La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Dec. 6-18, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE REST OF THE STORY…
One of the “better” days. Plate-sized pargo, cabrilla and snapper
Not much to report, to be honest. It’s been the lull between Thanksgiving and the Christmas week and not alot of folks in town. And those that have been in town are looking for some sunshine and warm sand. Looking for pool time and an escape from colder areas up north. Not too interested in fishing or being on the water.
Nothing wrong with hanging out poolside when it’s too rough to fish
That’s actually been a pretty good thing because it’s been windy and even a few bouts of rain although most days are sunny. On the water, it’s been rough. We’ve had maybe only a handful of folks go out fishing who were advised about conditions, but were gamers.
The windsurfers and kiteboarders really enjoy this time of year where conditions become world-class for winds.
Fishing was expectedly scratchy at best and they had to work hard for the few fish that showed up. Most of the fishing was confined to inshore area because of the strong winds and waves. Additionally, because of the winds, it’s hard to get live bait since the commercial guys or even our captains can’t get up close into the shallow areas where the bait hangs out, if it’s getting pounded by waves. Also, since November to April is off-season and there aren’t many fishermen, the bait guys don’t go out very often at night or early in the morning to catch bait if they know there’s probably no one in the morning to buy the bait and pay them for their bait-catching efforts.
The fish that were caught were mostly bonito, jacks, some snapper and pargo plus sierra and cabrilla. Pan and plate-sized fish.
The extended forecast calls for temperatures between the low 80’s to low 60’s. Northern winds 10-15 mph.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Bahia Suenos Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 26-Dec. 5, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
First-timers to visit us, Jackie and Jose Gochoco from Arizona got in 3 days of fishing and got quite a variety of fish like these from their first day with lots of sierra, snapper, bonito, a palometa and pargo.
Frequent Tailhunter flyer…I think this is his 3rd visit this year…Marcus Yoo visited us via Nicaragua and Costa Rica before spending 2 days fishing and nailed at least a dozen sierra each day as well as other species.
From Chicago, good amigo, Bob Sayre, who went out to kill a couple of hours fishing just inside the bay and found dorado under the cruise ships parked just off the Malecon! You can see the bow of one of the big ships in the upper right corner.
Alaska first-time visitors from Wrangell, Caroline and Travis Bangs with daughter with 3 year-old, Remi, had one so-so day when the winds blew, but followed it up with a nice day with Captain Jorge and a rack of sierra plus a nice bull dorado that they donated all of the fish.
Given the strong winds that normally go along with this time of year, we had some overall very mild conditions this past week. It was still breezy but with temperatures in the sunny 80’s it was good enough to accommodate the few folks that wanted to go fishing. Not too many folks fishing between November and April because of the weather so it was nice to have a bit of a reprieve around Thanksgiving.
There were still a few days there where the winds were blowing pretty rough which not only made for tough fishing, but also made it difficult to get bait. It’s a big issue when the winds blow.
However, for the few folks we had out, there was some surprisingly decent fishing. If the fish weren’t big, at least they were lively and fun. Lots of big sierra were hooked, but also a nice variety of big bonito; snapper, cabrilla, pargo, jack crevalle and even a few amberjack. Nothing huge, but fun inshore fishing and lots of good eating fish as well. We even had a few dorado here and there which is indicative of some patches of warmer water still lingering.
Jorge has big smiles…dorado under the cruise ships!
Dorado fillets to take to Tailhunter Restaurant for cooking up!
In fact, although it could be very windy outside of La Paz Bay, some schools of dorado were found just off the city beaches under the big cruise ships and tankers that anchor-up within site of the Malecon. The big ships attract bait and obviously, the dorado which produced some fun 10-15 pound fish. A good alternative for a short day of fishing or trying to fish outside in the big waves.
Looking like the winds could be coming back fairly strong at the end of this week. We’ll keep you posted!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 18-25, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO FISHING REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Jason and Gina MIller visiting us for the first time got in one day of fishing and found a few dorado willing to bite! They’re from Shiner TX.
Tracy Patek and Captain Armando have a dorado and some nice smiles on the beach!
NIck Jordan admires a double-handful or La Paz dorado!
