La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay / Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Jan 19-26, 2020
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Scott Bryant from Colorado has himself some good eating cabrilla for dinner while staying at Rancho Costa.
Jigging with yo-yo iron, Dr. Santiago Gamaliel hung this nice yellowtail and had two other break off.
From Alaska, Mic Ward came down to enjoy a few days of sunshine at Rancho Costa at Bahia de los Muertos south of La Paz and landed a double-hand of cabrilla.
Not much of anyone out fishing this past week with mostly windy rough days outside. Most of the fishing was confined to inshore species as anglers hugged the coastal areas seeking calmer water and protection from the north winds and choppy ocean.
Using Rapalas, stripped bait, squid and live bait (when it could be found), produced a mixed bag of pargo, snapper, triggerfish and cabrilla as well as some bonito, sierra and jack crevalle. Slowly dragging smaller dark Rapalas over the rocky spots were especially productive for a variety of species. Some yellowtail popped up as well and hopefully, this is the vanguard of our yellowtail
Despite the winds, it’s been sunny with highs in the mid to upper 70’s and nights down to the mid-50’s, but it looks like more wind will hit later this week.
DOWN THE ROAD WE GO!
Jill and I are just wrapping up here at the Washington State Fairgrounds where we spent the last 5 days in our booth at the Washington Sportsman’s Show! It was the best show we’ve ever had here in almost 2 decades at this show. Welcome to all our new amigos to the Tailhunter Nation and to see so many old friends and faces. Also had alot of folks sign up to come down to see us as well and made reservations to fish with us in 2020. We’re excited to have you down to visit!
Thanks for all the hospitality Washington! (And rain too…loved it! We don’t get much rain in Baja!)
So, here we go…next stop down the road south to Portland for the Pacific Northwest Sportsmans Show at the Portland Expo Center. This is one of the largest outdoor shows in the Western U.S. and if you’re in the area, you gotta check it out! Here’s details. Click the link:
Next stop…OREGON at the Portland Expo Center Feb. 5-9! Come see us!
WHALE WATCHING SEASON UNDERWAY AT BAHIA MAGDALENA
Although there might not be lots of folks fishing right now, the 2002 whale watching season is just getting underway. Whales should just about starting to show up.
It’s not too late to book a trip with us to head on over to experience an incredible day with these gentle creatures that migrate all the way from the Bering Sea year-after-year to spend the early months in the warm shallow waters of Bahia Magdalena. Just write to me directly at: Jonathan@tailhunter.com
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Jan. 12-19, 2020
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Some good eating sierra on board for Robert Boyd from Colorado.
Gary Wagner, our amigo, who owns the Rancho Costa Resort in Muertos has himself a handful or winter dorado.
All the way from Alaska, winter is a little different in Baja! Mic Ward shows off one of her sierra.
It’s been COLD in La Paz this past week along with some windy weather. The winds are expected this time of year, but it’s been colder than normal…at least by La Paz standards with us locals bundling up and even the tourists donning the occasional sweatshirt or windbreaker. Although most look at us kinda strange as they walk around in shorts and flip-flops.
Lots of snowbirds in town and although the temps are in the 60’s and 70’s with the wind, it’s still a lot warmer than where they live back in places like Minnesota, Wyoming and Alaska!
The climate, of course, affects the ability to be out there fishing. It’s been hard to put anyone out there and there’s not that many folks wanting to fish anyway. Or, folks that want to fish understandably get discouraged when they see the winds. Best to just hang out drinking a margarita by the pool!
When folks have been fishing, the better fishing has been tucked in close to shore, especially in areas where you can find some protection from wind and waves. Therefore, the majority of the fish have been inshore specias like cabrilla, snapper, triggerfish, pargo, jack crevalle and sierra. All fun and good eating fish.
Sierra have a moutful of choppers! Best to use wire when you fish them!
When there are window’s of calm, there’s still some dorado around running to about 10 or 15 pounds plus some good action on 5-pound bonito. The larger issue has been finding live bait in which case lures are the most productive way to catch fish. With rough waters it’s tough to get into the areas where the live bait is holding along the shores and rocks.
I’ve heard a few stories about commercial guys finding some yellowtail as well as some private boaters. We’ll keep an eye on that!
TAILHUNTER ROAD TOUR 2020 !
We finished the Denver Sportsmans Show two weeks ago then just wrapped up another fantastic show at the California Expo Fairgrounds in Sacramento CA.
