Cabo Sport Fishing Is Like A Box Of Chocolates

As Forrest Gump would say, you never know what you’re going toget.

Not too many things get me more excited than the prospect ofhooking and landing big fish. The mere thought of setting thehook on a 300 pound marlin, hearing the scream of the drag asthe fish pulls off line and watching the acrobatic leaps thatfollow really gets my heart pumping. Fortunately for me, a twoand a half hour flight and a 30-minute drive is all it takes tofind myself in the “billfish capital of the world”. What morecan a sport fisherman ask for?

Well, for starters, variety. Just like biting into a randomlyselected piece of chocolate, when you set out the trolling lureshere in Los Cabos in search of the next big one, you just don’tknow what it will be. Different seasons bring differentpossibilities as does different sides of the Baja peninsula. Thediversity of game fish here never ceases to amaze me and even aslow day on the water offers the opportunity to see some of theoceans greatest creatures. Whales, porpoise, sea turtles and batrays that often school by the hundreds and perform what almostappears to be a choreographed routine of synchronized jumps. Ona spring trip to Cabo in late march of this year, my partnerDolores Peralta and I had another opportunity to experience thediversity of life in these nutrient rich waters.

Jacqueline “Jacquie” Lee, owner of Guerita II, set us up for twodays of fishing with Captain Efren Beron Zamora and crewmanJesus Alfredo Espinoza. Efren has a lifetime of experience as anangler, guide and captain and has a love of the ocean that rubsoff on crew and passenger alike. The Guerita II is a tournamentrigged 34-foot Crystaliner equipped with everything the avidangler could need or ask for _ Shimano Tiagra 50 wide LRS & PennInternational reels, Shimano Black Steel IGFA rods and anoutstanding selection of lures, this wide-beamed fishing machineboasts top-of-the-line electronics to help get you on the bitefast.

We arrived at the docks at 6:30 in the morning, a little latefor Captain Efren’s liking as he planned on running out about30-40 miles in search of warm, blue water where he hoped to putus on striped and tuna. While waiting on our arrivalEfren had already loaded up on live bait from the pangeros thatsupply the fleets and with no delay, we were on our way. Windsthis time of the year can be unpredictable and on this day, thewinds helped build a fairly large swell. We motored our way outto sea on a bumpy but dry ride to the fishing grounds. Once hefound the water conditions that best provided the chance forlarge billfish, he switched driving positions to the tall tunatower while Alfredo began to set out our spread of lures. Purpleand orange Zukers set out at the fifth wake behind the boat,trolling feathers in pink and white and Mexican flag patterns onthe third wake and a dark colored Marauder set close to theboat.

A few hours passed as we crisscrossed areas where colder watermet warmer, Efren’s eyes trained on the surface scanning forsigns that fish were near – circling and diving birds, the tailof a cruising for its next meal, a pod of porpoiseballing bait. None of the usual signs appeared until Efren’seagle eyes spotted a feeder, a actively working the oceansurface. A quick turn of the boat and a punch of the throttlecontrols placed us in the perfect position to present our spreadof lures to the fish. The took notice and struck one ofthe lures back at the fifth wake. The jigstrike started ouradrenalin flowing and we scrambled to the deck to ready for abattle. The let loose the lure just as Alfredo cast alive bait back to entice a bite. After a few tense moments, themarlin took the bait, the reel left in free spool in order togive it time to fully take the bait. Flipping the reel intolocked position followed by three to four strong and sharp liftsof the rod tip set the hook on a good sized striped marlin.

Dolores took her position in one of the two fighting chairsmounted on the stern and within seconds the was giving usa show. Several vertical leaps and violent shakes of its broadhead and the fight began. The key to landing is the hookset. Everything depends on whether or not the hook was in theright position when the hook set is made. Many times, the marlintakes the bait only partially and the hook never pierces themouth fully when the set is made. Unfortunately, this was one ofthose times. Shortly after the first series of jumps was made, asecond series began and on this series the hook was thrown andthe fish was lost. Spooked by the encounter, the soundedand was soon nowhere to be found.

We continued on in search of another marlin, my turn in thechair coming next. A short while later, a starboard reel startedto scream. Nothing was visible on the surface so the likelihoodof it being a was slim. From the strong pull and speed ofthe fish, we thought it would be a tuna and sure enough it was.The fight lasted only 5-10 minutes and soon we had atwenty-pound yellowfin on deck.

The trolling continued and for several hours and we had nothingto do but occasionally switch out lures and scan the horizon forsigns of life. Efren spotted a true prize in the form of aswordfish. While these great eating game fish can be found heremost of the year, they prefer colder water so spring isgenerally the best time of year for this sought after species.Although the sword made a turn towards our spread and a livebait was cast directly in front of it, this fish was apparentlywell fed and no matter how appealing the presentation, it wouldnot take the bait or strike a lure. As they say, that’s why theycall it fishing and not catching. The balance of the dayproduced only suntans and relaxation.

