
Enjoy!
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Aug 11, 2003; 11:23AM - Fly Hooker Daily Fishing Reports
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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“FLY HOOKER” WEEKLY FISH COUNT
1 Sailfish Tagged and Released
15 Yellowfin Tuna
10 Bonita
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 5, 2003
Mark Kaplan and his sons Shawn and Anthony were our anglers aboard the “Fly Hooker”
today. The idea was to catch some big fish on light line, preferably Tuna, but as you may realize
from last weeks fishing with Steve Zozaya and his son Steven, they have been few and far
between for us. Juan and Manuel decided that their best chance was going to be working the
areas offshore of the lighthouse on the Pacific side and it ended up being the right choice, at least
for the number of fish. The action was pretty well non-stop once the fish were found and they got
tired arms working on the 15-20 pound Tunas on the Penn 12T and the Shimano TLD 25’s.
According to the anglers, they ended up with almost 15 Bonito to 15 pounds released (that’s not
counting the ones hooked up and lost) and 7 or 8 Yellowfin to 20 pounds (all kept to eat). The
highlight of the day was Shawn catching, tagging and releasing a Sailfish estimated at 100
pounds! When the boat arrived back at the dock, almost the first words out of Marks mouth
were, “Man, my arms are tired!”. Thanks guys, and congratulations Shawn!
“FLY HOOKER” DAILY FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 7, 2003
Our Hawaiian buddy Richard (owner of Mission Book Binding, in San Diego) is here for his
fifth year in a row on the “Fly Hooker”, celebrating his birthday with his buddy Dave. Being his
birthday he would really like a birthday present of a big fish! Well, Juan and Manuel tried, and
they were in the right area, but it just did not happen. All the action they had today was a strike
from a Dorado that came off right away and a chance to toss bait to a Striped marlin they found
on the surface. Heck, thats fishing as Richard says, and they guys worked hard for them and they
did have a good time. Every day is different, so they have booked the boat for tomorrow as well!
We’ll keep our fingers crossed for them.
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 8, 2003
Wow, we were hoping for different results for today, but we had our fingers crossed for better
than this! Richard and Dave did catch fish today, but there were not many of them that ended up
in the boat, as a matter of fact, they only ended up with a Yellowfin Tuna of about 15 pounds and
a Bonita of about the same. Richard managed to loose a nicer sized Tuna, Dave said that it must
have been at least 1,000 pounds or more (hey, the ones that get away always grow!) but Juan said
that it was more like 40 pounds. Apparently as Juan was going for the leader Richard thought
that he already had it in hand and set down the rod in order to go to the side of the boat to get a
look at the fish. Apparently the slack line resulting from this action allowed the hook to drop out
of the Tuna’s mouth and the fish swam away. Dave also said that Richard allowed a Sailfish to
escape after it had been hooked up and had made three nice jumps. Heck, Richard said that he
was going to release it anyway, and he got to see the fish in action, so there! Thanks guys, we are
glad you had a great time and look forward to seeing you again next August 7th!
“FLY HOOKER” NON FISH REPORT FOR THE NEXT WEEK
We pulled the boat out of the water on the 9th and have scheduled downtime for the next week
as we do some work. We will be changing the shaft logs from the original bronze (lots of
corrosion) to fiberglass, shortening the shafts by a couple of inches, changing the props, putting
bushings on the rudder shafts, cleaning and repainting the bottom paint and changing all the zincs.
If I had the money and the time we would also be repainting the hull and putting in a new deck,
but that will have to be the next project. We should be back in the water on the 15th, early
morning of the 16th at the latest, as we have 24 of the next 30 days booked. Keep your fingers
crossed for us, and we hope to get a chance to see you soon in Cabo!
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Aug 11, 2003; 11:08AM - Cabo Bite Report
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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Capt George Landrum
Fly Hooker Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
CABO SAN LUCAS FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 4 TO AUGUST 10, 2003
WEATHER: Hot and humid, warm and muggy, call it what you will, we had sweat rolling off
our foreheads this week. The only saving grace was a slight breeze from the southeast and having
the sun set. Our daytime highs were in the high 90’s and our nighttime lows in the low 80’s. A
few partly cloudy days midweek with a threat of rain, but none of it fell on us. (What’s Forever
For)
WATER: It got a bit rough in the afternoons when the breeze picked up if you were either south
of the Cape or on the Pacific side, but elsewhere and at other times the water was just slowly
rolling swells with a light ripple. There has been a thin band of cooler water along the shore, out
to a distance of three miles, running along the Sea of Cortez side of the Cape up to the area of
Gorda Banks. This water has been several degrees colder than the band just offshore, with the
warm water ranging from 85 to 86 degrees. This warmer band has extended out between 25 and
15 miles to the south, with another thin cooler band just behind it. In an east west direction from
the Cape, extending from the south side of the San Jaime to the 1150 spot, everything to the north
has remained cooler and the south side has been 85 degrees. (Dream Lover)
BAIT: Mackerel and Mullet at the normal $2 per bait. (Let’s Keep It That Way)
FISHING:
BILLFISH: Billfishing remained a bit slow this week with many boats not seeing a fish at all. As
the water continues to warm, the Striped Marlin that remain in the area seem to go off their feed.