That drive from Denver to Sacramento was incredible! In almost 3 decades driving to and from these shows, this was some of the craziest driving we ever had, especially through Wyoming, Utah and Nevada. We went through several blizzards where it was white-out conditions and almost zero visibility! Plus winds blowing 60-70 mph. All kinds of trucks and cars spinning off the road and flipping over. Check out this video:
Packed to the gills, Jonathan, Jill and Catlyn (the Mexican Pocket Panther)
Jill “Mustang Sally” after a long long drive through the snow and ice!
So, by the time you’re reading this, we’ll be on the highway again going north from Sacramento towards Seattle. We’ll be at the Washington State Fairgrounds in Puyallup WA for the Washington Sportsmans Show which starts Wednesday and goes to Sunday. Lots to see and do for the entire family! Come see us. We’ll be in our Tailhunter booth for all 5 days. We’ll get you set up on your 2020 La Paz fishing vacation!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Jan. 5-12, 2020
Mexican Minute Video Report
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Like alot of places in North America this past week…
It’s been COLD in La Paz to go along with some windy weather. The winds are expected this time of year, but it’s been colder than normal…at least by La Paz standards with us locals bundling up and even the tourists donning the occasional sweatshirt or windbreaker. Although most look at us kinda strange as they walk around in shorts and flip-flops.
Check out this video clip. The voice you hear is Benny outiside Tailhunter Restaurant:
Lots of snowbirds in town and although the temps are in the 60’s and 70’s with the wind, it’s still a lot warmer than where they live back in places like Minnesota, Wyoming and Alaska!
The climate, of course, affects the ability to be out there fishing. It’s been hard to put anyone out there and there’s not that many folks wanting to fish anyway. Or, folks that want to fish understandably get discouraged when they see the winds. Best to just hang out drinking a margarita by the pool!
When folks have been fishing, the better fishing has been tucked in close to shore, especially in areas where you can find some protection from wind and waves. Therefore, the majority of the fish have been inshore specias like cabrilla, snapper, triggerfish, pargo, jack crevalle and sierra. All fun and good eating fish.
When there are window’s of calm, there’s still some dorado around running to about 10 or 15 pounds plus some good action on 5-pound bonito. The larger issue has been finding live bait in which case lures are the most productive way to catch fish. With rough waters it’s tough to get into the areas where the live bait is holding along the shores and rocks.
I’ve heard a few stories about commercial guys finding some yellowtail as well as some private boaters. We’ll keep an eye on that!
ROAD TOUR 2020 HEADED TO SACRAMENTO!
Thank you for the hospitality Denver! We always have a great time!!!
We just wrapped up an incredible 4 day show at the International Sportsmans Expo at the Denver Convention Center. It was fantastic! So great for Jill and I to see so many of our old amigos and make so many new ones! Welcome to the Tailhunter Nation! We took lots of new reservations for 2020 and we’re looking foward to the visit!
At the time you’re reading this, Jill and I will be on the road headed west. We have about 1000 miles to cover to get to the next show which is the International Sportsmans Expo at the California Fairgrounds in Sacramento CA. This is a HUGE show with tons of stuff to see and do. Bring your walking shoes and the whole family! I’m told more than 700 exhibitors will be on hand to talk about fishing, hunting, camping, boating, RV’s, kayaking and so much more!
Jill and I will be there in our booth with new flyers, brochures and hats all four days Jan. 16-19 (Thursday to Sunday). Let’s talk about fishing in 2020! Hope to see you there!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Dec. 8-15, 2019
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Not too different even in Mexico! Christmas scenes like this one with kids lining up for visits with Santa and their favorite cartoon characters downtown La Paz.
Manger scenes for Christmas in La Paz
Town is kinda quiet right now! It’s that lull between the holidays and not many folks in town right now except for some snowbirds and kiteboarders and windsurfers taking advantage of the winter breezes. Not really many folks on the water as this is off-season for fishing, but even then, most folks in town are just enjoying the sunshine and getting ready for Christmas. Definitely seems like you can already smell the tamales cooking on the streets! But, lights are up and folks are doing Christmas shopping and that’s kind of it.
Some action for fishing has mostly been inshore. There’s a decent bite over the rocky spots of cabrilla up to about 5 pounds plus snapper and pargo. All great eating fish. The hard-pullers include some nice jack-crevalle running up to about 10 pounds plus good activity on bonito. Really hard to get a complete fishing picture when not many folks are fishing. It was too bad because this past week was one of the better weeks for weather and minimal winds.
I’m sure town is gonna start getting more crowded in the next few days as we get closer to Christmas.
