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Dec 8, 2003; 10:48AM - '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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Capt. George Landrum
'Fly Hooker' Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
WEEKLY FISH COUNT
1 Striped Marlin 120 pounds tagged and released
1 Striped Marlin 160 pounds tagged and released
1 Striped Marlin 110 pounds kept
9 Dorado to 30 pounds kept
14 Yellowfin to 22 pounds kept
Lots of Bonita released
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 30, 2003
Today was the last day of fishing for our friend Bob Deeter and I got a chance to
spend it with him. During his days here Bob had caught BIG Wahoo, BIG Yellowfin, too
many “Stinkin’ Marlin” but had not gotten any Dorado yet. With our fingers crossed,
and expecting only Yellowfin, Manuel and I went south. We cruised for a half hour then
put lines in the water. About 45 minutes later Manuel got a call on the radio that a
friend had found Porpoise and there were birds working as well so we pulled in the
lines and ran to the spot. We were the fourth boat there but no one had hooked up yet.
A few minutes after we arrived one of the boats hooked up to a Striped Marlin, a pretty
small one, but that was all the action. We left after working the Porpoise for about 45
minutes, looking for something that would produce fish for us. An hour later Manuel
saw a boat doing slow circles, way off in the distance. I was driving so I picked up the
speed and we headed that way. A few miles later I saw something off to the right, it
looked like a jug in the water, so we detoured to check it out. It turned out to be a tree
root with a couple of birds sitting on it. Eureka! There were Dorado around the wood
and in the next hour we fought and landed 8 Dorado, all on live bait. The first fish were
the largest and we caught four that were between 20 and 30 pounds, the others were in
the 10-20 pound class. With all the bait gone, Bob and I decided to try jigging and
Manuel pulled the boat right up to the log. Manuel yelled “Dorado” and pointed right to
the log. Both Bob and I kept looking into the water but could not see anything
swimming around. Finally I realized that the Dorado he was talking about was what I
had mistook for a root off of the log. Bob and I thought that the fish was either one that
had come off when we first arrived or one another boat had caught and it had come
entangled on the wood and broken off. I mean, this fish was nose up to the log,
hanging vertically. Manuel backed the boat up to the fish and I gaffed it, fully expecting
a rotten fish to come up. To our surprise the fish was in rigor, had bright red gill,
beautiful color and bled when cut! The only thing I can think of is that either it was the
first fish we lost and it banged against the log or it had been chasing bait and killed
itself running into the log. Anyway, we caught eight Dorado and ended up with nine!
There was more than enough fish fillets for Bob and we decided to go in early to give
Manuel a chance to get to his baseball game. Thanks Bob, once again I had a great
time with you! See you again next year!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR DECEMBER 1, 2003
Howard Grodenski called us from Virginia on Saturday and wanted to know if the
boat was available for today and tomorrow. It just happened to be open and he flew in
yesterday. This morning Juan and Manuel took him to the same spot where Manuel
and I had found the log yesterday and started to search. They came across another
piece of wood that held a lot of bait and had birds sitting on it, but no Dorado. They
also came across two separate pods of Porpoise but had no Tuna strikes. Tossed bait
to three of the four Marlin they saw and had no takers. One of those kind of days. The
water was beautiful though, and I got some projects taken care of so I am going along
tomorrow. I sure hope we find fish!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR DECEMBER 2, 2003
Howard invited me so I was on the boat today. We had decided yesterday afternoon
that today we would either go up the Sea of Cortez to the Gorda Banks area or up the
Pacific coast, depending on the weather and on what other boats had been doing.
Three days in a row to the south had produced only one good day of fishing and that
was a lot of luck. Manuel said that the fishing up towards San Jose had been slow so
this morning we decided to try the Pacific side. Lines in the water at 7 AM after a 15
minute cruise and the boat kept pointing it’s bow south. After a while I started to get
worried that Juan and Manuel had changed the game plan on us. Nope, Manuel had
spotted three boats about 12 miles out that looked as if they were staying in one spot,
maybe working Tuna or a piece of Debris with Dorado. Eventually we got close to the
area and could see that they just happened to be in the same spot, there was no
concentrated activity. The bow turned towards the coast in the area of Margarite and
when we got about 6 miles off the beach we spotted several Frigate Birds working.
Excitement was in the air and fish on our minds as we got closer and prepared
ourselves for some action. Shoot, it was a big school of baby Dorado chasing little bitty
baitfish. One of the Frigates got hold of a little Dorado and took off with it. Gives you
an idea of their size, huh? We kept going and about 5 miles off the beach we finally
had a hit. The strike was on the rigged Ballyhoo on the stinger rod. It was a hard strike
and took a bit of line but did not stick. Juan ran down and pinned on a Mackerel, which
he then dropped back. I cleared the short line then ran to the bridge and started to
bring in the stinger line, hoping the fish was still back there and would follow the lure in
and see the bait. That’s exactly what happened, but the Marlin took the bait off the
hook. Juan quickly reeled in and rebaited and I brought the stinger lure in. The Marlin
had just had it’s appetite teased and came right back on the second bait. Hooked up!
