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Gooood Morrrning Sea of Cortez! It looks like this is the pivotal week in East Cape weather changing from winter to spring. Air temperature has risen and north winds have calmed. Wind surfers and kite boarders had an excellent winter but are now packing it up. Traditionally Semana Santos (Easter Sunday) is the last blow of the season. It is interesting that through the hard winter fishing remained good on days boats were able to get out. Striped marlin and dorado were on the menu continuously. Late January brought a few yellowtail and the morning bite has just continued to get better. Some days getting live bait has been easy but when the humbolt squid come up over the 1,000 foot edge near by the fin bait disappears. Yo-yoing iron has been very effective getting the yellowtail to go when getting bait is tough. Just a bit further off shore tailing striped marlin are being sighted in packs from south of Los Frailes to north of Pescadero. I also received a report that a friend of ours fished the Pacific side from Cabo yesterday and limited on Yellowfin tuna. The East Cape, Sea of Cortez and southern Baja is heating up. Chango's smile tells the tale. These tails were taken on live macks 2 miles off the beach of Buena Vista Andres is Chango's great grandson. You can't get kids fishing too early Jen Wren crew cashed in Hummingbird update. Mama started on her nest the first week in February on the Jen Wren III bow pulpit. Her two eggs hatched March 1st and from the size of a jellybean the baby birds out grew the nest in 10 days. Last Sunday they flew the coop. We installed a feeder close by with organic honey. I like to think it helped the mother bird and speeded the process and growth of the little birds. Now we are ready to rumble! Jen Wren III is getting wet this weekend. Right place right time. I captured this shot of an osprey flying over our deck and posted it on Jen Wren Sportfishing Facebook page. It has had an unbelievable 18,000 views. The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" Jen Wren Sportfishing Facebook page Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Unfolding nicely Over the last couple of years East Cape winters have been very mild. That is not to say we didn't have windy days and cool weather but it wasn't as I had remembered winter. This year has been more typical of the past with bone chilling strong north winds. This past week we had small craft advisories 6 days out of seven. On the only calm day I heard reports of striped marlin stacked up off Punta Pescadero and a hot yellowtail bite on the East side of Ceralvo Island. All the signs are encouraging and I'm certain that one day soon this harsh weather will vanish as quickly as it arrived. Meanwhile in Team Jen Wren camp things are unfolding nicely. Our boats are ready for action and it has come to the point that we are just waxing the wax waiting for spring. I received an overwhelming response to my question how long does it take humming bird eggs to incubate. The general consensus was 3 weeks to hatch and 3 more before the new borns fledge the nest. A soothsayer and omniscient friend suggested putting a feeder close by so mama bird didn't have to venture far for food and could spend more time on her nest. Well, it worked! It has only been 2 weeks and yesterday the eggs hatched. Research tells me they will double size in a week and soon be too big for the nest. This is going to be a great year! I can feel it in my bones. Now we are preparing for our Jen Wren exhibit at the Fred Hall Shows-The Ultimate Outdoor Experience in Long Beach California. We will be right across from the Accurate exhibit. This is the biggest show for the sportfishing industry on the West coast. I am pleased that 2 days fishing Jen Wren was selected as part of the grand prize vacation package give away for the show. Accurate Jack Nilsen has produced several exciting Youtube videos that can be viewed at this link: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLF4414B05DF2EFF36&feature=edit_ok If the timing can be coordinated he has agreed to join the prize winner and produce a video of their experience fishing Jen Wren. As a show special we are offering 2012 pricing for all reservations taken before March 15 to fish anytime during 2013. Yes, everything is unfolding nicely. If you are in the greater Los Angeles area next week please come see us. Here is a shot of my brother helping out. Mama getting ready to feed her babies. The little birds are only about the size of a raisin. I haven't been able to capture a photo of them Mama bird prefers to sit in a tree when we get to close. Putting top shots on our Accurate arsenal Lots of humpback whales in the area right now I found these cool marlin BBQ lighters at West Marine. They will make great gifts. Seems like there is always at least one shark around The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Good Karma Strong north winds shut down the great bite the East Cape had been experiencing for several days. Now after a 5 day blow it has backed off. Before the blow anglers were able to make Mackerel and sardines on the high spot just about 2 miles off Buena Vista in 300 feet of water. Soaking the freshly made bait in the same location was very effective to hook yellowtail. Most of the yellowtail have been quality grade between 30 and 40 pounds. Just off the high spot in a thousand feet a huge volume of humbolt squid have shown up. Commercial fishermen have been harvesting the big squid by the ton. There has been a huge semi in town paying 4 pesos a kilo for the calimari from anyone wanting to sell it. Last week we finally finished winter maintenance on the Jen Wren boats. Hot to trot I have been waiting for calm weather to launch Jen Wren III and get in on the yellowtail bite. Licking my chops getting ready to launch I discovered a hummingbird nesting under the bow pulpit of the boat. Looking at my options I believe it would be bad karma to disturb mama while she is sitting on her nest. I'm going to let this cycle of weather pass. Hopefully when the next cycle of calm arrives the little birdies will have flown the coop. This has to be good karma Anyone know how long it takes for hummingbird eggs to incubate? I want to go fishing. Jen Wren III had a big Christmas with a complete new Simrad electronics package including two touch screen multifunction plotters in the bridge. Who is that masked man? Last of our paint work is completed. We pealed off all the teak trim on Jen Wren and replaced it with Starboard. While other fleet boats have cut back we have been very ambitious maintaining and improving the Jen Wren fleet. It has been pretty cool to have Big Bird walk with me on the beach every morning. I had no idea how territorial blue herons are. This guy moved in and set up shop weeks ago. The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

A magical place East Cape has been experiencing the typical ups and downs of winter. Last week seas were calm and Yellowtail, snapper, marlin, dorado, sierra mackerel and Giant humbolt squid were all on the score card. This week brought strong north winds not allowing many to get on the water. The score card, well, the wind is starting to back off and the bite should pick up again. The good news is Punxsutawney Phil didn't see his shadow so you can take it to the bank we will have an early spring. It will only be 4 or 5 more weeks before we turn the corner of winter and start to experience more consistent good fishing conditions. Many ask how I ended up in Mexico. My first visit to Los Cabos was 1973. At that time getting to the Pamilla hotel was like an adventure out of Indiana Jones. There were no direct flights. The first leg of the trip from TJ to La Paz was no problem as there was Jet plane service. The last leg was a different story. We took an old DC3 twin prop plane to a dirt runway a few miles from the Pamilla. The people operating the little plane had the attitude of the more the merrier. We don't need no stinking seats! After they were all occupied passengers would sit on milk crates in the aisles. Some holding bundles and bags similar to the sights on old Mexican busses. It was quite a scene. Rickety old taxis would see the plane coming and make their way to the dirt landing strip. The road was kind of paved if you call a little