Honestly, not alot going on for fishing this past week. Most of the focus was on the huge Baja 1000 off-road race that hit town for the first time in several years. Town was packed with teams, fans, international travelers and lots and lots of off-road vehicles of every description. Good luck finding hotel rooms, restaurants seats and even parking spaces were at a premium. By all accounts, it was a huge success for the event and for the economy of La Paz still recovering from the last 2 years.
As for fishing, there were a few here and there. Weather was mostly sunny, but some days were quite windy and rough so just-as-well that we didn’t have many folks on the water.
Most of our anglers were just one-time folks looking for a singular day on the water. Some were related to the race teams or fans. Most were folks in town for one-reason-or-another. It’s off-season right now and, unlike our regular season when we’re packed with fishermen, most folks aren’t in town for fishing as their primary reason.
So, it was somewhat hit-or-miss on the fishing.
When there aren’t many folks on the water, it’s hard to know where the fish are located since there aren’t several dozen boats scattered around the ocean fishing different areas. Also, since it can be windy and rough, it’s often difficult to find live bait and to get to certain fishing spots.
That being said, we still ran into a few dorado here and there. Most were about the 10-pound class. There’s some big bonito willing to pull lines as well as pargo, snapper, cabrilla and thankfully a few days when the sierra bit really nicely. Some boats did better than others. Just the way it is this time of year.
Looks like most of this coming week will be extremely windy with even a possibility chance of rain. We’ll see. Things change rapidly. By the time you are reading this, it may have changed again!
Hope you are having a very special and blessed Thanksgiving holidays!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Nov. 3-7, 2021
The Mexican Minute Video Report
The Big Picture and the Rest of the Story…
When you only have one day to fish and you do pretty well…John Fergione with dad (John) and son (John)! Doardo and others posing on the beach at Muertos!
Great shot of first-timer Hysby Rodriguez from Glendale CA with a smiling Captain Arcangel and another of her dorado for the fish box.
Taky and Marlene Kikuchi had a few nice days on the water before the winds came up.
Not much to crow about lately. Things can be summed up pretty easily.
Winds are up. Waves are bigger. Air temps cooling. Fishermen are down and snowbirds increasing.
That’s kind of it in a nutshell. Not many folks fishing or even on the water this past week as winter winds grow stronger from the north and cool things down. It’s still nice to be out on the beach or hang at the pool with lots of sunshine, exactly what the snowbirds are here for. The thermometer is pretty long with daytime temps in the mid to high 80’s and night time temps drop to a cool (for us) 63 degrees. However, other than that, it hasn’t been a great time to be fishing.
There are still some nice days to be out. You just have to pick your spots.
The few fishermen we’ve had out found the catch to be erratic at best. Some boats dinked around for a scratch of dorado or rockfish at best. Others hit a few spots and did better with a variety of mostly inshore species like pargo, pompano, palometa, sierra, cabrilla and roosterfish. If lucky, maybe even few holdover dorado. It’s quite a mixed bag as we transition to cooler-water fishing.
Alot, of course, depends on the live bait situation. If the winds are waves are big, then it’s hard for the bait guys to get into the shallows to get live bait. Also, with the diminished number of anglers, economically, it makes no sense for the bait guys to go out at night or the mornings when they know there won’t be any or many fishermen to buy bait come sun up.
LATE BREAK NEWS…
Just as I was posting this up, some tuna have shown up of Punta Perrico. Not many, but a small jag of them!
BUSY TOWN FOR BAJA 1000
After a hiatus, the Baja 1000 is back and will concluded in La Paz this year. The dates are Nov. 15-20th and town is already filling up with teams and cars. Honest. If you didn’t get a hotel rooms months ago, you could easily be sleeping on the beach or in your rental car!
The internationally famous race starts up in Ensenada cars will roll through some of the most challenging terrain on the planet. Hopefully, in one piece in La Paz. Lots of cars don’t make it! Just finishing is a challenge.
Folks will line the dirt course throughout La Paz and town will be full with lots of parties and roaring cars. Good to have them back!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Bahia Suenos Fishing Report for Week of Oct. 24-Nov. 2, 2021
THE MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Long-time friends of Tailhunter from Oregon, Bob and Fran Handegard spent a few days fishing with us and really did well. Take a look at the rack of dorado, palometa and pargo!
Crazy tuna! We’ve literally caught almost zero tuna this year, but Tak and Marlene Kikuchi from Los Angeles were with Captain Pancho trolling Rapalas trying to catch a bonito for bait (since there was no live bait that day) in the shallows in front of Boca de Alamo when they got slammed by these two 40-pound class yellowfin. Pretty good on the dorado as well!
