Not Here
My
buddy Lance lives and guides down in Baja and sent this beach fishing report.
The dog
days of summer are in full effect in the hinterlands of Baja California. Here
at the East Cape the day time temps are hovering around 100 degrees. The
sea is a cozy 80 degrees. And the sun is baking the landscape into a crispy
golden brown…
The
best fly fishing for big roosterfish from shore has come and gone. So i’ve been
taking that opportunity to focus on other fish and other fishing methods.
Most of
my fly fishing is now happening early or late to avoid the oppressive heat and
sun. The great concentrations of mullet that we were seeing through the
spring and early summer have thinned out. However, Sardina ( flat iron herring ) have been
schooling up along the beach in huge numbers. Most of these bait fish are
juvenile, an inch or so in length. Perfect chow for the wide variety of
“small gamer” that are gathering at the shore. A small clouser and an
8wt equals big fun and can result in some good table fare too…namely Pompano
and mexican look-down. The real prize are the occasional barred pargo like the
one featured in the photo. I don’t catch them often on the fly so that specimen
was a treat. Along with the species already mentioned, fly fishing the beach
has been producing green jacks, jack crevalle, roosters to 5lb or so, and
ladyfish. An occasional roosterfish over 20 and even up to 40 lb’s still make
an appearance, but these fish are deep into their spawning behavior and are
very disinterested in chasing flies.
In
addition to the fly…good old fashioned bait fishing has been making
an re-appearance. No better way to spend a lazy Baja evening than sipping a
cold Pacifico ( or cocktail of choice ) and soaking bait off the
beach. A fresh chunk of mullet, ladyfish, or crab have been yielding a
mixed bag of fish: pargo, skates, black tip sharks, and a couple different
types of croaker.
We went down and fished with him last winter and had a ton of fun, if you want to get in touch with him let me know.
Jim Kerr
Rain Coast Guide Service