BOOKING FOR 2020
It’s not too early to check on getting your dates together for next year which hits us in just a few weeks already! Reservations are already coming in steadily and some dates are filling fast and a few are already sold out. Don’t wait to see at at one of the sport shows. Last year, by March, we were largely all booked up. Get in touch with us today. Check out the website at http://www.tailhunter.com or e-mail me directly at Jonathan@tailhunter.com and let’s get you set up to fish with us in La Paz in 2020!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 10-17, 2019
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Weather was up-and-down all week with sunshine mixed with clouds, wind, rain drizzle and thunderstorms at times as Tropical Storm Raymond hit southern Baja including La Paz.
Dr. Roberto Santiago got a wahoo fishing out of Bahia Muertos near Las Arenas. He also picked up a medium-sized dorado as well in a rare break in the rough weather that plagued La Paz a good part of the week.
For one day of fishing with our Tailhunter La Paz Fleet, Brian Benson made the most of that little window and sho off some of the dorado he caught outside La Paz Bay.
Dr. Santiago again with one of his bull dorado caught out of Bahia Muertos.
Not many folks on the water this past week even if there were a lot of fishermen. As we slide into the off-season, weather has become a larger factor. For the same reason that the La Paz area becomes a mecca as a world class windsurfing and kite-boarding because of the strong winds during the winter, it makes it difficult to fish and a good part of this week, we had either winds, rain and rough seas…and sometimes all three hindering being out on th water.
Earlier in the week, we had some rain. Then, it let up with some small windows of opportunity, but then Tropical Storm Raymond, a late season blow, came up the Baja and dropped several days of rain and drizzle along with dark skies and blustery seas.
Even if we had wanted to go out, the Port Captain closed the port prohibiting boat traffic from going out at all.
The few windows of opportunity that did open provided some scratchy action on some school-sized dorado ranging mostly from 10-15 pounds plus, there’s still some wahoo around which is not unusual for this time of year.
Bonito, jack crevalle and small cabrilla added to the catch. We got some reports that commercial guys near the island reefs had found some yellowtail, but it was hard to follow-up on that and get across to the island with the rough water in the channels making it difficult to get over there.
As the current storm moves out, we’re expecting some stronger guts this week. Bring your windsurfer!
WHALE WATCHING SEASON COMING UP!
Perfect for the whole family!
Can you scratch this little itch on my nose?
Our whalewatching season is fast approaching with ideal months from Mid-January to Mid-March. The whales have already started their migration way up north in the Bering Sea and headed south to Baja and we’re already taking reservations for our annual whalewatching tours. We can set up everything including transportation, hotels and, of course, a day or more with the whales. Contact us today. It can get pretty crowded with reservations as the popularity has grown to spend time with these great gentle creatures.
RESERVATIONS 2020
Speaking of 2020…don’t get left out for next year’s fishing!
We filled up really fast in 2019 and we don’t want to miss you next year, especially if you have special dates; hotels or captains you want. Reservations are are already coming in daily and some dates are already sold out.
Get in touch with us today and let’s get you set up! We’ve been full-service outfitters here in La Paz for 26 years and can set up everything for your vacation package!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 3-10, 2019
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Gary Wagner has caught lots of big fish, but knew he had a battle on his hand when he switched down to 25-pound test fluorocarbon and this big yellowfin tuna bit the lines. He was on the fish for more than 3 ½ hours! Gary owns the Giggling Marlin Bar in Cabo San Lucas but was staying at his Rancho Costa in Muertos Bay near Las Arenas.
Don Fee was in town from Florida and we got him out on the water for one day for his first time and he said he had bites all day producing some dorado, cabrilla, bonito and even some small roosterfish.
He said he was embarrassed to admit this fish took about 4 hours to put in the boat, but Roger Thompson has caught bigger tuna, but few that were this scrappy and he had to do it on 40 pound test. “It pulled the panga,” he told us. Roger was fishing the south side of Cerralvo Island across from Las Arenas.
Efrain and Patrick hold up a couple of their dorado with Captain Jorge.
Don caught and released a couple of these fiesty little roosterfish in Bahia Muertos. He let them grow so they’ll be the big 60-pounders in the spring-time!
Great eating pargo! Gary said he could have caught these all day long on light tackle just south of Bahia Muertos towards Boca de Alamo.
Three dorado! Dinner for Don to pack up and bring back to La Paz.
There were some blustery days that it was good no one was fishing, but there were some nice days too. The problem was…no one was fishing! Snow birds have started to descend on La Paz to enjoy the sunshine and our new Malecon, but the off-season has started and not much of anyone fishing these days because the winds are unpredictable.
However, we did have some folks out and on the days it wasn’t bumpy and windy, there were some fish to be caught.
