EAST CAPE AND MAGDALENA BAY FISHING CONDITIONS REPORT FROM GARY GRAHAM'S BAJA ON THE FLY: PROVIDING QUALITY SALTWATER FLY-FISHING 365 DAYS A YEAR IN BAJA - THE ONLY ORVIS EXPEDITION COMPANY IN BAJA - Sat, April 27, 2002 EAST CAPE, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO IN GENERAL: Frustrated is the only word that comes to mind. Early in the week, the north wind had backed off and there was a volume of fish being seen both offshore and inshore. Then the north wind slams back in and pins us to the beach. Finally, the wind quits yesterday (4/26) and boats go roaring back out, but can't find much action. Are they gone? I don't think so. It is just going to take a few days for the fish to settle down. Another noteworthy event is that the Mexican Government, with State Director of Tourism Roberto “Bobby” Van Wormer’s help and urging, revoked several gillnet permits that were seriously impacting the inshore fishery. While the weather wasn’t ideal for making sardinia this week, there was a glitch in the permits for the bait guys and it took a few days to get their permits squared away. Everything is now back to normal as far as bait for chum is concerned. When the north wind backs off I think we will all be smiling. AIR & SEA: Finally the jet stream is not dumping cloud cover over Baja and the temperatures are beginning to heat up. Mostly Cloudy Hi 94° Lo 71° Wind: VA/0 mph Humidity: 54% Dewpoint: 60° Visibility: 10 Water Temps 75-79 . OFFSHORE: Plenty of billfish and bait. Most of the fish are plugged with bait and not as aggressive as we would like. However, with so many around it’s pretty exciting fishing with numerous shots for the flyrodder. . INSHORE: No Gillnets = More fish and with the wind this week many boats chose to fish close to shore. It produced some quality roosters, sierra and a few pargo on the reefs. . BEACH: North wind caused some nasty wind waves that messed the beach up until yesterday. BILLFISH - Plugged but plenty of shots. YELLOWFIN TUNA - Who knows. DORADO - A dead whale was found 40 miles out that had a huge school of dorado from schoolies to some grandes. ROOSTERFISH - With the north wind, it is an early morning deal, with larger fish hanging on the drop-off at Punta Arena and out in front of La Ribera. JACK CREVALLE - OK, here's the deal: if you are interested in being part of a small, select group that only targets the larger guys, make sure you have at least 200 yards of backing on your reel. I can’t tell you how many times we get pounced on by the bigger fish. Right now there are some huge jacks cruising in the seam. BARRILETE OR MEXICAN SKIPJACK - Plenty all along the inshore. PARGO AND CABRILLA - It is pretty easy to figure out where. Every reef had several boats pounding them this week. SIERRA - A winter-only fish? Not hardly! There is still plenty of volume. Use clear or opaque wire bite tippet, not the black variety. Catch of the Week Photo: http://www.bajafly.com/weeklycatch.htm MAGDALENA BAY, BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO Sat, April 27, 2002 IN GENERAL: Better conditions in the last few days produced a few yellows at the entrada and the sierra finally returned on the current rips in the bay. Up in the esteros, it is still time to explore some of the mangrove channels that are often overlooked. If the stock spots don't produce, go exploring. AIR & SEA: Clear skies with windy conditions in the afternoon. Temp 60 - 75 Water Temperatures 60 - 68 YELLOWTAIL - You will need a shooting head to get down where they are Hanging out. CORVINA - Still plenty of smaller fish throughout the bay. SNOOK - Little pressure this week. HALIBUT - Find a sand beach and give it a go. SIERRA - Watch for the birds, and the current rips. Here’s a tip: the Current rips are usually easy to spot if you watch for the foam along the edges. Catch of the Week Photo: http://www.bajafly.com/weeklycatchmagbay.htm