black slurry over dirt pavement. There was huge pot holes, roaming live stock and no shoulders. It was an adventure-some ride in a car that smoked sputtered and hardly ran dodging the cattle and trying to avoid the pot holes. On my first visit a pig was being slaughtered on the side of the road right at the entrance to the hotel. Later we discovered that pig was our dinner. From that time I frequented Los Cabos every couple of years. The DC3, horrible road and sub standard cabs were always a part of the adventure. It was 1987 when I was invited to a private beach house on the East Cape just a few hundred yards from Spa Buena Vista (now known as Buena Vista Beach Resort). It was then I found a charm the East Cape had, and still has, like no place else I have ever been. On this trip the thought entered my mind that maybe this is where I would want to live when I grew up. In 1990 a 1/3rd interest came available in the little one bedroom beach house where I had first stayed on the East Cape. With no hesitation I snapped it up and started making preparations to move to Buena Vista full time. I closed my real estate firm killing the goose that laid the golden egg, packed all my worldly belongings and in May of 91 was on my way to Mexico. It is obvious by the growth I've seen that many others have been attracted to the area by the same charm I found. Several milestones have contributed to the growth. In the early days this place was more or less a fish camp where manly men came to fish. Construction of the Los Cabos international airport (SJD) provided easier access to the area and was the first big change. In 1993 Telmex installed a phone system on the East Cape and we were able to have our first home phone. Prior to that there was only one phone in the whole town. There was a woman operating the phone we called the phone nazi. If you ever saw Sinfelds Soup Nazi you will get the idea. Anyhow, phones provided instant communication which provided more comfort and security that attracted family visits. Then came cell phones. The installation of DSL which provided high speed internet changed the entire game. Step by step Los Cabos has grown and the population has exploded. With it all the East Cape still has a magnetic charm and is still a magical place. I'm the one on the right The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Have gun will travel East Cape weather for the first 3 weeks of January was pretty horrendous for fishermen. Air temps were extremely cold and the north wind ripped continuously for almost 3 weeks. The surf was pounding on our beaches and I was beginning to think it would never end. The windy conditions turned out perfect for sailors competing in the Lord of the Winds kite boarding event. East Cape is known for good sailing weather this time of year and the timing was perfect for this event. Thank goodness it wasn't scheduled for this week as the wind has subsided and we are now enjoying warm weather and calm seas. Gorgeous weather the last few days has allowed fishermen to get on the water. High spots off Buena Vista, La Ribera and El Cardonal have been producing snapper, humbolt squid and an occasional yellowtail. The yellows are coming on greenback mackerel, sardines and chunk squid. We just completed winter projects on Jen Wren and she is ready to fish. With the yellowtail showing early this year we are anxious to go fishing. Last night in my mind I was going over what we needed to get on the water. Boat work complete check, fuel check, water check, fishing tackle OOPS! All of our reels went to Accurate Fishing Products in Corona California for an annual tune up and I haven't gotten them back yet. They have been ready for some time so it is just a matter of picking them up. I have a trip planned up to Gringolandia at the end of next week to pick up some terminal tackle along with our Accurate Reels. During my visit I will be Pete Grey's guest on Lets Talk Hook Up talk radio show Saturday, February 9th along with Accurate Jack. The show is from 7 to 9 AM. Please tune in and listen. I welcome everybody to call in. There is a free app for mobile devices called TuneIn Radio. That is what I use to tune in from anywhere. I'll be back the middle of February ready to fish if anyone wants to come down and take a wack at the yellowtail. With Jen Wren ready to go my attention has turned to Jen Wren III. Complete hull restoration and installation of our new Simrad electronics package are the last 2 projects to complete. The new Simrad touch screen plotter, 4G broad banned radar, auto pilot, sounder and satellite weather have all been installed. All of these electronics will interphase and work in harmony. A tech from Simrad will be here Tuesday to dial the system in and confirm everything is functioning properly. Hull restoration has been a challenge. In fact much more of a challange than anticipated. Over the last few years I have tried every painter in our community for one project or another and have not found anybody I have confidence in. Okay I'm kinda particular. Actually my friends that know me describe it as anal. Be that as it may I want the best job I can get. I was ready to import a painter from the US when it came to me. Right in front of my face the whole time was Caliman. He has an auto body shop in San Bartolo just 10 miles away. We have been friends for several years and his work is top notch. Caliman came to look at the job and kind of shook his head and explained. First off he had never painted a boat or anything as large as a 35 Cabo Yachts. Secondly he is accustomed to doing his work inside a controlled environment not out in the wind and dirt with cars driving by and insects dive bombing the just painted surface. Lastly the Awl Grip paint chosen for the job is extremely temperamental and very hard to work with. Given my options and trusting my instincts that Caliman was good with a gun I made him an offer he couldn't refuse. Day one Caliman shows up with a brand new high volume gun purchased just for this job. I mixed up the 2 part primer and watched him go to work. The new gun wouldn't spray and just spit the primer. After 3 attempts on the stearn the wind started to kick up so we aborted for the day and cleaned up the mess made on the back of the boat. Now the heat is on. The mixed primer only has a pot life of 16 hours so we need to get it on the boat. The second day Caliman shows up early with his trusty top load pistol ready to rock and roll. As he works around the boat shooting primer I started to grin. The guy is a master and he is laying it on perfectly. After a short break for the primer to tack up he starts with the top coat. The stearn and port side are completed and look awesome. I'm starting to dance the jig as he works down the starboad side. All of a sudden I don't hear the spray from his gun. Caliman has stopped painting and is staring at the side of the boat along with my crew. Taking a look I see paint running down the side of the boat. It only took a moment for the master to figure out the problem and he explained. The starboard side is in the shade and the paint didn't go off like the side in the sun. I swear he stood there and stared at the runs for 40 minutes like he was trying to burn a hole in the side of the boat. There was nothing to do but wait for it to dry and start again. Day three Caliman shows early again with his game face on. The sanding work is completed to remove the runs and he is laying on the paint hot and heavy. First coat looks great! Second coat I'm stoked. Caliman is done and tells me he is going to apply a third coat to give the shine more depth. I was very pleased with two and couldn't stand to watch as he went back to work but the master pulled it off. The boat looked like it just rolled (or floated) off the show room floor. We cleaned up the equipment and called it a day. The plan was to paint the black boot stripe the following morning. I went to town to buy some tape for the stripe. Upon my return I was horrified to find that a large piece of plastic drop cloth had blown out of the cockpit and was laying down the side of the boat stuck in the fresh paint. Day four we had to do it all over again and finally got it right. Early in the month we escaped the wind and went camping at Mag Bay. I had to share this funny picture taken of Jen after we blew a transmisson