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Winter Doldrums? ‘Tis the Magical Season in Baja
The tuna bite off Bahia Asuncion is still active
(left): Happy anglers with a chunky yellowtail caught while fishing with Cristian Catian out of K&M Sportfishing.
(right): Ethan Dannis with his 213 pound yellowfin tuna caught on the kite while fishing aboard the Red Rooster III.
(right): Ethan Dannis with his 213 pound yellowfin tuna caught on the kite while fishing aboard the Red Rooster III.
Dock Totals 1/5 – 1/11: 341 anglers aboard 23 half-day to 3-day trips out of San Diego landings over the past week caught 5 calico bass, 7 halibut (11 released), 1 halfmoon, 8 rock crab, 93 sand bass, 178 sanddab, 240 sculpin, 14 spiny lobster (15 released), 1 white croaker, and 507 whitefish.
Saltwater: While local boats are limited to bass, halibut, whitefish, sculpin and other assorted catches in our off season, trips venturing south have been finding excellent fishing off the Baja coast from Colinet down to the Ridge off of Bahia Magdalena. With rockfish and sheephead closed and pelagics like tuna and yellowtail scarce in the cool water off our coast, the best bet to put any substantial meat on the table will be venturing into Mexico on a 1.5-day trip or longer, or driving down and hiring a local panga or cruiser.
Still, for the local half-day runs, a nice halibut or stack of whitefish and sand bass is doable, along with the occasional homeguard yellowtail or white seabass that can never be fully counted out. As anglers like to say, ‘a bad day of fishing beats a good day at work anytime’, so getting out on the water for some taco meat is better than not getting out at all. For private boaters and kayak anglers, San Diego Bay has been producing a decent halibut bite along the deeper channel edges in 20 to 40 feet, and some great spotted bay bass fishing can be found around the cuts in the eelgrass in 8 to 15 feet of water or so. Low and slow plastics are working best for both, while those working along the rip rap with crankbaits have a chance at bass and even the occasional shortfin corvina.
Further south, 1.5 day trips including those run by the Tribute are finding great rockfish and lingcod fishing off the high points outside of Colinet, while longer runs to the 240 and 15 banks are kicking out some solid wintertime yellowtail action. Cristian Catian of K&M Sportfishing running out of Bahia San Quintin has been reporting a solid yellowtail bite for their clients, with limits of the feisty jacks ranging to over 30-pounds each. There are several operations running out of San Quintin, all are along ‘Pangero Row’ which are on either side of the road on the last quarter mile going into the Molino Viejo, or ‘Old Mill’ restaurant and motel. K&M offers all kinds of tours, including shore fishing, surfing, motorbike trips and more. Be sure and look them up if in the San Quintin area.
Rates for a full day panga run 300 dollars and up and cruisers are running 500-600 dollars, so with a few friends, a trip to San Quintin can be a very economical way to load up the ice chest. Rockfish and lingcod are also biting very well on the banks where the yellowtail are showing. Garcia’s, Captain Juan Cook, Jaime’s, Pedro’s, and Tiburon’s are all excellent outfits, so if one is booked there are many choices.
The tuna bite off Bahia Asuncion is still active, with yellowfin and the more rare bluefin running 30 to 70-pounds, which is on the large size for the area that is within 8 miles of the beach. For those dropping down, there are no rockfish to speak of along that mid-peninsula Pacific side fishery, but huge sheephead to 30-pounds, baqueta (starry grouper) and halibut are prevalent, along with some of the best calico bass fishing that can be found. I have had days at Isla San Roque, about 11 miles up the coast from the Asuncion launch, where we caught non-stop calicos to 10-pounds and an average size over 5-pounds. Yellowtail often breeze in close to the beach along that coast, close enough that I have caught several casting from shore.
The season for yellows and other pelagics in that stretch from Tortugas to La Bocana is a few months behind, with warm water and good fishing holding up to March, so there is still time to make the run down to one of the hotels or Shari Bondy’s La Bufadora Inn for excellent fishing and dining in a town where the sun both rises and sets over the water. Shari and her daughter Sirena also run the Whale Magic and Baja Magic tours and whale camp and will be there running tours to hang out with the gray whales in Laguna Ojo de Liebre near Guerrero Negro beginning January 15. Other tours to the cave paintings inland or the salt flats for a comfy soak can be booked through their website or by phone.
Further south, long range boats are still whacking the big yellowfin tuna to over 300-pounds and wahoo off the Ridge and lower Banks. The Red Rooster III has been reporting solid action on hefty yellowfin tuna and wahoo for the anglers aboard their 16-day optional fly down fly back trip to the tip of the Baja Peninsula. On those optional fly or ride trips, anglers can opt to board in San Diego and maybe make a stop or two on sighted fish, or fly down and meet the boat in Baja Sur. It is about a three-day run each way, so a 16-day trip for the riders and a ten day trip for those who fly. These 16-day trips run about $6,700, so better save up a bit, but for those who go it is a very worthwhile venture to some of the best fishing grounds in the world. Whether the beach, bay, lake, or offshore, they’re out there so go out and get ‘em!
Here's something you might be interested in.