Yes, amazingly, there are still some roosterfish hanging out, Big smiles from Catherine Bennett who caught this pretty fish just outside of Muertos Bay. The fish was released. Catherine is from Washington.
First-timer luck? Hysby Ramirez did pretty darned good with big dorado, snapper, pargo, cabrilla and big triggerfish!
Birthday dorado! Bill Smith from Santa Cruz CA spent his birthday with us in La Paz visiting us for the first time and put this nice bull in the boat just north of La Paz.
Armando gives Grant Nakagawa a hand for the dorado photo.
Quite a variety for Marlene and husband Taky of great eating fish including lots of pargo, cabrilla, snapper, palometa and dorado!
Ron gives Dan and Keith, both first timers with their dorado. Good to have the guys visiting. They were lots of fun.
From Washington, J.D. Fouts got his first roosterfish just off Punta Perrico with live bait. J.D. was able to release the fish after the photo.
Captain Armando with Juli and Grant before putting the fillets on ice with a nice variety for the day .
Good to see long-time amigo, John McVay from Lake Havasu AZ with his favorite Captain Jorge.
There are always feisty bonito to tear up the lines for some fun! Jennifer and J.S. show off a couple of these tough fighters .
More fish for the freezer! A good day for Henry and Hysby. Henry took some of the snapper home whole for some great eating. Both live in Glendale CA. Henry has been with us many times over the years, but it was Hysby’s first time and Henry says she outfished him!
It was an up-and-down week for fishing in La Paz. At best.
Some boats do better than others. Some days are better than other days. Live bait is getting harder to find.
It’s clear that the season has definitely changed and we’ve moved into the transition towards cooler temperatures, windier days and nights and rougher seas. It’s a trend that will continue into the winter months.
We are definitely seeing fewer fishermen understandably and we consider November to April our off-season when there honestly are very few people on the water due to the erratic water and weather conditions. For instance, there are days this coming week when I’m glad we do not have any fishermen scheduled as the winds will be blowing up to 20 knots from the north.
No question, the sun is out and it’s very pleasant to be in town. Crowds are down as we approach the holidays, but the visitors now are mostly snowbirds escaping from colder climates.
However for fishing, it’s changing with the season. There are still warm water species around. In fact, some legit-sized 20-30 pound class dorado can still be caught as well as some stray sailfish and marlin. We even hooked a few rare tuna this weekend that were 40 pound sluggers. We haven’t seen much tuna or wahoo at all this year which is unusual and I pretty much wrote off both species this season. However, it’s been a great year for dorado, billfish and yes…even roosterfish are still around as well.
But these fish are getting harder to find so the bite on the warm water species is diminishing rapidly.
With the changing water, more focus is on the inshore and cooler water species like pargo, cabrilla, jack crevalle, snapper, triggerfish and grouper. We did hook a few of those big dog-tooth snapper in the rocks, but all the fish broke off. You know that any fish that can eat a whole bonito has to be huge! But, stopping them is another story.
Bonito and jacks rounded out the catch this week. With rougher water, live bait is getting more difficult to obtain and that’s a big key to where and how we fish and ultimately what we catch as well.
2022 BOOKINGS STARTING TO FILL
Dates for 2022 already filling!
It’s only November, but many of our 2022 dates are starting to fill up. In fact, some dates are already sold out with reservations coming in daily. Don’t wait. Get in touch with me so we can get you set up. My direct e-mail is Jonathan@tailhunter.com. Especially if you want certain captains or hotel rooms, get in touch with me! We don’t want to miss you or disappoint you!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Oct. 9-16, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Triple catch. Daryl Martz with sons Allan and Dale show off some of their dorado caught with our Tailhunter La Paz Fleet.
One of the larger dorado models of the week! Good amigo, Dave Lindell, got this one out’ve Bahia Muertos. Dave lives in Pendleton, OR.
Julie and daugther, Kendall Millspaugh from Washington have been fishing with us for years and did pretty well on the dorado and pargo waiting on the fillet table!
His 2nd trip with us this year, fun amigo, John Washington from Carson City NV with captain Gerardo with dorado, palometa and pargo waiting for the ice chest.