hose. Conditions are rude and crude for painting This guy is good with a gun Putting on the black boot stripe Look at the shine Just got her name on and we are ready to start the paint work above deck. Wish us luck! The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Pumped up I want to start this post by wishing all my friends a happy and prosperous new year. Our weather has been very typical for this time of year. The north wind blows pretty hard 6 days out of seven making wind sailors happy. It hasn't made conditions very nice for fishermen. Morning temperatures have dropped to the low sixties and water temp is down to around 70 degrees. We have been hard at Jen Wren maintenance but I have gotten fishing reports that the bite is outstanding on the odd day when boats can get out. Dorado, marlin and sailfish are all in the mix off La Ribera. I spoke with one skipper that landed 4 wahoo a couple days ago. Also early mornings walking the beach I'm watching sierra mackerel busting large schools of bait. Pounding surf just hasn't allowed tin boaters to get out after them. For the last month and a half my crew has been working hard 6 days a week on winter maintenance. I'm hoping to have all of our projects on the boats completed by the end of February. Friends have asked how in the world could you spend so much time completing this work? I started looking at all the pumps that need to be checked on the boats and was amazed. Just on Jen Wren III each motor has a fresh water cooling pump, raw water cooling pump, diesel lift pump and diesel fuel pump. Times that by 3 (including the 110Volt generator motor) adds up to 12 pumps. Then there is 3 bilge pumps, a salt water wash-down pump, freshwater wash-down pump, A/C raw water pump, fresh water maker pump, macerator pump, toilet vacuum pump, head drain pump, auto pilot hydraulic pump, helm pump, two fish storage macerator pumps, 3 bait pumps and an engine oil changing system pump. Adding it up this one boat has a mind blowing 30 different pumps. I know it is not a matter of if each pump will fail it is a matter of when. Some are more critical than others for us to stay in operation but in my mind every one is important. That is just the pumps on one boat. On the motors valves must be calibrated, heat exchangers and after coolers cleaned, belts, hoses, alternators and anti-freeze all checked and replaced as needed. Transmission oil and filters, cutlass bearings, rudder bearings and strut bearings all must be checked. Gremlins show up in the weirdest places and now is the time to find them. Both cruisers are getting complete hull restoration and Awl Grip paint this winter. This spring they will look like brand new boats. Jen Wren is getting a new auto pilot and depth sounder. Jen Wren III is getting a whole new Simrad electronics package that includes 2 touch screen combination plotters, auto pilot, broad band 4G radar, sounder and satellite weather module. I haven't even mentioned the work that goes into maintaining our fishing equipment. Every rod is inspected tip to butt. A little chip in the finish is like a cancer if not repaired. Every roller guide is disassembled to check the bearings and reel seats are lubricated. At the start of our season every rod will look like new and be ready for battle. This is the first year I decided to let Accurate do all of our reel maintenance. There is just not enough hours in the day for me to do it all. Accurate has an incredible system. Their technicians go through a check list with each reel and I receive a full report that includes any bearings or parts that were replaced. It is interesting that all this info goes in their data base. If they find a certain model reel continually wearing out the same part R&D will figure out why. That is just one of their ingredients to producing the best reels on our planet. Yes, we have lots to do. One by one projects are getting checked off our list as we prepare for spring. Inventorying spare pumps we carry on Jen Wren III Hull restoration on Jen Wren came out awesome. We just put new lettering on the stern and the crew is starting to check the diesel motors Love my morning walks. We found these little guys a couple days ago. The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

It's all about opportunity Up until a couple of years ago I never made an effort to take photos while fishing. It was just such a bother when the bite was on. Wet hands, blood on the deck and sensitive camera equipment seemed like a sure recipe for disaster. Then I had the good fortune to spend quite a bit of fishing time with a couple of different friends who are excellent photographers. The result of their work is eye stopping. It was Gary Graham and Jack Nilsen's encouragement and good advice that inspired me to give it a go. It is interesting how both have completely different styles. Graham is very calculated, precise and is alway analyzing the situation. He sets up most of his shots making the skipper move the boat until the light is right, getting the anglers set and also adjusting the settings on his camera to capture the moment best. Nilsen is the exact opposite. He draws his camera like a six shooter and blasts away. Light, blood, guts, smiles who cares? He is not going to bother the skipper or the anglers. His camera settings are always on auto. The incredible thing is at the end of the day they both walk away with some really good stuff. My eyes glazed over when I started shopping for my first SLR digital camera. There is so many choices and some of the equipment is so expensive I would have to hock one of my boats first. Coming around from sticker shock with the advice of my buddies I settled on a moderately priced Nikon D5000. I spent some time studying the manual and fidgeting with buttons getting familiar with my new equipment and I was ready to go. My first few days fishing and trying to shoot photos was an education. The camera never seemed to be in the right place or on the right settings. I would be in the bridge when a marlin or dorado we hooked would leap by and give great opportunity but my camera was in the salon. I'd move the camera to the bridge and find myself in the cockpit without it. The first couple of months I got some good shots but missed way too many outstanding opportunities. Over the last couple of years I have learned a great deal. One thing I had to come to terms with was that skippering the boat or working the deck many of the best opportunities for great images will be missed because they come and go in the blink of an eye. Now I have 2 cameras. One stays in the bridge with a long telephoto lens (55-300). The other has a close up wide angle lens(18-200) and stays in the salon. With all we have going on while fishing I have adopted Accurate Jack's style. Most of the time we just can't take the time to get set up so I just keep my cameras on auto, having them on rapid fire. Point and blast away has worked for me. During edit most of my photos end up on the office floor but what the heck, with digital photography it doesn't cost any more to keep grabbing frames. Many people have asked about my cameras, lenses and settings. It is all moderately priced, as camera equipment goes. Both cameras are set on rapid fire and on auto sports mode with a fast shutter speed to stop the action. Once in a while shooting anglers with their prize catch close up I will switch to the auto portrait setting which slows shutter speed and gives greater depth of field. Reviewing what the camera has captured day after day with my crew has been huge. We have figured out what works and are all on the same page. Just like when a marlin shows in our pattern everyone knows what to do. Now working together we can get a scene set up in seconds with the light right, the mess cleaned up and our angler in position without gaffs, rods or other obstacles in the way of shooting a great image. In moments we capture what we want, lines are back in the water and we are after em. As it goes I still miss many more opportunities for that great moment than are captured. The fish never listen when I say "do that again!" Nope, the moment has been lost and it is a matter of waiting for another. The shear amount of opportunities that are presented spending so many days on the water is the key. Wishing all my friends and family the best holiday season ever. Posted are a few of my favorites of 2012. The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

