La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Feb. 16-Mar. 1, 2024
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO REPORT
BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Commercial mix of fish…jackk crevalle, an amberjack even two smaller dorado.
Typical inshore catch. Again from one of our commercial fishing amigos. Two barred pargo and a yellow snapper. Great eating!
I know this week’s report is REALLY late, but I was kinda holding out.
I was hoping that there would be a break in the winds or that there would be something exciting to write about other than the usual boring winter reports about strong winds; rough seas and non one fishing.
But, that’s just the way it is and I couldn’t hold out any longer. We actually did have a booking or two the past two weeks, but had to cancel all of them because of the weather. As one of the prospective anglers wrote to me, “I’m glad you warned us about the weather. We had planned to take the family out for an easy day of fishing, but I’m writing this looking at the ocean and it’s all white caps and rough! Thanks for the FYI!”
There’s some fish to be caught but if you can’t get out because of the weather, it’s pretty typical this time of year. That’s why we say that November to April is off-season. The winsurfers and kiteboarder love it, but for fishing, not so much!
The few reports I’m getting are from friends that are commercial fishermen who tell me that they are hooking some yellowtail, amberjack, sierra, plus the usual rock fish like cabrilla, snapper and pargo. There have been a few dorado still being caught and a few tuna hookups near Cerralvo Island, but that’s about it. Quiet times mostly.
Reservations for our regular season from late April to October, however, are rolling in every day. After the last two years since Covid, fishing has been pretty spectacular and I think everyone is excited to get in on it again for 2024. Get in touch with me directly if you want to come visit us this year. My personal e-mail is jonathan@tailhunter.com Don’t wait, dates are filling up pretty fast.
As a matter of fact, we’ll be making our own S.California appearance this coming week from Mar. 7-10 at the Pacific Coast Sportfishing Show at the Orange Co. Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa.
We’ve been on the road now some 3 months and have had some crazy great shows in Dallas, Reno, Nashville and Salt Lake City. We really miss not being able to attend some other shows in S.Cal and some of our other favorite areas but we’re really looking forward to this week at the PCS show. It’s gonna be huge and all your favorites will be there. I hear is now takes up 7 of the massive exhibition halls. Check out the video:
This will be our final show of the 2024 season before heading home to La Paz to kick things off. Hope you can join us. Jilly and I will be in the booth every day and it would be great to see you!
That’s our story!
Jonathan
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Jan. 28-Feb. 5, 2024
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER – Mostly sunny. Daytimes low to mid-70’s. Nights low 60’s. Winds from the north 15-20 mph most days. Stronger gusting as the day goes on.
WATER – Some strange patches of unseasonably warm water in the 70’s holding some surprising species of fish (el Nino?). Colder water is darker and cloudier. Warmer water is blue.
SPECIES HOOKED – tuna/ dorado/ wahoo/ yellowtail/ amberjack/ yellowtail/ sierra/ snapper/ pargo/ bonito/ jack crevalle
BAIT AVAILABILITY – Depends on the winds and waves. The rougher it is the harder to get live bait this time of year
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE AND THE REST OF THE STORY…
Yellowtail starting to show up at the islands now with some cooler waters moving in. Cabrilla also along the shoreline and rocky reefs. Jigs and live bait working best.
Our own Captain Victor with a yellowfin tuna. Surprisingly, the YFT’s are still getting caught this late/ early in the year. Normally, we don’t see these guys until later. It’s been a weird season!
Strange mix of winter-time fish for sure! Dorado and tuna in the winter? In my 30 years down here, I can’t remember too many times this happened.
It’s been a strange winter.
They say it’s El Nino. I dunno. But, I can tell you that the weather is about right. Still lots of windy gusty days and bouncy seas. That’s pretty typical. Not much of anyone on the waters most of the time except windsurfers who revel in the world-class winds.
However, the rub is the fishing.
Normally, we’re catching inshore species if we’re even out. That means inshore cold-water species like pargo, snapper, cabrilla, sierra, amberjack mixed with bonito and jack crevalle. So, yes, those are still around to be caught.
But, the real craziness is the warm water species that are around.
These include dorado, sailfish, marlin, tuna, wahoo…WHAAAT??? We normally don’t see these species until at least the springtime when the waters warm. And that could be the key. There are patches of warm water as much as 68-73 degrees. That’s quite a bit higher than normal.
As mentioned, not many folks are even out on the water, let alone fishing because of the winds, but most of the reports are coming from friends in La Paz who can pick the least windy days to go out or go out before the winds kick in or else they are the commercial captains who have to work for a living no matter the weather.
We’ll just have to keep an eye out. I have my fingers crossed that these species will still be around when the season kicks into full gear around April when the winds are usually diminished.
NASHVILLE OFF THE CHARTS – SALT LAKE CITY NEXT!
Just wrapped up maybe our best show of the season at the Safari Club International Convention in Nashville. After 4 days in the booth, Jill and I were plain whupped! We talked to so many great folks. We met so many old friends and made so many new ones. We booked lots of folks to come fishing with us in La Paz. The show featured almost 1000 exhibitors from over 30 countries and attendees over the 4 day event pulled in folks from pretty much every state in the U.S. plus Europe, Asia, S. America, Canada and Australia among others. It’s really the Super Bowl of hunting…and for us we learned long ago that “hunters like to fish!”
We wanted to thank everyone for all the hospitality and everyone who came by our booth to say hi. We will take a bit to re-group and recover from the great time!
