REPORT FROM GARY GRAHAM'S BAJA ON THE FLY:
PROVIDING QUALITY SALTWATER FLY-FISHING 365 DAYS A YEAR IN BAJA FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: bajafly@usa.net; USA toll-free (800) 919-2252; Mexico 011-52-624-14-10373
Thurs., Dec. 04, 2003 Report covers the period Sat.-Thurs. (11/29 - 12/04)
EAST CAPE, MAGDALENA BAY, ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO; AND IZTAPA, GUATEMALA CONDITIONS
EAST CAPE, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Nov. left, but forgot to take the wind. Early morning can be decent until the wind cranks up. Left-over wind waves are even hampering the beach fishing except on a few early mornings. While all of this sounds daunting for the fly-fisher, sunny Baja days are providing some great R&R time around the pool while waiting for the wind to quit.
AIR & SEA -
Water temperature 69°-74°
Air temperature 73° - 78°
Humidity about 54%
Wind SSE at 12 mph
Conditions clear
Visibility 12 miles
Sunrise 6:44 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:32 p.m. MST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
o OFFSHORE: Going out these days is a workout with little return.
o INSHORE: A pretty good sierra bite has been the bright light this week early morning before the sun hits the water.
o BEACH: As expected, a few sierra, ladyfish and an occasional jack was considered a banner day.
BILLFISH – There are a few around if it would flatten out long enough for anyone to find them.
YELLOWFIN TUNA – Way too far to bother.
DORADO – Six boats, two dorado, that’s tough fishing.
ROOSTERFISH – They don’t like the wind anymore than we do.
JACK CREVALLE - A few small fish at La Ribera and out toward Punta Colorada.
BARRILETE OR MEXICAN SKIPJACK - A few closer to shore, but difficult to find.
PARGO AND CABRILLA - Quiet.
SIERRA - Gray light just at dawn is best.
MAGDALENA BAY, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO
IN GENERAL: Offshore, news of a wide open tuna bite was welcome, since the billfish were few and far between. The esteros (estuaries) were a much better choice. Devil’s Curve went off big time this week and the ones who were bored with the lack of billfish action offshore were chattering like a bunch of frigates on a bait ball about the bite inside. Snook to 25 pounds, leopard grouper in the mid-teens, corvina, and pompano bit with a vengeance for several days on the tide.
Water Temperature 67°-73°
Air Temperature 69°- 78°
Humidity 40%
Wind South at 2 mph
Conditions Haze
Visibility 7 miles
Sunrise 6:55 a.m. MST
Sunset 5:36 p.m. MST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
YELLOWTAIL – Look for the bird schools near the entrada.
CORVINA – They’re still biting practically anything hitting the water.
SNOOK – Eight fish over 10 pounds.
HALIBUT – Sandy beach, slow retrieved chartreuse Baja Deep Diver a sure thing.
SIERRA - Under the bird schools in the bay the best bet, but don't forget the wire.
ZIHUATANEJO, MAINLAND MEXICO
IN GENERAL: The 80º blue water is within a half mile of the beach and the great sailfish action is still holding up. Baja on the Fly clients brothers Leon and Kyle Stiffarm fly-fished two days with Martin and I on the panga “Isamar.” Leon is an excellent fly-fisherman for huge trout on the local lakes he visits on the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Glacier National Park, but he had never fished saltwater before.
We changed that in a hurry! We raised 17 sails, had 10 follow the teasers to the boat, and hooked 5. The first few fish were learning experiences for the brothers, because they had to overcome a major case of adrenaline rush. They had never even seen fish so big, yet alone be able to reach out and touch them with the rod tip. After the shooting head was wrapped about 20 times around the rod tip, and a pulled fly ended up threading itself between the line and the rod, they settled down and hooked almost every fish that came to the boat.
While returning to the dock, I told them they easily would have had an 8 sailfish day if we had been using conventional gear. A few minutes later, as Adolpho on the panga “Dos Hermanos” pulled alongside, as prophesied, he was flying 7 tag-and-release flags.
Water Temperature 78º-84º
Air Temperature 75° - 87º
Humidity 66%
Wind SW at 12 mph
Conditions Haze Smoke
Visibility 8 miles
Sunrise 7:01 a.m. CST
Sunset 6:09 p.m. CST
Dec.8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Zihuatanejo report by Ed Kunze
IZTAPA, GUATEMALA
IN GENERAL: The sea conditions in Guatemala are beautiful, with very calm seas and partly cloudy skies. The run to the fish is highly variable each day with the best action seeming to occur between 20 and 30 miles, with pockets of action much closer at times. Over the last week the fishing has remained hot or cold, mainly due to not enough boats out to keep the action located. Overall, the boats averaged 12 releases out of 19 shots on sails, and 1 for 1 on marlin during the 5 days that were fished by the 8 boats. One boat spent a partial day inshore, and was able to release a couple of roosters, a couple of mackerel and a couple of jacks.
Water Temperature 80º-85º
Air Temperature 84°-84º
Humidity 79%
Wind West at 7 mph
Conditions Clear
Visibility
Sunrise 6:12 a.m. CST
Sunset 5:33 p.m. CST
Dec. 8 Full Dec. 16 Last Quarter, Dec. 23 New, Dec. 30 First Quarter
Baja on the Fly's Guatemala report by Brian Barragy and Lissa M. McFarlin.
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