Things sure heated up for the Labor Day Tournament. At one point yesterday, 18 boats were all fishing a couple square mile section with great action. It doesn’t get much better, unless you’re Team Kryptonite pulling their third straight win! Twenty-four boats came out with 100 anglers to catch 102 billfish. A good number of the billfish were striped marlin, but I heard of a number of blue marlin released in the 200-350 pound range. The largest two weighed were 210 and 224 pounds. There were a good number of smaller dorado, but only five fish made it over the 18-pound mark with the biggest at 42 pounds. Two wahoo were weighed and only one underweight tuna. Personally I think the wahoo and tuna are down deep waiting for cooler weather.
There are some big marlin swimming around, and September is the month that they really start to show up. One boat caught one just a hundred yards from the Island yesterday. They could be anywhere. There haven’t been many billfish in close this year, but that could change. Look for the dorado action to get even better with a few more big ones showing up, and the small ones getting a little more ‘keepable’. Later in the month, expect some reports of tuna to begin.
In close, Team Margarita Sportfishing found excellent action for several four-hour charters. I think the massive school of smaller dorado we found headed north up past Deer Island and La Manga. Other schools will be moving through with some taking up more temporary residence. They, along with many small sierra and tons of skipjack, were feeding on acres of small baitfish. They better stay in close though before the big black marlin start to show up and turn them into bait. We did find some larger dorado around Doble Point outside the harbor and off of San Antonio in the 4-7 pound range. They are good fun on light spinning gear. There are also schools of the smaller dorado roaming around farther out under the white birds. The skipjack can become a nuisance for the first few miles offshore. Don’t troll right through them and you can sometimes get the larger dorado hanging with them.
After three days of all-day sweating through my shirt, I need a break. I’m grabbing my wife, our four-legged kids, and my fly rod and heading to the mountains. Till next time.
tight lines,
Bryan Replogle repsilon@aol.com
Team Margarita Sportfishing San Carlos Aquatic Adventures