Howard got into the chair and reeled like crazy. The line came in so easily that he
thought it must be a little Dorado or some other small fish, but after the fish approached
the boat it changed direction and took off! Back and forth, back and forth it went for 30
minutes. Finally Howard was able to get the fish close enough to the boat for Juan to
touch leader and make it a legal catch. I had the camera ready and for the next 15
minutes was able to get some great shots of the fish in the air, and of Howard sweating
as he worked the fish. After 45 minutes Juan was able to get the leader and grab the
bill. I placed the tag in the fish and we released it. Way to go Howard, a nice fight and
release on a #120 Striped Marlin. Just a few minutes later we saw another fish on the
surface and tossed it a bait, but the fish went down. That was all the action we had. As
we approached the lighthouse there were almost 30 boats working the ledge, both
trolling, slow trolling live bait and dropping live bait deep. We slow trolled live mackerel
across the area, two up on top and one deep, as well as having a rigged ballyhoo out
but we had no interest from the fish. Back in the Marina flying a blue Marlin flag and a
red release flag, we were one of very few boats flying any flags today. I don’t know
what happened to all the fish we had around last week, but every day is different and
maybe tomorrow the bite will turn back on. Until then, Tight lines!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR DECEMBER 3, 2003
Michael Parker and his friend Eric are here from Seattle with their families and have
arranged today for a fishing expedition. Michael is a fishing junkie so he made all the
arrangements! The girls get tomorrow at the spa while the guys watch the kids, a good
trade off. Juan and Manuel went about 17 miles out to find the fish today but they did
well. Eric got the first Marlin of the day, one that struck a lure. The Striped Marlin was
estimated at 160 pounds according to Juan, and after a very long 30 minute fight it was
tagged and released. The fish did not do a lot of jumping and that increased the
amount of time it took to bring in. They also got into some Yellowfin Tuna, in among
Porpoise, and ended up catching seven of them, most of the fish about 7-10 pounds,
footballs. There were enough fillets that they ended up with about 23 pounds of meat,
which they had smoked to take home. That was all the action out in the deep water
but Michael still wanted to get a Marlin. With several hours left, Juan and Manuel
decided to join the crowd at the lighthouse and drop down live bait and wait for a bite.
It was just about 10 minutes before time to quit when the Marlin finally took a bait.
Once again the fish did not jump, and it only took about 30 minutes for Michael to get
the fish in. This one was bleeding from the gills so Juan and Manuel took it. All right,
the boat was flying two Marlin flags, one release flag and four Tuna flags (that’s all the
tuna flags we have) when they came in the Marina, and that was a lot better than most
of the boats did today! Good going guys, we were glad you had a good time!
“FLY HOOKER” FISHING REPORT FOR DECEMBER 5, 2003
I got to go fishing again with our friend Jeff deBrown of “Baja On The Fly” as he
brought three anglers down from the East Cape. Jeff had taken Ken, Lazlo and Ken’s
son Cody out fishing for two days up there, but their luck had been bad, blanked for
both days. The wind was blowing just a little as we left the Marina this morning, but I
thought that it would die off by 9 am. We had loaded up on Sardinas, a necessity when
fly fishing as you generally need a lot of chum to draw fish to the boat. I told Manuel
(Juan was sick today) to keep going until we found Porpoise or something floating. It’s
tough enough having the handicap of being a fly fisherman, you have to be where the
fish are in order to catch them. No sense in blind casting, that’s a waste of time.
Accordingly, Manuel headed out to the west and we kept cruising for two hours before
finally finding Porpoise. The pod was enormous and there were Frigate birds working it
as well. They were moving along at a fairly good clip so we started off by trolling flies.
The first pass resulted in a triple strike! Lazlo, Ken and Jeff fought the Yellowfin to the
boat and they were perfect size, around 10 pounds each. As they were fighting the fish
I was tossing out Sardinas, hoping to keep the fish by the boat and get the guys a
chance to cast to them. Well, a 10 pound Yellowfin on 11 weight rods are not a quick
catch, and even though I could get the fish to boil for a little while, the main school
moved away by the time the guys got their fish to the boat. This happened every time
we hooked up, but since we did not get triple strikes every time, the guys did get a
chance to cast once in a while. It ended up that every fish we hooked up came on the
troll, and there were Bonita mixed in there as well. I got a chance to fight one of the
fish but crossed lines with one Ken had hooked up and got cut off. Oh well, that’s the
way it goes sometimes! I think that Jeff ended up loosing a couple of shooting heads,
once when one line caught in the prop (Jeff was on the rod), and then that one I got cut
off on. Cody got to fight three fish and started to feel bad (a little seasick). Ken gave
him some Dramamine and he knocked out on the engine cover for the rest of the trip.
Ken got the largest fish of the trip when he hooked up to a 22 pound Yellowfin! It took
him a long time to bring the fish to the boat, a lot of runs in a fish that size on fly gear!
Eventually the bite died off and we used up just about all the chum. That is when Jeff
had a big boil behind the fly he was trolling. We both saw it at the same time, and then
it swirled again! A short run of about ten yards then a Dorado that was at least 30
pounds jumped in the air! All right, everyone saw the fish and we were excited! The
Dorado started to make a long run, constantly jumping and putting up huge splashes.