There have been a few Sailfish caught this week, and they have been nice sized, but again, not
everyone is finding them. The Sailfish that are being found seem to be close to shore, within 5
miles. Off shore there are Blue Marlin being found, but for most of the boats it has been a scratch
week, you have had to scratch real hard to come up with a Billfish. From 15 to 25 miles to the
east and south seems to have been the favorite area, as there has been lots of bait around,
including big Squid to three feet in length. Marlin candy! (It Should Have Been Easy)
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Fish of the week yet again. Those boats that have gotten into the
Yellowfin have done well on fish to 45 pounds, with most of the fish just on the edge between
football size (to 15 pounds) and small school fish (25 -35 pounds). Cedar plugs, small feathers in
blue and white seem to trip their trigger this week. Reports were that many of these fish were
feeding hard on flyers, and some of the better catches were had by guys rigging the very small
softhead birds with hooks and using them as lures, run 150 feet or more back, and pulled at high
speeds up to 14 knots. I have unconfirmed reports of a late afternoon bite on these same schools,
with the fish running much bigger, to 180 pounds. It seems to happen well after all the fleet and
normal charter boats leave and the bite has been on live bait run back in the north forty, up to 300
yards back, and pulled across the front of the Porpoise, and on large Blue Marlin lures run the
same distance once the baits have been eaten up. This is an unconfirmed report because I did not
see the fish myself and have not been able to get to talk to another Captain who was supposed to
have been in the same place doing the same thing, so take it for what I offered it as! (Tennessee
Waltz)
DORADO: No change in the Dorado situation this week so I am just repeating last weeks report
here. The Dorado were scattered for almost everyone, just like last week, but a few boats were
able to get into some nice fish. Frigate birds working and turtles on the surface were some of the
keys the captains were looking for, and the first one on the scene got good results. Live bait was
a key factor, being the go-to for working Frigates and turtles, and also as a drop-back for fish
picked up on the troll. (Bitter They Are, Harder They Fall)
WAHOO: Same as above, but I think the bite will pick up as we near the full moon. A few fish
were found, a few more caught, but not in any quantity nor consistency. (Only Love)
NEARSHORE: No change from last week, Pangas were working just off the beach for
Roosterfish and having some luck with them, most of the fish being in the 20-30 pound class. The
Jack Crevalle were in there as well and some of the boats were able to pick up Dorado in the surf.
Most of the Pangas were venturing offshore early in the week looking for Dorado and Tuna, and
some of them had good luck. (Beginning To Feel Like Home)
NOTES: I spoke too early last week, the Purse Seiners are still here and we now have four in the
area. Guess the L.A. Times had an article on the front page of the sports section with a picture of
a Whale and Calf caught up in a gill net up in the Sea of Cortez. The weather continues to be hot
and humid, the fish continue to bite, and my boat is out of the water for the week for new shaft
logs and bottom paint. I will continue to ask the anglers and Captains how they are doing and
next week I hope I have another good, accurate and honest fish report for you. Until then, Tight
lines! This weeks report was written to the music of Anne Murray from the 2002 EMI
compilation, “Love Songs”
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Aug 4, 2003; 12:23PM - 'Fly Hooker Daily Report
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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“FLY HOOKER” WEEKLY FISH COUNT
Dorado 3@yellowfin Tuna 20@
Wahoo 1@ 40 lbs
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 29 JULY, 2003
Steve Zozaya and his 14 year old son Steven are here from Phoenix, Arizona for a few days of
sportfishing. Steve has catching a billfish, preferably a Blue Marlin, as his goal and Steven wants
to catch a Shark and then fish that he hasn’t caught before. They will be fishing today, taking one
day off, then fishing Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Today Juan and Manuel took them around
22 miles to the south, where they were able to get into some nice sized, 30-35 pound Yellowfin
Tuna. Steve was almost able to fulfill his wish as they came up on the fish as a nice Marlin
grabbed a Tuna feather and pulled line for a few moments. It was on the bridge rod and by the
time it was handed down the fish was gone. They proceeded to catch around eight nice
Yellowfin, the fish hooking up steadily, one here, one there, and an occasional double strike. The
action kept them busy enough that they did not have time to eat their lunch! The day ended with
plenty of fish in the box and high expectations for Thursday.