So now…we’re all packed up and wheeling our way west towards Salt Lake City and the Western Hunt and Conservations Show at the downtown Salt Palace. It has always been a great show and we see so many friends. It’s more like a huge social event!
Check out this video:
The show runs from Feb. 15-18 in Salt Lake City at the Salt Palace. Jill and I will be in the booth every day and we’re looking forward to seeing you! Reservations are coming in daily and our fishing year is filling up. Get in touch with me directly: jonathan@tailhunter.com. We don’t want to miss you!
That’s our story!
Jonathan and Jilly
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Jan. 10-16, 2024
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER – Mostly in the 70’s and sunny. Northern winds came back up and we had to cancel a few trips for fishing; snorkeling and swimming with the whalesharks.
WATER – If the winds are blowing, you really don’t wanna be out. Just not worth it.
WIND – Up to 25 mph gusts from the north. We had only 2 days of the week that could have been available.
SPECIES HOOKED THIS WEEK – Tuna, yellowtail, marlin, dorado, sierra, cabrilla, bonito
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO FISHING REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Definitely NOT fishing in Canada! Josh puts the gaff to a yellowfin tuna. Josh is from Vancouver.
They had just one day to fish, but Captain Victor pout Josh, Chris and Lyanna onto a good day of fishing including this unusual striped marlin that we rarely ever see in the winter months! The fish could not be released.
A great photo with big smiles and a pretty fish! Lyanna and Captain Victor with a nice bull dorado!
Yup! Let’s get these fish packed up and on ice! Great day on the water and an unusual catch!
_______________________
Pretty typical winter stuff this past week.
We had a few folks ask to go out and after showing them the weather forcast wisely decided to sit it out or we had a few that decided to give it a try and we ended up having to cancel because of the winds. This was for some folks that wanted to fish, but also some folks that wanted to snorkel and some that wanted to swim with the whalesharks. On several occasions, we canceled and re-booked only to have the winds cut us down and disappoint.
But, that’s the way it is during the winter. And with all the frigid arctic winter weather taking place in the U.S. this week, it’s gonna have an effect on Baja with cooler temperatures and overall higher winds.
That doesn’t mean there’s no fish.
What it means is that you need to carefully pick and choose the dates you go out on the water. Check with several days in advance or up to a week in advance to I can check the extended forecast and you can make an informed decision.
We did have some folks actually get out one day. It was the only day they had to squeeze it in during their vacation. They picked well.
They got dorado, tuna, and even a marlin! That’s crazy fishing because none of these fish are typical winter-time fish. The catch was even more remarkable because they had very little fishing experience and came down all the way from Canada!
We also know there are fish around because we have friends that are commercial fishermen. They don’t have a choice. They need to make a living no matter the weather. They inform us that there are yellowtail up to about 25 pounds around the high spots of the island.
There are also a few wahoo, tuna and regular inshore fish like pargo, cabrilla and snapper mixed in with sierra.
But, really just not that many folks on the water during the winter.
DID SOMEONE SAY WILD SHEEP?
Jill and I just finished our first show of the season at the Dallas Safari Club Convention held at the Dallas Convention Center and it was 4 incredible days in the booth. Maybe one of the best shows we have had in the more than 30 years of shows we have done.
Thank you everyone who came by to chat with us about coming down to see us in La Paz and especially to everyone who made reservations for 2024. We’re gonna have a great time and we’re looking forward to your visit!
One special event we were invited to by our good friends Kip and Sue Slaugh was the Weatherby Firearms Awards Banquet and Auction. A fantastic black-tie event and I don’t get dressed up for nothing! We had a great time and it was fun getting dressed up and sharing time with our friends and hob-nobbing with celebrities in the hunting industry!
But now, as I write this, we’re on our way to Reno, Nevada. We’ll that’s where we’re trying to go. We’ve been stuck in the airport in Dallas because all the flights around the country seem to have been cancelled because of the winter storms. But, we hope to be on our way by the time you’re reading this!
We’ll be at the:
WILD SHEEP CONVENTION AND SPORTS EXPO
RENO-SPARKS CONVENTION CENTER
Jan. 18th-20th (Thursday to Sunday)
Jilly and I will be in the booth every day and would love to talk to you about coming down fishing with us this year. C’mon by and say hi. There’s so much to see at this show if you like fishing, hunting, camping or anything outdoors!
La Paz-Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Dec. 23-Jan. 1, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER: Comfortable day and night temps, but still some gusty seasonal winds up to 20 mph at times that are prohibitive to being on the water whether you’re fishing, snorkeling, kayaking or SCUBA. So, you need to find those dates when the wind is blowing less.
WATER: Simple. If it’s windy, the water will be rough and cloudy. If it’s not windy, the waters settle down nicely. Surprisingly warmer than normal.
FISH HOOKED THIS WEEK: Dorado, sailfish, roosterfish, tuna – you gotta be kidding me! Plus sierra, pargo, cabrilla, jack crevalle, yellowtail.
BAIT BEING USED: If it’s windy, it’s tough to get live bait. Plus, this is off-season so there’s not that many fishermen on the water. That means sometimes, the live bait guys won’t go catch bait to sell. Not practical. If you don’t have live bait, then dead bait; frozen bait and lures can still be effective.
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
The right kind! Wow! Hard to believe wahoo in December, but John Davis did the trick on this ‘hoo off Cerralvo Island.
Awww…a “cute” juvenile sailfish boated by Norm Busch fishing with Captain Pancho. The fish was released.
