Beyond The Breakwater Discussion Forums

Sierra Mackerel Tournament at East Cape this weekend

2011-12-29T00:15:40+00:00

[IMG]http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/408331_227058884037259_100001994478781_502632_1953377016_n.jpg[/IMG]

Sea of Cortez, EAST CAPE - THAT’S THE BREAKS

2011-12-26T14:29:40+00:00

THAT’S THE BREAKS

Wishing all my friends a belated Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

This has been the windiest week of the year for the East Cape and there is no fishing activity at this time to report on.

Reflecting back on our fishing year for 2011, Jen Wren boats had some good breaks and some bad breaks. Thankfully some days the fish gods just tossed us one and I call that a lucky break. I have posted some images of just a few of the lucky breaks we had this year.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12261.jpg[/IMG]
Right out of the gate on our first fishing day of 2011 we landed a wahoo that hit a marlin lure rigged with straight mono. Lucky break.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12262.jpg[/IMG]
This striped marlin really put up a battle. At leader we could see the fish was never hooked, just lassoed. Lucky break

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12263.jpg[/IMG]
The bite was off on this day and fishing was tough until we tail hooked this striped marlin with the treble hooks of a Halco GT Jig. Lucky Break.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12264.jpg[/IMG]
Another lassoed marlin. Lucky break.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12265.jpg[/IMG]
On this day we found a school of bottle-nose dolphin near Punta Pescadero. We trolled around and around through the dolphin changing lures and trying everything in our bag of tricks. I could see fish in my meter but we just couldn’t get em to go. My deck hand got frustrated and said “let’s get out of here”. I wasn’t ready and decided to stop and soak a mackerel. As Jen Wren III slowed to a stop the Zuker 5.5 teaser we were trolling started to sink and bendo! We hung this 200 pound tuna. Lucky break.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12266.jpg[/IMG]
On this day we had a double billfish hook up drifting live baits on the high spot off La Ribera. What are the odds? Both fish turned out to be lassoed around the bill without a hook in either. We were able to release them both. Lucky Break.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12267.jpg[/IMG]
By the skin of your chinny chin chin. Lucky break

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12267.5.jpg[/IMG]
Almost pulled the lips off of this Yellowfin tuna. Lucky break

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12268.jpg[/IMG]
And then there is Accurate Jack Nilsen. His middle name is Lucky break.

Wishing everybody tight lines and lots of lucky breaks in 2012.

Mark Rayor
teamjenwren.com
markrayor.blogspot.com

Sea of Cortez, EAST CAPE - BAJA OR ALASKA

2011-12-19T14:02:30+00:00

Baja or Alaska?

There is only a small handful of charter fishing boats still in the water on the East Cape. Without daily departures there has not been reports of conditions off shore.

The beach has been a different story and you almost have to take a number to get a good fishing spot. The sea life has been putting on an incredible show with birds diving and fish in a feeding frenzy driving huge schools of sardines to the waters edge. Sierra Mackerel, rooster fish, ladyfish, and jack cravelle have all been in the mix.

For the entire week I have awakened to voices of fishermen on the beach. As dawn unfolds fishermen can be seen lined up almost shoulder to shoulder. The sight reminds me of fishing for salmon on the rivers of Alaska. One big difference is not having to look over your shoulder for bears. The hot spot has been up and down the coast near Vista Del Mar right in front of our home.

“The early bird catches the worm” as the beach bite starts at first light and shuts off as soon as the sun is above the horizon. Some anglers have been using rods and reels while others are hand lining. I have had good luck with a sardine patterned fly but a chrome 3 inch lure made from a broken car antenna has been most popular along with Crocodiles and Rapalas. As full speed as the bite has been the fish are shying away from lures rigged with wire. The sharp teeth of the sierra has made it costly but it is the price that has to be paid for success.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12191.jpg[/IMG]
Dawn at Buena Vista. Why do you suppose the place was named Buena Vista?