“FLY HOOKER” DAILY FISH REPORT FOR 30 JULY, 2003
Today is Aaron Sanders second day fishing with us and his wife and son decided that they
would accompany him one more time. I think they are glad they did because the action was much
better than they had last Sunday. Juan and Manuel headed to the south again and found the
Porpoise. They were able to get four Yellowfin to the boat and in the fish box, as well as four
Bonita. While in the area they tossed bait to five Striped Marlin they saw on the surface, but the
marlin went down, each and every one of them showing no interest in the live baits. Aaron was
also very happy to get a Wahoo in the boat, they lost one lure to a Wahoo as well. A good day
on the water with plenty of fillets to take home and no one got sick! Thanks Aaron, we are glad
this trip worked out for you and perhaps next time one of the Marlin will be hungry!
“FLY HOOKER” DAILY FISH REPORT FOR JULY 31, 2003
On this, the second day of fishing for Steve and Steven Zozaya, Juan and Manuel went back to
the same area where the fish have been showing, but while they were able to get a few more
(four) Yellowfin, enough to fill the cooler Steve bought, they were not able to find a Marlin. I
hope they have better luck tomorrow! The water was nice and they had a good time non the less.
“FLY HOOKER” DAILY FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 1, 2003
This, the third day of fishing for Steve and Steven, was a blowout. They focused on Marlin
only, having enough Tuna already, and they pulled lures all day, hoping for a big girl to come into
the pattern and hookup, and if that was not going to work, at least spot a Striped Marlin to toss
bait at. Well, nothing remotely like either of those two scenarios happened and toward the
halfway point they decided to try and get a tuna or two to use as live bait. It was too late in the
day and there were no Tuna to be found, as a matter of fact, very few fish were caught today by
anyone. The day ended up being a boat ride. They have decided that tomorrow they will get a
few Tuna or Bonita early and try live baiting them, perhaps they will have better luck.
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 2, 2003
Following their plan, Juan and Manuel got Steve and Steven out to the Tuna grounds this
moring and were able to get a few fish in the boat. It took a while to get ones the right size that
were healthy enough after the fight to use as live bait, but they ended up putting one Yellowfin
down on the planer and one Bonita on the surface. No action on these baits either and everyone
is getting frustrated. At least there was some action with the Tuna and I think they ended up with
around 8 of them. When they returned to the dock Steve asked if we were booked for tomorrow
and since we were not, he has decided to give it one more shot. I get to go along and after
talking with another Captain and looking at the sea surface temperature charts, we decided to go
the Golden Gate Banks tomorrow. I am crossing all my fingers!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR AUGUST 3, 2003
Steve, Steven, myself, Juan and Juan had a hour and a half cruise out toward the Golden Gate
Bank this morning. This was chosen as a target based upon information received from another
Captain that a private yacht had gotten four out of twelve Striped Marlin they had baited while
fishing the southern edge of the Bank. Juan and Juan started fishing 6 miles before the southern
edge, preferring to start early just in case the fish may have moved south, that way they would not
over-run them. The water was off color however, a muddy green. It stayed that way all the way
to the northern edge of the bank, and then it started to lighten up a bit. The only sign of life we
saw was a couple of shark bouys (no Dorado under them) and a Seal sleeping on the surface. We
turned to the southwest in hope of getting into blue water and not until we were several miles to
the northeast of the Jaime banks did the water start to clear up. Around 12:30 we saw a Striped
Marlin on the surface but after trying to toss bait at it twice with no interest shown by the fish, it
went down. That was the excitement for the day for Steve and myself, Steven saw Turtles and
just missed seeing a big Manta ray. Steve and I thought that perhaps the sacrifice of a first born
male child may have appeased the Marlin gods and gotten him hooked up, but the first born was
way too smart and fast for that! At least we tried somewhere different today, and it might have
worked out very well for us. Hopefully Steve will get his Marlin on his next trip! Thanks guys!