Another boat was in the area and not until it got close to us did we realize the Captain
had never looked our way or noticed that we were hooked up! We yelled and whistled
and finally his deck hand heard us and saw us wave them away, but it was to late. By
the time the Captain turned his head, saw us waving and turned his wheel, he had run
over the line and cut it off about 25 feet from the backing. Ouch, a nice fish and $60
worth of fly line gone! Jeff had handed off the fish to Lazlo but there was nothing any
of us could have done. Well, that was the end of the day for us and we were facing a
30 mile run back to the Marina. It was a really good day on the water and it was nice to
have a successful fly fishing trip! Thanks Jeff, next time I am going to have to charge
more if we are going to be cruising for 5 1/2 hours, it really burns up the fuel! It was
loads of fun and lets do it again! Thanks again, and I am really glad that both Ken and
Lazlo and Cody had a great time. Yes Ken, I agree that if you tied a Steelhead and a
Tuna tail-to-tail that the Tuna would win!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 6 DECEMBER, 2003
Jay, John, Ron and Wes were our anglers today. This trip was arranged once they
had come down and they had inquired about it first, but were undecided on fishing or
golfing for the day. Fishing won out but they may have caught more on the golf course!
Juan and Manuel started the day off the lighthouse on the Pacific side and it was
shortly thereafter that a Marlin was sighted on the surface. A live bait was tossed but
there was no interest shown by the fish. They continued trolling out to where we had
found the porpoise yesterday, almost 30 miles out, and they did find the Porpoise. So
did a few other boats. But no one had any action from fish there, and no fish were seen
busting the surface. On the way back they found two Frigate birds working and
checked it out. There were a few Dorado seen feeding under the birds, but once again,
there was no interest in either the lures or in live bait. Some days you get fish, other
days you get stinky, and today was one of the stinky ones. Sorry about that guys, we
hope you were not too disappointed, and we hope you have better luck next time!
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Dec 8, 2003; 10:42AM - 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 FISH REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 30 TO DECEMBER 6, 2003
WEATHER: We had a good week weather wise with our highs in the high 80’s and
lows in the mid 60’s. It was partly cloudy at the beginning of the week but cleared up at
the end. Light winds in the afternoon but almost no breeze in the mornings made for
very comfortable conditions.
WATER: We had one day this week, I believe it was Tuesday, when the surface
conditions on the Pacific side were rough, but that was due to conflicting currents, not
due to wind. By rough, I mean that there were big swells, some of them 8 foot, with a
lot of little stuff between and small standing whitecaps. This condition extended for
almost 15 miles. The rest of the week there were small swells of the normal 2-4 foot
variety, calm in the mornings with a little chop in the afternoons. The Sea of Cortez
was calm up until past the Vinorama area, then it got rough due to wind. The Sea of
Cortez was showing an almost even 79-80 degrees across the board at the end of the
week while the Pacific side was just a degree cooler. There was a good temperature
break 30 miles to the west where we went from 78 to 76 degree water.
BAIT: Mackerel at the normal $2 each and Sardinas at $20 a bucket were available all
week long.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: This is the third week in a row where the concentration of Marlin has been
on the lighthouse and most of them have been caught while dropping down live bait.
These are Striped Marlin and the average weight has been around 110 pounds. A few
have been caught on the troll while working close to the coast up the Pacific side. Dark
colored lures have been the ticket there.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: Long runs and keeping your fingers crossed were the key to
getting Tuna this week. The closest I heard of them coming in was 14 miles to the west
but the concentration of Tuna was found on the temperature break 30 miles west. Of
course, they were associated with the Porpoise. Live bait, small feathers, cedar plugs
and little hootchies were working on them. Most of the Tuna were in the football
category, up to 20 pounds, with a few larger fish mixed in. I know there were fish found
in other places, but that is where most of the effort was centered.
DORADO: Either you found wood floating or you found Frigate birds working, that was
almost the only way anyone caught Dorado this week. Most of the fish found were less
than 25 pounds in size and some boats did very well if they were the first to a piece of
wood. Live bait was the key and if you were lucky, there could be a big school under
the wood and you limited out. Most of the boats never saw a Dorado this week though.
WAHOO: Coming up on the full moon there were Wahoo caught at the end of the
week and they were found on the banks or on the ledge at the lighthouse. Quite a few
boats got bit while soaking bait for Marlin but of course, those teeth made short work of
the mono leaders! Most of the fish were in the 45 pound class with a few going to 80
pounds.
INSHORE: Small Sierra, Jack Crevalle and Pargo were the fish caught inshore this
week, and the action was not very hot. Most boats came in with a couple of Pargo
caught on live bait and a few Sierra, but a few boats actually got into good schools of
the little razormouths and were able to get a dozen or more fish in the 5 pound class.
NOTES: The whales are starting to show up. Mary and I were invited out on a sunset
cruise and we spent almost an hour watching three Humpbacks right off the point. As
the water cools down we should start to see the Gray whales showing up as well. The
fishing was a bit off this week, it seemed you either got Marlin close to home while
soaking bait, or made a long journey offshore for a chance at small Tuna. I know this is
not the kind of information you like to hear, but that’s the way it is. Things should pick
up soon. Until next week, Tight lines!