Love the facial expression! Greg Earles battled this hog yellowfin tuna for 2.5 hours. WHOA! Well done!
Double roosters and lots of fun in Bahia Muertos for Norm and Greg. We don’t usually see roosterfish in the winter. The big 100 pounders show up in the spring. These were released to grow big.
Bull dorado for a serious-looking John. Seas look a bit rough!
Love this photo or Norm Busch with another fun winter roosterfish. Another release!
Another dorado for Greg headed for the fish box.
______________________________
OK…this is just weird.
Granted…winter is the WINDY season and yes, the winds have been blowing up to 20 mph. But even if you find the occasional window when the winds slack off and you can go fishing, the catch is usually inshore stuff like pargo, snapper, cabrilla, sierra and jacks.
Mostly shallow water species found over the rocks and reefs. Alot of that is because with the winds, it’s not a great idea to go too far out in the rough waters. However, also the waters are cold and the warm water species are still months away.
So, what’s happening in our waters?
As this is off-season, there’s not much of anyone fishing. Mostly locals, commercial fishermen and the occasional visitor. But, the catch has been rather…unusual to say the least.
Yes, the shallow water rock species are still there.
But, were hooking dorado! Fish up to 30 pounds are still swimming around and readily taking lures and live bait.
There are tuna around Cerralvo Island with football-sized fish like 10 pounders, but also sluggers over 50 pounds!
Want more?
How about wahoo also around Cerralvo. Sailfish in the channel up to 130 pounds. And what about the 10 pound roosterfish along the beaches and in the bays. Great for light tackle. Not the big hogs over 100 pounds we get later in the year but some fun feisty roosters to play with.
Totally unseasonable catches and highly unusual. Not sure how long they’ll be around. Probably as long as the waters stay on the warmer side, but alot of fun while they are here.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Dec. 12-22, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER: Mostly mild. Some clouds, but the key, as far as fishing has been the wind. Earlier, it was really gusty, but then the last week (Christmas week) some of the calmest winter weather we’ve seen in…forever.
WATER: When the winds blew, the water was junk and uncomfortable. But, when the wind didn’t blow, the water was almost glassy blue and flat!
FISH HOOKED THIS WEEK: Crazy dorado fishing…hard to believe this is “off-season.” School-sized dorado of about 10 pound size. But, larger 20-40 pound fish still running around as well. Then, late in the period…sailfish? Yup! Inshore, sierra, bonito, jacks and cabrilla and a few yellowtail also showed up in the boxes.
BAIT: Bait stocks have been good when the wind isn’t blowing. Nice sardines for live bait.
OUTLOOK: Winds will be coming back, but there’s a few windows here and there.
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Francisco and Ramiro were out at Bahia Muertos to catch a few filets for the freezer! Wow…never expected a box full of dorado as well as the nice sailfish like this and surely not in December! They tried to release the sailfish but were unsuccessful.
Celebrating his birthday in La Paz, Greg Earles was deternined to get in a day of two of fishing! He had some banner fishing like this nice bull. Amigo, John Davis lends a hand!
Our La Paz amigo, Jimmy Williams with a trophy sail. It almost looks like a fiberglass mount with great colors. Check out the flat ocean. Looks like a lake! Jimmy released the fish, but also caught dorado.
Captain Pancho with Norm Busch. Take a look at the big bull that Pancho is holding up for the photo. It’s a beast! Nice rack of mahi meat!
Another local, amigo, Phil always gets into good fish. Bull dorado like this are NOT typical winter fish. Great catch!
Even the guys who fished north of La Paz where it’s usually windy got into a nice jag of dorado!
Happy Birthday to Greg! Starting the day off right!
____________________________
WOW! WOW! WOW!
Hard to believe some of the fishing right now…in December!
I know the fishing report is a little later than usual. I really do try to get them out on a weekly basis now going on almost 30 years. But, as you’ve often heard me say, November to April is off-season. Barely anyone fishing because it’s usually extremely windy and rough!
So, I was waiting a few extra days for something to happen so I could have something a bit meatier to write you about. Even I get bored talking about the same old thing!
I also knew I had some local friends going fishing plus a small group of guys who were going to brave it and go fishing for a day or two. Additionally, some of my friends who are local commercial fishermen were supposed to give me a better report.
Also, well, it’s the holidays. I’m still recovering my my knee replacement surgery even though it has now been about 6 weeks and on top of it…everyone (me included) has gotten the cold/flu bug! It’s that time of year.
So, apologies that it’s a little late, but it was worth it!
Check it out…
Earlier in the period it was typical windy, rough, choppy…blah blah blah. But then, Christmas week, I don’t know what happened.
The winds diminished. The waters calmed down. The waters turned blue! It was like someone threw a switch!
Dorado between 5 and 20 pound schoolies bit like it was summer! Both Las Arenas and La Paz fleets produced some good catches and there were even larger fish up to the 40-50 pound class bulls! Pretty much unheard of.
With plentiful supplies of bait including live sardines, the dorado were ready to chew. Still not much of anyone fishing, but everyone who was out got fish.
As well, inshore fish like cabrilla, pargo, snapper, jack crevalle, sierra and yellowtail more typical of this time of year were also hooked.
The biggest surprise probably were the sailfish that showed up. And these were some nice-sized legit sails running 90 to maybe 140 pounds. Much larger than normal. Most of the fish were released, but especially because many were hooked on lighter tackle, there were some epic battles.
Not sure if this will continue, but the key is the wind and finding the windows when the winds aren’t blasting folks off the water! A great Christmas week of fishing!
