10/27/2026
Andrew Mack (Macks Fish Reports)
Well who would have thought the ocean fishing off our coast could get any better. Like local wahoo showing up. To having a 650 pound bluefin tuna being caught and weighed at Catalina. But now we have been upgraded to the next level. As of yesterday 10/26/26 at 2 pm what could be first Sailfish caught off the coast of San Diego this el nino.
This sailfish was caught and released boatside. They estimated it to be between 80-100 pounds. Now I had a great conversation with Lauren, one of the anglers fishing with her uncle on the boat Shoebacca with Captain Schlacter at the helm. They definitely did not expect this. After trolling for 7 hours looking for a wahoo with no luck they decided to get some fish for dinner so pulled up to a rockfish spot close to San Diego harbor. As they were fishing bottom Angler Jeff Maier on the boat fly lined a sardine on a rod that already had a broken tip with a 30 pound leader. As the Sardine swam out all of a sudden all mayhem broke out as the drag started ripping and the big sail was busting the surface. A crazy fight entailed then the fish was brought boat side videos taken and released to be caught another day. At first they thought this fish was a marlin but later they went to the tackle store and showed the owner Luc the video and he goes "that's a Sailfish not a marlin". How rare is this catch? From accounts the only other one that has ever been recorded in the last 36 years was a 22.9 pound sailfish caught off the coast of Dana point. This fish definitely has migrated hundreds of miles to get into California waters. I just wonder if more are on the way and will these crazy el nino conditions change this fish and other migration patterns more often to wear we see them for years to come or is it just a random fluke because of so much warm water and will have to wait another 40 years to see another one here. So again huge congratulations to Lauren,her uncle and everyone else on the boat. What a Unicorn of a catch!