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Dec 5, 2003; 12:16PM - Ixtapa Zihuatanejo Sportfishing Report 11/28/03 - 12/4/03
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Category: Mexico Ixtapa Zihuatanejo
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Author Name: Susan Richards/Stan Lushinsky
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The Red Hot SAILFISH bite continues in Ixtapa Zihuatanejo. Leading the pack was MR Erik Vlemming's group from Holland while fishing aboard the Dos Hermanos 1 & 2, and Leydy a total of 7 offshore days landing 31 SAILFISH and 8 DORADOS. While fishing inshore the group landed 61 BONITOS, 2 RAINBOW RUNNERS, 7 YELLOWTAIL JACKS, 1 TRAVELI, 7 SNAPPERS and 7 TIGER GROUPER. California angler, Mr. Curtis Swanberg landed 2 SAILFISH While fishing aboard the Vamonos 3. Returning new Jersey angler Herb Houghton also fishing aboard the Vamonos 3 did equally as well landing 2 SAILFISH in one day of fishing. Colorado Angler Dave Weiland turned in a great offshore day aboard the Vamonos 3 landing 7 SAILFISH and 2 DORADOS. Fly fishing angler Buddy Wright landed 4 SAILFISH in one day on a fly while fishing aboard the Dos Hermanos 1 and captain Adolofo reported double digit billfish opportunities on several offshore days. Inshore, the Roosterfish remain a puzzle as 5 inshore charters turned up a single Roosterfish and that was landed by New Jersey angler Herb Houghton while fishing aboard the Dos Hermanos 1. Sea and weather conditions could not be more perfect than they are at this time.
Ixtapa Zihuatanejo weather. Picture perfect, low humidity, low winds, temps in the 80's
Sea Conditions: Calm
Bait Supply,
Excellent
Sincerely,
Stan Lushinsky
Susan Richards
Ixtapa Sportfishing Charters
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Dec 4, 2003; 05:20PM - Hot or Cold Depends on the Day
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Category: Guatemala Sport Fishing
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Author Name: Gary Graham
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IZTAPA, GUATEMALA
IN GENERAL: The sea conditions in Guatemala are beautiful, with very calm seas and partly cloudy skies. The run to the fish is highly variable each day with the best action seeming to occur between 20 and 30 miles, with pockets of action much closer at times. Over the last week the fishing has remained hot or cold, mainly due to not enough boats out to keep the action located. Overall, the boats averaged 12 releases out of 19 shots on sails, and 1 for 1 on marlin during the 5 days that were fished by the 8 boats. One boat spent a partial day inshore, and was able to release a couple of roosters, a couple of mackerel and a couple of jacks.
Water Temperature 80º-85º
Air Temperature 84°-84º
Humidity 79%
Wind West at 7 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility
Sunrise 6:12 a.m. CST
Sunset 5:33 p.m. CST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Guatemala report by Brian Barragy and Lissa M. McFarlin
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Dec 4, 2003; 05:01PM - Trout Fisherman Score With The Big-uns
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Category: Mexico Ixtapa Zihuatanejo
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Author Name: Gary Graham
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ZIHUATANEJO, MAINLAND MEXICO
IN GENERAL: The 80º blue water is within a half mile of the beach and the great sailfish action is still holding up. Baja on the Fly clients brothers Leon and Kyle Stiffarm fly-fished two days with Martin and I on the panga “Isamar.” Leon is an excellent fly-fisherman for huge trout on the local lakes he visits on the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Glacier National Park, but he had never fished saltwater before.
We changed that in a hurry! We raised 17 sails, had 10 follow the teasers to the boat, and hooked 5. The first few fish were learning experiences for the brothers, because they had to overcome a major case of adrenaline rush. They had never even seen fish so big, yet alone be able to reach out and touch them with the rod tip. After the shooting head was wrapped about 20 times around the rod tip, and a pulled fly ended up threading itself between the line and the rod, they settled down and hooked almost every fish that came to the boat.
While returning to the dock, I told them they easily would have had an 8 sailfish day if we had been using conventional gear. A few minutes later, as Adolpho on the panga “Dos Hermanos” pulled alongside, as prophesied, he was flying 7 tag-and-release flags.
Water Temperature 78º-84º
Air Temperature 75° - 87º
Humidity 66%
Wind SW at 12 mph
Conditions Haze Smoke
Visibility 8 miles
Sunrise 7:01 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:09 p.m. CST
Dec.8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo report by Ed Kunze
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Dec 4, 2003; 04:59PM - Holiday Season Brings Fishing Promise
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Category: Saltwater Fly Fishing Reports
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Author Name: Gary Graham
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REPORT FROM GARY GRAHAM'S BAJA ON THE FLY:
PROVIDING QUALITY SALTWATER FLY-FISHING 365 DAYS A YEAR IN BAJA FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: bajafly@usa.net; USA toll-free (800) 919-2252; Mexico 011-52-624-14-10373
Thurs., Dec. 04, 2003 Report covers the period Sat.-Thurs. (11/29 - 12/04)
EAST CAPE, MAGDALENA BAY, ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO; AND IZTAPA, GUATEMALA CONDITIONS
EAST CAPE, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Nov. left, but forgot to take the wind. Early morning can be decent until the wind cranks up. Left-over wind waves are even hampering the beach fishing except on a few early mornings. While all of this sounds daunting for the fly-fisher, sunny Baja days are providing some great R&R time around the pool while waiting for the wind to quit.