LATE BREAK REPORT – Just as I was about to publish…tuna and wahoo biting now!
BLESSINGS TO YOU!
Hard to believe that Christmas has come again so soon, but always a special time. Wherever you are or whatever you’re doing, please…from Jill and I and our Tailhunter family and team in La Paz…we wish you a special peace and happy holidays and Christmas and many blessings for the new year. We hope to have you visit us in 2024!
Cheers and best fishes always!
Jonathan and Jilly
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 29- Dec. 9, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER: A pleasant time to be in town. Daytime in the high 70’s to low 80’s and nightime down to the mid-60’s. Most days pretty nice, but the winds (up to 20 mph) from the north blow for a days then cut back. It’s nice right now, but winds coming back later in the week.
WATER: Definitely cooling and when the winds are blowing, it’s pretty rough, but other days, nice and fishable. However, water visibility is decreasing when the waters are rough. Must be some warm patches as we’re still hooking some dorado.
FISH HOOKED THIS WEEK: Cabrilla, sierra, snapper, pargo, bonito, jack crevalle, dorado, tuna.
BAIT SITUATION: Live bait availability is sporadic. Not really many fishermen this time of year so the bait guys might not even go out. Or, if it’s too windy and rough, they can’t find any bait. So, often having to troll or use dead or frozen bait.
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Freezer meat for the winter for Miguel Campos from Puerta Vallarta who put a couple of yellowfin tuna and some nice dorado in the fish box.
Jorge Romero was out from La Paz and hit flat water and empty seas to go along with a nice limit of dorado.
The fishing report is a tad later than normal this week because I was hoping something would happen so that I would have some decent information to impart!
No such luck. Same old…same old! It is what it is!
Not much of anyone really fishing right now. Not only is it that lull between Thanksgiving and Christmas, but this is pretty much off-season from November to April when the north winds whip things up.
The windsurfers and kiteboarders love the world-class winds, but not so good for being on the water fishing. Additionally, most of the folks coming down this time of year, aren’t here to fish. They’re shopping, dining and hanging out on the beaches.
It’s actually a really nice time to be in La Paz. Air temps in the day are in the high 70’s to low 80’s with little humidity. Nights are in the mid-60’s. Additionally, Christmas decorations are up and at night everyone is downtown for the Christmas faires every evening with booths, food and music.
Mostly, the only folks who are out fishing…and where I’m getting my reports are from our captains who use this down time to go out with family and friends; commercial fishermen; and other locals who can pick and choose which days would be best to go out when the winds aren’t blowing so strong.
That’s the key. Being flexible to go out on the days when the winds have abated. Most of this week there were some 20 mph gusts, but then towards the end of the week, things settled down again.
Apparently, there’s still some legit dorado around which means there’s still some warm blue water here and there. The fish are reportedly running about 10-20 pounds and being taken on live bait (when available); dead bait; frozen bait and chunked bait.
Some of the commercial guys have reported yellowfin tuna popping up at the north and south ends of Cerralvo Island. Most of the fish are 10-30 pounders, but I heard there were some bigger models up to 100 pound or more running with the porpoise schools.
Inshore, the usual…snapper…pargo (several types)…jack crevalle…sierra…bonito (make great chunked bait).
FROM MY MEMO PAD
They finally opened the season for swimming with the whalesharks. Not sure how long it will stay open. Just depends how many animals show up and also on the water and weather. If it’s too windy, it’s hard to be out there and hard to find the animals in the shallow water!
Reservations are coming in daily and dates are filling up for fishing with us in 2024. Don’t wait. Get in touch with us, especially if you have a favorite captain or hotel! You can write me directly: Jonathan@tailhunter.com
Ice chests full of fish headed to the airport!
Whale watching season over in Bahia Magdalena is coming up. Some whales are already starting to show up in the shallow bay there. Best time is usually February to March. Reach out if that’s something you’d like to do. It’s pretty incredible.
It’s show season again. We hit the road in 2024 and our first show will be:
DALLAS SAFARI CLUB CONVENTION
DALLAS CONVENTION CENTER
JANUARY 11-14
It’s a massive show. One of the largest and it’s got so much to see and check out. We
will be in booth #339. Come see us!
Just one of the massive halls in the convention center in Dallas!
That’s my story!
Jonathan
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Bahia Suenos Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 21-28, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER: Daytime in the low 80’s and nights in the mid-60’s. For about the first time in weeks, the winds did not blow and we had almost perfect weather which was reflected in the fishing.
WATER: Without the winds kicking everyone and everything, waters settled down and were relatively flat. Given the fish that were caught, there are obviously still warm and cooler spots of water.
LIVE BAIT: Still and issue and tough to come across so dead and frozen bait or trolling is what we’re doing, but still working well.
NOTES: About 2 months late, but enough whalesharks finally arrived in La Paz Bay (8 of them) to open the season to swimming with them with licensed guides. Not sure how long the season will stay open depends on how many animals stick around. They’re not on anyone’s schedule!
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Gary and Miles Wagner at Gary’s Rancho Costa in Bahia Muertos. Wow, hard to believe bulls like this massive dorados are biting in November, but great catch!
Tailhunter’s own Jorge Romero, got a “kitchen pass” for a few days fishing from his lovely wife, Sandra, so he got out on the water. He was told to get some meat into the freezer. Nice load of dorado!
Wow! Roosterfish in November. Sydney Wagner hooked this pretty gallo in Bahia Muertos and released it. Rooster season is normally, April to July or so! Check the flat waters!
