Author: That Baja Guy-Gary Graham

On June 5, 1995, Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo declared the area surrounding Cabo Pulmo a National Marine Park, setting in motion what has become the “poster​child” of protected reefs throughout the world. Before the park was established, the area was heavily overfished.  Since 1995, as a result of citizen driven vigilance and support, illegal fishing has been eliminated dramatically benefiting the marine ecosystem, which has seen over 400% increase in total biomass. Cabo Pulmo recovery https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyhAMU-1RlU&feature=youtu.be In the 20 years while Cabo Pulmo fisheries and reefs recovered the other nations parks in the Sea of Cortez continued to see rapidly declining fisheries.…

Building on last year’s successful visit to Cabo San Lucas, the Sportfishing Association of California (SAC) team led by Ken Franke, president, returned in December, 2016. Their goal was to continue the ongoing dialogue with local government representatives and members of industries relating to sportfishing – ecological tours, diving, sailing, cruise ships, yachting, vessel maintenance services, general tourism and security. SAC is building relationships in Baja, Mexico. This year’s team included Kenia Zamarripa, Director of Marketing and International Affairs of San Diego; Pete Gray and sound engineer Rick Cutler of the Hookup 1090 Radio Show; Dan Malcolm, San Diego Board…

https://youtu.be/FjncaNcoBjM It’s the largest tuna tournament in the world – Cabo’s 18th Annual Western Outdoor News Yamaha Los Cabos Tuna Jackpot – held in early November in what has become known as a “field of dreams.” How large? This year, 168 teams from around the world competed in sportfishing boats of every size imaginable that swayed and rocked in front of the Los Cabos Tesoro Hotel on the Malecón. Although there are many money events in Cabo, none seem to draw the high number of teams this one does. The unusual rate of return can be attributed to the “fun”…

How do you describe the Bisbee Black & Blue Tournament in a few words? Easy! “It’s the Super Bowl of sportfishing,” Pelagic Gear’s Colin Sarfeh simply stated. “Some of the best teams in the world are assembled in one spot for the chance to earn more than $3.5 million dollars this year. We’ve been supporting this event for over a dozen years because of that and because of all the Bisbee family does for Cabo San Lucas. We wouldn’t miss it.” One hundred twenty one teams were in line to register for the 36th Annual Black & Blue at Puerto…

Part I For nine days each October, the top international captains, mates and anglers converge on Cabo San Lucas, the remarkable “fishing field of dreams,” where arguably some of the best billfish and tuna fishing anywhere on the planet is found. Bisbees Nine Days – Bisbee Black & Blue It is there that the Big Game Sportfishing tournament scene is centered, beginning with the Bisbee’s Los Cabos Offshore Tournament. The first event is a two-day contest offering cash prizes to the top three teams based on the single heaviest qualifying black or blue marlin brought to the scale, along with…

The 18th Annual WON Yamaha Los Cabos Tuna Jackpot, the largest Tuna tournament in the world concluded with an awards ceremony filled with emotion and jubilation. Held on the huge Cruise ship pier located in the IGY Marina. Over 750 anglers, friends, family and dignitaries gathered to celebrate what Pat McDonell, Tournament Director described, “as an exceptional experience and the last two days of weigh-ins have been epic.” As the event that broke its own records for attendance, 168 teams, up 25 from last year and the highest payout ever. $747,500 First place  and the Championship went to Team America,…

Lyle Brunson is a professional seaman, a lifetime sailor who has traveled for 40-plus years, visiting and fishing many exotic locations: Florida, the Bahamas, BVI North Drop, Antigua, Montauk, Australia, Wake, Okinawa and of course, the East Cape. I must mention my dad. He was the inspiration for all things outdoors for me. The man lived to hunt and fish and did it with style. One afternoon last summer, Mark Rayor and I spotted Lyle Brunson on the Hotel Palmas de Cortez’ pier as he met some of the boats returning with their catches. Later that evening, while having dinner…

Lisa Michelle Griffith refused to bait her own hook on her first fishing trip and these many years later she recalls that she was “squirmy” about it. Yet the early trips with her father and uncle, first to Lake Erie, the fourth largest lake (by surface area) of the five Great Lakes, and later to Canada Pigeon Lake in Ontario and to West Yellowstone where they fished streams and lakes, she fell in love with the outdoors and has fond memories of the beauty of the scenery. However, those early trips in freshwater weren’t enough to convince her that fishing…

The 37 boats released 32 to 35 billfish each day with a large number of those billfish releases being blue marlin. The fleet released 95 video-verified billfish, consisting of 56 blues, 36 stripes, and three blacks … great results for both Cabo and our tournament anglers! In the end, this year’s overall 18th Annual Los Cabos Billfish Tournament winner was Team Pangalisa, thanks to their 378-pound black marlin weighed in by John Dominic on Day Two. Dominic said that he has placed First or Second in just about every tournament he’s fished in, but this was his first time placing…

In my last Baja Bytes report, Mag Bay light’s up…, I featured the offshore fishing, concluding that after an inconsistent show last year, it was headed for one those banner years again that has made Magdalena Bay famous. Because we are published on the Internet, we don’t have to wait up to three months to go to print. we are provided the ability to publish an in-depth “how to” story while it is still happening. If you decide to chase your dreams and become part of the story in the next couple months, good luck. Let us know how your trip…

Explore Baja 3 Great Stories BD’s Baja Editor, Gary Graham, has spent a lifetime exploring and documenting the charm of Baja, Mexico as well as the incredible and diverse fishing that it offers.  Here are three great stories as we ” Explore Baja 3 Great Stories ” through his eyes. Water-Logged Off Magdalena Bay Magdalena Bay Adventures “Leave it to BBC One to capture over and over the most epic three-way struggle between a dorado, frigate bird and the flying fish, an event that I have only seen a couple of times in the wild.” said Capt. Scott Goodwin. When…