In hot water Walking the beach in the morning I'm starting to see schools of bait puddling up and down the shoreline. It is a sure sign of good things to come. There has not been much traffic but those venturing off shore have been rewarded finding scattered marlin, dorado and an occasional wahoo and sailfish. It seems to me the water is much warmer than normal for this time of year. A couple of days ago I found a study indicating the water is, in fact, 4 degrees warmer than normal. Scientists can't explain for sure what is causing this phenomenon. Here is a link to what I found: http://www.octavodia.mx/articulo/37914/investigators-find-unusual-phenomenon-in-sea-of-cortez#.UMigl1hJDx4.email It probably explains why our night time temps have been so nice. Normally by Thanksgiving I'm breaking out sweatshirts, Ugg boots and lighting up our fireplace every night. So far this season we haven't needed to get into that ritual. When I was in Puerta Vallarta last week the folks there were telling us the weather was warmer than normal for December. Getting to Vallarta from Los Cabos was an adventure. I was not able to find a direct flight on a major airline. The routes were through Mexico City or Guadalajara with overnight stops. Ready to give up on my trip I found Aereo Calafia. It is a small airline that operates from a small landing strip in Cabo San Lucas (not to be confused the International one in San Jose). I found what I thought was a direct flight. The thing they neglected to tell me was the plane stopped in Mazatlan. The stop was brief though and the whole experience was very entertaining. No "in flight service". In fact no tray tables to put up or restrooms for that matter. I have posted a couple photos below that will paint the picture. It is well known that latin men have the reputation of having lovers on the side. Becoming a naturalized Mexican makes me a naturalized Latin male in my eyes. I believe it is appropriate to live up to the reputation that comes with my new territory. I have learned that keeping ladies on the side can be an expensive proposition. It is also a juggling act giving all the ladies in your life the love and attention they need and deserve at the same time. One rule I have made that has kept me out of trouble is my lovers must have the same name as my spouse. Not having to worry about calling a different woman's name in my sleep or her finding a gift or card with a strange woman's name on it is a benefit. My wife Jen knows she is the true love of my life but still has a hard time sharing me. Maybe it is a sickness but I just can't give up my passion for the ladies. I give all the love and attention possible and lavish them with gifts beyond what we can afford. The love and attention shows. They do what I ask of them and put out all season long. Back in 1992 I bought my first new fishing boat to bring to Baja. Laboring over what to name her the yacht broker suggested the boat be named after my wife. The main thought behind the idea was that it would be hard for her to get upset with me for spending time and dumping money in my boat when after all, it was named after her. I took the bait but don't know that the idea turned out to be entirely true. Today there are 3 Jen's in my life. Jennifer my bride, Jen Wren and Jen Wren III. The 3 Jen's Jen Wren Jen Wren III Yikes! My boats have more propellers than this thing Who knew I would have gotten to fly the plane had I upgraded to first class The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Last one standing Last week Hotel Rancho Leonero closed up until March. Buena Vista Beach Resort followed suit and also shut the doors. They do plan on opening briefly for the holiday. The last one standing so to speak is the Van Wormer Resorts Palmas de Cortez and Playa del Sol. They are the only full service resorts on the East Cape that intend on staying open through the entire winter. Water in the Sea of Cortez has remained warm and sources tell me the marlin bite off La Ribera has been very good. With little traffic I'm finding it hard to get good info on fishing action. I do know Tin boaters fishing near shore and beach fishermen have not had much action. I was invited to Puerta Vallarta this week to fish for giant yellowfin tuna on my buddies boat the "Great White". This is supposed to be their high tourist season but it looked like deadsville to me. The resort operators, taxi drivers and fishing operators I spoke with were not very optimistic about business picking up. As for the fishing from what I saw and experienced Vallarta is truly "Cow Town". The down side is the fishing grounds for the monster yellowfin are more than 100 miles from marinas. This makes logistics difficult and trips expensive for the average fisherman. Because of the distance we were only able to get one full days fishing while 2 1/2 days at sea but it was very fruitful. We landed three 200 pound class tuna and broke one off. Our average fight time on these monsters was 30 minutes a fish. I tribute that not only to experienced fishermen but also the great tackle and all Accurate reels the Great White is equipped with. We also landed a nice dorado and released a sailfish. Dave Helmers with a dandy Accurate Jack with Great white owner Dave "Fendo" Fender "Let's Talk Hookup" radio host Pete Gray straps on the harness What's wrong with this picture of Pete's fish? Whoa! The bottom sickle is missing. Looks like as a young fish it must have been shark attacked. It is amazing how the injury heeled up. It didn't keep the fish from becoming a big mama either This is a rare shot of Mr. "the rail is your friend" Jack using a harness Love the Accurate's It is sashimi time! Pedro, Fendo, Jacurate and myself enjoying our experience at Cow Town. Guess I'm not in Kansas? Weird for me to see the sunset over the ocean. I'm used to the sunrise over the Sea of Cortez each morning. We scooped this little guy out under the night lights. At the time I thought it was a juvenile billfish but now having time to look at the photo believe it must have been a ballyhoo. The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Born in the USA East Cape sea temps remain above 80 degrees which is much warmer than normal for late November. I am a bit surprised by this especially since north winds showed up early. Normally when the north wind shows the water temperature plummets. With the waters in the Sea of Cortez staying warm so has the air. It has been down right balmy. It is also a bit unusual that sailfish and blue marlin are still on the menu for those braving the weather off shore. Years ago I did release a blue marlin on December 12th but it certainly is not the norm. Striped marlin take residency year round but the blues and sails will migrate on to warmer waters when it cools here. Near shore on calm days tin boaters are catching sierra mackerel and Mexican lookdown fish are keeping beach fisherman busy. The last fishing day of 2013 for the Jen Wren boats was Wednesday. Catching was good but sea conditions were rough. It is the time for kite boarders and wind surfers. Now both boats are in dry dock for the long and tedious job of winter maintenance. I will touch more on this at another time. With Thanksgiving upon us I am reminded "you can take the man out of the country but you can't take the country out of the man". This is a US holiday as is the 4th of July, Memorial Day, President's Day and Columbus Day. These holidays are not celebrated in Mexico. After 21 years of living abroad I still have to remind myself when around my Mexican friends and employees that these are gringo holidays. To complicate the matter I have become a Mexican citizen and celebrate the Mexican holidays as well. As ironic as it is on July 4th, 2005 my wife Jennifer and I were sworn in as Mexican citizens. Many ask if we had to give up our US citizenship. The answer is no. We now hold dual citizenship and carry 2 passports. Giving up US Citizenship is something we would never do and I did a great deal of investigation before applying. People at the American consulate assured me it was not that easy to renounce US citizenship. A person can give up their US passport and present documentation but it will not be recognized by the US without a personal appearance in front of