ENSENADA, MEXICO: Ivan Villarino of Vonny's Fleet reported good, steady yellowtail action for his charter pangas fishing at the tip of Ensenada's Punta Banda last week. "The fishing was great," Villarino said. "We had some fabulous days. Not bad." Garry Griffin and a group from Minnesota fished on the panga Vonny I with Capt. Beto on Sunday for 8 yellowtail plus limits of red rockcod. All the yellowtail were caught on Beto's "magic" aluminum surface jigs locally made in Ensenada. Paul Antounian and his son Aren fished with Capt. Hector on the Vonny III for 4 yellowtail to 29 pounds. Four more yellowtail plus bottom fish limits were caught by Ricardo Rosales and his family group from Los Angeles. Ensenada fishing area weather was mostly calm with scattered clouds, in the low-60s, with 3-foot swells and the water temperature averaging 59 degrees at Punta Banda.

ENSENADA, MEXICO: Steve Ross of the boat Bad Dog at Ensenada's Marina Coral reported on a run to Isla Todos Santos Norte on Friday, finding yellowtail breezers and barracuda in 57-degree off-colored water for a catch on iron of: 1 yellowtail of 9 pounds, 7 bonita to 8 pounds, 1 small barracuda, and 1 lingcod. "It was reported that the Ensenada party boat Shir-lee caught a dozen or more yellowtail," Ross said. "They were dead in the water using live bait and chumming. By 8 a.m. there were two-dozen Mexican boats fishing that area composed of pangas and 6-pack charter boats." At 9 a.m., the Bad Dog moved to the Banda Bank for limits of vermilion rockfish, perch, bocaccio, and starry rockfish, in green 59-degree water, with strong currents, 2 to 3-foot seas, and wind to 7 knots. Anglers fishing with Ross on the Bad Dog included Gail Ross and Juan Lu.

ENSENADA, MEXICO: Jeff Daniels of Ensenada's Campo La Jolla reported very heavy crowds over the Easter weekend. "The campground here is sold out, full," Daniels said. "No room for launching or parking a boat trailer. The chain at the ramp has stayed up all week." Spear fishing divers at Campo La Jolla got a full crate of fish including 2 large sheephead at Tres Hermanos. "They did not spot any yellowtail this trip, but said the water was loaded with all varieties of fish," Daniels said. Daniels also reported on a local outing at the end of March, fishing in locations around Ensenada's Bahia de Todos Santos with Roy Chesley on his panga Pamela III for 2 yellowtail measured at 52 inches long and weighing 40 and 43 pounds, plus 2 small rock fish, 1 small lingcod, and an oddball starfish. "We launched out of Campo La Jolla," Daniels said, trolling a sweet spot in Todos Santos Bay with customized Rapalas. The 2 yellowtail were caught early and about an hour later on a return pass to the same spot. It was definitely my lucky day. I was the only one that caught fish on the boat. The other poles in the water had the same jig, except mine had a little top secret customizing. The water was loaded with bait fish and nothing really was biting except those whoppers." Ensenada water temperatures were at 56 degrees. Also fishing aboard the Pamela II was angler Russell Dickenson.

SAN QUINTIN, MEXICO: Pete Hillis of Pedro's Pangas reported off-and-off winds at San Quintin during Semana Santa. "We had 2 boats out fishing on Friday and Saturday, and 1 boat going out on Sunday," Hillis said. "No yellowtail were reported, but they loaded up on large rockcod and lingcod. We're hoping for better weather this week."

MAGDALENA BAY, MEXICO: Gary Graham of Baja On The Fly said strong tidal currents again slowed fishing in the Magdalena Bay mangrove esteros last week. "The mangroves yielded so-so action for corvina, spotted bay bass, and a few grouper," Graham said. "There was another big tide and fast current." Fishing the San Carlos entrada was slower for yellowtail, but with consistent action on small halibut on the sandy flats around Punta Belcher at the southeast corner of Isla Magdalena. No offshore reports were received. Magdalena Bay fishing area weather was cloudy, with winds at 10 knots, and the water temperature at 65 to 72 degrees.

SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: Eric Brictson of Gordo Banks Pangas reported on 53 combined La Playita fleet pangas fishing off San Jose del Cabo, with a catch of: 18 African Pompano, 5 halibut, 2 striped marlin, 11 dorado, 7 yellowfin tuna, 112 sierra, 192 pargo, 2 mako shark, 3 hammerhead shark, 46 cabrilla, 9 amberjack, and 18 bonito. "There were a few surprise catches of halibut this week," Brictson said. "The panga fleet caught a handful of them in the 8 to 12-pound range, and surf fishermen had a couple of good days for them. There were several flatties over 20 pounds landed, and a 30-pound fish by a local panguero on a mackerel strip. The hot spot was just north of the new marina." San Jose del Cabo fishing area weather was in the mid-80s, with calm seas, big Semana Santa local crowds, and Los Cabos water temperatures averaging 70 degrees. A hot yellowfin tuna bite was found by cruisers 15 to 25 miles off Punta Palmilla and Destiladeras. "Over the weekend San Jose del Cabo cruiser fleets accounted for as many as 30 to 40 yellowfin tuna each of 10 to 15 pounds," Brictson said.

SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: Bob Lewis of San Jose del Cabo reported on an outing Friday by his boat Dos Gueros, fishing with his son and 2 other anglers up the coast towards La Fortuna for lots of sierra bitten off on straight line and a final fish count of 4 sierra and 3 small cabrilla. "Dorado and marlin are very rare right now," Lewis said, "and no tuna were caught that I have heard of. Pargo, sierra and miscellaneous bottom fish are the call right now. We still had lots of fun and have some table fare too." Los Cabos fishing water temperatures were at 71 to 74.5 degrees.

SAN JOSE DEL CABO, MEXICO: Species fishing specialist John Snow of San Jose del Cabo reported on 2 slow surf fishing sessions and 4 outings with Capt. Pata on the panga Salome, for a total of 169 specimens of 36 fish and sea life species caught or collected, including a new species, the sabertooth blenny, plus a multicolor miniature lobster and an animal that looked like a broken-off piece of sea lettuce, but was capable of swimming. "It was a diverse week, with one exceptional day, one good day and two very slow days of panga fishing," Snow said. "We focused on the bottom as no pelagic fish were in residence." San Jose del Cabo coastal fishing weather was warm and calm, with the water temperature averaging 72 degrees.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Axel Valdez of Buena Vista Beach Resort reported on 21 boats, with 67 anglers and a catch including released fish of: 5 striped marlin, 2 sailfish, and 35 dorado. "Not a hot one," Valdez said, "but we are looking forward to no more wind! We should start seeing a lot better fishing. We caught the first sailfish of the year, and one of them was very good sized."

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Chris Moyers of East Cape Smoke House reported on 102 charter boats from combined fleets including Hotels Palmas de Cortez, Playa del Sol, Punta Colorada, Buena Vista Beach Resort, Rancho Leonero, and Martin Verdugo's Beach Resort, with 296 anglers and a catch including released fish of: 55 striped marlin, 12 sailfish, 148 dorado, and 37 yellowfin tuna. East Cape fishing area weather was at 80 degrees, with some afternoon winds and the water temperature at 65 to 74 degrees. Moyers also announced the new East Cape Smoke House website, online fishing report, and fishing report archives at bajapapas.com.

For the previous week, Moyers reported on 65 boats, with 186 anglers and a catch including released fish of: 27 striped marlin, 50 dorado, 82 yellowfin tuna, and 5 roosterfish. East Cape weather was in the mid-80s, with water temperatures of 64 to 77 degrees.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Jeff deBrown of The Reel Baja fly fishing service called it "one of the nicest Easter weeks I can remember" at East Cape, with sunny skies mixed with clouds, flat seas, calm conditions, air temperatures in the high-80s, and water temperatures of 67 to 76 degrees. Beach fishing produced smaller roosterfish, but deBrown said, "As far as the bigger roosters we were starting to see before last week's wind, they were nowhere to be found." Jack crevalle were cruising the beaches, deBrown said, but were seen daisy chaining in their spawning mode and were not biting. "If you get a fly in and around the school without spooking them a few fish will chase the fly and show interest," deBrown said. Offshore, striped marlin and dorado plus some sailfish were showing from Punta Pescadero to Cabo Pulmo. "This week my client Ron Guerra caught and landed his first marlin on a fly," deBrown said. "Tim Suddith and his son also caught a sailfish, and Doug Atmore and his son both caught some very nice dorado."