Most suprising were the big tuna hung on the south side of Cerralvo Island. Go figure. Everyone leaves and all the fishermen are pretty much gone and the big tuna show up.
These were pretty beastly animals. The ranged from 60-100 pounds and there weren’t many of them, but the ones that did bite would only eat light line which is incredibly problematic when you are using 25-40 pound line and a powerful tuna crunches your bait. These fish required 3-4 hours of backbreaking battles to get them to the boats!
For other species, there’s still some decent dorado around running 10-15 pounds or so. Not a lot, but enough to keep it interesting. Mix in some bonito, jack crevalle, a few pargo and snapper and the occasional little roosterfish and it could be a fun day.
That’s our story!
Hope you have a great Veteran’s Day Weekend and thank you all who have served!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Oct. 27-Nov. 3, 2019
Mexican Minute Video Fishing Report
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
First day out he hits the home run! With Captain Gerardo, Jeff Wedekind who owns the Chinook Shore Lodge in Ketchican, Alaska locked up this big wahoo.
Nice tuna for Rich Choate from Idaho. One of the few YFT’s hooked this week.
Amigo, Roger Thompson, was soaking a dead mackerel down deep off the Punta Arenas lighthouse when he got slammed by this toad yellowtail.
Maybe one of the largest dorado of the season, Jeff hooked this one out’ve Bahia Muertos.
Barbara Choate always has a great smile no matter what and she’s got a reason with his pretty blue dorado.
Colorful shot! Roger Sauvegeau from Boise, Idaho, had just one day to fish, but got himself a nice load of dorado like this one fishing with our Tailhunter La Paz fleet.
Captain Armando with Randy and Barbara Choate and a nice batch of dorado.
Celebrating her honeymoon, Coral Ogden Hart has been our amigo since she was a little girl. She got this unusual rainbow runner off Bahia Muertos. These are cousin to the yellowtail.
Our good amigos from the Imperial Valley of California, Craig and Cathy Corda posing with a little Bahia Muertos yellowtail they released.
Another set of our fun friends from Idaho, Teri and Mac Christopherson hold up a double-hooke-up of dorado.
They always keep me laughing. Tom and Claire Ames posing on the beach at Bahia Muertos.
Captain Pancho took Dan Friedman from San Diego out for one day and he got this nice dorado as well as a wahoo on his first try!
You can tell waters are getting colder when rainbow runners like this one by Rick Choate, show up.
A good day in November! Teri and Mac Christopherson.
Paul Octavio had himself a good week on the flyrod like with his fun roosterfish hooked and released. He had a blue marlin on the flyrod one day.
Clair McPherson took 20 minutes on this nice bull dorado giving Captain Victor and her a big reason to smile when they finally got the pretty fish in the boat.
Cheers! Rick Choate with a mess of good eating cabrilla, snapper and a trigger.
On the good side, the sun was out all week and the snowbirds from Canada, Alaska, Europe and colder areas are filtering into town. On the downside, it wasn’t the best for fishing.
Northern winds ramped up and it’s just the start. This is what happens during the colder months. Two days we couldn’t even go out because the Port Captain shut down the port to all boat traffic and there were several other days when it would have been better if we had just not gone out at all.
The strong winds have the waters stirred up and dirty. It brings in coolder greener waters as well. Additionally, the currents and waves are up so makes for a less-than-comfortable day of fishing. Plus, if the waves are crashing the shallow areas, it makes it hard to get bait.
However, kudos to our anglers and captains for hanging in there. They braved the rougher seas with tight grins and still caught some fish.
There weren’t a lot of fish caught unless you’re counting bonito, jack crevalle and needlefish. However, some of the largest dorado of the season were hooked as well as a few wahoo and tuna. We even had several marlin hook ups as well (fish were lost).
The better fishing was with our Tailhunter Las Arenas fleet where it’s a bit more protected. I imagine as the winds increase and become more frequent, we’ll be doing most of our fishing from that area.
2020 RESERVATIONS
Bookings are already coming in pretty fast and heavy for 2020. Some dates are already filled or filling and popular captains are getting reserved as well. In 2019, we were sold out by March and 2020 looks even busier. Don’t wait . Check your calendars so we make sure we get you locked in.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Oct. 13-20, 2019
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO FISHING REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Alot of meat! Marlene Kikuchi from Los Angeles had a live mackerel pinned to her line not far from Punta Arenas with Captain Pancho when she hooked this massive wahoo not far from the shoreline. The big fish was weighed on a scale and measured 56-pounds!