authorities. I think that most folks visiting Baja see Mexico as the wild frontier. Many have no idea how much governmental structure Mexico actually has. The country has 31 states and a Federal district. The whole set up is very similar to the US with a congress and senate. There is Federal, state and municipal governing same as the US. Hacienda is the equivalent of the IRS. IMSS is the equivalent of social security but with more of a medical plan similar to what Obama wants to implement. Our property taxes and water bill is collected by the municipality while Hacienda and IMSS are federal. Our electricity is supplied by a federal commission and phone service is private. All the coastline and oil and mineral rights belongs to the feds. It is fascinating to me how the perception of the Mexican government is so different than the US and how similar it truly is. Recently the feds decided most of their holidays would be observed on Monday. The local labor force is really happy with that one as now they take the day of the holiday and Monday as well. I don't believe that was the intent of the government? Labor laws state an employee is entitled to triple time for working holidays. I'm not sure how I got off on this topic but will close by saying my favorite Mexican holiday is Saint Lunas. It falls on every Monday. Good Mexicans get drunk on the weekend after payday and are so hung over they can't make it to work on Monday. Hence, Saint Lunas. I do my best to be a good Mexican and observe the holiday. Photos from our last trip of 2013 The best source for the latest East Cape fishing conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Alice's Restaurant I just got back from spending 5 days in Cabo San Lucas fishing the Western Outdoor News Tuna Tournament. I take my hat off to Pat McDonald and the crew at WON for doing an outstanding job and putting on a well organized and fun event. As always the tournament was a huge success with more than 120 entries and a 372 lb beast taking honors. Many more tuna over 100 pounds and a few over 200 were also brought to the scale where Jonathan Roldan was Weigh Master. Cabo San Lucas is a unique and interesting place. The arch at lands end rivals any place on our planet for beauty and with first sight the attraction to Cabo becomes obvious. My first visit was in 1973 when Cabo was a sleepy little village similar to Buena Vista where I live now. The place has grown to a large bustling city with tens of thousands of residents and more tourists. Cruise ships visit daily and drop off thousands for the day. The coast line is dotted with high-rise after high-rise resorts packed with tourists. Walking down the boardwalk near the marina where Jen Wren III was tied up reminded me of a scene from Beverly Hills Cop. Eddie Murphy was cruising down Rodeo Drive in his Old Chevy II watching the freak show. As I walked a huge smile came on my face and in my head I could hear Murphy's laugh. I was watching a similar freak show that goes on 24-7 near the wharf. Sex drugs and rock & roll are all available and there are street vendors, time share sales people and ladies all out hocking their wares. You can get anything you want. Although most are pleasant, some of these folks are as agressive as a deckhand pitching a bait to a tailing marlin. I'm pretty sure the vendors see the tails the same as the deckhands and never miss the opportunity to pitch a bait. The party atmosphere also reminds me a bit of New Orleans. I remember walking down Bourbon Street and being approached by a young boy. He said Mr. " I'll bets you 5 bucks I knows where you gots those shoes". OK, I'm from LA and there is no way the kid could possible know where I bought my shoes. I'll bite 5 bucks I told the kid. "You gots em on your feet!" he replied. That was a quick five. As we came and went the kid would hit me up with another scam but I wasn't going to take the bait again. The following day I saw him again and he said "I'll bets 5 bucks I can tell you how many letters are in your last name". I thought a moment and said you are on! The kid said 12 and my reply was you are wrong, hand over the 5! No, no said the kid. Count the letters your (4) last (4) name (4) totals 12. The kid got me again. Bottom line is Cabo is a very fun place to visit. Just 65 miles from the East Cape but a world away. I look forward to going back but am glad it is not my steady diet. Meanwhile since being back home the wind has been relentless. It is supposed to back off tomorrow and we are going fishing. Reports indicate marlin and dorado fishing has been very good off La Ribera and Punta Pescadero both. Lands end Shot gun start The bite was a slow pick but we finally got bit. We are having fun now! With jungle rules we were able to pass the rod. Fighting big tuna puts a man to the test. Waiting our turn at the weigh station. It is always exciting to weigh a fish One of our team members was named Gump. Believe it or not his wifes name is Jenny. You can get anything in Cabo. Gump even found his favorate beer, tall Miller lites. The wild life in Cabo is very aggressive. For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Different strokes Northerly winds are starting to prevail and our East Cape fishing season is rapidly coming to a close. The resorts are having fewer departures as it winds down. Tomorrow we are moving Jen Wren III from Palmas Bay to the Cabo marina to compete in the WON tuna tournament. The odd cow to 300 pounds has been showing at Gorda Banks so it should be an exciting event. More than 21 years ago I pulled the plug on my Los Angeles based real estate brokerage and move to Buena Vista. It all looked good on paper but the truth be known when it actually came time to kill the golden goose that had provided so well for my family, and start packing personal belongings to move to a foreign country my palms got really sweaty. Moving to a tropical place where most folks save up all year to visit on their vacation was my dream. Why visit a place you love for just a week or so? Why not live and enjoy that paradise all the time? That was my dream and what I did. I have never looked back. No more freeways, no more stress of the big city. Just look out my front window onto the Sea of Cortez and see a parade of magnificent marine life. One doesn't have to look hard to see roosters busting the shoreline, ospreys hunting, manta rays jumping, whales breeching, the stars shining at night and breath taking sunrises over the Sea of Cortez everyday. Family and friends all thought I had lost my mind. At that time in 1991 there was only one phone in Buena Vista. The nearest shopping for groceries was 40 miles away on a poorly paved road with pot holes and other obstacles. This was an adventure for me after living in a concrete jungle my whole life. My answer to those that asked what I was going to do down there, was I'm going to try and get bored. Shortly after our move my wife Jennifer wrote a song for me titled "Help me lord I'm just trying to get bored". She used to play her guitar a lot in those days. In 1997 Michael and Kim Fowlkes were at the VanWormers Palmas de Cortez filming an Inside Sportfishing episode. We had them over for dinner and just by chance Jen got out her guitar and started strumming the song. Michael was taken aback and returned the next afternoon with his camera to record Jen singing the song written for me. Back in his studio he made the TV production "The Sea of Dreams". Other producers told him he was off his rocker opening a fishing show with Jennifer singing "Help me lord" but they were proved wrong when Michael won his first Telly award with the production. I have always maintained that one has to have little different stroke to go off stream and move to a foreign country. Some of the ex-pats that live here take exception and are offended by my statement. I believe the statement to be true. I'm here. It was fun going through some of my archived photos this week looking for some with a little different stroke. I ask myself everyday, what did I do to deserve this? My granddaughter Maya tells me what she thinks about fishing. This stroke was not my best form Cassandra marches to her own beat My grandson Nicholas stroking his first marlin with help from his brother Jake Now here is a different stroke Call me off beat. I'm living where others come to have fun My good