Yup! Even yellowfin tuna this week. Jim Nichols is all smiles. Jim is from Colorado.
Jorge getting his Santa Claus beard in gear for the holidays with another bull dorado for the box.
Our buddy, Jimmy Williams, got out and fished the north end of Cerralvo Island for Thanksgiving and pulled several big dorado up like this beauty. Jimmy is about 6’2″ so you can gauge the size of this bull!
Jorge got out another day. Went south out’ve Muertos and struck out so he headed to the south end of Cerralvo Island looking for wahoo. No wahoo, but two nice tuna and a bunch of dorado plus white bonito on the troll and using dead bait.
Miguel Campos from Puerta Vallarta comes over for quick winter trips to La Paz. Nice YFT!
MIguel with another dorado to get into the ice chest!
Cold water fish, but delicious especially for ceviche. Gary has himself a nice sierra.
Jim Nichols with another surprise roosterfish. Caught and released!
Hope ya’ll had a great Thanksgiving and the holidays are off to a good start!
Well…what a difference a few days make!
For about the first time in about 5 weeks, Mother Nature cut us some slack and those fierce northern winds gave us a break for about 7 days. They’re scheduled to be coming back but in the meantime, it was a great time to be on the water!
Not many folks fishing this time of year, but many of our friends or even our captains got out with their friends and families to take advantage of the great conditions. Hopefully, to put some fish in the freezers for the holidays.
Normally, this time of year because of the weather, the catch is mostly inshore species like pargo, cabrilla and snapper. However, this past week, it was about as good as we’ve had since mid-October!
Schools of dorado came up hungry for both our Las Arenas and La Paz fleets with decent-sized school-fish running about 10-15 pounds, but also larger fish up to 40 pounds. Additionally, tuna up to maybe 30 pounds were hitting at the north and south ends of Cerralvo Island and there were some rumors of a wahoo or two breaking off as well as billfish!
Inshore, yes, cabrilla, snapper, jack crevalle, sierra, white bonito, pacific bonito and two kinds of pargo were biting, but the big surprise were the roosterfish in the 10-40 pound size being caught and released. Normally, our roosterfish season runs about April to early July!
And, the pargo that we hooked were the pargo liso (mullet snapper) that get up to 20-40 pounds and usually don’t show up until the spring that made it into the fish boxes!
Some amberjack were also hooked and the commercial pangeros reported some yellowtail were hooked as well.
Still not much in the way of live bait because of the turbulent waters and also, if there’s not many fishermen, it’s economically a waste of time for the commercial bait guys to go out. So, most fishermen either trolled or made good use of dead or frozen bait like ballyhoo, frozen sardines or chunked bonito.
Enjoy it while we can! Winds predicted to start up again!
WHALE SHARK SEASON FINALLY OPENS
After waiting many weeks, authorities finally opened the popular swimming with the whaleshark season. Normally, the season runs October to April in the Bay of La Paz.
However, that’s dependent on water conditions…if it’s too rough and windy ,it’s hard to find the animals in the shallow waters. And it’s also dependent on how many animals are around.
At last count, there were 8-10 whalesharks in the bay.
The problem is that so many folks want to get in the water and so many operators from all over Baja sell and oversell tickets and trips. Many are unlicensed.
Only 6 persons are allowed in the water for each individual animal and only for a limited amount of time. For the safety and wellbeing of the animal. Plus, having too many boats in the water scares the animals away.
If dozens of people are booked to get in the water on a given day and there are only 3 or 4 animals, most folks will never get in the water or their trips will get cancelled. Even if you get in a boat, there’s no guarantee that you’ll get in the water because there is a rotation of people. And it’s not like the animals are on a schedule or in a cage like at the zoo so there’s no guarantees. You take your chances.
So before you book, check with us or another licensed operator.
RESERVATIONS FOR 2024
Our spots are booking fast for the coming year as we come off an incredible season this past year . Reservations are coming in daily so get in touch with me personally:
We’ll get you set up! Let me know so you don’t miss out on your favorite captains or hotel rooms. Or, if you’re brand new, write me and we can tell you all about our services that we’ve offered here in La Paz almost 30 years now! We’re great for experienced as well as first-timers; families; friends; kids…something for everyone!
We’ll customize a complete fishing/ hotel/ activity package for you!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 11-20, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER: Mostly sunny in the low to mid-80’s in the day time. Evenings comfortable mid-60’s. Great time for the holidays and all the snow-birds visiting. The problem has been the winds blowing 15-25 knots from the north. Some gusts stronger. Important to choose your activities accordingly. If you’re going to do something, do it in the mornings before winds get stronger
WATER: Cooler and rougher. If the wind is blowing, very choppy. Heading north out’ve La Paz Bay can be wet and bouncy at best. Impossible at worst.
FISH HOOKED: Dorado, bonito, sailfish, jack crevalle, pargo, cabrilla, snapper.
BAIT AVAILABILTY: Erratic. If winds are blowing and it’s rough, the bait guys have a hard time getting live bait and you should plan on a day of trolling or using dead or frozen bait.
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO FISHING REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
First stop of the morning for Michael Novotny who had just pulled out for the day and had this pretty dorado hit a trolled feather!
Miles Wagner staying with his dad in Bahia Muertos at Costa Rancho got this nice pargo liso (mullet snapper) to come out’ve the rocks, but not without a tough battle to be sure. Punta Perico in the background. Seas looking a little choppy too! Miles is from Colorado Spring CO.