Over the years, we’ve watched young Tanner Millspaugh grow up and now he’s ready to hit high school! Nice bull, Tanner!
Never a dull moment when Wiley Randolph is visiting us. He was fishing with Chito when he got this dorado.
Mike Hanson got one of the larger roosters of the week just off Punta Perrico. The fish was released.
Barry Matlack just had time to squeeze in one day of fishing and it paid off with a nice day of dorado including this legit bull mahi.
It takes two! Debbie and Steve Millspaugh have some nice dorado to show off and take home to Washington.
Unfortunately, because of the weather, Jacob and dad, Jeffrey Cooper only got in one good day of fishing, but had some good action with dorado, pargo and snapper. Jacob just returned from his mission and it was their first time visiting us. Only with the weather had cooperated more.
Allan Martz doesn’t see many fish where he lives in Boston!
A good day for Tanner and Travis Millspaugh. On the beach at Muertos Bay. Good to have the family back again. Always great to see them.
Ceci has way too much fun. One day fishing produced dorado and a marlin with Captain Alfredo.
Daryl Martz finally got his roosterfish for a quick photo and release.
Good to have these guys back to see us after a bit of absence! Jim Adair and Brad Baker had a good day on the dorado schools.
MIke and Kirsten Hanson from Oregon with Captain Gerardo got quite a bit of variety including dorado, palometa, sierra, cabrilla and pargo!
Another one for Tanner headed into the fish box!
Most of the week, it was pretty good fishing.
But, you can really tell things are changing sooner than normal. Air temps are cooler. There are more and stronger winds, especially from the north. The water is rougher and colder. The fishing and the fish are changing.
There are still warm water species. In fact, it was a pretty solid week of dorado fishing for both our Tailhunter Las Arenas Fleet and our Tailhunter La Paz Fleet although the better dorado fishing was with our La Paz fleet. Fish between 5 and 20 pounds were the norm and limits were not unusual. Fish could be found in a wide variety of areas and you could have a slow bite all day and then hit the spot and fill the fish box in one stop. Or, you might get single and double fish all day through the end of the day.
Billfish like marlin and sailfish are still around, but it was a slower week on these two species. After an incredible year with more billfish than I have ever seen, perhaps this is the last hurrah for sailfish and marlin.
The biggest indicator of change are, of course, the fish. More cooler water fish are showing up in the counts. Sierra, amberjack, yellowtail, pargo liso are usually fish we see in December or early spring. However, it seems every week we’re getting more of these types of fish.
It’s hard to put a finger on the fishing picture looking back this week. Three of the days were a write off.
Tropical Storm Pamela came up and dropped alot of rain on us. So, one day we had to cut the fishing short as it started getting too rough. The next day, we had to cancel all trips. The port captain shut down the port for safety reasons with 7-9’ swells and breaking waves slamming outside. After the storm, the weather remained erratic and winds continued to tear up the water. Bait became difficult to find. We had some of the worst fishing days of the year, where we had boats out, but it probably would have been best to just stay off the water. Just being honest.
The coming week shows no weather disturbances…so far. But we’ll keep an eye. Nevertheless, there’s no doubt that things are changing and getting cooler.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for Week of Sept. 16-23, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Sherry Cady made me promise she’d make the fishing report this week with this beautiful big roosterfish she battled with Captain Pancho. So, here you go, Sherry! Nicely done and nice release too! Sherry is from Denver.
Big smiles and a big bull. Greg Saubolle has another one for the box.
Clair Olson and Mich Nekota have themselves a nice rack of dorado after a day of fishing on the beach at Bahia Muertos.
Might be one of my favorite photos of the year. John Sessums was on his first trip down with us and got his first roosterfish…finally! He was pretty happy! His biggest fish to that point. The rooster was released. Punta Perrico in the background.
Gary Okizaki from Cypress CA said “Dorado fishing this year was like the old days!” Great colors on this bull just outside of La Paz Bay.
From San Francisco, our amigo Paul Nagata, visits us each year and gets big fish and takes great photos. He did it again this year with an incredibly colorful bull mahi and an assist from Captain Pancho.
After visiting us for so many years, Tim Nishimura finally got a marlin plus a boatload of other species including dorado, pargo and snapper all on light tackle.
These two amigos had themselves a fun few days fishing with us the first time. Nate Odell gives his amigo, John Sessums a hand with his first marlin. It could not be released and meat was donated.
