Jc Sportfishing Weekly Fish
Report.
As the Admiral Seas
It
Fishing Report: 3/3/13 to
3/10/13
.
Now is the time to come to Cabo as the fishing
is still really good and not only that there is some really good deals on
airfares lately as Spirit Airlines has some really good deals. You might want
to look into this and also if you are in LA or San Diego you might think about
flying out of Tijuana as the rates are much cheaper for TJ to Cabo, just
something to think about.
Jc Sportfishing
Charters is a family owned and operated business and has been fishing in Cabo
San Lucas for the past 18 years. Jerry, explains that his charter business is
geared more for families and novice anglers,
making sure everyone who charters a boat with him has a great time and
lots of fun. We welcome families and groups. We want everyone who fishes with
us to take all the sites in and have memorable experience. This is what is most
important to us. We have and do a few tournaments each year and can cater to fisherman
who might be interested in tournament fishing. Lets get on with the report for
this past week.
WATER: The water has
been really cold and green making for not to cool conditions. Choppy conditions
have been making it impossible to fish on the Pacific side and with the wind
even worse. We have had some 70 degree water all the way up to Jamie Banks. Waves have been 2 to 4 feet
on the Pacific and 1 to 3 feet on the Sea of Cortez side.
WEATHER: Lots of wind has really played a part in the fishing slowing
down over the past week. Windy and choppy water really hurt us this week. We
have had lot of days of overcast weather also along with the wind. So all in
all it hasn’t been ideal fishing weather. The week started cooler and then
about mid week it got warmer with some nights a little humid and then by Friday
it had got cold again at night. Last Saturday the port even closed for boats
under 30ft due to wind. It was opened back up again afternoon but it has been
breezy.
BILLFISHING: Well it’s the mid March Blues here in Cabo
and the wind did play a big part in the fishing with Marlin catches way down
compared to what we have experienced over the last month. There have been some
reports of Marlin being taken down at the Gordo Banks. There were boats who
tried to go up the Pacific side and got blown away by the wind, probably not a
good idea in a smaller boat. Some of the boats that did go up the Pacific
reported catches of smaller game fish Sierra and some Yellowtail. Basically the
Striped Marlin fishing has been really slow.
BAIT: Bait
is the standard 3.00 dollares a piece and there has been plenty around.
DORADO: The Dorado count is way down over this past
week. We do not expect to see the amounts of Dorado we have been seeing for
awhile. With the wind and choppy
seas its hard to say what the coming week will bring.
Maui Maui:
But
whether it’s called Dolphin or mahi mahi (or Dolphinfish or Dorado) you’ll call
it delicious! Mahi mahi is a versatile fish that produces excellent results
using just about any cooking method. The mild, sweet flesh – which starts off
pinkish but turns white as it cooks – is very lean but also quite moist and flavorful.
In
addition to their culinary qualities, mahi mahi are highly regarded among game
fishermen for the powerful and dramatic fight they put up when hooked, often
tearing through the water at speeds up to 50 miles an hour. In fact, 'mahi' is
the Hawaiian word for 'strong', so the name 'mahi mahi' is a big hint as to
just how formidable they can be.
Mahi
mahi live in warm southern waters throughout the world and grow quickly,
reaching market size in the first year. But they don’t stop there. Fishermen regularly
catch 20 and 30 pounders, with some tipping the scales even higher. Its common
in Cabo San Lucas to pick up a Bulls topping the scales up to 40 to 50 pounds.
INSHORE: Really
the best fishing place to be all week was inshore. Lots of Sierras and some Yellowtail
were caught. The Sierra bite is wide open with some nice fish being caught all
week. A few Red snapper and Grouper were also being caught from the Solmar to
Pump House. There were a few Yellowtail at the Arch being vcaught but as we
reported you have to watch out for the fish Police who don’t want people
fishing in that area.