AIR & SEA -
Water temperature 69°-74°
Air temperature 73° - 78°
Humidity about 54%
Wind SSE at 12 mph
Conditions clear
Visibility 12 miles
Sunrise 6:44 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:32 p.m. MST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
o OFFSHORE: Going out these days is a workout with little return.
o INSHORE: A pretty good sierra bite has been the bright light this week early morning before the sun hits the water.
o BEACH: As expected, a few sierra, ladyfish and an occasional jack was considered a banner day.
BILLFISH – There are a few around if it would flatten out long enough for anyone to find them.
YELLOWFIN TUNA – Way too far to bother.
DORADO – Six boats, two dorado, that’s tough fishing.
ROOSTERFISH – They don’t like the wind anymore than we do.
JACK CREVALLE - A few small fish at La Ribera and out toward Punta Colorada.
BARRILETE OR MEXICAN SKIPJACK - A few closer to shore, but difficult to find.
PARGO AND CABRILLA - Quiet.
SIERRA - Gray light just at dawn is best.
MAGDALENA BAY, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Offshore, news of a wide open tuna bite was welcome, since the billfish were few and far between. The esteros (estuaries) were a much better choice. Devil’s Curve went off big time this week and the ones who were bored with the lack of billfish action offshore were chattering like a bunch of frigates on a bait ball about the bite inside. Snook to 25 pounds, leopard grouper in the mid-teens, corvina, and pompano bit with a vengeance for several days on the tide.
Water Temperature 67°-73°
Air Temperature 69°- 78°
Humidity 40%
Wind South at 2 mph
Conditions Haze
Visibility 7 miles
Sunrise 6:55 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:36 p.m. MST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
YELLOWTAIL – Look for the bird schools near the entrada.
CORVINA – They’re still biting practically anything hitting the water.
SNOOK – Eight fish over 10 pounds.
HALIBUT – Sandy beach, slow retrieved chartreuse Baja Deep Diver a sure thing.
SIERRA - Under the bird schools in the bay the best bet, but don't forget the wire.
ZIHUATANEJO, MAINLAND MEXICO
IN GENERAL: The 80º blue water is within a half mile of the beach and the great sailfish action is still holding up. Baja on the Fly clients brothers Leon and Kyle Stiffarm fly-fished two days with Martin and I on the panga “Isamar.” Leon is an excellent fly-fisherman for huge trout on the local lakes he visits on the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Glacier National Park, but he had never fished saltwater before.
We changed that in a hurry! We raised 17 sails, had 10 follow the teasers to the boat, and hooked 5. The first few fish were learning experiences for the brothers, because they had to overcome a major case of adrenaline rush. They had never even seen fish so big, yet alone be able to reach out and touch them with the rod tip. After the shooting head was wrapped about 20 times around the rod tip, and a pulled fly ended up threading itself between the line and the rod, they settled down and hooked almost every fish that came to the boat.
While returning to the dock, I told them they easily would have had an 8 sailfish day if we had been using conventional gear. A few minutes later, as Adolpho on the panga “Dos Hermanos” pulled alongside, as prophesied, he was flying 7 tag-and-release flags.
Water Temperature 78º-84º
Air Temperature 75° - 87º
Humidity 66%
Wind SW at 12 mph
Conditions Haze Smoke
Visibility 8 miles
Sunrise 7:01 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:09 p.m. CST
Dec.8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo report by Ed Kunze
IZTAPA, GUATEMALA
IN GENERAL: The sea conditions in Guatemala are beautiful, with very calm seas and partly cloudy skies. The run to the fish is highly variable each day with the best action seeming to occur between 20 and 30 miles, with pockets of action much closer at times. Over the last week the fishing has remained hot or cold, mainly due to not enough boats out to keep the action located. Overall, the boats averaged 12 releases out of 19 shots on sails, and 1 for 1 on marlin during the 5 days that were fished by the 8 boats. One boat spent a partial day inshore, and was able to release a couple of roosters, a couple of mackerel and a couple of jacks.
Water Temperature 80º-85º
Air Temperature 84°-84º
Humidity 79%
Wind West at 7 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility
Sunrise 6:12 a.m. CST
Sunset 5:33 p.m. CST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Guatemala report by Brian Barragy and Lissa M. McFarlin.
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Dec 1, 2003; 10:06AM - '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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Capt. George Landrum
'Fly Hooker' Sportfishing
gmlandrum@hotmail.com
www.flyhooker.com
WEEKLY FISH COUNT
Striped Marlin: 1 Tagged and released at #160
1 kept at #100 (bleeding badly)
Yellowfin Tuna: 23 kept between #15-#20
2 kept at #35
4 kept at #40
2 kept at #50-#60
Wahoo: 1 kept at #76
1 kept at #45
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 23, 2003
My cup just runs over this week as I have been invited out almost every day. Today
Bob Deeter is back in town, along with his lovely wife Paula and his two daughters.