Now THIS is how to fish…a bottle of Don Julio in hand and an ice chest of great eating triggerfish, pargo, snapper and cabrilla ready to fillet!
Captain Joel gets a solo photo with a fish he gaffed for Gary and Danny Okazaki. They got 2 days of nice dorado limits.
Claire Olson and Greg Saubolle from the Bay Areas got more fish to add to the freezer wth 6 dorado and a couple of fat triggerfish they brought to our Tailhunter Restaurant for dinner.
Another of our fun Colorado friends, Ron Cady likes to bring his flyrod out and got into a couple of of fun dorado just outside of Bahia Muertos. He had a sailfish on the flyrod as well that straightened the hook!
Easy to get excited when a couple of tuna get hooked, but so far, except for a few stray individual fish, the tuna bite has just not happened this year although the guys got two chunky football YFT’s here.
Captain Armando has a knack for the billfish this year. In addition to two dorado, Bing Presnell also got this marlin. It could not be released and meat was donated.
Pretty water. Pretty fish. That’s what it’s like fishing for roosterfish this time of year. Ron poses with a big boy before letting it go. Looks like a lake.
First time new amigos from Washington, Terri Marshall and Tim Doyle have quite the variety on the cleaning table of dorado, pargo, snapper ,triggerfish and cabrilla.
One of our yearly amigos who has been visiting us for years, Danny Okazaki with one of his roosterfish caught right up against the rocks for the photo and release.
Captain Adolfo poses with Joe Brown’s marlin plus a big barred pargo and a double dorado. The meat was donated.
Steve never stops smiling. From Seattle, he’s visited us 3 times this year already and fishes for 6 days with his favorite Captain Jorge. He always chases the bigger and unusual fish, but this particular day he got a sole dorado and tries to hide it from the camera.
Here’s trouble…Andrew Harrison, Jon Eide and Captain Gerardo are a fun trio. Check it out…marlin, tuna, dorado, snapper, pargo, cabrilla and triggerfish. What a day!
Usually, after a big storm like Hurricane Olaf that hit us last week, it takes a week-or-so for the waters to get back in shape for fishing. Hurricane Olaf surprisingly turned into a Category 2 storm with up to 15 inches of rain in 20 hours and gusts of wind up to 150 mph.
That kind of storm churns the waters. There’s lots of mud and debris runoff into the ocean. Big current bring in dirtier and cooler water. There can be alot of stuff floating in the ocean and frankly the fish get lockjaw and we really have to work hard to find the bite.
However, surprisingly, the waters and fishing bounced back faster than expected. Not as good as before the hurricane, but the thankfully did come back so that at least anglers got into some action and everyone had fish to put in the boats and/or bring home.
Each day post Olaf, it seems to get a little better.
Dorado, especially for our Tailhunter La Paz fleet are 90% of the catch with most fish about 10 pounds, but if you find the right spot, fish up to 20 or even 30 pounds are not uncommon. Quite a few fish are getting lost, but that’s part of the fun.
The dorado are not quite up-to-speed for our Tailhunter Las Arenas Fleet. One day, the dorado are there. Next day not so much. It’s up-and-down . Or, one boat finds a few dorado and others scratch to find even one dorado.
However, for both of our fleets, thankfully, there are other species willing to bite.
Healty-sized cabrilla, jack crevalle and some toad bonito provide lots of action as well as pargo, snapper and even some sierra, pompano, palometas and amberjack. Very unusual to catch sierra and amberjack this time of year as those are cooler water fish and we don’t see them until November or December. It leads me to believe that maybe waters are getting cooler.
Surprisingly, we still have roosterfish around which is quite late in the season. On light tackle, you can have fun all day along the beaches and rocky areas with 2-10 pound fish. However, some of the legit 30-50 pound fish are still cruising as well.
Additionally, marlin and sailfish are still getting hooked in numbers I have not seen in decades. It’s been like that all year. Most are getting released, but there’s sailfish, striped and blue marlin still biting and most are getting hooked on light tackle.
We did get a few tuna this week. Just a little jag of 30-pound fish that got everyone excited. We also got a wahoo. But, overall, there’s been a dearth of both species this season. Maybe, they’ll kick in soon.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Bahia Muertos/ Suenos Bay Fishing Report for week of Sept. 1-7, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Nice haul of fish! Captain Armando put Mitch and Ron on a nice jag of dorado and big bonito at Bahia Muertos.
