Past Week-Waiting for some ice report. Cabo style
Posted: Fri Dec 12, 2014 11:10 pm
This past week, waiting for some ice has had a little different meaning to me.
Cabo San Lucas Mexico. Arrived Dec 4 with my family meeting up with West Coast family Dad, Mom, 2 Sister's, Brother- in - laws, niece's and nephew's for a week of family bonding and some fun in the sun
After doing a fair bit of research on Cabo, fishing would have to fill in some time. Reading many report's and looking thru some seasonal fish calendar's I was going to be there during the slow season for fishing and during a full moon to make chances even less. Two fish I've wanted most was a Rooster and any Bill fish. The first full day there I was off to the Cabo Marina to rent a boat. I've done the bigger charter's down south at other destinations many time before and not once has a rod ever fired off, always seemed like an expensive boat ride to me. I would be by myself and just wanted a smaller boat to stay 2-3 miles offshore and drift bait instead of trolling and split the day casting shorelines for Roosters.
Brokered a panga for the next day along with an English speaking boat guide. { Mexico does not allow non-resident's to rent boat's with=out a resident guide} Bought my license for the next day and showed up there for the following morning at 6am to meet my guide Felipe and head out fishing for the day. The broker does show up and I meet my guide Felipe, a good sign in Mexico although I quickly realize my English speaking guide speaks as much English as I do Spanish! lol No big deal fishing will be our language. I explain to him I do not want to troll but want to drift bait a few miles from shore then cast shorelines.
We proceed out of the marina along with 1oo's of other fishing boat's stopping at the bait boat, literally a boat with water in the bottom and bait swimming in it. There I buy some Caballito, Blue Runner's and Spanish Mackerel in the 8-18 inch range.
Out of the Marina we head out to the underwater San Lucas Canyon off the Lighthouse about 3 miles out. Tied up 8 ounce weights to 6ft lead with a circle hook and sent bait down to 80ft in 300 FOW on a hump. Seen lots of ocean life around including whales, dolphins and other boat's in the area catching marlin trolling. We continued drifting over the hump and every hour we would start the engine driving to the start to begin our drift again.
About half an hour before we would have to head in the rod I'm holding starts peeling out line. Within seconds this fish is clearly water and is definitely a bill fish, and for the first time in my life I have a bill fish on. Felipe starts the boat and we give chase as the marlin clears water countless times. Arms burning 40 minutes later my first bill fish is lifted into the boat. A striped marlin about 100-110lbs and caught on the drift. Another species off the list.
We now decide to try for some Rooster's heading to Divorce Beach across from Lover's Beach. Fishing 30ft from shore I cast and a second later I see the fin of a Rooster. One of the best fighting fish ever, these things are filled with power and after a fantastic fight I have my first rooster on board and another species off the list.
Two days later, my Dad, myself and Felipe head out to the same area to try fishing the same way again. Within an hour my Dad loses a marlin close to the boat after a 30 minute battle. Hour after that I fight about a 90lb striped marlin for 30 min doing a leader release at the side of the boat. Hour after that my Dad fought about a 200lbs sailfish for 40 minutes before losing it just shy of the boat. For our last hour we fish Rooster's until our arms could take no more and Dad who fishes salmon and halibut saying the same about the Rooster's, pound for pound probably the strongest fish he's ever caught also.
Dad and Felipe
If this is what fishing is like in Cabo during the slow season, I'm already planning a trip back for the better bite.
Random pic's
Nathan my Son releasing 78 sea turtles
View in the Morning
Cabo San Lucas Mexico. Arrived Dec 4 with my family meeting up with West Coast family Dad, Mom, 2 Sister's, Brother- in - laws, niece's and nephew's for a week of family bonding and some fun in the sun
After doing a fair bit of research on Cabo, fishing would have to fill in some time. Reading many report's and looking thru some seasonal fish calendar's I was going to be there during the slow season for fishing and during a full moon to make chances even less. Two fish I've wanted most was a Rooster and any Bill fish. The first full day there I was off to the Cabo Marina to rent a boat. I've done the bigger charter's down south at other destinations many time before and not once has a rod ever fired off, always seemed like an expensive boat ride to me. I would be by myself and just wanted a smaller boat to stay 2-3 miles offshore and drift bait instead of trolling and split the day casting shorelines for Roosters.
Brokered a panga for the next day along with an English speaking boat guide. { Mexico does not allow non-resident's to rent boat's with=out a resident guide} Bought my license for the next day and showed up there for the following morning at 6am to meet my guide Felipe and head out fishing for the day. The broker does show up and I meet my guide Felipe, a good sign in Mexico although I quickly realize my English speaking guide speaks as much English as I do Spanish! lol No big deal fishing will be our language. I explain to him I do not want to troll but want to drift bait a few miles from shore then cast shorelines.
We proceed out of the marina along with 1oo's of other fishing boat's stopping at the bait boat, literally a boat with water in the bottom and bait swimming in it. There I buy some Caballito, Blue Runner's and Spanish Mackerel in the 8-18 inch range.
Out of the Marina we head out to the underwater San Lucas Canyon off the Lighthouse about 3 miles out. Tied up 8 ounce weights to 6ft lead with a circle hook and sent bait down to 80ft in 300 FOW on a hump. Seen lots of ocean life around including whales, dolphins and other boat's in the area catching marlin trolling. We continued drifting over the hump and every hour we would start the engine driving to the start to begin our drift again.
About half an hour before we would have to head in the rod I'm holding starts peeling out line. Within seconds this fish is clearly water and is definitely a bill fish, and for the first time in my life I have a bill fish on. Felipe starts the boat and we give chase as the marlin clears water countless times. Arms burning 40 minutes later my first bill fish is lifted into the boat. A striped marlin about 100-110lbs and caught on the drift. Another species off the list.
We now decide to try for some Rooster's heading to Divorce Beach across from Lover's Beach. Fishing 30ft from shore I cast and a second later I see the fin of a Rooster. One of the best fighting fish ever, these things are filled with power and after a fantastic fight I have my first rooster on board and another species off the list.
Two days later, my Dad, myself and Felipe head out to the same area to try fishing the same way again. Within an hour my Dad loses a marlin close to the boat after a 30 minute battle. Hour after that I fight about a 90lb striped marlin for 30 min doing a leader release at the side of the boat. Hour after that my Dad fought about a 200lbs sailfish for 40 minutes before losing it just shy of the boat. For our last hour we fish Rooster's until our arms could take no more and Dad who fishes salmon and halibut saying the same about the Rooster's, pound for pound probably the strongest fish he's ever caught also.
Dad and Felipe
If this is what fishing is like in Cabo during the slow season, I'm already planning a trip back for the better bite.
Random pic's
Nathan my Son releasing 78 sea turtles
View in the Morning