Winter Doldrums? ‘Tis the Magical Season in Baja
The tuna bite off Bahia Asuncion is still active
Winter Doldrums? ‘Tis the Magical Season in Baja
The tuna bite off Bahia Asuncion is still active
(left): Happy anglers with a chunky yellowtail caught while fishing with Cristian Catian out of K&M Sportfishing.
(right): Ethan Dannis with his 213 pound yellowfin tuna caught on the kite while fishing aboard the Red Rooster III.
(right): Ethan Dannis with his 213 pound yellowfin tuna caught on the kite while fishing aboard the Red Rooster III.
Dock Totals 1/5 – 1/11: 341 anglers aboard 23 half-day to 3-day trips out of San Diego landings over the past week caught 5 calico bass, 7 halibut (11 released), 1 halfmoon, 8 rock crab, 93 sand bass, 178 sanddab, 240 sculpin, 14 spiny lobster (15 released), 1 white croaker, and 507 whitefish.
Saltwater: While local boats are limited to bass, halibut, whitefish, sculpin and other assorted catches in our off season, trips venturing south have been finding excellent fishing off the Baja coast from Colinet down to the Ridge off of Bahia Magdalena. With rockfish and sheephead closed and pelagics like tuna and yellowtail scarce in the cool water off our coast, the best bet to put any substantial meat on the table will be venturing into Mexico on a 1.5-day trip or longer, or driving down and hiring a local panga or cruiser.
Still, for the local half-day runs, a nice halibut or stack of whitefish and sand bass is doable, along with the occasional homeguard yellowtail or white seabass that can never be fully counted out. As anglers like to say, ‘a bad day of fishing beats a good day at work anytime’, so getting out on the water for some taco meat is better than not getting out at all. For private boaters and kayak anglers, San Diego Bay has been producing a decent halibut bite along the deeper channel edges in 20 to 40 feet, and some great spotted bay bass fishing can be found around the cuts in the eelgrass in 8 to 15 feet of water or so. Low and slow plastics are working best for both, while those working along the rip rap with crankbaits have a chance at bass and even the occasional shortfin corvina.
Further south, 1.5 day trips including those run by the Tribute are finding great rockfish and lingcod fishing off the high points outside of Colinet, while longer runs to the 240 and 15 banks are kicking out some solid wintertime yellowtail action. Cristian Catian of K&M Sportfishing running out of Bahia San Quintin has been reporting a solid yellowtail bite for their clients, with limits of the feisty jacks ranging to over 30-pounds each. There are several operations running out of San Quintin, all are along ‘Pangero Row’ which are on either side of the road on the last quarter mile going into the Molino Viejo, or ‘Old Mill’ restaurant and motel. K&M offers all kinds of tours, including shore fishing, surfing, motorbike trips and more. Be sure and look them up if in the San Quintin area.
Rates for a full day panga run 300 dollars and up and cruisers are running 500-600 dollars, so with a few friends, a trip to San Quintin can be a very economical way to load up the ice chest. Rockfish and lingcod are also biting very well on the banks where the yellowtail are showing. Garcia’s, Captain Juan Cook, Jaime’s, Pedro’s, and Tiburon’s are all excellent outfits, so if one is booked there are many choices.
The tuna bite off Bahia Asuncion is still active, with yellowfin and the more rare bluefin running 30 to 70-pounds, which is on the large size for the area that is within 8 miles of the beach. For those dropping down, there are no rockfish to speak of along that mid-peninsula Pacific side fishery, but huge sheephead to 30-pounds, baqueta (starry grouper) and halibut are prevalent, along with some of the best calico bass fishing that can be found. I have had days at Isla San Roque, about 11 miles up the coast from the Asuncion launch, where we caught non-stop calicos to 10-pounds and an average size over 5-pounds. Yellowtail often breeze in close to the beach along that coast, close enough that I have caught several casting from shore.
The season for yellows and other pelagics in that stretch from Tortugas to La Bocana is a few months behind, with warm water and good fishing holding up to March, so there is still time to make the run down to one of the hotels or Shari Bondy’s La Bufadora Inn for excellent fishing and dining in a town where the sun both rises and sets over the water. Shari and her daughter Sirena also run the Whale Magic and Baja Magic tours and whale camp and will be there running tours to hang out with the gray whales in Laguna Ojo de Liebre near Guerrero Negro beginning January 15. Other tours to the cave paintings inland or the salt flats for a comfy soak can be booked through their website or by phone.
Further south, long range boats are still whacking the big yellowfin tuna to over 300-pounds and wahoo off the Ridge and lower Banks. The Red Rooster III has been reporting solid action on hefty yellowfin tuna and wahoo for the anglers aboard their 16-day optional fly down fly back trip to the tip of the Baja Peninsula. On those optional fly or ride trips, anglers can opt to board in San Diego and maybe make a stop or two on sighted fish, or fly down and meet the boat in Baja Sur. It is about a three-day run each way, so a 16-day trip for the riders and a ten day trip for those who fly. These 16-day trips run about $6,700, so better save up a bit, but for those who go it is a very worthwhile venture to some of the best fishing grounds in the world. Whether the beach, bay, lake, or offshore, they’re out there so go out and get ‘em!
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