Great shot and nice dorado for our first-timer, Leon Miguel from Woodland WA. The dorado bite finally kicked in this week.
Jeremiah and Tiffany Page have a good start to their fishing week with a variety of fish including dorado, pargo, cabrilla, palometa, and snapper.
Mitch Gayman from Lake Elsinore CA with Captain Armando pose with a big sailfish Mitch hooked on a live bait and light tackle. Sailfish and marlin hook-ups increased this week! Mitch released the fish!
Some nice Las Arenas dorado for the fish box for Aiden Florence visiting with his dad for the first time from Kansas.
Roosterfish were often and willing this week. Frank Howald caught and released this guy outside of Bahia Muertos.
Staying at Rancho Costa there in Bahia Muertos, nice bull dorado for Rick Harley from Salt Lake City, UT.
Jim Bovee from San Diego loves his dorado fishing. On his 3rd visit this year had had some great days in the mahi schools. Sizeable bull here caught north of La Paz.
Just a great photo and expression from Starr Jenkins with her first marlin. Captain lends a hand. They released the fish.
Daniel Bovee chases big fish everytime he visits us. He got the lone wahoo of the week off Cerralvo Island.
That’s a handful! Steve Avery caught several roosters during his week with us. All released.
Ted Kunze from Arizona and Tom Epps from Michigan had quite a variety of fish with Captain Jorge including palometa, cabrilla, triggerfish and snapper.
Brian Barney gives a thumbs-up to his catch wit John Sedovy and a cleaning table full of dorado, trigger and palometa.
Joaquin Perea just enjoys being down here and on the water no matter what! Always good to see him and he’s always on fish like this rooster…caught…photo’d …released!
He just had one day to visit us and fish, but Steve Summers caught roosterfish, dorado and several other species. All the roosters were released.
Good double-shot of dorado with Ron Sierzega from AZ and Mitch Gayman from CA. They had some nice days fishing with us and plugged the boxes.
Captain Alfredo tail holds Eric Jenkin’s dorado that he’ll add to a full box of mahi!
Some good eating! Captain Armando gives Leon a hand with a dorado and some tasty palometas.
Not a nicer guy to visit us every year with his family and friends. Adam Florence from Kansas poses with one of his roosterfish that he quickly released.
Captain Luis looks on while Joaquin poses with another dorado fishing with our La Paz fleet.
All the way from Ohio, Jodi and Daren Archer on their first visit to La Paz fished with Captain Jorge and produced some good dorado meat for the freezer.
All the way from the Memphis area on a first-time visit, Jason Jones with one of the larger roosterfish of the week caught and released.
Great fun on light tackle spinning rods for Curt and Brent with soe pargo, cabrilla and triggerfish headed for the cooler.
Captain Pancho gives Aiden a hand with one of his roosters before letting it go.
Brandon Mauch from San Diego and is amigo, Garry Coles from Washington State fished with Captain Gerardo and rocked a pair or dorado.
Kristy Summers and Captain Jorge have big smiles for a big roosterfish…her first. Also released. She also caught dorado that they brought over to our Tailhunter Restaurant for dinner.
Starr Jenkins has another mahi on the gaff with Captain Alfredo.
Jim with two more dorado for the ice chest! It was a good week. He also released two sailfish.
After hurricane Nora brushed by us last week and being mostly benign, I initially thought that fishing would rebound pretty fast because, despite having to cancel only 1 day of fishing, Nora only hit us with some strong winds and waves. But, no rain or lasting weather glitches.
However, the fishing took longer than I thought to come back. Lingering winds and cooler waters kept fishing less-than-stellar. In fact, a week later, it’s quite breezy and much cooler these last few days.
So, it was somewhat picky fishing for most of the week.
Everyone caught fish, but our captains and anglers had to really work hard to find fish.
There was a smattering of dorado here and there. Most were no more than 10-15 pound fish. The rest of the catch was mainly cabrilla, pargo, snapper, jack crevalle and bonito. Occasionally a billfish was hooked. Roosterfish kept alot of our fishermen in the game, thankfully. Fun fishing, but honestly pretty picky.
However, late in the week, the fish seemed to wake up and remember to eat!