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Dennis Spike of Coastal Kayak Fishing said his kayakers launching off the beach at Rancho Leonero found cold, green water behind recent winds, but still averaged about 25 fish on their better outings, with the keepers including small snapper, medium cabrilla, pompano, and triggerfish over 3 pounds. "A lot of delicious catches," Spike said. "We're seeing the big pargos and cabrilla on dives and they should start feeding as the water warms and the moon fades each day." Spike was guiding daily at Rancho Leonero through November. "I'm down here full time," he said. "Guests in groups of 3 or more can guide with a mothership anytime on a special kayak package offered by the hotel. I have group trips, and in between, I guide hotel guests. Many come to fish the kayaks and I also assist with their rentals." About 4 to 8 kayak anglers were fishing daily out of Rancho Leonero, Spike said, using spoons, iron, plastic, and frozen squid on a wide variety of species. "I've done great on the 1 to 3-pound snappers using a 2-hook section of a heavy Lucky Joe," Spike said.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Gary Graham of Baja On The Fly reported East Cape weather flat and calm for most of Semana Santa with some wind returning on Good Friday. "It has been a while since East Cape had an Easter week with no wind," Graham said. Offshore fishing produced some good striped marlin counts and a few early season sailfish plus some dorado to the north, and yellowfin tuna a long ride south. Good beach fishing conditions produced small roosterfish and ladyfish.

Big schools of jacks continued to be picky biters as they massed in their pre-spawn mode. "Every so often the jacks cruise close to shore and on occasion they will light up and chase a well placed fly," Graham said. "But they are still locked into their milling and daisy chaining behavior, making them tough to catch." East Cape fishing area weather was windy on Saturday, at 90 degrees, with the water temperature at 65 to 74 degrees.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Don Anderson of Newport Beach, Calif., reported on 2 outings from Hotel Palmas de Cortez at the end of March, fishing on the charter boats Mahitini and Corona in windy conditions and 74-degree water for a catch including released fish of: 3 striped marlin, and 2 dorado. "The wind made fishing slower for most boats," Anderson said. "Live bait was the trick. There were lots of little tuna straight out 20 miles." About 8 boats were fishing per day out of the hotel.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Steve Gruenwald of Orland, Calif., reported on an outing with East Cape panguero Capt. Victor Garciglia out of La Ribera at the end of March, running out about 25 miles for wide-open, unlimited school-sized yellowfin tuna and a nice dorado with his brother Steve Gruenwald and their father Nash Gruenwald. "We met Victor on the beach at first light to help push his panga into the flat sea in front of La Ribera," Gruenwald said. "After a couple of hours, we got word that there were porpoise and yellowfin further out. There were bendo rods everywhere. Every pass through the mile-wide ball of porpoise produced at least a couple of tuna. Several times we had a quad hookup. I watched my gray bearded dad haul in tuna the likes of which he had never caught in his lifetime." East Cape fishing area weather was mostly windy, with afternoon whitecaps on swells of 4 to 5 feet. "Victor lives in La Ribera, fishes sometimes with Buena Vista, and speaks good English," Gruenwald said. Information: Capt. Victor Garciglia, La Ribera, 011-52-624-130-0080.

EAST CAPE, MEXICO: Simon Cazaly of the Vista Sea Sport East Cape diving service said calm conditions prevailed during the week but underwater visibility stayed low at 25 to 30 feet, and the at-depth water temperature at Punta Pescadero was still cool at 68 to 70 degrees. "Diving at Pescadero at the beginning of the week was still great despite the poor visibility," Cazaly said. "Lots of yellowtail surgeonfish and burrito grunts were hanging around in schools at around 35 feet." Sea life sightings at Punta Pescadero and the Cabo Pulmo coral reef also included stone scorpionfish, nudibranchs, bigeye jacks, stingrays, and a small sea turtle. "El Bajo and El Cantil were teaming with fish as usual," Cazaly said.