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12192.jpg[/IMG]
First light is when the bite is best

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12193.jpg[/IMG]
My wife says the beach looks like a sale on black Friday.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12194.jpg[/IMG]
Pelicans are gorging themselves

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12195.jpg[/IMG]
Lost a fly on my 2nd cast to the toothy critters and then got lucky

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12196.jpg[/IMG]
Luis Sylva told me his son has been waking him up evey morning at 5AM to get to the beach. Luis is a very talented fisherman and it looks like the kid just might be a chip off the old block.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12197.jpg[/IMG]
Fish for everyone

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12198.jpg[/IMG]
Most anglers are coming away with limits

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12199.jpg[/IMG]
As soon as the sun is up on the horizon it is over.

Mark Rayor
www.teamjenwren.com
Fishing the East Cape with Mark Rayor

Sea of Cortez, EAST CAPE - THE WITCH DOCTOR

2011-12-13T03:27:18+00:00

THE WITCH-DOCTOR
Mark Rayor owner of Jen Wren Sportfishing bringing you an East Cape NON-fish report. The wind has blown so hard this week it has not been fishable most of the week.

I’m happy to say our timing was good and we were able to use the last calm day to get Jen Wren III out of the water. It is sad but our season is over and we won’t resume charter fishing until March.

I do want to share an experience we had while fishing last week along with some pretty cool photos. One of our last days out there slow trolling for marlin with skipjack for bait we were not having any luck. I decided to try putting out a Witch-Doctor teaser. It is a rather large mirrored thing that rocks back and forth while being trolled and reflects sun light. In the right conditions it looks like a strobe going off in the water behind the boat.

We were fishing with a group of about a half dozen boats on the La Ribera high spot. After a short period of time a pod of orcas cruised by. Apparently our teaser caught one of the whales eyes and the pod came a bit closer. Before we knew it the whole pod was in our pattern nudging our baits and checking us out. One whale even came up almost to our swim step and gently pushed on the Witch-Doctor. If it attracted the orcas this has to be an effective tool to attract marlin as well.

Now that we are not charter fishing and have our cruisers in dry dock for the winter I will still try to get out on calm days. I can use one of our small tenders and fish the shoreline for sierra and a little further off shore when the weather allows. I’ll do my best to try and continue to post reports as to what fishing conditions are like on the East Cape.

Yesterday the seas starting to calm and it looks like we might get a break for a day or two before the wind ramps up again. Sierra fishing was good up and down the beach today for tin boaters and beach fisherman.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12121.jpg[/IMG]
One day all is calm

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12122.jpg[/IMG]
The next day it is not

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12123.jpg[/IMG]
The folks at Cabo Yachts had their doubts that we would be able to pull our 35 Flybridge out over the sand.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12124.jpg[/IMG]
Curious orcas. It is not every day but not unusual to sight them in the Sea of Cortez

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12125.jpg[/IMG]
You can tell this is the male by the larger dorsal fin. Most of the time we only see one male with a pod of females. The male always stands off while the females play. I want to come back as a male killer whale in my next life time ... top of the food chain traveling around with a harem of beautiful ladies. Sign me up!

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12126.jpg[/IMG]
They slowly came closer

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12127.jpg[/IMG]
Yes, that is a frightened skipjack we were trolling jumping out of the water

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12128.jpg[/IMG]
They hung around our boat for a good 15 minutes

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD12129.jpg[/IMG]
On this day we didn’t have any trouble with sea lions taking our bait or catch

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD121210.jpg[/IMG]
Sea lion? Make my day

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD121211.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD121212.jpg[/IMG]
Finally one nudged the Witch-Doctor

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD121213.jpg[/IMG]
As fast as they arrived they disappeared.