buddy Del Marsh always heard his own tune. He had a way of lighting up everyones life that he met. He has been gone over 3 years now and I miss him everyday. Chuck Feller holds the record as our oldest angler weighing in at 96 years old. In this photo he is battling his first tuna ever. Love watching kids learning to stroke Chuy, you are in trouble! Look behind you. What can I say? Kelly spent months practicing her stroke for this trip Grandfather, grandson bonding. Call me off my rocker, it doesn't get any better! For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Walking the beach near my home in Buena Vista I encountered Noe Ariza harvesting turtle eggs from a nest he had just found. He patrols the beach every morning from north of Palmas de Cortez, Playa del Sol and Los Barriles to south of Hotel Rancho Leonero toward La Ribera. He told me that to date this season they have harvested more than 34,000 yes, thirty-four thousand turtle eggs from more than 320 nests and transferred them to a nursery in Buenos Aires. At the Nursery the eggs are safe until they hatch and then the baby turtles are released into the Sea of Cortez. Many of us believe our government doesn't do a lot of things right but I have to say the efforts to save the endangered sea turtles has been an incredible success. Several years ago there was a huge campaign with notices posted, television ads and radio spots run with the message "take a turtle and go to jail". The Feds have been very serious and vigilant. I think a pedophile would have a less severe penalty then a turtle poacher from what I have seen. Now sea turtles are alive, well and abundant in the Sea of Cortez. It is not an unusual sight several in a day while we are out fishing. Speaking of fishing. Our season is winding down to a close. The north wind that haunts us all winter has already reared its ugly head. Wind surfers and kite boarders have stood on the side lines waiting and are getting a taste of conditions favorable for their sport. Fishermen are starting to get their teeth rattled from E ticket boat rides and are picking their days more carefully now since they can't count on calm seas. The changing season has made the bite very unpredictable. Some days game fish will play ball but some days it is hard ball. Even when the bite is tough being on the water beats fighting freeways or listening to the phone ring. The magnificent Sea of Cortez is rich with life and when rods are not bent we are sighting an array of bird life, whales, porpoise, turtles and other creatures of the sea that keep it interesting. New born turtles ready for adventure Noe Ariza hard at work protecting sea turtles The East Cape sea turtle nursery Sea turtle sightings are common Don't point that thing at me! Wiring sailfish can be dicey Don't point that thing at me!! Doña Cha Cha with a gun in her hand got my attention. Even if it was a flare gun to start the Tuna Shoot Out. Still a few blue marlin around. Robert Jordan's buddies snapped this quick photo before the release. Below is a little sailfish porn I captured this week. For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Classic Lynn Rose has been promoting the most popular best attended charity tournament based out of the East Cape for the last 23 years. Proceeds raised have always gone to help the children in Los Barriles and Buena Vista. "The Lynn Rose Classic" held at Palmas de Cortez would draw more than 70 boats in its hay day. Now, times are a little tougher but last week the tournament still drew more than 30 entrys. For many years Accurate has been a major sponsor of Lynn's tournament. The Jen Wren boats are proud to be a member of team Accurate who in my estimation produces the finest fishing reels made. Lucky Accurate Jack Nilsen always attends and fishes with us. This year his luck ran out on the last day when we lost our first place lead. It was all in good fun and good fun it was. The event is loads of fun and for a good cause. Below I have posted a few photos shot from Jen Wren III during the event Lynn Rose with her grandaughter watching the shot gun start Wayne is bit First striper Scott is bit Mark wires and reases this one Jack is bit It is a dandy Here I am having a cold one on our deck with Accurate Jack disscusing the days fun The tournament is over and now we are back to business For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Wind blows calimari shows On our return one day after enjoying more than a week of perfect weather and great fishing I leaned over and told Diego this is not going to last forever. I knew the great conditions would change but had no idea how soon that change would come. No sooner were the words out of my mouth and the following day our first blow from the North came with vengeance. We experienced a two day blow from the North which shut the bite down. One day we were on top of the world and the next had to work hard in miserable conditions to scratch out a bite. Then Hurricane Paul started to form below us in the Pacific. North winds subsided and it started to rain. This is one of the strangest weather situations I have ever seen. All at the same time we had our first winter type conditions with wind from the North. At the same time a summer time hurricane was coming our way from the South. Naturally the force of the chubasco prevailed. We dodged another bullet as Paul is skirting by us in the Pacific but not without dumping several inches of rain. As luck would have it this hard weather showed up just in time to greet the "Tuna Shoot Out" tournament where only one tuna was brought to the scale for 60 boats. Thursday the Lynn Rose charity tournament begins. I have an ace that gives me confidence the weather will clear and the fish will bite. "Mr Lucky" Accurate Jack is coming to town for the event. While all this weird weather phenomena is happening giant humbolt squid that have been absent for 2 years have reappeared. Go figure? I have posted some pretty cool photos captured earlier this week Sailfish went balistic Love those happy faces It is always a treat to have Kevin Rerden. He is about as fun as they come Kevin McLane made the best of hard weather and his sons did catch some fish. They also sighted a whale shark, breaching humpback whales and several sea turtles. A wahoo sliced this bait in two with it's razor sharp teeth Boats gather in the moring just off Buena Vista to catch giant squid Catching squid has become easy Well, not that easy for some. If the handle won't turn use both hands. What ever works! For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

Mr Lucky It has been an outstanding week on the East Cape. Seiners have backed off and tuna have come on strong. The fish have been a considerable distance to the South but biting well. No huge fish but 15 to 25 pounders have been getting anglers attention and a limit of filets fills a cooler nicely. Closer to home off the high spot at La Ribera striped marlin, sailfish and dorado have been very consistent. Most boats targeting billfish have been releasing multiple fish. The bite has been the strongest early in the morning and late in the afternoon with it going a little flat mid day. Bait has been available and easy to find. Sardines have been for sale daily as have caballitos. I have taken note that some fishing groups have incredible luck. When these certain guys show up it doesn't matter if fishing has been good or not and my crew knows we are in for some killer fishing. George Gavallos, Bill Potter, Bill Heim, Mike McClane and Wayne Shimabuka are just a few that come to mind. These guys don't pay attention to moon phase or have some secret formula to success. They just come to have a good time with the attitude catching a few would be a bonus. That attitude works and the fishermen that have it catch the most. Without a doubt the luckiest of them all is Accurate Jack Nilsen. We were fortunate to have him again this week and as always when he is here there is lots of action. With Mr Lucky we never leave the dock early. The standard routine is for Jack to get on the boat with his guests around 8-ish. He then sets up his camera gear and retires to the couch in the salon for a little snooze until we have motored to the fishing grounds. This man always has a grin on his face like the cat that just ate the canary. He will relax and wait for the chaos to begin and it always seems to happen for Jack. I have never seen anything like it. Accurate Fish Products reminds me of Apple computers. They have the best products and always seem to be ahead of the curve with something new. We are lucky to get a peak at these new Accurate innovations when Jack brings them for field testing. Stay tuned. A new Jen Wren Sportfishing You tube video is in the works. I will post the link on our Facebook page when it is released. We were slowing the boat down to troll live bait when this Bomboy lure got bit on the sink Bomboy's do get bit Hard to get good help. Jack fights the fish tests a new reel and films it at the same time Lots of action Come to papa A little rainy weather didn't slow us down Ryan Kelly and his brother Pete battled a double sailfish hook up in the rain Mr Lucky with Pete Kelly Constant action when Mr Lucky is here There is the grin I described For the latest East Cape conditions "like" JEN WREN Sportfishing | Facebook Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com JEN WREN Sportfishing | Facebook US cell 310 308 5841