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Aug 4, 2003; 12:19PM - Cabo Bite Report
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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Capt George Landrum
Fly Hooker Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
CABO SAN LUCAS FISH REPORT FOR JULY 28 TO AUGUST 3, 2003
WEATHER: It was back to being baked in an oven for us this week as the breeze we were
getting most of last week disappeared. Our daytime highs were in the high 90’s in the shade and
our nighttime lows were in the high 70’s to low 80’s. There was cloud cover early in the week
and on Wednesday we actually had rain all day (if you can call it rain, for my wife it was a drizzle,
but she is from Seattle!). No wind to go with it so while we enjoyed the moisture, it was also
humid. (Smackwater Jack)
WATER: Some decent swells this week but the wind was down and early in the week we had
almost glassy conditions. Starting on Thursday we began to get a little breeze in the afternoon
that ruffled the surface a bit and by Saturday the afternoon breeze had pushed up a little chop.
Our temperatures on the Sea of Cortez side were up to the 87 degree range while on the Pacific
you could still find some 79 degree water around the Jaime Bank. Inshore the water was still a bit
green but offshore there was a nice blue color except for the area from the Los Arcos on the
Pacific to Golden Gate Banks and south to San Jaime’s north corner, there it was muddy brown
and around 78 degrees. No strongly defined temperature breaks in the area this week. (I Feel
The Earth Move)
BAIT: Mackerel and Mullet at the normal $2 per bait. (Sweet Seasons)
FISHING:
BILLFISH: The billfishing this week was slow almost everywhere with very few boats coming
into the marina with flags flying for Marlin. This was surprising since we are in the week of the
new moon, normally a great time for the Blues to bite. A few boats were betting Strikes from the
guy in the blue suit almost 20 miles due south while working Bonita and Yellowfin schools in the
area, and there were a few Striped Marlin in there as well. A better area for the Striped Marlin
was up at the Golden Gate Bank on the Pacific side, where one private yacht reported 12 fish in
one day. Elsewhere the pickings were slow, and most boats were lucky if they found one Marlin
all day long. (Carry Your Load)
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Once again the fish of the week! The Seiners did hang around last week,
and you know that they had to have set on the fish, but except for Thursday when there seemed to
be very few fish of any kind caught, the bite on football Yellowfin stayed steady. Large pods of
Porpoise from 15 to 25 miles to the south and east spotted the concentrations of fish, and this was
a good thing, as almost everyone who got into them caught fish. Early in the week there were
25-35 pound fish and later on most of them were 15-20. Best lures were cedar plugs, feathers in
black, purple and pink/white. (Been To Canaan)
DORADO: The Dorado were scattered for almost everyone, just like last week, but a few boats
were able to get into some nice fish. Frigate birds working and turtles on the surface were some
of the keys the captains were looking for, and the first one on the scene got good results. On
Monday, one of the boats found a wire spool floating out to the south and was able to do very
well before everyone else showed up, then the fish got wary and stopped biting. Live bait was a
key factor, being the go-to for working Frigates and turtles, and also as a drop-back for fish
picked up on the troll. (Nightingale)
WAHOO: A few fish were found, a few more caught, but not in any quantity nor consistency.
(Jazzman)
NEARSHORE: Pangas were working just off the beach for Roosterfish and having some luck
with them, most of the fish being in the 20-30 pound class. The Jack Crevalle were in there as
well and some of the boats were able to pick up Dorado in the surf. Most of the Pangas were
venturing offshore early in the week looking for Dorado and Tuna, and some of them had good
luck. (Corazon)
NOTES: It looks as if many of the Purse Seiners we were worried about last week have left the
area, a good thing as far as we are concerned. The water was great this week and the fishing was
good if you wanted anything other than Marlin. Our fingers are crossed that the weather
continues to stay good and the bite keeps getting better. I am planning to take my boat out of the
water the second week of this month for the annual bottom paint job, and will be doing some
other work as well, you can almost bet that the bite will go wide open at that time, it just seems to
work that way! This weeks report was written to the vocals of Carole King on the CD “Carol
King Super Hits”, the 2000 release by Ode Records.