Mark Rayor
http://markrayor.blogspot.com
www.teamjenwren.com

The Rockfishes of the Northeast Pacific

2011-12-02T15:53:53+00:00

If you’ve spent anytime fishing around the Channel islands; the kelp beds; the Northern California, Oregon & Washington Rocky Coasts or inside Puget Sound.. chances are You’ve encountered Rockfish. they are all over the Place along the Pacific coast.
with at least 60 species from intertidal to the deepest reefs , Rockfish are everywhere.
It can be mind boggling to know what Species You’ve caught, many look a great deal alike to the average Angler.

Well here’s a Great book to get that will teach You almost everything You’d care to know about the members of the Sabastes genus..

“Rockfishes of the Northeast Pacific” by Love, Yoklavich & Thorsteinson

This is a Big, 404 pages Tome that is basically the Bible of Rockfish. it gives just enough scientific information to educate without overloading simpletons like Us..
Each Species is given a rundown about coloration, size, range, living needs, preferred foods,etc.. Plus enough quality Photos to help You know what you are looking at when you land that Rockfish that ate your Clouser….

Why bother learnign about the Rockfish?? you might ask.. well I find that knowing exactly what Species i just landed adds to my overall enjoyment of Fishing.. besides adding another Species to my Life list is pretty cool as well..

You can order the Book directly from the University of California press : http://www.ucpress.edu/book.php?isbn=9780520234383

Thought some of You out there would be interested.. I just started reading my Copy and it’s very good so far….

Catalina Island Report - 11/25/2011

2011-11-28T23:55:57+00:00

Capt. Vaughn Podmore (Salt Fly-fishing Guide Service) e-mailed in this fishing report:

“Well, I’ve fished Catalina 3 times this week + today, and wow, the bite continues on bonito: 2 - 3 lbs and a few over 5lbs. We even got them on floating lines and poppers today.”

“The 6wt rods have been a blast. I don’t think the bite is going to slow down any time soon, with a Santa Ana condition coming up. Local fishing inside LA Harbor has been fair with a decent pick on some quality sand bass.”

Sounds like there’s still fun fishing to be had, just get out on the water!

Sea of Cortez, EAST CAPE - IT WAS COCKPIT CHAOS!

2011-11-27T20:27:14+00:00

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 27, 2011

IT WAS COCKPIT CHAOS!

We spent most of this week on the beach because of no charters and mostly windy days. Wednesday afternoon the wind started to subside and it looked like Thursday would be nice. The problem was that it was Thanksgiving and we had celebration plans for that afternoon. I thought what the heck I’ll get an early start and come in at 1 or 1:30.

I heard there had been a pretty good dorado bite on the buoys near Pescadero so decided to start fishing there. Upon arrival we could see loads of small skipjack feeding on the surface. We caught a few and started slow trolling. With no action I looked at our GPS and decided to change plans. We ran about 45 minutes to the La Ribera high spot where there had been good marlin and sailfish action for weeks.

When we got to La Ribera there were five other boats and 2 were hooked up. It was just me and Chuy on the boat which makes things interesting when we get bit. Clearing the lines, keeping the boat in position and leadering a fish takes team work. We rigged and started trolling 3 live skippies. It didn’t take long and bam we were bit. I was ready with my camera as Chuy set the hook. Hang on, wham! The second rod goes off. With the camera in one hand I set up on the second fish. Wait a minute, slam! The third rod goes off. We are both laughing so hard and with our hands full we can’t set up on the third fish. All this is going on in the bridge where the rods were in our rocket launchers. Jumping down on deck Chuy hands me a rod with a fish on and then the second as he takes a swing at the third fish. On deck I now have both bent rods in the rod holders and pitch out a mackerel that was already rigged. Kabam! We are bit again. Chuy’s last fish didn’t stick but we still have 3 fish going which turned out to be a striper, a sailfish and a dorado. We ended up releasing both billfish and keeping the dorado.

Once settled down we started slow trolling skippies again and in just a few minutes hung another marlin. Releasing that fish I looked at my wrist watch and it was 5 minutes to ten. That’s it. Lets head for the barn. We had time to fuel, clean up the boat and make my afternoon commitment.