GOOD NEWS BAD NEWS Some good news is the drought that southern Baja and the East Cape have been experiencing is over. During the past month we have received several inches of rain. The desert is green and looks like a lush tropical jungle. Bad news is all the rain made fishing uncomfortable for a few days. It is not all bad as the precipitation has not hurt the bite for those willing to brave the conditions. Good news is live bait has become available. Sardines have reappeared and available for purchase everyday. Cavillitos and boca dulce (spanish mackerel) have been easy to find. Bad news is several tuna seiners have been working East Cape waters. They drive the porpoise and tuna down and make tuna fishing very difficult for sport boats. The good news is they don't take them all and experience tells me that as soon as they leave the tuna will pop back up. Good news is dorado and billfish have really filled the gap for the hard to catch tuna. Posted are a few photos I captured over the Labor Day holiday. Bomboy lures do catch fish For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

FOR THE BIRDS! Yellowfin tuna, dorado, marlin and sailfish provided constant action on the East Cape this week. We had a little different gig for a few days though. Four years ago I was asked to take a group of bird watchers out on Jen Wren to sight marine birds. To be honest I kind of thought it was joke and planned to take them over to the moorings where they could watch pelicans make a mess on fishing boat bimini tops. That thought couldn't have been further from reality and my crew and myself got a heck of an education from the birders. On this exploration four years ago birders known to be authorities on the subject of marine birds came from as far away as Europe. I quickly found out southern Baja has been little explored and not much is known about what marine birds habitat or migrate through here. We sighted several different species not know to frequent these parts. The trip was a huge success and word spread rapidly through bird-nerd circles. Since that time we have had requests to do bird watching trips every year. Each trip birders have agreed that the Sea of Cortez is rich with life and has an excellent bird habitat. It was interesting to sight and learn about the pink footed shearwater bird. They are only known to nest in Chili. I thought that was a long journey for a bird until sighting the south polar skua that came all the way from the Antarctic coast. The most incredible sight we experienced this week was watching a south polar skua bird take down a boobie bird. Not seeing it with my own eyes I would not have believed it. I would like to thank John Shemilt for sharing some of the images he captured of this event while on Jen Wren III. We witnessed this south polar skua come out of nowhere and knock a boobie bird out of the sky The skua pounced on the boobie when it landed in the water The boobie bird was in distress Trying to fight back The skua would have no part of it The skua bird pecked unmercifully The boobie tried to escape The skua bird was just too powerful What a battle! In the end we drifted too close which distracted the skua. The boobie flew away and all agreed our presence saved it's life. Walking the beach in front of Rancho Buena Vista one morning I sighted this Yellow Bellied sea snake. Never a dull moment in Baja! For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO NOW? Early this week we experienced some rain. Then we got more rain. I was beginning to think it would never stop but after 3 days it finally did. This weather brought low pressure that not only made boat rides uncomfortable it also shut the great fishing we were experiencing right down. Then the rain stopped and the tuna popped. The bite has been a little different every day but boats willing to go the distance and take the time have been rewarded with limits. The fish have been from 20 to 35 miles off shore. Sometimes we are finding them with spotted dolphin and sometimes they are just breezing. Most mornings, using our gyro binoculars, we have been able to spot working birds in the distance which is always where the tuna are feeding. Finding the fish doesn't mean they are going to bite right way though. Yesterday first thing in the morning the tuna charged the boat and bit everything in the water. The day before they were foaming around the boat but we couldn't buy a bite. It was a matter of just working hard, having patience and waiting until the fish decided to cooperate. I had a little difficulty with a group this week that didn't have the faith or patience and made me leave the scene before making the score. It was very frustrating to go the distance, find the fish and have to leave them. I learned many years ago you don't leave fish to go find fish. It has been a little inconsistent for boats targeting Marlin, Dorado and roosterfish. Sometimes they will go but it is the tuna that has been pure action. Below I have posted a few random photos from this week of smiling anglers. Great Sea of Cortez sunrise We have been knee deep in tuna scoring limits every day Halco Laser Pro 160's and 190's have been our secret weapon for tuna and dorado For the latest East Cape conditions "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

WEATHER OR NOT! After enjoying several days of outstanding weather and a great bite The wind started blowing and turned everything around. Yesterday about 11AM we experienced quite a thunder storm with lightening cracking and a down pour of rain. Our arroyos were running and we were getting some much needed rain. I'm sure our local farmers, ranchers and live stock all have big smiles and are doing a dance. By nightfall all was calm and we were getting mixed forecasts. Sometimes it is hard to predict weather in a tropical environment where there is a potential for almost anything to happen. I was awakened at about 2 AM to the sound of doors slamming in our home from strong winds. In a short time the wind stopped and the rain started to poor. Now it appears we may get rain all day. The fishermen we had scheduled for today elected to pass and give it a go tomorrow. I did see several resort boats depart this morning. It was almost on this date one year ago we experienced similar conditions. On that date the rain didn't keep our fishermen back. They were rewarded with a killer day landing tuna and billfish. JD is getting a little wet but it is just adding to the fun of battling a marlin For frequent East Cape updates "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

HELLO AUGUST! August has arrived and East Cape is experiencing the most consistent bite of the season. Schooling yellowfin are being found by fleet boats from Punta Perico to Los Frailes and providing limits for most targeting tuna. Some schools are just breezing while the better grade of tuna are with porpoise. Sailfish have been consistent for a while and now big blue marlin are bending rods. It is my opinion and observation that our season has finally kicked into gear but it is about a month behind. We are normally knee deep in Yellowfin starting early May but this year they didn't arrive until June. Traditionally blue marling fishing turns on early July but it didn't happen this year until August. Looking ahead it is going to be interesting to see what fall brings. Blue marlin finally show. Dana Presley battles her first ever billfish and starts with the bar set high. Dana's estimated 300 pound blue marlin Diego releases Dana's fish Sailfishhave been in the same area as the blue marlin Reece Presley catches her first sailfsih Siblings Rylee and Bryce both hooked up to their first tuna This was the Presley families first visit to the East Cape. Look at the smiles, I have a feeling it won't be their last. That is the end of my tale for this week For frequent East Cape updates "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