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Jul 28, 2003; 12:07PM - 'Fly Hooker' Daily Reports
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Category: Mexico Cabo San Lucas
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Author Name: George Landrum
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“FLY HOOKER” WEEKLY FISH COUNT
Striped Marlin: One tagged and released (#120)
Sailfish: One tagged and released (95#)
Dorado: Two taken (#60-15)
Yellowfin Tuna: One released (3#)
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR JULY 24, 2003
John White booked the “Fly Hooker” for today and tomorrow and really wants his boys, Mike
and Shawn, to hook up to some nice fish and have a good time. John’s dad Dave is along as well
today. He would really like to get into some Tuna ! Juan and Manuel headed out toward the
south and at a distance of 22 miles out came across a couple of long-line floats with a beacon
attached. Someone had already cut them loose from the longline and had worked them but the
guys were still able to pull fish off the floats. On the first pass with the lures they hooked up and
released a three pound Tuna. There were a lot of Dorado around the floats but the fish scattered
when they came close. Even with that, they were able to hook up three fish, two of them that
they got to the boat. One of them was a nice bull of around 60 pounds, the other one around 15
pounds. Unfortunately that was all the action for the day. Hope there is a bit more activity
tomorrow!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR JULY 25, 2003
The second day of fishing for John, Dave, Mike and Shawn, and on this trip John’s daughter is
along as well. John wants Marlin for the boys so Juan and Manuel stay fairly close to Cabo on
this trip. Early in the day there is a lure strike on the bridge rod and it is handed down to Shawn.
Unfortunately the fish did not stick and was only on for about 10 seconds. A little later a live bait
was tossed to a tailing fish and Mike got to fight a Striped Marlin. That fish was eventually
brought to the boat, tagged and released. Since John’s daughter was not feeling well and they
had caught a Marlin, John decided that it made since to come in a little early. Thanks guys, we
are glad it worked out, but Dave, sorry there were not any big Tuna for you maybe next time!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 26 JULY, 2003
Today I had Dr. Greg B., from San Diego fishing aboard the “Fly Hooker”. He went on
another boat on Tuesday and didn’t catch anything so decided to change boats and see if that
worked. Also, he decided to change the fishing times! We left the Marina at noon and were back
at 7:15. I tried to call Juan all morning but his phone was turned off (no charge on the battery) so
I managed to find a deckhand (good kid named Augustine) and we took off. Greg had brought
several rods of his own as well as a few lures and we decided to run a blue/white Islander way
back off of the bridge rod. We cruised out for about 5 miles, past a drifting Purse Seiner, then
spotted a group of Porpoise traveling in a very tight pod. We worked them a few times but it
soon was apparent that they held no fish and were very boat shy. Guess that they had been set on
by Purse Seiners recently. A short while later I spotted a Striped Marlin sleeping and pointed it
out to Agustine, who went down and dropped back a live bait. The fish woke and went down.
The Islander lure was about 180 yards back, I had let out all the mono top-shot, and about 30
minutes after passing the Marlin we had a BIG fish explode on the Islander. It took a little line
but did not hook up and when we brought in the lure to check it out, there were three good sized
tooth marks on the top of the lure. Augustine said that was a REALLY big fish, and based on the
size of the hole in the water and the splash it made, I think we had a strike from a big Tuna, too
bad it did not hook up! We continued on our way and it was quite a bit later, maybe an hour and
a half, that we finally hooked up. It was on the Islander again, in the way back position, and at
first I thought it was a big Dorado. After 10 minutes the fish jumped again and this time I thought
it was a Striped Marlin. Only when the fish was close to the boat were we able to tell that we had
hooked a Sailfish. This was a first for Greg, and we got some good pictures with the fish held in
the water alongside the boat. We estimated the Sailfish at 95 pounds, then tagged and released
the beautiful creature. That was almost the last of the action for the trip. We returned to Cabo
trolling just offshore, hoping to hook into some Dorado. We did have one hit, but the fish was so
small it did not even get a click off the reel, and it looked smaller than the lure! As our last gasp,
we tried slow trolling a couple of Mullet just off the Hacienda Del Mar beach, and We had one
mullet chewed, but not by a Rooster, probably by a Snapper. Oh well, at least we got a new fish
for the Doctor!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 27 JULY, 2003
Aaron Sanders, his wife and young son are fishing with us today and next Wednesday. Aaron
would really like to get a Marlin, so that is what we have our fingers crossed for. He would also
like to be the one to toss the bait and set the hook. Juan and Juan (it is Sunday, Manuel’s day off)
headed out to the 95 spot to start the day and worked their way toward the 1150 area. Nada,
zilch, nothing. A little later they heard over the radio that someone had found a large wooden
cable spool and that there were a lot of Dorado around it, so in came the lines and off they went.
Of course by the time they got there the bite was over and there were twenty boats around.
Apparently the first two boats did well, then it was over. They left the area and when they came
back an hour later there was just one boat left. Juan put a live bait out and they were able to
catch one small Dorado. That was it, all the action for the day, but Aaron has another day to get
into the zone and get a Marlin. We will keep our fingers crossed for him!
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