It’s been over 10 years since Mark Rubin came to visit us so it was good to see him. He was out fishing with Captain Arcangel and got this colorful dorado up for a great photo!
On her first day out and first-time in La Paz, Kathy Parker was with Captain Luis and deckie Miguel in the channel between the city and Espirito Santo Island in an area where big 50-150 pound tuna had been sighted. On her first bait in the water, this big yellowfin inhaled her little sardine and the fight was on! With her sister, Sherry (see photo below), trading the rod-back-and-forth for 4 long hours, the ladies finally got this big boy to the boat!
Holly Kunzler’s big dorado of the week was caught while fishing with our Tailhunter La Paz Fleet. Holly’s first trip to Baja and she was with us for the better part of the week visiting from Utah.
Our long-time amigos with their favorite Captain Jorge, Marianne and Jeff Sakuda enjoying Jeff’s retirement vacation after 30 years as a pilot for United, they kicked off things with a nice rack of bull dorado.
Double tag-team! Sherry Cady was on her 2nd visit to us this year and this time brought her sister, Kathy Parker (see photo above) when they hung this big yellowfin tuna with deckhand Miguel and Captain Luis and battled the fat fish for 4 hours!
Montana Dewey and Leslie Spafford guide trips in Arizona and came to visit this week and go into some dorado and cabrilla their first day at Las Arenas.
First-timer and happy fisherman, George Misner, started his trip with a nice bull dorado just south of Bahia Muertos.
Popular Captain Chito hung two of those big tuna that were boiling north of La Paz for a few days. Unfortunately, photos of the clients didn’t come out!
Hi Craig! Always good to have Craig Corda back with us . He’s been our amigo for over 20 years and never has a bad day.
Al Chaves lives outside of Phoenix and was out with Captain Jorge when he got this dorado. He had a big tuna on briefly.
Jarat Bagwell from Arizona got the jackpot with his buddies when he caught the most fish for the day including dorado, cabrilla and snapper.
Texas in the house! Cody Timberlake is a professional cowboy and former bullrider and lives in Banderas TX. First trip with us and a dorado with Captain Alfredo.
Monte Aldridge shows off a bull dorado he picked up fishing off Espirito Santo Island. He’s from Richfield UT and always good to have him visit.
Eric Gunnells and Steve Bayer picked up these dorado on their one day out’ve Bahia Muertos.
Barbara Burnett and her husband Jerry have their own great salmon operation in Juneau AK, but came to visit us and started off with a day of dorado.
These are great eating triggerfish! Best ceviche and fish tacos! Captain Jorge with or friends, Jeff and Marianne Sakuda.
Captain Fili is hidden behind a dorado, but no hiding Zach Arnold and Trent Baysinger and a couple of nice mahi.
Good to see Captain Arcangel smiling. Nice dorado in the box again for Mark.
Things have fallen off rapidly with cooler temperature, stronger winds and currents and rougher water the last week-and-a-half. Fishing has also dropped off dramatically. The warm water season ended sooner than expected and I think things will continue to change as warm water species like the dorado, tuna, wahoo, and billfish move out and are replaced by more inshore cooler water species.
Once again this week, captains and clients worked hard to find picky fish. Bait was harder to come by in the rougher waters and there were times with there were some uncharacteristically big swells, chop and gusty winds making it more difficult to fish. The winds will only get stronger as normally calm La Paz Bay even got some big wind-generated rollers that smashed waves onto the waterfront areas.
There were still some dorado around although the schools are diminishing. Most days boats scratched out a catch of 1-5 dorado per day with most about 10 pounds or so. Smaller ones were released. Lots of bonito, fortunately usually kept rods bent.
More inshore fish like triggerfish, snapper, pargo and cabrilla as well as sierra and jack crevalle and pompano increased in the counts as waters cooled and it became more incumbent to fish closer to the beaches and rocks.
There are, however, some great catches still waiting!
We had a few nice wahoo this week including a whopper 56-pounder by Marlene Kikuchi from Los Angeles. As well, there’s still the occasional 30-50 pound roosterfish.
The biggest surprise was the appearance of some pig yellowfin tuna that were in the 50-150 pound class between Punta Tecolote and Espirito Santo Island in the channel. These fish were toads that tore into anglers for 1-4 hour battles, when they would bite. Sometimes, they were just a tease boiling around the pangas, but not interested in eating a hooked bait. But, when they did bite, they were beasts! Normally, we don’t see tuna around La Paz as we catch them mainly around Las Arenas so this was a nice surprise!
BOOKING FOR 2020 STARTING TO FILL
Ice chests full of fish headed to the airport!