EAST CAPE BLUES It was another spotty week of fishing on the East Cape. The weather has been about as nice as it can get. The water is 82 to 84 degrees and a beautiful purple blue. There is loads of flying fish, and birds everywhere. I just keep waiting for the bite to explode. At the high spot off La Ribera red snapper and amberjack along with huge skipjack are providing action early mornings. Striped marlin and sailfish have also been plentiful but are a little finicky. Further off shore tuna cooperate and bite for a couple days and then disappear. So far they have been up and down all season. Boats go out and have a killer tuna day but then might not be able to find them the next. This is the first time in history a qualifying 300 pound minimum blue marlin was not weighed for the EC Bisbee. There were some good moments for the tournament though. A 57 pound dorado was brought to the scale and a 213 pound yellowfin tuna. We thought the tuna had that division iced but the last day it was trumped by a 265 pounder. Yikes! Bisbee shot gun start. These guys are here to have fun Love seeing young fisherman with their first billfish. The smiles tell the tale. Early morning snapper Amberjack Anglers were brought to their knees by big tuna this week I don't think this method will work Is there a doctor in the house. We had to preform surgery to get our Halco lure back. They are tuna candy We took a few dandies this week. Thank you Accurate! Small reels, big fish! Unloading Jen Wren Jen Wren at Verdugo's dock For frequent East Cape updates "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

In a nut shell, beautiful weather and mediocre fishing. We did have our moments but for the most part the whole fleet struggled to bring action for anglers. The Dorado Shoot Out was well attended with more than 100 entries but only 3 qualifying fish were brought to the scale. It only took 41 pounds to win a new Toyota Tundra and truck load of cash. The highlight of my week was watching the joy on 11 year old Giovani La Polo face when he landed his first yellowfin tuna. A first sailfish Giddy up cowboy Waiting for Dorado Shoot Out shotgun start Proud Giovani For frequent East Cape updates "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

TAKEN BY STORM This week started right where last week left off with outstanding fishing. Limits of yellowfin tuna were almost a slam dunk as was picking off a billfish or two on our way in from the tuna grounds. Saturday started out like most other days with calm seas and a gorgeous sunrise. Our fishermen had all the tuna they wanted from the previous day so we just ran a short way and plunked in the marlin lures to target billfish. We had only been trolling a few minutes when I watched a water spout form before my eyes. Over the years we have seen several water spouts but I have never been this close to one or actually witnessed one coming together. It lasted for several minutes and poof was gone. Shortly after the waterspout dissipated we found ourselves in a severe thunder storm with torrential rain. The sound of thunder over our heads was deafening. The storm passed quickly leaving Diego and myself drenched in the bridge. A few minutes later a beautiful rainbow appeared. The effect of this odd tropical weather was to shut down the great bite. All of a sudden bait is tough to come by, we are not seeing tailing billfish and tuna fishing has been a scratch. This is the third day of tough fishing and I can hardly wait for it to get back to normal. Stormy weather has effected more than just the fishing. Rene Marin worked for us 2 1/2 years as a scuba instructor and guide before moving to Cabo San Lucas. He always did an outstanding job and I was sad to see him move on. Friday afternoon I received a call from his girl friend Gabby in a panic asking for our help. She said under tough weather conditions Rene had taken a tour scuba diving to Gordo banks and had been missing since 11AM along with 4 other divers. I called everyone we know in Cabo that could possibly help. The Navy was notified and started a search as did a few of the independent dive shops. Just before dark we received a report that some of their gear had been recovered but no divers. As darkness set in the situation was looking pretty grim. Jen and I tossed and turned all night until about 3:30 when we received a call from Gabby that Rene was OK. He along with the other divers being in the water for more than 14 hours were able to swim to shore. I know it was Rene's leadership and competence that saved them all. A beautiful sunrise with the silhouette of Jen Wren Incredible water spout Looking for that pot of gold After 10 straight years visiting the East Cape Jim Durky released his 1st and 2nd Sailfish Everything eats those Halco lures Marlin release Billfish Cowboy's are newest Team Accurate members Rene Marin saving a baby hawk he found helpless in the water For frequent East Cape updates "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841

WHEN I GROW UP All week our East Cape weather has been about as nice as it gets. Seas have been calm with daytime temps between 85 and 90 degrees. Water temperature has risen to above 80 degrees. Inshore it is still a bit off color but off shore we are starting to see that beautiful purple blue color. In shore the outstanding roosterfish bite continues. Rincon, Punta Arena and La Ribera have been hot spots. Drifting green jacks has been most effective for the larger fish and slow trolling live baits has provided constant action. Just a few miles off shore striped marlin have been very cooperative. Most boats targeting billfish are releasing multiple fish. It is a bit surprising not many blue marlin have shown up yet. Small skipjack, yellowfin and dorado are here in big numbers which is the main food source for the blues. With that it is my hope the big marlin won't be far behind. Off shore 15 to 30 miles most boats looking for yellowfin are scoring limits of football sized fish. These fish are not on porpoise but are being sighted breezing on the surface feeding on red crabs and squid. Our secret weapon for these fish has been Halco lures. Cedar plugs are also working well but the Halcos are attracting a little better grade of fish. We stopped trolling hoochies because they are attracting more skipjack than tuna. Quality sized yellowfin to 100 pounds have been found with porpoise schools. Getting them to bite has not been easy. Positioning the boat in front of the porpoise school and pitching in a live bait has been the most effective method. We have been metering a lot of fish at 40 to 60 feet but they just haven't decided to come up and bite yet. This week it was a pleasure for us to have 80 year old Stan Rosenblatt fish with us. When I grow up I want to be like Stan. He has the enthusiasm of a kid and stands at the rail and puts bend in the rod with pressure on the fish like a younger man. In contrast we also had 18 year old Tanner Thuet with 4 of his buddies celebrating their high school graduation. How lucky can a kid be? His grandmother has a home on the East Cape in Buena Vista. Stellar weather and spectacular sunrises Stan is my idol Stan gives em no slack After fighting roosters in the morning Stan released 2 marlin and almost had a sailfish Here is our future of America Halcos are attracting everything. We even had a marlin smack one this week It is tuna time! Here is Jen in her laboratory Jen Wren Crew Chuy and Diego guiding a disoriented porpoise that beached itself back out to sea For frequent East Cape updates "like" www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing Mark Rayor teamjenwren.com markrayor.blogspot.com www.facebook.com/JenWrenSportfishing US cell 310 308 5841