SANTA ROSALIA, MEXICO: Mike Kanzler of Isla San Marcos said, "Don't get me wrong, we are catching fish here, but it's just on the slower side of things is all." Two outings during the week to fishing locations at Isla San Marcos and Isla Tortuga produced a 35-pound sawtail grouper for "Piojo Loco" Danny Chiquete, and 2 yellowtail on 5 hookups on Friday. At the north end of Isla San Marcos, Kanzler found birds working and yellowtail surface feeding on sardina fry. "No bites!" Kanzler said. "They were swimming right by flylined mackerel. I had time to change 3 colors on surface iron and grind through it, not getting so much as a follow." Kanzler also had a whale watching trip off the north end of the island during the week for a group from Costa Rica, finding good action on dolphin, sperm whales, and a pair of killer whales with 6-foot high dorsal fins. "I've never done one of these trips before," Kanzler said. "I always tell my fishing charters not to look at whales because it costs extra. The orcas broke water 100 meters from the boat, just a mile off the light. I've only seen Orca on 4 other occasions." Santa Rosalia fishing area weather was in the low-80s, with flat seas, some wind at the end of the week, variable water temperatures at 65 to 73 degrees, and visibility at only 5 to 15 feet. "Visibility is poor just about everywhere," Kanzler said. "Tortuga Island was a few feet better."

SANTA ROSALIA, MEXICO: Ed Duitsman of Hinkley, Calif., reported on several mid-March outings from the downtown Santa Rosalia launch ramp by his boat Daycare, fishing around Isla San Marcos for a best day's catch of: 2 grouper, 4 barracuda, and 11 yellowtail of 18 to 30 pounds. Other species caught during the trip included leopard grouper, croaker, sierra, stingrays, barracuda, and many Humboldt squid. Duitsman's group stayed on the boat and at the El Morro Hotel in Santa Rosalia. "My brother Van Duitsman brought his 6 kids and I had 2 of my boys, Brian and Cory," Duitsman said. "We used 50-pound line and still got broken off in the rocks if we didn't play it just right. Most of our yellowtail were caught in 30 to 60 feet of water right up close to shore. We would find them with the fish finder and drop live mackerel on them." Duitsman said he was looking for partners for a 6-day Santa Rosalia return trip in April, 760-912-4802.

SAN CARLOS, MEXICO: John Hilderbrand of Jon Jen Charters said a couple of San Carlos boats ran south about 50 miles at 180 degrees and reported dorado seen but not caught. Other boats ran across to the Baja side of the Sea of Cortez for good yellowtail action on live mullet. Five boats were fishing on Saturday in 70-degree water. "The water is changing fast right now and rising," Hilderbrand said. San Carlos fishing area weather was good, with some light northwest wind in the afternoons, shifting to the southwest on Saturday. Fishing the previous week was very slow, with just a few goldspotted bass and small yellowtail and grouper caught before winds shut down the action.

MAZATLAN, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters reported on 29 offshore Aries Fleet boats fishing out of Mazatlan's Marina El Cid, for a catch including released fish of: 25 striped marlin, and 1 dorado. Nine inshore super panga fishing days produced a catch of: 39 corvina, 2 jack crevalle, 35 pargo, 58 triggerfish, and limits of mojarra. "The water temperatures have been slowly rising for the past couple of weeks and have caused the swordfish to virtually disappear," Edwards said. "No swordfish were seen or baited this week." Mazatlan fishing area weather was partly cloudy in the high-80s, with 10 to 15-knot winds, and water temperatures at 71 degrees inshore and about 75 degrees offshore.

PUERTO VALLARTA, MEXICO: Sportfishing articles, maps, and fishing report archives for Puerto Vallarta.

IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Ed Kunze, reporting for Baja On The fly, said Ixtapa fishing area action was slow under the full moon last week, as early April water temperatures held at 80 degrees. "Sea temperatures are unusual for this time of the year," Kunze said. "Normally, early April brings a current of cold green water, pushing the blue water out beyond 40 miles." Inshore action was spotty, with few boats fishing. Ixtapa Zihuatanejo fishing area weather was party cloudy in the mid-80s, with water temperatures at 80 to 84 degrees.

IXTAPA ZIHUATANEJO, MEXICO: Larry Edwards of Cortez Yacht Charters said, "The full moon coupled with a slight decrease in water temp and blue water beyond 25 miles made for some challenging fishing conditions last week." Offshore boats reported about 2 sailfish per outing, plus some marlin, bonito, and 1 blue marlin of about 200 pounds. Capt. Adolofo of the charter boat Dos Hermanos I reported good jack crevalle fishing inshore, but no roosterfish. "With the passing of the full moon period and more moderate water temperatures, fishing should begin to pick up," Edwards said. "The arrival of the big yellowfin tuna is overdue." Ixtapa fishing area weather was at 90 degrees, with water temperatures at 82 degrees inshore and 83 degrees offshore.

HUATULCO, MEXICO: Sportfishing articles, maps, and fishing report archives for Huatulco.