Board Fishing For Halibut in Scorpion Bay

Happy fishing new year!! It's 2008 and I just returned from 10 days of tough Baja driving. My destination was San Juanico, aka Scorpion Bay, located some 700 miles south of Tijuana on the Pacific coast. The surfing there is legendary, but the fishing is not so well known. I went for both. We left southern California on the morning of December 21st and arrived as the sun was setting on Christmas Eve. The swell was chest-high, and we sunset surfed neverending waves until dark. Christmas morning was celebrated around a campfire with smoky pancakes. Then I went fishing.

From a 10-foot longboard. I used a bungee cord to secure the small tackle box and hung a Leatherman off the side. Then I tucked the small bass rod under my arm and paddled around the surf break to an empty stretch of rocky beach pocked with underwater reefs and turquoise water that indicated sand. The first 10 minutes were slow so I paddled in close to the rocks knowing I risked losing my shiny new Rapala. First cast brought a strike rather than a snag and I released a small cabrilla which had been hooked by all three treble hooks. I realized my mistake, and quickly clipped the middle treble hook free and crimped the barbs on all but one tang of the two remainng trebles. I only keep what I plan to eat and the healthier I can release a fish the better. It's my small way to try and keep the fisheries healthy for my two kids--and fishing kids everywhere.

There's something special and a little spooky about fishing from a surfboard. Your legs dangle in the water as shark snacks, and sudden swells jostle you around. But it's quiet without all that engine noise, and pleasant without the smell of fuel. You don't need to worry about your anchor or watch for those propeller-bending rocks. Best of all, you can get to places a boat can't go and a surfcaster can't reach. And because you slide in on top of the water, the fish don't know you're there.

I played around in the rocks a little longer before moving out to a patch of turqouise water that looked about 8 feet deep. I lobbed the rapala and cranked hard to get it down when the bass rod bowed to the waterline and my 10-pound test line melted from the reel. The battle was brief but exciting as the fish tried to take me into shore. I kept its head up and soon was staring into the toothy smile of a keeper halibut. After a few whoops and hollers I clenched the rod in my teeth and began the slow paddle back to shore. I had to paddle back around the surfers and then time the swells into the beach. I also had to make sure the line stayed taut to the fish, especially since the hooks were mostly barbless. It took about 10 minutes, and as I slid the good-sized flattie up onto the hard sand, a small crowd gathered. Photos were snapped, high fives were exchanged, the fish was iced, and then I hit the waves for some epic minute-long rides on the best Christmas day of my adult life.


You can email me at smorey@incrediblefishingstories.com for more information or just to talk fish. I'll be blogging more of my recent fishing trips over the next month, and I'll include as many photos as I can. All the best to all of you, and may you always have the fisherman's luck in your tackle box!!

Shaun Morey