Just Bob is fishing today and he will be going again on Friday. Since he is by himself,
he has invited me to go with him on the boat today. Since all my “honey Do’s” are
done, I am going! Bob loved the Wahoo he got last trip and now his goal for this trip is
to beat the 25 pound fish he caught last month. I told him that the moon is not quite
right, but he is fishing two days with us and four days on another boat (we were already
booked) so thinks he has a good chance of getting a large Wahoo. Juan and Juan 2
took us out this morning and we went straight south of the Arch, cruising out to 12 miles
before putting the lines in the water. I noticed on the way out that we still had some
vibration on the port side when we were traveling, but it was not as bad as before we
did the work yesterday. The lures went in the water and on the stinger line off the
bridge I put out a rigged Ballyhoo with a black and green skirted jet head in front of it.
Not 15 minutes after the lures went in the water, that rod got a strike. The fish came
off, but almost right away it came back and bit again. Juan 2 set the hook hard and
handed the rod down. Bob got in the chair and started working the fish. No jumps, and
the first run was a long one. Maybe....as the fish got closer to the boat after the second
run, I saw the signs, the rod tip jumped up and down as the fish shook it’s head, a
Wahoo for sure! As Bob worked the fish closer we knew for sure when the long shape
started to flash down deep! Bob kept the rod tip down and worked the fish closer, Juan
2 got hold of the small diameter wire leader then placed the gaff right in back of the
pectoral fin area and we hit it on the head with the bat. In the boat and high fives all
around! The fish measured 67 inches from the tip of the nose to the fork of the tail and
weighed 76 pounds on our scale, a very nice Wahoo in any ones book! Well, if all the
requests for fish were that easy to take care of! Bob had a monster smile on his face
all the rest of the trip. A little later we got to an area where there were already five
other boats working. Lots of Porpoise, maybe 40 Frigate birds and lots of Boobies and
terns working. On our first pass we hooked up to three Bonita, and as the guys reeled
them in, I dropped back a Mackerel. As the last Bonita came into the boat I got a hit on
the Mackerel. About 10 minutes later we gaffed a Yellowfin of about 35 pounds!
Another pass and another Bonita, which we released. Another pass and a smaller
Yellowfin of about 12 pounds. By then the fish were feeling the pressure from all the
other boats that had arrived and the bite turned off. We worked our way back tot he
Marina and when we came in we were flying the Wahoo flag and two white Tuna flags!
Bob said it was one of the best trips ever, as he was able to get the big Wahoo he had
wanted, gotten Tuna for smoking and ”had not seen a stinkin’ Marlin all day”. Yep, I
have to agree Bob, it was a great day! Let’s hope that Friday is as good for you!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 24 NOVEMBER, 2003
Our good friend Bill Gowder is in town for a couple of days and is fishing with us
today and golfing tomorrow. He is also having Ken Mattney at “High 5” lures make a
bunch of custom ones up to take to our friend John Eads in Guam. Bill will drop them
off, fish a day on John’s 31 Bertram, the “Lucky Strike”, and them return home to the
Philippines. Meanwhile, I get to fish with him! Like I said yesterday, my cup runs over!
Juan and Manuel took off and we again went straight south of the Arch, only today we
stopped just eight miles out. We slowed down to check why the stern bilge pump was
not working and found that the switch had failed. A quick fix and we put the lures, or
should I say lure, in the water. I had just finished rigging another Ballyhoo for the
stinger rod, Juan had set out a medium black/green “High 5” straight runner on the
short rigger and was getting ready to set the long rigger when the short rigger popped
loose and the line started to scream out! This was at 7:05 in the morning! Bill was on
the rod in a flash and after a hard fight with lots of jumps and thrashings had the fish
near the boat. The fish made another run. And another one. And one more. Then it
tired out and we were able to get it close enough to check it out. I had the tag stick
ready but as we leadered the fish we could see it bleeding heavily from the gills. The
trailing hook had gotten him deep so we went ahead and boated him. A nice start to
the day and it was only 7:50, and we had a Striped Marlin estimated at #100 already. A
few minutes later we spotted a tail on the surface and tossed a live bait but there was
no interest from the fish. At about 11 am we got to an area where two boats were
working. There were about 7 Frigate birds there as well as a few Porpoise and the
boats had been catching Tuna. Just as we arrived, one of the boats landed a fish, then
blasted right through the school as they ran for home. That put the fish down and we
did not see any other action until we got back to the are 8 miles out where we got the
Marlin this morning. Then, Manuel spotted another Striped Marlin tailing, Juan tossed
a bait, and...once again no interest was shown. Juan reeled in the bait, we resumed
trolling and there was another tail! Again, a repeat, with no interest shown by the fish.
