Baja California has long been known as a world-class destination for saltwater sportfishing. And, while quality angling opportunities abound along the coast of the entire peninsula, there is only one place where anglers can enjoy an offshore, island-based fishing adventure; and that is Isla Cedros.
The 2024 fishing season has just begun with a bang, and a number of popular gamefish species are already coming over the rails of our pangas.
Situated only a few hundred miles down Baja’s Pacific coast, the Island has become a Mecca for serious anglers in search of trophy-grade calico bass, huge yellowtail, big white seabass, and California halibut, as well as a bevy of exotic species like dorado and yellowfin tuna that generally arrive later in the season.
Over the years, Cedros Outdoor Adventures has built a solid reputation for consistently offering their clients with the highest level oceanfront accommodations, outstanding food, attentive staff, and some of the best captains and pangas available on the Island. As a matter of fact, over 60% of anglers are return customers, who often bring new friends with them to enjoy this ‘one of a kind’ fishing experience.
A recent first-time visitor, Alex Garcia, and his friend, Ian Herron, both from Newport Beach enjoyed a fishing adventure that was off the charts. As it turns out, Herron had fished the waters of Isla Cedros with us on two previous occasions and was instrumental in convincing his fishing buddy to join him this time. Garcia commented that fishing was even better than he expected.
The duo managed to take limits of yellowtail between 10 and 42 pounds on the blue and white iron, as well as a 30-pound white seabass.
In addition to highly celebrated gamefish such as yellowtail and white seabass, there are a number of other worthy species to catch. One of these is the California sheephead, which is distinguished by the fact that it begins life as a red female and eventually grows into a massive, black, white, and red male that can reach weights of 20 pounds or more. Since Crustaceans make up a majority of their diet, their delicate, white flesh is mild and tasty, and is said by some to resemble crabmeat.
Gracie Todd and her family, composed of three generations of dedicated anglers, paid us a visit earlier in the month and was lucky enough to score a fat sheephead weighing over 11-pounds. During their visit, she and the rest of her party took a number of other tasty fish, which included a 24-pound California halibut and a 34-pound yellowtail.
Ron Viera, from Orange County, came to Cedros near the end of the month with a party of 12 friends. It was his first visit, although many members of his group had fished the Island before.
Viera said that he was amazed at the quality yellowtail fishing that was available, since the forktails swimming around Cedros dwarf the ones that are generally available in SoCal. He added that an usually large 8-pound ocean whitefish, the only members of the tilefish family found off the Pacific coast, was taken by one of their anglers on cut mackerel.
Winding up the month, first-timer, Chris Fefore, out of San Diego, joined is buddy, Max Weis, who was on his 5th trip along with a couple of other friends. He indicated that their group did extremely well on quality yellowtail, most of which were taken on blue and white surface iron. He even benefited from a rare ‘double hook-up’ when both a calico bass and a yellowtail ate the same jig simultaneously.
They also caught and released an 11-pound calico bass, and even ended up catching a23-pound white seabass on a dead sardine. Fefore concluded his report by saying that he was already looking forward to his next visit.
Some of the best fishing of the season is yet to come as exotic species like dorado and wahoo are pushed up the coast during southern Baja’s storm season. Now is the time to make your reservations to secure your preferred dates.
As a matter of fact, Cedros Outdoor Adventures is proud to announce our “Fill the Gap” special.
Here’s the deal: any of our unsold Premium Guide packages are now available for a whopping $500 off the regular price if you book your seat 30 days before departure. Full payment is required at the time of booking.
Seats are limited and will be snapped up quickly, so act fast!