Advice: Baja California

**marktheshark** · 06-10-2007, 00:44

Ullo everyone
I'm off to Baja California in a month, staying a week on the East Cape and a week in the Cabo-San Jose Corridor. I've been several times, but never so late in the year, so if anyone can offer any advice on marks, especially shore marks, lures and tactics that they've tried I'd be grateful. I'll be taking fly, boat, bait and spinning gear ... the lot.
Many thanks

**PanamaJack** · 06-10-2007, 11:21

Originally Posted by marktheshark

Ullo everyone
I'm off to Baja California in a month, staying a week on the East Cape and a week in the Cabo-San Jose Corridor. I've been several times, but never so late in the year, so if anyone can offer any advice on marks, especially shore marks, lures and tactics that they've tried I'd be grateful. I'll be taking fly, boat, bait and spinning gear ... the lot.
Many thanks

Hi Mark
Both Mike Wheeler and Toby (Kingfish81) have fished the East Cape area this year. Just a start - here are their earlier reports - http://www.big-game-board.info/gener...erfish-on-fly/ and http://www.worldseafishing.com/forum...ad.php?t=69598, complete with pictures.

From memory as well I recall there's a guide who fishes that area of Cortez from quad bikes along the beach. I'll sort out that url later.

The Striped Marlin should also be starting to show in good numbers come November.
Dave

**Kingfish81** · 06-10-2007, 13:08

Dave, I heard a rumour that the legislation out in Mexico may have changed this year such that they can't run the trips on quad bikes...

**marktheshark** · 09-10-2007, 18:09

Thanks guys ... Toby's already PMd me with tales of a 50lb roosterfish which made me rather jealous. I think I'll just have to suck it and see, so to speak.

One final thought: any theories on when billfish feed during the moon phase? I've heard different stories, some suggesting they feed most during the full moon and therefore this is a god time to book a trip, others suggesting that they're stuffed full from feeding at night and it's better to fish during the half-moon periods. Any thoughts?

**PanamaJack** · 09-10-2007, 20:22

Originally Posted by marktheshark

One final thought: any theories on when billfish feed during the moon phase? I've heard different stories, some suggesting they feed most during the full moon and therefore this is a god time to book a trip, others suggesting that they're stuffed full from feeding at night and it's better to fish during the half-moon periods. Any thoughts?

Ah, now that's an interesting one Mark. There're many, many different theories and many, many different counter arguments. The majority, and this is the camp I sit in, believe that billfish find bait, particularly Squid, easily silhouetted at night during full moon periods. And consequently they can become sated and won't feed during the day. So, given the choice, I'll always fish say three or four days before the waning moon's completely dark through to the few days after.

But then you go places like St Thomas in the Virgin Isles where the best bite seems to occur over the full moon period.

Discussing it with several skippers whose judgement I trust implicitly, and with no obvious 'axe to grind' over dates - I'm going anyway - they insist their statistics show no real difference in terms of moon phases.

So I suspect Mark there're many other factors that influence where and when they feed, and how aggressively they'll strike. Often you can see them as 'blobs' on the sounder, shadowing bait shoals, but apparently unwilling to take surface lures or downriggered baits.

And I guess sometimes it may purely be a predator reaction to a lapse in concentration on behalf of the bait shoals. Recently in Costa Rica we had some 'peanut' sized Dorado come into our bait spread only for a big Black Marlin to take the opportunity to attack the school at that very point. Certainly I saw one escape, leaping 5 or 6' out of the water, but another got 'nailed' less than 50' off the transom.

Let me have a read through Peter Goadby's books though. I'm sure he has some other views on the matter.
Dave

PS Yes Toby and his BIG Roosterfish on a fly. And, at one stage, he was even casting a fly at much. much bigger ones! Um......I would I sure have deployed a Blue Runner or Black Skipjack. There's not as much of the purist in me as with Toby!

**PanamaJack** · 09-10-2007, 20:40

Mark
To supplement Toby's first hand observations I don't know whether you've had an opportunity yet to view the notes on this page - http://www.mexfish.com/ecap/ecap.htm? It also contains links to some excellent articles together with archived fish reports.
Dave

**marktheshark** · 09-10-2007, 21:48

Hullo all ... thanks for the help. Yes, I've been rummaging through Mexfish and the Baja reports too. TripAdvisor are sponsoring a tournament and all their specialists seem a big preoccupied, so I'll dangle a line in there next week when it's calmed down.

First time I went to Baja a lot of the US anglers talked about the full moon being the best time to fish, but in Tobago, one of the marlin skippers said that was not the case, so I'm slightly confused.

I think the key will be to book lots of trips and take pot luck! I'll let you know when I get back.

Many thanks once again
M

**Kingfish81** · 10-10-2007, 12:55

Dave, I'm still kicking myself about those roosters!! If we'd just dropped a livebait in, we could have probably had a rooster of 80lb plus! We were just too fixated on chucking fluff at them! Mark, have a great trip!!!