If there’s fish around, Kevin Shiotano is a fish magnet! He had some rough windy days, but did get a day where the dorado blew up on him. Check out the cleaning table!
Sailfish in November? Almost unheard of, but Michael Novotny hooked this big sail while fishing with Captain Arcangel and they were able to also release the fish.
Our amigo, Gary Wagner fishing with Captain Hugo got one of the nice spawning pargo liso just offshore. Great eating! Gary owns the famous Giggling Marlin Bar and Restaurant in Cabo.
Not many folks fishing right now. Most of the folks arriving in town were here either for the big Baja 1000 race that filled town for a week of race teams and fans or they’re snow birds looking for some sunshine and not necessarily in town to be fishing, or participating in other water sports.
But, we did have some folks on boats. However, most were folks who were flexible on their days or were locals who could pick and choose specific dates when the winds weren’t blowing as hard.
That’s the key. The seasons have changed for the rougher and this weather with strong northern winds is pretty typical during the winter months when it can often make it worthless to even try being on the water.
However, there are some windows and if you can take advantage of those or get your fishing done early before the winds kick in.
We actually got some late-season dorado. Nothing huge, but fun-sized 10-20 pound class fish. Even if the winds might be a little more blustery than wanted, fishing inshore over the rocks is producing some jacks, mullet snapper (pargo liso), cabrilla, sierra and bonito (great to cutting and using for bait).
Surprisingly, we also got a few hookups on sailfish which is very unusual for this time of year.
If you’re planning to go out just be aware that winds could blow you out or force you back to shore sooner than you want. It can also affect whether live bait will be available. If not, you’ll either be trolling or using dead or frozen bait.
BAHIA MADGALENA FISHING
We had some of our good clients out at Bahia Magdalena on the Pacific Coast out fishing with us. Bahia Magdalena (Mag Bay) is about 4 hours drive from La Paz and our guides fish inshore in the zillion miles of mangroves. They also fish offshore on the seamounts.
Mike Jennings and his amigos fished 2 days offshore sticking great fun with tuna and dorado then a day inshore in the shallows in the mangroves for numerous species including, pargo, snapper, spotted bay bass, corvina and others.
BAJA 1000 OFF ROAD RACE
This year the annual BAJA 1000 Race started in La Paz and for the better part of a week, town was filled with thousands of fans; off-road race teams from all over the world and all the festivities that go along with it.
It was pretty much a full-party on the Malecon waterfront 24 hours-a-day with revving motors, crowds, music and more. The drivers and teams are like rock-stars and it was quite an event with the Malecon closed for miles.
FISHING in 2024 BOOKINGS COMING IN FAST!
We’ve been in La Paz now almost 30 years and are coming off one of the best fishing seasons in 2023. Just a heads-up that our bookings for 2024 are really filling things up quickly with reservations coming in daily.
If you want to come visit this year or have a favorite captains or hotel, don’t wait. Get in touch with me directly: jonathan@tailhunter.com
I can check our availabilties before we get filled up. We don’t want to miss you. We’ll customize a special fishing vacation package for you, your friends, family or group!
Right now, we have great openings and boats available:
April 16-30
May 1-8
May 22-31
June 1-12
June 25-30
July 1-31
Aug. 1-11
September 1-30
October 1-24
Hope to hear from you and let’s get you fishing in 2024.
That’s our story! Have a safe, happy and peaceful Thanksgiving and holidays!
Jonathan
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Bahia Suenos Fishing Report for Week of Oct. 24-30, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER – After taking it out on us by sending us Hurricane Norma the blast away at Baja, the subsequent weather was mild by comparison. Windy at times, but mostly sunny. Definitely cooler.
WATER – Mostly a mess. So much runoff from the heavy rains that waters looked like chocolate milk. It got a little better reluctantly each day, but water temps remained on the cooler side. One encouraging thing is the tons of debris in the water. Good habitat for dorado.
FISH HOOKED THIS WEEK – Not real great, and it took awhile to even have fishable conditions, but we did hook some dorado, sailfish, tuna, bonito. Not alot and not super, but not better than expected after such a tremendous storm.
TAILHUNTER LA PAZ FLEET – The whole bay and outlying waters were a mess of debris and dirty silty water that took awhile to clear up and is still slowly improving. The big problem is that the marinas sustained serious damages and there are many boats sunk. Fortunately, we had pulled all our boats out’ve the water. However, the ramps were destroyed so we couldn’t put our boats back in the water, even if we wanted to. Oh, and no live bait to be found was no help either. And it looks like those pesky north winds are starting up.
TAILHUNTER LAS ARENAS FLEET – Like everywhere else, waters were dirty and turned over. No bait to speak of. But, we had a few exploratory trips and at first nothing more than bonito, but then thing improved. And using dead bait and chunked bonito, some of the dorado started biting again.
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO FISHING REPORT –
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Ryan Brockway is a guide and owner of several lodges up in Vancouver, but still came down to fish after the hurricane and we’re happy he got into some dorado action his last day!
Check out the huge sailfish that Sara Jenkins hooked with Captain Pancho. Son, Ryder lends a hand. Sara fought this on light tackle the whole time and then made a great release as well!
Still a few tuna hanging out. Brandon Cowhey with a great photo of a chunky YFT!
Ryder…9 years old…Love to see this. Great form! This young man loves to fish. His 2nd trip to see us!
Ryan Jenkins was able to get out a few days just before Hurricane Norma dropped in on us and was able to get into some nice dorado biters!
More than a few ended up on the beach.
