May 3-9, 2010
Weather: It seems as if summer has hit us overnight as the cool mornings at the start of the week with 62 degrees before daybreak have changed to a warm 74 degrees at the same time. In addition, the winds have finally laid down and people are not breathing in the dust and pollen they were getting earlier in the week. We have had mostly sunny skies and as the early mornings have warmed up, so have the afternoons with highs in the mid 90's. No rain this week!
Water: With the wind dying down, the seas followed and the Pacific side was finally fishable for almost the whole week. The water kept cool on the Pacific side as our cool areas were either very close to the beach or right on top of the San Jaime Bank. At the end of the week the water on top of the bank was at 69 degrees and was the southern tip of a cold water plume extending down from the north. In the Sea of Cortez the water was considerably warmer with some areas having recordings of up to 82 degrees. This was at the end of the week and right on top of the 95 spot. This area of much warmer water had formed and drifted to the southwest over the past several days and sure looks good for big fish, we will have to see if anything shows up in the area! The rest of the water in the Cortez is between 77 and 80 degrees with calm conditions.
Bait: The usual Caballito and some Mackerel at $3 per bait, but prices might go up this week due to the IGFA Offshore Championship Tournament.
FISHING
Billfish: All we can hope for is an improvement on the Billfish scene. To give you an idea, one of our friends pre-fished an angler for the IGFA for two days and only saw one Striped Marlin in the distance that sunk out as they approached. Another friend, on a private boat, fished five days for three Marlin, two of them as a double header. The fish that were found seemed to be fairly close to land and in the cooler water on the Pacific side. I had reports, but unconfirmed,of several Blue Marlin coming into the lure patterns this week, lets keep our fingers crossed!
Yellowfin Tuna: We finally had some Tuna action, and it came as a great relief. The action took place on the Pacific side up around the Golden Gate Bank as well as closer to home off of the lighthouse, and of course to the south of the San Jaime Bank. The fish were associated with porpoise for the most part and were halfway decent fish averaging 25 pounds with an occasional fish to 40 pounds. You had to be the first (or only) boat there for the action to take place, but most of the boats that got in on it were able to boat a half-dozen fish before the action quit. There were several spots where blind strikes took place as well, but in those instances it was just for one or two fish.
Dorado: There were a few more Dorado caught this week than were brought in last week, and it may have a lot to do with the warmer water, but maybe not, as there were some fish caught on the Pacific side as well. Of course, on the Pacific side the fish were caught close to the arch, where on the Cortez side most of the fish came from farther north,up in the Punta Gorda area or far offshore in the area of the Cabrillo Seamount. The fish averaged 15 pounds with the larger ones in the 25 pound range and the best luck was with brighter colored Striped Marlin lures. Not very many fish had followers behind them when brought to the boat, so most of the flags were flying by themselves on the boats return.
Wahoo: There were still a few Wahoo caught this week, but not in the numbers we were seeing during the full moon phase. Most of the fish reported were found close to the Punta Gorda area or offshore in the wide open sea with nothing else around. Go figure.
Inshore: The action dropped off just a little, but there were still some nice fish to be had. We had one couple who tried offshore for nada, then decided to drop some bait down and landed one Grouper of 48 pounds and lost another. The bite on Amberjack has been an on-off bite, but the fish have been slightly larger than last week with a few in the 40 pound range. Sierra are still out there but not in large numbers, and there are still Roosterfish to be found in the smaller sizes.
Notes: I was complaining last week about the cold and the wind, but now that has changed and I have to start complaining about the heat and lack of a breeze! We have the IGFA Offshore Tournament starting this week, I sure hope the bite improves for them! Well, we are out of here, time to take the dog to the beach, then home for breakfast. Until next week, tight lines!