Baja Fishing Report: Morning Tides, Marlin Runs, and Rooster Season Heat Up
This is Artificial Lure with your Baja fishing report.
Up the Pacific side from Tijuana to Ensenada, we’ve got a cool marine layer early, light west winds under 10 knots this morning, building breeze and chop after lunch, highs in the low 70s along the coast. According to Windy marine charts, seas are running 3–5 feet out of the northwest with an afternoon bump. Sunrise is right around 5:40 a.m., sunset close to 7:55 p.m. on this stretch of coast.
Down in Cabo San Lucas, it’s classic early-summer: warm and clear, mid‑80s by midday, light morning breeze, picking up to 12–15 knots in the afternoon. Windy’s offshore forecast shows mostly manageable 3–4 foot swell on the Pacific side and a bit smoother on the Sea of Cortez. La Paz and Loreto are waking up to hot, calm mornings and afternoon thermal winds.
Tides: around the Baja peninsula, we’re seeing a pre‑dawn low, a decent mid‑morning flood, and another smaller evening high. Tide tables from Mexican Port Captaincy show roughly a 3–4 foot swing on the Pacific, a bit softer inside the Gulf. That morning incoming tide is the money window for inshore action.
Fish activity has been ramping up. Recent reports from Cabo fleets and local pangas out of San José del Cabo and La Playita mention good counts of striped marlin with a few blue marlin starting to show, plus scattered sailfish offshore. Dorado are becoming more consistent, with school‑size fish in the 10–20 pound range and the odd bull mixed in. Yellowfin tuna have been popping under dolphins and porpoise schools, mostly footballs to 40 pounds, with some nicer fish deeper.
Inshore around Cabo, Todos Santos, and up toward La Paz, roosters are the main show—guides are talking about multiple shots per morning with fish in the 20–50 pound class, and a few true brutes cruising the beaches. Sierra mackerel are thinning but still around in cooler pockets. Cabrilla, pargo, and other reef fish are active around structure in the Sea of Cortez, especially early and during that first push of tide.
Best lures offshore:
- For marlin and sailfish, run medium‑sized skirted trolling lures in purple/black, guacamaya, and pink/white, plus small to medium ballyhoo or caballito rigged on circle hooks.
- For dorado and schoolie tuna, cedar plugs, small jet heads, and feathers in blue/white, green/yellow, and zucchini patterns have been producing.
- If you mark tuna deeper, break out Colt Snipers and other metal jigs in 60–100 grams and drop them below the life.
Best bait:
- Live caballito and mackerel remain king for marlin, big roosters, and quality reef fish.
- For beach roosters, local guides swear by live mullet or ladyfish when you can get them, otherwise big surface plugs and sliders.
- On the reefs, fresh cut squid and chunked bonito are putting cabrilla, snapper, and triggerfish in the box.
Hot spot number one: the Gordo Banks and surrounding humps off San José del Cabo. Boats working this zone have been seeing mixed marlin, tuna, and some quality dorado, plus amberjack and snapper down deep on live baits. Slow‑troll a caballito on the edges of the banks at first light, then drop jigs once the sun comes up.
Hot spot number two: the beaches between the San José estuary and the East Cape—places like Costa Azul, La Ribera, and the stretches around Los Barriles. Early morning, clean water, and light swell are giving sight‑fishing shots at cruising roosters right in the wash. Big stickbaits in bone, silver, or sardine patterns, plus fly‑rod baitfish imitations, are getting crushed when you make the cast before the fish sees you.
For folks farther north, the kelp lines off Ensenada and the islands off Loreto are worth a look for yellowtail, especially around current edges. Slow‑trolled mackerel, yo‑yo iron in scrambled egg or blue/white, and surface irons when birds are working will all play.
This is Artificial Lure reminding you: fish that morning tide, respect the wind in the afternoon, and always keep one rod rigged for what you don’t expect.
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