Bait back in the boat, resume trolling and not 3 minutes later a hard strike on the long
rigger lure! I grabbed the rod, the fish came out of the water (Bill said around #200)
and as I set the hook the fish threw the lure! Oh well, just not my day! We had a great
time, caught a nice Marlin and had a good ride. Thanks for inviting me Bill, I hope you
have a great time golfing tomorrow!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 25 NOVEMBER, 2003
Our friend Ed Weiss and his wife Paula are back in town and Ed reserved today,
Thursday and Saturday for fishing on the “Fly Hooker”. We met last night and he
informed us that he would not be fishing on Saturday so we just have him today and
Thursday. If todays fishing was any indication, he needs that extra day of rest! Juan
and Manuel went to the south of the Arch again today, and they were able to get into
the Yellowfin Tuna. I think that Ed angled most of the fish, and they included one
Yellowfin of about #60, one about #50 and seven others between #15 and #20. The
#50 was the toughest fight as the fish had been snagged at the pectoral fin and Ed had
to fight it in from the side! The water was rough and Ed’s bone spurs in his shoulders
were bothering him, so they came in at 12:30. A bunch of other boats came in early as
well due to the water conditions. Ed was happy with the day’s results and said that the
day off between the fishing days is really needed for him! Thanks Ed, we will see you
Thursday morning!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 26, 2003
Joanne and Steve Coutrakis booked the “Fly Hooker” for today and they are fishing
with two other couples. I did get a chance to meet everyone this morning but as bad as
I am at names, the rest of them have vanished from my memory. Guess I will never be
a politician or timeshare salesman! They came in early so I have only the events as
related to me by Juan and Manuel, but it seems that they did fairly well. When they left
this morning I remember Joanne telling me that they would like for everyone to get a
chance to catch a Marlin, saying that as a bit of a joke, but knowing that it sometimes
happens. It did not happen this trip however. They did get into the porpoise about 15
miles out and had a great time catching Yellowfin Tuna. Four of the fish went between
#40 and #50, the other 11 fish were in the #20 range. With everyone tired of reeling in
fish and with the wind starting to pick up, they decided to come in early. Thanks folks,
we are glad you had a good time and had plenty of fish to fill the cooler with!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 27 NOVEMBER, 2003
This was the last scheduled fishing day for Ed and Paula Weiss, and Ed was still
looking for his Marlin. He had recovered from the fishing on Wednesday and is ready
to go at it again. Juan and Manuel headed out tot he south and ran across three
different Porpoise pods within 6 miles of the arch. They could see Tuna in the
Porpoise but could not get anything to bite. Knowing that the focus was on Marlin, they
did not work the Porpoise for long, but continued to work just offshore, since that
appeared to be where the Marlin had been the last few days, all within 8 miles of the
Cape. It was not a wide open bite by any means, but Ed did get to fight, tag and
release a Striped Marlin estimated at #160. They also had shots at two other fish that
came up on the lures and struck, took line then threw the hooks. Not a bad day, the
water was nice and there was action. Ed finally got the Marlin! Thanks Ed and Paula,
we look forward to having you aboard the “Fly Hooker” on you next trip!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 28, 2003
Our friend Tim McGee is back in town and has a few friends staying at his house
with him. Hey George, is the boat available this week? Sure Tim, come on down to the
dock on Friday morning and we will get you out! No problem and off they go. It is the
first time for a few folks, but they are determined to catch fish. Juan and Manuel end
up 27 miles out, chasing Porpoise and they get six or seven Tuna out of them, the
biggest one around 35 pounds and the rest just a little smaller. Tim just happens to be
standing next to a rod when a fish strikes and he had a choice of handing either the rod
or his beer to the person next to him, so of course he passed over the beer and took up
the rod. He was wearing his fighting belt and it took him a very short time before he
had the Wahoo, estimated at 40-45 pounds, to the boat for gaffing. The young man on
the trip caught the biggest Tuna, and it was his first fish ever. Tim told me that the
swells were around three feet and there was no wind chop, so conditions were great!
Glad to hear it, and glad you guys had a good time! Thanks Tim!
“FLY HOOKER” FISH REPORT FOR 29 NOVEMBER, 2003
Ron and Chris, who fished several days ago with Big John, are fishing with us again
today. They have invited Walter and his wife Debbie to fish with them. Ron and Chris
had tried to fish another boat we had arranged for them on the 27th but there were
problems and the trip did not go at all as planned, there were boat problems and no fish
caught. We had our fingers crossed this morning that Chris would finally be able to
feel a pull at the end of the line. Walter has some experience at big game fishing.
Around six years ago he caught a #600 Blue Marlin here in Cabo. Now that he has
his trophy fish, he just wants meat. The same with Chris and Ron so Juan and his
brother Juan take off to target Tuna. They worked their way out 17 miles to the south
before turning to the north-west, towards the San Jaime bank. Lots of Whales, lots of
Porpoise, but no fish. Not one strike all day. The water conditions were perfect, the
boat ride was nice, but it was supposed to be a fishing trip! Chris got the blame, of
course. New guy, not one strike two trips in a row...don’t take it personally Chris, but
there just might be something to it. How good is your golf game? Other than no fish, it
was a great day on the water. I’m sorry guys, I hope that next time you go the bite is
better. Until next week, Tight lines!
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Dec 1, 2003; 10:02AM - 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 FISH REPORT FOR NOVEMBER 23 TO NOVEMBER 29, 2003
WEATHER: The weather was great all week long! We had slightly overcast skies at
the beginning of the week but they had cleared completely by the weekend. Our low
temperature was in the mid to low 60’s while the highs may have reached the mid 90’s
but for the most part stayed in the high 80’s. Light winds, clear skies and great
temperatures, one of the reasons we love this time of year!