Our reservations are coming in faster than normal and many dates in 2020 are getting filled. Calls and e-mails are coming in daily. Some dates are already sold out. In 2019 we were filled by March.
We don’t want to miss you. If you have a favorite captain, hotel or date in mind, don’t wait. Especially, don’t wait until we do our fishing and hunting show tour in the winter. We want to be sure we have you down and covered so we can have you visit next year!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Oct. 6-13, 2019
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Firefighters Tim Nishimura and Scott Johnson from the Sacramento CA area have been coming for years to fish around La Paz and have caught almost every fish in the area. However, the wahoo have been elusive until this week when they were out with their favorite Captain Gerardo of the Tailhunter Fleet and they each finally got their wahoo as well as a 3rd ‘hoo as well while trolling Rapalas.
John Kennedy from Auburn, California tries to make a yearly trip to La Paz to fish with the Tailhunter Fleet and his favorite Captain Victor. He was with Victor when they caught a bonito and Victor quickly grabbed it; put it on a heavier rig; and went over to shallow water where they hooked and landed this whopper dog-tooth snapper. John said they lost several others that they couldn’t stop.
Beautiful photo and beautiful dorado for Don Vegter from Redondo Beach CA with Captain Gerardo goofing off behind the shot. The fish was Don’s personal best dorado and caught on live bait near Punta Arenas.
There’s a zillion reasons to love this photo of Roger Thompson and this big ‘hoo! He said it was almost an instant biter upon dropping the lures back. He was fishing with Captain Hugo.
There are good days fishing and then there are REALLY good days fishing! Their first vacation in 25 years, Kimberlee and Kurt Cochran run a commercial fishing operation in Homer, Alaska. Their first day out was with Captain Moncho. They got their first marlin but look at the table in front…a huge wahoo…dorado…cabrilla…triggerfish too.
Our long time friends from Sacramento, Dennis Fujii and Wayne Kurahara start off with some good-sized dorado.
Making his 2nd trip in 2019 to see us, Chad McConnell from Arizona hung this colorful bull mahi fishing on Captain Alfredo’s boat.
I don’t know if this is his first or his 2nd wahoo, but Andy had never fished before and he takes down TWO wahoo! Awesome!
There were a few tuna here and there like the one Captain Jorge is holding and some nice bit of dorado to take home for Lon Tsukamoto and Walt Menda.
Great shot of Andy McIntyre and his wahoo . Note…there’s another on the cleaning table behind him!
This is a pig of a tuna! Dave Lindell from Pendleton OR has fished with us for many years and caught lots of fish, but this one was a bruiser and estimated between 70-80 pounds. Captain Armando gives a hand . Dave fought the fish almost 90 minutes!
First time with us from Denver, Jaren Jackson and Mike Miller got themselves a pair of fast-moving wahoo trophies.
Just a pretty shot in the channel in front of Cerralvo Island with Laurie Reynolds from Lake Havasu, AZ.
Captain Jorge with a couple of our newest and nicest visitors, Darren Robinson and Traci Kidman.
Tom Mullican from Dallas TX visits us twice a year and always does well, especially with Captain Pancho. Nice tuna and big pargo!
Gary Okamoto and Captain Jorge got themselves a wahoo!
From Washington, Bill Bigelman, wanted to make sure he finaly got in the fishing report!
Captain Gerardo with our amiga, Chelsea Roos, celebrating her engagement to Don Vegter with a couple day of fishing and here with a sleep wahoo.
It looks a bit bumpy and rough out there, but Candace and Captain Raul got this dorado under control just east of Espirito Santo Island.
Oh wow…John Stone might have one of the most colorful shots of the week with this dorado! John’s 2nd trip to year to visit us.
Now, this beats starting your day on the freeway any day! Don Vegter got his first wahoo at daybreak outside Bahia Muertos.
Captain Gerardo was on fire this week. Another wahoo, this time with Joe Cameron.
Bob McPhee came down with 6 of his buddies to celebrate their 50th birthday…all of them! And catch some dorado too!
Bobbi Kennedy from Denver with her two great kids, Erin and Raphael and a day of dorado . Bobbi never stops smiling. Great to have them visit!
Again…Andy’s first time ever..and he catches two wahoo. This might be the 2nd wahoo.
That’s a big mahi for Lon. Don’t see many female dorado that big . Great catch.
Tom Mullican again in the gallery this time with a nice load of dorado and a fat barred pargo too!
A last minute trip and they made good with a stack of dorado for Fionne and his dad, Bill Dingwell from Chandler AZ. They also squeezed in a day of diving as well.