California Yellowtail (not to be
confused with Yellowtail snapper found in the Caribbean) are a
well-loved fish here in Cabo San Lucas. They put up a terrific fight for
their size and can be a tough adversary in areas with lots of rocks or kelp for
them to run into. Unfortunately they do not jump when hooked, but in all
other respects they are a lot of fun to reel in. I never get tired of
catching them.
There are always some California Yellowtail around Southern California to Cabo , especially
around the islands of Catalina and San Clemente. These non-migratory fish
are known as “homeguards” and tend to be large and tough to catch. In
addition, many years during the summer there is a decent migration of smaller
fish in the 10-25lb range or so. They often hang out under kelp paddies
offshore, where they are easier to land because there is less stuff for them to
wrap up your line in.
California Yellowtail taste ok but I would not go out of my way to eat them
personally. They actually taste better raw and are a common menu item in
sushi restaurants (where they are called “Hamachi”). They max out around
100lbs although 50lbs is a very big one.
California Yellowtail TackleIf you are fishing for the
school-sized ones offshore you could get away with a 20-30lb setup but
personally I do not go below 65lb braided line if I am fishing for them in
rocky areas or kelp beds. A good fluorocarbon leader is a must both
because of decreased visibility to the fish and also enhanced abrasion resistance
If you are fishing with “surface iron” (described below) you should use at
least an 8ft rod to get enough casting distance. If fishing bait on the
surface a 7ft rod would be fine, and if fishing on the bottom you could got
with a shorter rod to get more leverage when cranking them up. Fish
hooked on the bottom must be manhandled off the bottom before they get into
rocks and cut you off. I have seen party boat trips with casualty rates
so high that only one in eight or so fish hooked is landed.
TUNA: There were reports of a few Tuna being caught way offshore . Some guys
ran into some schools 40 miles off the Light House. Inshore I haven’t heard of
any being caught over the last week. The Tuna that were caught offshore were in
the 15 to 30 pound range.
WAHOO: I
haven’t heard of any Wahoo this past week.
BEWARE: Remember if your not renting charter boats
from companies who have been established in Cabo for the past 20 years (
Jcsportfishing, Pisces Sportfishing, Minervas, Redrum, Picante Fleet) you might
have problems. There are many sportfishing fleets on the internet who are
really not established business, who are operating illegally. Lots of these
outfits are renting you a boat they have never even looked at and don’t even
know where you would board the boat, leaving you the task of trying to find the
boat. They don’t even have an office you can go and confirm your charter boat.
You do not want to spend a day walking around looking for the boat and where
you board. If you wait till the day you are fishing and go to the dock where
your boat is many times people will mislead you to another boat or dock trying
to put you on a boat that was not meant for you. You need to have a person
guide you to your boat, who is from a reputable charter company. This way there
is no confusion or misleading. Lots of vendors renting boats in the hotels are
not reputable and don’t care about your
interest and care more about a commission . 75% of the Cabo Fishing websites on
Google are not even in business anymore or might be just brokers who don’t have
an office in Cabo. Some of the Google websites are misleading and not
established .Please remember when renting Sport fishing boats in Cabo that you
rent your boat from reputable and established business. Walk into a fishing
fleet office and ask questions about what you are getting and what are the
costs. You dont want to rent boats
from vendors in the streets and you do not want to book through shady websites
offering you the world. You need to go to the fishing fleet office, while in
Cabo and book your boat. Check through travel forums about reputable fishing
fleets to deal with. Look for testimonials about the fleet your booking your
charter with. Ask about what will the boat be supplying? Will it include
beverages or lunches? How much does it cost to fillet your catch? Check to see
if charter boat is insured? Ask about getting your catch smoked? Check cost of
fishing license. These are just a few things to consider when booking your
charter boat. We will be talking more about this in next weeks fishing report.
Until next time good fishing and we hope to see you in Cabo soon. Come by the
office here in Cabo and get all the latest up to date fishing report.
