Outdoor Notes : When Fishing Cools Off at Cabo San Lucas, Boats Move Farther South

The cold that gripped the Southland in recent weeks has also affected the fishing off Cabo San Lucas, but farther south the fishing is excellent.

John (J.D.) Doughty of Bisbee’s Tackle in Newport Beach, who regularly monitors Mexican fishing conditions, said that off the mainland coast of Manzanillo, “They’re experiencing some of the best big-game fishing ever.”

On Tuesday, the Tex, a private yacht owned by Ron Cox of Century City, reported catching a 350-pound blue marlin--and losing 7 others--2 sailfish, a striped marlin and a 75-pound wahoo. In the same area last Sunday, the Blowout, a private sportfisher skippered by Richard Brown, reported 3 blue marlin, all released, a sailfish, a striped marlin, a dorado and a wahoo. On Monday, the Crazy Horse reported catching a 350-pound blue marlin.

One private yacht fishing even farther south, off the coast of Zihuatanejo, reported catching a 450-pound blue marlin.

Most of the boats, however, have been fishing an area 10 to 15 miles from Campos Point off the coast of Manzanillo.

“The water temperature has dropped at (Cabo San Lucas) and the bigger billfish have moved south to the mainland,” Doughty said.

At Cabo San Lucas, meanwhile, fishing has improved somewhat this week.

“There was some cold weather, and the water temperature has dropped to the low 70s,” Doughty said. “Fishing was slow for the last 2 weeks, but starting Sunday it has shown some improvement. . . . The clarity is improving and the water seems to be warming up a bit.”

Striped marlin, Doughty says, have become increasingly active on the Pacific side of the cape, with one to four opportunities per boat per day.

“There’s a lot of congestion, though,” he said. “You get three or four Mexican boats, what we call the Spanish Armada, and the American boats converging on the feeders to cast a live mackerel (in an attempt to bait the fish).”

Doughty said the congestion is caused by fishermen having to spot the fish and trying to get to it before the other boats can because the marlin aren’t hitting trolled lures.

Ron Howarth of Newport Beach, fishing Monday off the back side of Santa Catalina Island, caught a 59.9-pound yellowtail. If it is approved by the International Game Fish Assn., it will shatter the world record.

Howarth was reportedly using 12-pound test, bouncing a jig off the bottom at 125 feet when the yellowtail struck. The fish came close to spooling Howarth twice, but after 18 minutes he had successfully landed the hearty jack and is expected to submit his catch to the IGFA.

He was unavailable for comment, but the Balboa Angling Club’s Helen Smith, who weighed the fish, said: “I’ve never seen a (yellowtail) that big. It was one of the old home guards that didn’t want to get caught.”

The record yellowtail taken on 12-pound test is a 33-pound 14-ounce fish caught off Baja California’s Coronado Islands in 1983. The all-tackle record is a 78-pounder caught farther south at the Alijos Rocks.

San Diego’s long-range fishing fleet, which filtered south to Mexico’s Revillagigedo Islands just after Christmas, has returned from the first of many scheduled multiday trips in quest of giant yellowfin tuna.

The waters around such islands as San Benedicto and Clarion have been known to produce the powerful tuna well in excess of 300 pounds.

However, such fish apparently have yet to cooperate with fishermen.

“The Royal Polaris just returned and fishing wasn’t that good,” owner Frank LoPreste said. “In fact it was pretty poor. Things didn’t look good at the Revillagigedo Islands so the boat went to Clipperton (an island 500 miles farther south), so they only got in 3 or 4 days of fishing.”

Twenty-nine fishermen caught 151 yellowfin tuna--the biggest a 274-pounder, but most in the 125-pound range--140 wahoo, 19 groupers, 8 rainbow runners and a black sea bass.

The American Angler returned from the Revillagigedos last week with 18 anglers having caught 137 yellowfin--the largest weighing 238 pounds--251 wahoo, 95 pargo, 18 groupers and 6 rainbow runners.

The world record yellowfin, caught at San Benedicto Island in 1977, weighed 388 pounds 12 ounces.

Briefly

A panel discussion--open to the public--on the problems of California gray whales becoming entangled in gill nets will be held Friday night at 7:30 at the Otto Center Auditorium in San Diego. Representatives from the National Marine Fisheries Service, Los Angeles Museum of Natural History, California Gill Netters Assn. and the conservation group Ocean Associates will be on hand.

Showtime: The Arrowhead Outdoor Sports Show, National Orange Show fairgrounds, San Bernardino, today through Sunday; Fred Hall’s RV, Boat, Sport & Travel Show, Palm Springs Convention Center, Feb. 1-5; Southern California Boat Show, Los Angeles Convention Center, Feb. 3-12.