WATER: Surface conditions were great all week with low, rolling swells that may have
reached three feet in height. The light breeze kept things from getting glassy and was
just enough to make it comfortable. Our water temperatures on the Pacific side stayed
in the 77-78 degree range up to the Golden Gate bank, where it reached to 80 degrees.
On the Cortez side the water was the same with the warm spots being on the 1150 spot
and the Gorda bank. There was no defined temperature break within reach of us.
BAIT: A mix of Caballito and Mackerel with a few Sardinas being found as well. The
bigger baits were the normal $2 per and the Sardinas were running $20 a bucket.
FISHING:
BILLFISH: Just as was the case last week, this week the bite on Marlin seemed
concentrated on the ledge off the lighthouse on the Pacific side or on a slight color
break that ran from 3-5 miles off shore in the same area. The bite was definitely tide
related and in between the change lures worked better than bait. As the tide changed,
dropping down live bait , halfway to the bottom, seemed to produce a number of fish
while the jig bite dropped off. A few Blue Marlin were caught this week, but they have
become a bit of a rarity as the water cools down.
YELLOWFIN TUNA: There is no doubt that the Yellowfin Tuna were the fish of the
week. The bite was excellent for the beginning and middle of the week and the fish
ranged from 8 miles to 30 miles out. All the fish found were associated with Porpoise,
and some of the fish were big. One client of ours caught a #140 on live bait after
catching and releasing a couple of 5 pound fish in the same pod of Porpoise. The
majority of the fish were in the 15-25 pound range but there were quite a number of
them that were running 40-60 pounds as well. It seemed that the larger fish had a
preference for live bait or larger lures in dark colors while the smaller fish were striking
feathers, hootchies and cedar plugs. And of course, just as we got used to the bite and
started talking it up, it seemed to die! Why does that happen? On the weekend there
were still Porpoise everywhere but the Tuna , when they did come up, did not stay up.
We will keep our fingers crossed that things change back as quickly as they first
changed!
DORADO: Not a lot to say about the Dorado this week. There were fish caught but the
bite was not very steady or consistent. Those boats having luck with Dorado were
either the first to a floating piece of debris or caught them while fishing for something
else. The fish that were caught were not extremely large either, with most of them in
the 20-30 pound class. The Pacific side, close to home and to shore had a few more
fish show than elsewhere, but that may have been because of the number of boats
concentrated there working the Marlin bite.
WAHOO: There was no consistency to the Wahoo this week, but there were fish
caught. We had clients catch fish of 76 and 45 pounds, but they were blind strikes.
That 76 pound fish sure looked good coming in the boat! Rigged Ballyhoo worked well
as did lures in green/black or blue/black.
INSHORE: There was almost no inshore bite this week as all the action moved just
outside.
NOTES: Good weather, good fishing, good water conditions, well, what am I supposed
to do? Guess I have to go fishing! As soon as this report is finished and I finish my
cup of coffee, I am out of here. I have only one client on the boat today and he has
invited me to come along. Ouch, don’t twist my arm so hard! I am sure we will get fish
and see Whales, Porpoise and Turtles. Oh my goodness, am I ever glad I live here!
Until next week, tight lines!
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Nov 29, 2003; 12:53PM - Hot or Cold? Take Your Pick
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Category: Guatemala Sport Fishing
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Author Name: Gary Graham
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IZTAPA, GUATEMALA
IN GENERAL: The fishing the last week in Guatemala has been hot or cold depending on the day. There were few boats out during the week, but those that were fishing averaged 22 shots with 13 releases on sails. On good days there were as many as 45-50 sails in the pattern per boat. Dorado action is steady with 5 per boat per day, and some boats have had good action on 20 pound tuna. Inshore, there was no one out again.
Water Temperature 80º-85º
Air Temperature 80°-86º
Humidity 62%
Wind SW at 5 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility
Sunrise 6:09 a.m. CST
Sunset 5:32 p.m. CST
Nov. 30 First Quarter, Dec.8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec 23 New
For more Information on Baja on the Fly's Guatemala trips, go to:
http://www.guatemalafly.com
Baja on the Fly's Guatemala report by Brian Barragy and Lissa M. McFarlin.
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Nov 29, 2003; 12:52PM - The Bite Goes On........
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Category: Mexico Ixtapa Zihuatanejo
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Author Name: Gary Graham
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ZIHUATANEJO, MAINLAND MEXICO
IN GENERAL: The conditions and fishing remain the same as last week. Everything is outstanding. The 80º blue water is about 8 miles and the sailfish action is holding up. Captain Cali, on the “Vamonos II,” had successive days of 5, 8, 6, 5, 5, 6, and 8 sailfish caught and released on conventional tackle this last 7 day period.
Almost every boat is also getting a 20- to 30-pound dorado for dinner, on incidental strikes, while fishing for sails.
The inshore action is hold well with the roosterfish and large jack crevalle of 12- to 18-pounds.
Water Temperature 75º-86º
Air Temperature 77° - 91º
Humidity 66%
Wind WSW at 12 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility 8 miles
Sunrise 6:58 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:09 p.m. CST
Nov. 30 First Quarter, Dec.8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec 23 New
For more Information on Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo trips, go to:
http://www.bajafly.com/Zihuatanejo.htm
Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo report by Ed Kunze
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