WEATHER: Everyone was surprised this week as our weather was more reminiscent of May than of August.?? Our daytime highs were in the mid 80's and our nighttime lows were in the low 70'd, really very nice.?? Part of that was due to the cloud cover we have had this week as we had a couple of small systems pass to the north bringing rain to the mountains and cloud cover to us.?? At the end of the week we had the experience repeated as the remnants of Hurricane Dean again passed to the north of us bringing two days of cloudy skies and cool breezes.?? We had a slight spattering of rain, more of a slight sprinkle than anything else, here in Cabo but it came down pretty heavily in the mountains and I was told that it rained hard in La Paz as well.

WATER:?? We had a couple of days with large swells from the southwest early in the week and then they shifted and came from the west.?? The winds remained out of the northwest for the most part and this put a chop on the water on the Pacific side of the Cape.?? On the Cortez side the surface conditions remained fairly nice with water close to home being smooth and calm.?? Surface temperatures remained warmer on the Cortez side of the Cape with water inside the 1,000-fathom line being between 79 and 82 degrees.?? On the Pacific side the water was cooler with closer to shore at 74-75 degrees and out around the Golden Gate Bank being right at 80 degrees.

BAIT: ??There was no problem getting bait this week with plenty of Mackerel, Caballito, Mullet and Sardinas.?? The bigger baits were the normal $2 per bait while the Sardinas were $25 per scoop.

FISHING:

BILLFISH:?? I had an exciting day on the water this week when we went up the Pacific side to find the Striped Marlin that had been close to the coast.?? I went past the Golden Gate Bank on the inside, cruising along looking for signs of fish.?? I finally found a mass of bait on the surface being worked by birds but it was a giant school of Sardinas and the only fish feeding on them were small Skipjacks, not what we were looking for.?? We turned to the southwest and as we approached the Gate I could see plenty of boats there on Radar.?? We arrived at noon and there wee boats hooking up all over the place and there were solid bait marks at 200 feet, large schools of Mackerel on the scope.?? We had a couple of bites while slow trolling bait but I was waiting for the fleet boats to leave so we could work the feeders that were popping up now and then.?? At 2 pm there were only a couple of us left and then things got interesting.?? Without all the boats there to chase them down, the Marlin would come up in packs and feed.?? The birds would pile up and there was even a finback whale feeding there!?? We would pull up to the action and drop back a live bait and ten seconds later the line would come tight on a Marlin.?? We released two Stripers fairly quickly and then had a long fight with a small Blue Marlin of about 200 pounds.?? Our angler was tired after that and we headed in, but if we had stayed I have no doubt that it could have been a double digit day.?? There were scattered fish caught in other areas on both the Cortez side and the Pacific, but for several days the Gate was the place to be.

YELLOWFIN TUNA:?? Still scattered, there were reports of some fish in the 25 pound class being found out toward the Cabrilla Seamount on the Cortez side and fish a slight bit smaller at the south end of the San Jaime Banks.?? A few boats did wide sweeps far offshore in both directions and found fish, but nothing to make a long trip worth it.?? The fish that were found were biting on cedar plugs and small hootchies, the smaller fish were eating the hootchies that were being jigged, and of course red was a favorite color for them (think squid).

DORADO:?? While not wide open, the Dorado action was consistent.?? Almost everyone was able to find a fish or two and most of the action was closer to the beach than you would think.?? As a mater of fact, there were probably more Dorado caught by the Pangas than by the cruisers, at least this week.?? The fish found offshore were larger on the average, but a bit scarcer.

WAHOO:?? I did not hear of any Wahoo this week, but there were probably a few caught, the water and moon were right for them.

INSHORE:?? Just like last week and the week before.?? Good to excellent Roosterfish were available on the Pacific side between the arch and the lighthouse on fish between 5 and 25 pounds.?? The baitfish moved in close to the beach and brought the Roosters with them.?? Other inshore action was spotty as most of the Pangas were concentration on the "close to shore" pelagic fish.

NOTES:?? Great weather, good fishing, it's been an all around nice week to be here.?? I finally got a new roof on the house (2 layers of torch down) so I am ready for any rain that might come our way and not have to be putting pots and towels all over the house to catch the leaks.?? My Jeep is finally here and the new steering components should be in next week.?? Then it is time to get into the mountains and see all the flowers and green growth the rain brought us!?? As far as my music this week, I went back to the classics and my selection was the Fleetwood Mac album "Rumors".?? Until next week, Tight Lines!