On our second day on the Guerita II, we arrived at 5:30,determined to beat Efren and Alfredo to the boat. Once again,Efren had made it to the boat well before us and once again, hehad already baited up. If I didn’t know better, I’d say he musthave slept on the boat just to make sure we wouldn’t arrivebefore him! We headed out, stopping off to check in with theport authorities to present our manifest and fishing licenses. Arecent change in fiscal policies keeps the revenues from fishinglicenses within the state where the activity is taking place.This restructuring has apparently heightened the diligence ofofficials responsible for ensuring that everyone on a boatpossesses a valid license, even those not fishing. Makes sensethat if you get to keep the money, you’re more likely to makesure everyone is playing by the rules and buying their licenses.Those that did not have licenses in hand were sent back to thedocks to get them or there would be no fishing that day.

This day we decided to switch to the Sea of Cortez side of thecape and concentrate our efforts on some of the in-shore speciesthat Los Cabos waters offer up. One of the benefits of apre-dawn start is the experience of viewing some of the mostspectacular sunrises you’re likely to find anywhere in theworld. The skies here light up with all the colors of an artistscanvas with the endless reflection of the ocean surface.Everything is bathed in reds, oranges and yellows and the skyappears to be on fire. The sight alone makes the trip worthwhile.

The Guerita II cut through the calmer waters of the Sea ofCortez with ease by benefit of the natural windbreak that theEast Cape coast provides. We set out a mix of CD 4 Rapalas in asardine pattern and started to work the underwater ledges androck piles in search of sierra or Spanish mackerel, dorado ortuna. We ran across pods of porpoise working bait schools to thesurface. These working pods often hold schools of tuna justbelow that pick off bait from the edges of the bait ball buttoday, we found just the porpoise. Off in the distance, CaptainEfren spotted surface activity and turned the Guerita towardsit.

Within minutes we were surrounded by thousands of Humboldtsquid. Denizens of the northern most portion of the Sea ofCortez, these alien looking creatures have slowly made their waydown to the southern tip of the Baja in recent years. Withtentacles reaching up out of the water like some kind of extraterrestrial meat eating flower, we watched in awe as they fed onfloating red crab. Just about anything we tossed into the waterwas immediately engulfed by the toothy tentacles of the squidand with constant pressure and slow pumps and reeling, webrought them to the gaff.

Legends abound about the ferocity and strength of the Humboldtsquid and while many of these tales are true “fish stories”,there is ample credible evidence of the potential for injury andeven death from these marine cephalopods. Recently, a Discoveryprogram featured an in-depth study of the Humboldt squid in theSea of Cortez. During times of agitation, such as when theseanimals are being fished by fleets of pangeros who make asignificant share of their income from the sale of the tastybeasts, they can and do become very aggressive. One pangerospoke of his encounter with the squid with fear and respect.While working a large school, he lost his balance and fell intothe water. Within seconds, several five to six footers lockedonto him and began to pull him under, all the while biting intohis flesh with their impressive and powerful beaks. He managedto free himself and make his way back to the surface and intohis panga, scared and exhausted. The scars that he showed tellthe tale all to well. He also told of others that did not fairso well, never making back to the surface.

While events like those have occurred, the squid are usually nomore than curious about visitors to their domain. It is thefrenzied activity caused by fishing these creatures that createsthe aggressive and often cannibalistic behavior. Divers havebeen able to get up close and personal with the Humboldt squidwhen no fishing pressure was present, all without being attackedor harmed in any way. The aggressive behavior and flashing ofcolors associated with a feeding frenzy brought on by fishingpressure is simply not a normal occurrence, but more a reactionto the situation at hand. You need not fear the squid but makesure to stay away from the business end. Tentacles with hundredsof toothed suction cups lead to a bird-like beak with incrediblepower. Ink on the other hand can reach you from astonishingdistances as my partner, Dolores, can testify.

While fighting a squid estimated at about fifty pounds, sheexperienced the jet blast of a Humboldt squid firsthand. As thesquid was gaffed, Alfredo jumped off to the side leaving Doloresdirectly in the path of what seemed to be gallons of inkshooting from out of the squid. In a split second she wascovered head to toe in the slimy, dark liquid. Being the trooperthat she is, she laughed it off, wiped herself clean and tossedher line back out to catch another one. By that time we had beenjoined by over a dozen other charter boats and pangas andeverywhere you looked, people were battling these impressiveanimals. Great fun, an awesome sight and great table fare wasthe end result. We left the spot having boated 3 squid andcleaning the ink from the deck of the boat.

Our next area of focus was just a few hundred feet from shoreworking the reef structures that line the coast. Catching eightto ten pound sierra on light tackle is an experience I recommendhighly. We picked off a few sierra and even landed a small makoshark before we called it a day and headed back in, all thewhile amazed at the beauty of the azure blue and turquoise greenwaters of the Sea of Cortez.

So if you are one to enjoy the ocean and the surprises that sucha aquatic paradise promises, fishing the waters of the Pacificocean and the Sea of Cortez in Los Cabos is a dream come true.Finding the right boat and crew is of the utmost importance inensuring a successful and memorable charter. When it comes tomaking that choice, we can’t recommend Jacqueline Lee’s GueritaII and the knowledge and hospitality of Captain Efren BeronZamora and crewman Jesus Alfredo Espinoza enough.

To book your trip, visit their site at http://www.gueritasportfishing.com or call 011-52-624-143-4465 and tellthem Cabo’s Best told you all about them.

About the author:Richard Chudy is the author and also owner of CabosBest.com, atravel information portal for Los Cabos and Baja Sur, Mexico.