Dorado started to school up again instead of singular fish here and there. More limits started coming in. Larger fish up to maybe 20-25 pounds got into the counts. Sailfish and marlin got more cooperative as well with a number of fish hooked, released and often lost on light tackle. We even had several wahoo hook-ups. Along with the roosterfish in the 10-40 pound class, mixed with the inshore species of bonito, jacks, cabrilla, snapper and pargo…and even some sierra and small yellowtail, the action had increased three-fold. Many many more smiles for sure. Almost all the billfish and all of the roosterfish were released.
Even had a couple of football-sized yellowfin tuna show up as well. Hopefully, more to follow. These are the first tuna we’ve seen since early summer!
Eric Jenkins rocked a sole yellowfin tuna with Captain Armando
There’s some thundercloud and late rains expected this week, but mostly all after the fishing is done. It feels like we’re getting an early fall and that summer has passed us as temperatures and humidity have decreased remarkably. Prior to that, it has felt like a sauna many times.
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Bahia Suenos Fishing Report for Week of Aug. 18-24, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Bob and Lisa Foster from Idaho. Bob got the dorado and Lisa battled the marlin…her first. They also released a bunch of fish as well.
Our poster-girl of the week, Taryn Mitoma, is about to start her 2nd year at UC Davis and came down with dad for a few days of fishing. Captain Alfredo lends a hand with one of her dorado.
Bob Cowan has come down several times and had billfish on the line only to lose them. This one ate a tiny sardine on light tackle and Bob had his hands full, but finally landed the sailfish. Captain Joel helps out. The fish could not be released.
We have watched 17-year-old Sean Rose from Washington grow up over the years and he’s now a high school senior then heading into the navy. He has been coming for years with his dad and shows off his first-day dorado.
Taryn and dad, Ed “Beaver” Mitoma with a couple of fun light tackle roosters caught and released.
Big smiles from Jeff Loh and Bob Cowan with a couple of fresh dorado for the box.
Not much to tell. Coupled with some big swell and winds left over from Hurricane Lynda and Kevin that barely touched us and moved outside to the south, it still pushed a tad of rain plus some erratic water conditions. Then, the full moon came up on us. Kinda of a triple whammy on the fishing.
Oh, and then were was Tropical Storm Marty that poked it’s head in as well for an afternoon.
Rain across the bay. Lightning in there too!
Everyone got fish, but we had to work hard for it and the fish themselves were picky.
Most of the bite for our Tailhunter La Paz fleet continued to be dorado up to about 20-pounds. Our Tailhunter Las Arenas fleet had a smattering of dorado, but also roosterfish were more prevalent. Along the rocks, pargo and cabrilla were more than willing to chew. Also, still a good number of sailfish and marlin here and there.
Jeff Loh goofing with one of his dorado!
Interestingly, there were some sierra and yellowtail caught. Very strange since those are cooler water fish and it’s still August. Normally, sierra show up about November. Yellowtail are a winter/ spring fish! Just adds to a weird year!
Other than that, to be perfect honest, it was a bit slow. We’ve surely seen better. And things always change down here!
La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay/ Bahia Suenos Fishing Report for Week of July 11-17, 2021
MEXICAN MINUTE VIDEO REPORT
THE BIG PICTURE and the REST of the STORY…
Bennett Clegg always does well on the light tackle. This pretty bull dorado he caught while fishing with Captain Joel is no exception.
Ken Smith had just one day to squeeze in to try to catch his bucket-list rooster. He and Captain Armando rocked this big one and several others. All released.
That’s some good eating! Scott Pitts put this nice cabrilla in the fish box.
With Captain Rogelio our first-timer Utah amigos, Morgan Robinson and her dad, Cody just off Espirito Santo Island.
Tim Weaver is usually wearing black robes and has a gavel in his hand as a judge from Arkansas. This time he’s got himself a nice roosterfish. One of several all released.
I love this photo and we love this amiga…sheer joy! Toni Brown and Captain Alfredo with a fresh dorado on the gaff!
She’s been with us for years and always does well with her favorite Captain Pancho. Dolores Ehlers with another roosterfish. Photo and release!
Scott Dull squeezed in a quick drive down from Loreto to fish one day with us and ended with a sucessful catch of pargo, cabrilla and triggerfish to drive back up north.