Many of the owners aren’t in La Paz which complicates the clean-up. Lots of boats piled right onto the Malecon by the fierce winds and waves of Hurrican Norma.
Lots of things in La Paz got turned upside down like these beach palapas after almost 3 days of battering. Fortunately, no reports of injuries.
All the marinas are a mess of sunken and damaged watercraft and trash.
Clean-up is going to take awhile. Especially hard to clean with no running water or power.
Many volunteer groups came down to the beaches to help clear off the muck.
_______________________________________
This is going to be somewhat convoluted for a fishing report because well…it was a convoluted week.
Basically, if you hadn’t heard, Hurricane Norma slammed directly into La Paz . It was alot harder then the experts predicted. It stayed around alot longer than predicted. It hit us with alot more rain and wind than anyone expected.
By the time it hit us it was a Category 2 hurricane with winds well over 100 mph. It dropped 8-15 inches of rain on us. Worse, is that it just sat and sat and pummeled the area for about 30 hours. It’s like getting hit by a boxer over and over. At some point, things start to break.
I’ve heard that over 100 boats were sunk or damaged including some huge yachts. All the marinas sustained extensive damage. Fortunately, all our captains pulled their boats out’ve the water ahead of time, but all the ramps were damaged and there was no way to launch the boats again.
Even moreso, hotels, businesses, restaurants, and homes took it hard. The popular restaurants at Tecolote Beach that had been around for decades, were completely destroyed. The front of our own Tailhunter Restaurant blew away and received extensive other damage.
The bigger issue might have been the loss of water and power with a good portion of the city in the dark (that included cell phone and wifi of course). Many folks were without it for days. Our restaurant had no power for 5 days.
It’s pretty hard to clean up when you have no water or electricity. As of writing this, there are still lots of homes and businesses waiting for the lights to come on.
As for fishing…
We had just started to re-bound after what Hurricane Hilary and the full-moon did to us. Dorado had started to bite again . Waters had cleaned up. Tuna were showing again as were billfish and even some nice-sized roosterfish.
Then up comes Norma.
Waters have been a mess. It’s a big chocolate-colored soup of silt, mud and floating debris. It has taken and continues to take days to clear up.
We have not been able to fish out’ve La Paz. The marinas were wrecked and the ramps were all torn up. There’s no way to launch our boats, even if the conditions looked more promising. I’m just glad we pulled our boats out’ve the water before the storm. Some marinas look like a boat graveyard.
For our Las Arenas fleet, waters cleared a little bit but bait remained difficult or non-existent. Bonito bit somewhat in the begining. As waters cleared, however, the dorado started to come back. Still not bait but we were using dead bait, frozen bait and chunks of fresh bonito.
Honestly, as the season is changing and it’s getting colder and windier, we don’t have that many folks on the water so not that many folks lost any days on the water.
A SPECIAL NOTE FROM US!
To everyone who offered their good thoughts, prayer and wishes and even offered to come down to help in the aftermath of Hurricane Norma, we appreciate you all! We’re all fine. That’s the most important. No one was hurt and this is not our first rodeo. We’ll be bigger and better on the other side.
NEXT REPORT MIGHT BE A BIT LATE…
The other thing…As you’re reading this, I’m headed for knee replacement surgery. I’m told I’m going to be out’ve it for awhile. I’ve done the weekly fishing reports basically every week for over 28 years. Please excuse me if the next report is a tad later than normal! I might be on “performing enhancing medications” according to my surgeon to alleviate the OUCH!!!
That’s my story!
Jonathan
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Sept. 29-Oct. 5, 2023
SHORT ATTENTION SPAN FISHING REPORT
WEATHER: Noticeably cooler. Less humidity. Lower temps. MORE WIND. I’m afraid that the season changed on us about a month earlier than normal. The northern winds of winter have started too soon. Not to mention, a HUGE FULL MOON that wouldn’t go away. Hope it was just the full moon.
WATER: It was like someone switched things off. Waters went from blue to incredibly green and murky overnight. Usually, it’s because the waters got colder. but this is weird because the waters got WARMER! It’s almost like we had a secondary plankton bloom. The fish decided not to bite. Waters are HOT…86 degrees!
FISH HOOKED THIS WEEK: Dorado (fewer). Sailfish (fewer). Tuna (fewer). Pompano. Bonito. Cabrilla. Snapper. Some roosters. Tough pickings!
TAILHUNTER LAS ARENAS FLEET: Like night and day. It virtually shut off. Bait disappeared. Green dirty water that was so warm that it seemed like the fish all went deep and stayed there or decided not to bite. Caught a few pompano, a few dorado, bonito. A tuna or two and pargo.
TAILHUNTER LA PAZ FLEET: Went from super great to having boats coming back with almost nothing a few days. Not even a bonito or needlefish. Started to pick up again as the full moon waned and our captains found some rare patches of blue water. But now northern winds are increasing making it tough to fish.
MEXICAN MINUTE LA PAZ VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
This lady can fish! Lisa Hicks from Washington has been visiting us for years and despite tough fishing managed several nice dorado like this one fishing with Captain Victor, her favorite.
Wow! Another good-sized rooster caught when they SHOULD NOT BE HERE! Roosters are spring-time fish our long-time amigo, Jeff Sakuda with his favorite Captain Jorge got this beauty right off Punta Perrico. Jeff released the fish as well!
Our Denver amigo, Joe Hicks always bring his two boys, Hudson and Marco down as well as family friends. On the beach at Bahia Muertos with some of their catch. Joe is the one without the shirt!