Captain Jorge took this photo for me of the beach at Punta Arenas as the storm approached us Sunday and why we figured it was a good day to cancel the boats and not take any chances.
It was a pretty solid week of fishing mostly with fairly good conditions and cooperative fish until the end of the week when heavy rains arrived and put a damper on the bite and fishermen’s spirits.
Dorado continued to be the mainstay and if you wanted a dorado, they were 80% of the catch and found in a wide area by both our Tailhunter Las Arenas and our Tailhunter La Paz fleets. La Paz seemed to have more fish most days, but Las Arenas had the larger fish. Some days were better than others. Some boats did better than others. Some days, La Paz had the better bite but the next day, Las Arenas would have the hot honey holes.
Most fish were 10-20 pounders. Lots of little dorado were released.
The true highlight of the week was the heightened action on the wahoo. This time of year is historically good for wahoo, but until this past week or so, the wahoo weren’t showing much interest in biting.
However, each day wahoo were hooked and lost by our anglers fishing around Cerralvo Island as well as Punta Perrico and in the channel between the island and Punta Arenas. Fish were between 20-and 50 pounders and most were caught trolling with dark-colored Rapalas or Yo-Zuri Magnums. Quite a few fish were lost and there were a few days when several of our pangas boated multiple wahoo.
Other catches this week included hook-ups and both blue marlin and striped marlin and a sprinkling of yellowfin tuna. Most were large footballs but one 50 pounder and another in the 70-80 pound class. We also got a few of the big dog-tooth snapper, as well as cabrilla, pargo, triggerfish, some sierra, amberjack and lots of bonito!
It was all going well until it started to rain later Saturday afternoon. And rained…and rained. Through Sunday forcing us to cancel trips. It wasn’t a strong rain. Just a steady rain. Not a hurricane, but interestingly, more rain fell from this “rainstorm” than Hurricane “Lorena” several weeks ago. We experienced power outtages and some areas had big areas of flooding. Hopefully, by the time you are reading this, we’ll be back on the water.
MAGDALENA BAY REPORT
John Kennedy has been a long-time Tailhunter amigo and he waited 2 years to do one of our light tackle trips to fish the mangroves in Bahia Magdalena. In just 1 day of fishing, Tom estimated he caught at least 10 different species including, corvina, pargo, dog-tooth snapper, grouper, cabrilla, sheephead, grunt, triggerfish and more.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Sept. 15-20, 2019
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
I shot this earlier than normal…two days before the end of the week as Hurricane Lorena was about to hit us and I did not know at the time if we would lose electricity and internet. Plus, I had a feeling that the rest of week we’d have to cancel fishing for a day or two. So, it’s a little longer than normal as well because there was alot to chat about!
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Hurricane Lorena was supposed to have veered off, but at the last minute came straight for us. It could have been alot worse as it dropped rain and wind on us for about 12 hours before moving on. The biggest issue was that we had to cancel fishing and diving and lots of folks got stuck when the airlines shut down or the airport got closed.
What an incredible marlin bite we had! For several days mid-week we had the best marlin fishing we have ever seen where almost every panga each day hooked 1-4 marlin like the Lauby Brothers…Justin and Noah…who hooked for marlin in 2 days. Most fish over the week were released and much meat was donated.
One of our newest funnest Tailhunter tribe members, Mari Bedsaul had some fun with us and got into some of that fun dorado fishing with Captain Alfredo.
Captain Arcangel looks like he’s checking the teeth of this big roosterfish…or looking for the hook so they can release it! But nice first rooster for Jon Sparks! And yes…they were able to release it!
The biggest tuna of the week and her first ever for Kasey Dewey from Washington. Tough fish, especially for a first-timer and she did great!
April Perry, husband Ryan and brother Taylor Sering got this blue marlin in that great marlin bite this week tag-teaming the rod on light tackle! One of the few blues that was caught. Most of the fish were able to be released and much meat was donated.
Dave Sowards has been visiting us for several years and always seems to do well. He got this striper with Captain Chito and had several others on as well.
Love this shot!!! Big smiles from Taylor Sering and Captain Luis plus a nice bull dorado as well.
That’s quite a table of fish for Larry Axtell and Clint Lowe from Idaho with Captain Fili including dorado, triggers and jack crevalle.
First marlin for firefighter Kallie Stahley who came down with her dad and were at the start of the marlin and dorado bite this week.
Not many tuna this week, but Greg Walter poses with a couple of nice footballs!
What a great shot and a super fish! Fishing wit Captain Jorge right off Punta Perico, Mari Bledsaul started her fishing week with a hefty roosterfish caught…photo’d…and released! Nicely done!
