"...my wife had NEVER been fishing before and requested a patient captain.Note that dolphin fish is the english name for Dorado.
...I was not really expecting a whole lot in the way of catching fish as the moon had been full the night prior. We headed out on Eulogio's panga. After making bait we drove to the fishing grounds. He explained to us what we were going to be doing.
After an hour or so, we caught our first fish, a smallish dolphinfish. I did not want to retain any fish and requested that the captain release it if he did not want it. No problem. He let it go. During the next two hours or so we continually hooking into, landed and released dolphinfish. We ended up keeping two that had been gut-hooked. After catching around (and releasing) another 3 fish I was pretty happy with the venture. My wife had caught and released a similar number. But Eulogio kept looking and did not seem at all to be in a hurry to get back into port. I had explained to him that I was more of a species fisher than one interested in size or prestige. He looked for billfish and other species but was unable to get any to bite. But he tried. Patiently.
Finally at around 1 pm I told him that I was happy and wanted to head back. He told me he did not mind staying out. When I assured him we had had our fill of fishing and were quiet happy, he drove to port. It was very obvious to me that this man loved his job, enjoyed helping clients and was out to give his clients a quality, fun-filled experience. I was impressed with his demeanor and willingness to honor what I wanted to do. I have had significant problems in the past with captains that practically refuse to release anything but he was not at all like that.
... As a person who has fished all over the world, I was very impressed... I plan to return to Loreto next year."
"According to the story in the newspaper, this commercial vessel from Mazatlan, was caught North of Loreto and found with 1,300 Kilos of dorado onboard in their storage holds. Along with the Dorado were two small sharks. Under Mexican fisheries law, Dorado is reserved for sport fishing and can only be taken commercially if an incidental catch. Sharks can be caught commercially but only under a shark permit. This boat did not have a shark permit and they were totally illegally fishing the resulting catch. According to the local PROFEPA agents, they responded to repeated calls by local sportfishing pangueros and service providers as this boat was seen longlining for Dorado and filleting Dorado meat at sea.
PROFEPA was unable to investigate due to lack of funding (no gas for patrol boat), so the Loreto Marine Park accompanied them to make the bust. I saw this boat being brought to port at 16:00 on Wednesday before being moved to La Paz. On further interviewing PROFEPA agents on the matter we (Laura Escobasa of Eco Alianza Loreto and myself) were told that their funding ran out two months ago and they no longer have gas for their boats or can maintain their equipment. We are investigating ways in which resources from the purchase of Mexican Sport Fshing Permits and Loreto Marine Park Tickets can be collected and stay in the Loreto area for the purposes of research and enforcement of the laws. We will be posting a survey on tourists awareness about Mexican fishing licenses soon which will help us build the following case: it is a fact that revenue collected in Loreto for the purpose of Mexican fishing licenses is disproportionately higher than the revenue collected from the rest of Baja California Sur and the rest of Mexico, thus those funds should rightly stay in this area in the future."
From the BajaBigFish.com webpage:
Unlike the US where the fees for your hunting and fishing licenses are used to fund state fish and game agencies in the state they are sold in, funds from fishing license sales in Mexico historically have disappeared off to Mexico City never to be seen again. However with the creation of FONMAR, Baja California Sur is in a unique position to reinvest license fees in protection of the resource.If you will find yourself fishing off the coast of BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR in the near future, consider yourself lucky because only in this state do we have the option to purchase our Mexican sportfishing licenses at the State Finance Office and not directly via the federal government's fund (CONAPESCA). What's great about this is that the funds from these licenses bought in the state STAY in the state. Right now the monies are going toward a fund called FONMAR which is usually used for marine conservation and education but now it is being used to legally overturn NOM 029, the Shark Norma. So as much as I love those travel clubs like Vagabundos del Mar and Discover Baja, and as much as it may be more convenient to purchase your license through these services, the fact is that the money for licenses paid this way stays with the feds who invent seriously stupid laws like NOM 029. Buy your fishing license though your local outfitter in BCS and your money will go towards preserving the Sea of Cortez fishery for the future. I see my Loreto-born children catching nice fish almost every day off our shores and I want their children to have the same chance so, BUY YOUR FISHING LICENSE DIRECTLY THROUGH YOUR BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR FISHING OUTFITTER. Do NOT buy it stateside because that money you work so hard for will go right to the feds who are in the back pocket of the commercial fishing industry.
This Palometa (Yellow Jack) is another of the many fish that have fallen for the 1/0 Clouser Minnow in brown/yellow/white with gold flash. This fish was caught in Puerto Escondido on a very calm January day. Over the last couple of years Puerto Escondido has been spared the pervasive gill nets that plague many inshore areas of the Sea of Cortez and is providing an outstanding fishery. Hopefully, this area will continue to serve as an example of what inshore fishing in Loreto Bay National Park could be like.
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