Morgan Robinson with her first roosterfish off Bahia Muertos. Photo and release.
I THINK this is Greg Wetherbee behind the mask! He worked his flyrod for five days and caught a number of species including this slugger jack crevalle.
Pro fishing guide, John Daly, was a first-time visitor with us and shows off his first roosterfish outside of Suenos for a photo and release.
Now, here’s a nice photo! Colorful bull dorado caught by young Drake Rowland from Texas.
Ben Rodriguez, another of our first-timers this week, shows off a first-day catch off the reef with triggers cabrilla, big pargo and snapper .Ben is from San Diego.
Tim had himself a pretty active week with lots of species including this dog-tooth snapper. He did release alot of fish too!
Always a pleasure to have Mark Brown visit us. Last year, they had to cancel, but he was back this week and fished with Captain Alfredo taking this fat roosterfish north of La Paz. The fish was released .
I’ve known Ray Laney for years and he brought his son, Daniel, down for his high school graduation. They had to work hard for their fish, but the last day finally turned on with some nice dorado. Ray is from Oxnard CA
Dave Elliott and Bill Cogdall are two more of our new amigos who had to cancel last year, but came back this year for 3 days on the water with us. Great guys and glad to have them finally make it. They did pretty good on the dorado!
Cindy Weaver with her first rooster! Captain Armando lends a hand and helps with the release afterwards.
This photo is just too special. John Carser and his wife, Carol from Huntington Beach CA brought grandson Patrick to La Paz. Patrick is from Rhode Island and spending the summer with grandma and grandpa. This was his first time saltwater fishing and this was his first dorado! He did it! But, check the great facial expression! Grandpa John is all smiles.
His first marlin plus on live bait…on light tackle…and from a panga in shallow water! Tim Weave with his first striper…caught and released.
Hard to tell, but I think this is Mark Buddy behind the mask showing off one of several roosterfish he took on the fly while fishing the whole week with us . He got a number of species on the flyrod. All fish were released.
One of the best guys around…long time amigo from Denver, John Ehlers with his favorite Captain Pancho. John’s got another rooster to put back in the water as soon as he takes the photo.
Alicia Clegg from the East Bay of San Francisco can fish! She does so well every year. She’s got another dorado for the box!
Captain Rogelio poses with one of our new Utah friends, Stephanie Robinson and a nice dorado on the gaff.
Sam Sybesma from Bellflower is another of our good amigos who has been fishing with us for years. He brought down his son, Micah, this year. I think Micah caught bigger fish than dad!
Lots of first-timer roosterfish. Captain Armando with Teal Smith and her first gallo!
Late season rainbow runner caught by Crystal Bernhart outside of Bahia Muertos. Great eating fish we usually catch in the springtime months.
When you’re hot, you’re hot. Tim with another rooster for a photo and release!
Dan Hibma was visiting us for the first time from S. California and it looks like he’s got a nice dorado ready for the box.
It wasn’t a spectacular week of fishing to be honest. There weren’t alot of big trophy fish caught.
But, it was good steady summer fun fishing! Except for a few slack times, overall, everyone caught fish. There was plenty of action to go around.
Sometimes when it’s all big fish, especially for families, kids or first timers, big fish can be a tough fight. And often a big disappointment when they break off. With the fish we had this week, it was just pretty good steady fun fishing.
There might be the occasion off day, but most of our anglers fish several days. The good days usually made up for the slower days and the bite produced a good mix of dorado, billfish, lots of small to medium roosterfish, jack crevalle, big bonito, pargo, snapper, cabrilla and even some late season amberjack and rainbow runners.
The dorado have definitely slowed from the wild bite of a few weeks ago, but fish are still out there holding especially under the sargasso paddies. There were two days when there were lots of fish all around, but they just wouldn’t bite. It was frustrating. We figured it was just because the tides were especially slack and the fish simply weren’t feeding. That applied to the dorado as well as other species. The currents picked up and they fish started biting again.
Marlin have tapered as well. I think that has alot to do with the current, but also there has been so much traffic on the fishing grounds that the marlin have gotten lock-jawed. The marlin have been so thick over the last month that everyone and their brother, especially locals have been pounding the waters for the billfish. Hopefully, the bite comes back.
If you’re coming down, it’s been warm! High 90’s to low 100’s with humidity.
Tailhunter Fish Report 