Great color and one of our newest amigas at Tailhunter, April Perry, from easter Washington poses with a fresh dorado.
Two funny guys and their tuna! Lou Torres and Frank Marshall! Tuna were hard to come by this week just when I thought they’d turn on!
Hard to find too many nicer guys than Chris Bedsaul showing off his first roosterfish. The fish was released!
Yes, there’s still lots of big hard-charging jack crevalle around to bend rods like this bad boy caught by Stefan Zeltvay. Cousin to the roosterfish, the Mexican name for them is “toro” (bull) for good reason. They are roosterfish without the headgear!
First day on the water with a sweet bit of tuna and dorado fillets for Randy and Kasey Dewey with Captain Gerardo peeking from behind.
Double dorado on the beach for April Sering. Some of it headed to our Tailhunter Restaurant for dinner
Another dorado for Mari north of La Paz.
Wow…what a week!
Initially with the full moon, I was wondering if the lunar phase would affect the nice dorado bite we had been having. I’m not a big believer in how the moon affects our fishing down here, but you just never know!
So, the week kicked off with no big change in the dorado bite. In fact, it got better and the fish got bigger! Especially for our Tailhunter La Paz fleet, it was pretty typical to get limits of 10-20 or 25 pound dorado and then catch and release many many more. Lots of fun!
How can you beat this photo! Dorado underwater! Thanks, Chris Bedsaul!
But, then the craziest thing happened…
The marlin went crazy nut insane! In 25 years here, I have never seen anything like it. For 4 days, almost all our pangas were hooking 1-4 marlin per boat per day! Stripers up to 120 pounds! Blue Marlin in the 150-250 pound range! We even had a 600 pound marlin at one point.
Here’s what some of our folks said:
“We had two marlin on the line and another one came up and bit a 3rd rod the captain had in the water. He was trying to figure out which marlin to chase after with the boat!”
“We hooked and released two marlin and tried to get away from them and moved the boat. Two marlin swam after the boat like they wanted to be fed!”
“Our panga was in the middle of the dorado school and we had two fish one and I happened to look down and saw a marlin just kinda hanging under the boat. Then, I felt a bump and realized there was another marlin bumping the boat!”
“Pretty exciting stuff. In 3 days, we hooked and released 5 marlin on light tackle including 4 stripers and 1 blue. My wife says she loves fishing now! Our last fish we were on our way in and had one rod out with a little feather and a striper bit it!”
The big issue was that so many of these fish showed up while guys were going full-turbo in the dorado schools. Consequently, they were fishing with light 30 and 40 pound test…small hooks and small baits when the marlin bit. Many of the marlin were not only eating the baits, but also eating the dorado.
On light tackle, the fights were long and epic.
Dave again!
The bad thing was that many folks tried to release fish but the fish were exhausted. We released the majority of the fish, but some were not able to be released but many of our anglers donated meat to needy folks here in town. Also, because of the small hooks and lines, the marlin were swallowing the hooks all the way down and that also made it difficult to release fish!
The other aspect is that as long as some fights were…others were short and some of the larger fish, especially, the blue marlin were lost! By day 3, many of our captains were putting some heavier gear aboard!
Then…Hurricane Lorena showed up!
Relatively small compared to many others, but it started heading towards Baja and really didn’t look like much other than maybe a little wind and rain. Then, the “Hurricane Watch” became Hurricane “Warning.” It was definitely headed up to Baja! However, the initial advisories indicated it would veer off to the Pacific and La Paz would only get the edge of the storm.
However, as sometimes happens, late Friday, the storm turned and put us right in the crosshairs on a direct collision. So…
C’mon man…you said you weren’t going to hit us!
Airports closed…flights got canceled…the port closed and no boats were allowed out…folks started getting ready with water, candles, flashlights and extra beer. A lot of our anglers got stuck for an extra night or two unable to leave. Others trying to get in couldn’t fly down because of canceled flights or the closed Cabo Airport.
When the storm finally hit, it was a lot weaker than so many storms we’ve had, but enough to drop wind and rain on us for about 12 hours and keep everyone pinned indoors all night watching the storm. Fortunately, other than some flooding and downed trees, no one was hurt and very little property damage. It was just a big wet “inconvenient” pain-in-the-butt!
Frankly, many of our clients partied and rolled with it and were very patient with us and the circumstances. However, I felt badly for those that lost fishing days or got stuck one way-or-the-other.
As of Saturday morning the airports opened and normalcy started returning as we dried out and dug out.
Not sure how this will affect the fishing but we’ll keep you posted!
Tailhunter Fish Report 