There could not be a happier character than 88-year-old Raymond Ahner who lives in Yosemite. Love this gent and he said he wants to keep coming back until he has the record of being our oldest fisherman ever!
Tuna were few and far between this week, but Bob Pair got one. He’s been with us for many years!
Tammy Cousins from Oregon just wanted to catch “One dorado please!” She did better than that with Captain Luis, but this is a photo of her FIRST dorado!
Brothers-in-law, Adam Florence (Topeka KS) and Jim Bailey (San Diego CA) got some nice variety on the table including a barred pargo and dorado and a slug 68-pound yellowfin tuna that Jim battled dogggedly for over 90 minutes before getting it to the gaff!
When Al Jones comes down each year from his ranch in Idaho he’s always way fun. He wanted at least one tuna and got it fishing with Captain Gerardo.
Crazy to be catching pompano this time of year, but Hudson Hicks got this one. He’s headed off to college next year and has been visting us with his dad for several years.
Robert Peterson and a doardo on the gaff. Just a great photo . Suitable for framing! Great smile!
Whoa! When I first saw Robby Peterson’s fish it was so big, I thought it was a giant trevally (GT!). But it turns out to be a massive pompano! Great eating!
Andy Hall…our firefighter amigo who gets called to emergencies around the country visits us each year got himself one of the rare yellowfin tuna this week!
Pretty bull dorado for Marlene! She always fishes with Captain Pancho and had to work hard this week to even get this dorado. But, she never stopped smiling and fishing!
Marianne Sugawara has been fishing with Captain Jorge since…well…since before I had hair! LOL. Nice dorado, Ms. M! She filled the empty space in the chest this time with tamales to take home!
This is a super photo! Brian Guetz caught this good-looking roosterfish not far off Punta Arenas. Catch and release!
It’s our own photogenic Lisa Hicks showing off her barred pargo!
Neil Gansebom was with us this year and had a good day finding some blue water and dorado like this one north of La Paz outside the bay.
Jeff and Captain Jorge! Great shot and nice fat barred pargo for the ice chest!
______________________________________
It was one of the strangest periods of weather and fishing that I can remember in almost 30 years down here. It was also one of the ugliest.
In the span of a day, things changed from one of the best fishing seasons ever…to suddenly fish zombie-land…ZERO FISH!
I’ve never seen this happen. My captains tell me they’ve never seen this happen. The ocean turned into a liquid desert. No birds. No fish. No bait.
Every now and then sure, a boat comes back and had a slow day. Maybe they missed the bite. Maybe they were just that one unlucky boat. It happens. But, usually, they tell me they still caught bonito or needlefish or a pelican or SOMETHING!
I actually had boats and anglers coming back telling me they didn’t catch or hook a thing!
It wasn’t like things just tapered off a bit or diminished. It was like someone threw a switch!
What happened?
Well, almost overnight, waters went from blue to green and cloudy. Usually that happens because the waters get cold. This time the waters got HOT! Waters were up to 86 degrees on the surface!
It was almost like there was a secondary plankton bloom. Or maybe the waters were so hot there was a lack of oxygen. There might be some creedence that. When there was no fish on the surface, some of the captains tied on sinkers and hit dorado 200-300 feet .
Let me say that again…DORADO at 200-300′ down! None of us have ever heard of that. Dorado are surface fish and we don’t do deep water fishing like that anyway.
The other issue…a big one…the live bait disappeared! If you got a handful of live bait, you were lucky. We resorted to dead bait, frozen bait and even squid.
OH…by the way, we also have the biggest crazy full moon…ever! And it stuck around the WHOLE week. Did the full moon cause all this or is all of this because of the full moon?
All we can do is wait and see how fishing is once the full moon disappears. I will say that things seemed to pick up a bit as the full moon dissipated. I hope it continues because we still have a few more weeks to go of the regular season.
And that’s the other thing. Usually, we can count on the weather to hold until at least the end of October or the beginning of November. That’s when the northern winds start to blow.
And they usually keep blowing until April or May. We stay off the water. Only the windsurfers and kite boarders love it. But that doesn’t usually start for a few more weeks.
Well…I gotta tell you…the northern winds seem like they already started. Waters are getting rougher already.
Again, a big effect on the fishing. Just a huge combination of alot of things:
Big full moon
Dirty water
Hot water
No bait
Northern winds
Rougher water
That was just too many punches in the nose for our fishing.
So, we got a few dorado. Some roosters. Pompano and jacks and some bonito and pargo and not a whole lot more. We can only hope that by the time you’re reading this we get back on track to some degree.
A big shout out to all our clients and friends and our captains who were on the water and visited us this week. It was really tough fishing. Our captains worked hard to find whatever they could find. Our anglers all hung in there and also worked hard and stayed patient. Not a single person complained or lost their smiles. We were awfully grateful for that. Cheers to all of you and hung tough!
Sorry this isn’t the usual glowing report, but gotta be honest.
Captain Luis turned a slow day into an outstanding day. He had his son, Dylan, with him and took the guys out to one of our deserted beach. He took some of their dorado and made sashime and ceviche then dove for some fresh clams to have with the guys as well! No bad days!
That’s my story!
Jonathan
Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter Sportfishing www.tailhunter.comMexico Office:
Tailhunter Sportfishing
755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico
U.S. Mailing Address: Tailhunter Sportfishing
8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178 La Mesa CA 91942
Phones:
from USA : 626-638-3383
from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863
Tailhunter Fish Report 