As we left the area Chuy’s brother Javier rolled in. He didn’t have to be in early and later told us they released ten billfish that afternoon.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11271.jpg[/IMG]
Thanksgiving morning on the East Cape

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11272.jpg[/IMG]
Chuy hangs the first fish

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11273.jpg[/IMG]
Now we are in trouble. Rod in one hand camera in the other Chuy is bent and one rod is unattended

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11274.jpg[/IMG]
The fish are giving us fits

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11275.jpg[/IMG]
Do I shoot photos or crank on the fish?

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11276.jpg[/IMG]
It was crazy

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11276.5.jpg[/IMG]
Wait a minute. What is wrong with this picture?

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11277.jpg[/IMG]
Whoa!

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11278.jpg[/IMG]
One of the fish in our triple was a large sailfish with no bill.

Try releasing a billfish that is thrashing around with no snout to hang on to.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11279.jpg[/IMG]
I can hardly wait to do that again.

Mark Rayor
http://markrayor.blogspot.com
www.teamjenwren.com

Need local knowledge!

2011-11-25T19:12:14+00:00

Hey there, so here’s the deal… I have a boat moored in Quivira Basin and have a full saltwater fly setup including flys. The problem is that I have never fished saltwater. I know casting technique, but as far as where and how to fish, I am lost. My proposal is this, if you are fairly experienced in fishing the kelp beds off San Diego, but don’t have access to a boat, you can come fishing with me! No cost to you, you get a day of fishing for nothing more than showing me the basics of fishing the kelp. I am not expecting any kind of fly fishing “lesson” per se, just some guidance on location and the like. If this sounds good to you, send me a message. Cheers.

Chris

Wrong forum, moved to “Fishing”....sorry

2011-11-25T19:05:48+00:00

Sorry, wrong forum, don’t know how to delete the thread!

Chris

East Cape, Sea of Cortez - BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

2011-11-22T00:42:38+00:00

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER
East Cape is experiencing the best dorado bite of the season. In shore and near shark buoys dorado have arrived in big numbers and are on the feed. Striped marlin have also been plentiful off La Ribera and Punta Pescadero. In shore sierra mackerel along with rooster fish are cooperating with anglers up and down the coast.

Today Steve Schroer of Boulder Colorado brought his 2 sons Bridger and Colter fishing on Jen Wren III. Initially Colter was a little apprehensive about the whole ocean fishing thing until hooking his first dorado. His tune changed when that first dorado hit the deck. Both boys ended up with limits before lunch.

With winter winds upon us, I’m always searching for accurate weather predictions. Last week I found a great wind prediction web site. It took a little time to figure out but is very powerful and has loads of info: http://windalert.com/en-us/Search/ViewResults.aspx#23.89,-108.916,9

Thanksgiving reflection makes me want to comment on some of the changes that have taken place in the 20 plus years I have lived here. Back in 1991 was our first Thanksgiving in Buena Vista. It was then I realized the holiday is not celebrated here. The only restaurant in the community that offered a turkey dinner was Tio Pablos. I used to joke with my friends in the US about the great recipe my wife had for road runner because we couldn’t buy a turkey. Now we have Costco, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club plus several huge super markets that all offer turkeys. Reading today’s Baja Pony Express I found 12 restaurants offering the holiday dinner: http://thebajaponyexpress.com/2011/November/1202—-112111.htm

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11211.jpg[/IMG]
Colter battles his first dorado

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11212.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11213.jpg[/IMG]

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11214.jpg[/IMG]
Here is one happy kid

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11215.jpg[/IMG]
Double hook up the the Schroer brothers

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11216.jpg[/IMG]
The boys got a kick out of feeding the pellicans when we got back to the dock

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11217.jpg[/IMG]
On anchor I pitched out our last mackerel and caught this sierra.

[IMG]http://dl.dropbox.com/u/24534590/BD11218.jpg[/IMG]
Yes, they do have sharp teeth.

Mark Rayor
http://markrayor.blogspot.com
www.teamjenwren.com