SUNNY SIDE UP!


I was talking to some of our fishermen hanging out at the beach one afternoon swapping stories about the day of fishing. Some of the wives and girlfriendshad joined in and everyone was enjoying tall cold ones.

One of the wives had been laying on a towel listening to the banter and obviously enjoying the afternoon Baja sun. It was obvious she was getting redder every time I glanced at her.

She sat up and said to no one in particular, “Is the reason I get sunburned so easily here because Baja is closer to the Equator?”

Conversation stopped as no one quite knew whether to answer her question with a laugh and a quick one-liner or to take her seriously. She wasn’t joking and even in the shade it was obvious that she had that unmistakable glow of a painful sunburn on it’s way.

Despite perhaps the ditzy-ness of the question, this otherwise intelligent woman had a real concern. I had noticed that she hadn’t used sunscreen, but instead had put baby oil on herself no doubt to accelerate the tanning process. Everytime I see that I think of basting a turkey.

However, working down here in La Paz, the well-being of our clientele is a real concern. We want everyone going back home with big smiles, perhaps a few extra pounds from the good food and, if they’re lucky some great stories of fishing adventures. Sunburn isn’t on the agenda, but it’s an unavoidable and real danger in a place that’s “so close to the Equator.”

Everyone guards against getting sick from bad water or bad food, but hardly anything thinks about getting sick from the sun. Either short term pain or long term damage and I hate seeing folks waddling around the pool like boiled lobsters or sending them home painfully red.

To that end, I keep a handy supply of extra hats around as well as little sample packs and bottles of sunscreen and pass it out generously. Everyone hits the faces and arms, but I also remind them of the tops of their thighs and especially the tops of their feet which get branded with the criss-cross patterns of their sandals and flip-flops.

Half my time it seems is telling guys to put their shirts back on or lather on more sunscreen. In the case of some of my Alaskan or Canadian friends who’s skin doesn’t see sunshine for months, we literally drag them into the shade after just a few minutes of exposure.

I’m not a dermatologist, but I spend a good portion of my year and most of my day in the sunshine working on, near or under the water. I was fortunately born with brown skin and spent most of my early years also out in the sun. However, I’ve already had my first little bout with skin cancer (just a little spot), and as I get older, I’m growing more heady about how I treat my skin down here.

In Baja, the sun comes at you from all angles. It hits from the sky and it also bounces up at you reflecting off the water, fiberglass, and other materials. It’s relentless so I don’t head out without my big brimmed had; loose long sleeved shirt; and waterproof sunscreen. Despite that, I still get tanned so the sun is getting through!

I used to be of the mind that as long as I put on enough sunscreen, I’m fine. So I thought.

I went to the Skin Cancer Foundation Website http://www.skincancer.org/sunscreen/sunscreens-explained.html and was surprised at what I found.

Basically, sunscreen blocks the sun and helps prevent sunburn. That is really all it does. It does not prevent skin cancer, but does aid in helping block some of the stuff that can contribute to the Big C.

According to the site: “Sunscreens are chemical agents that help prevent the sun's ultraviolet (UV) radiation from reaching the skin. Two types of ultraviolet radiation (UVA and UVB) , UVA and UVB, damage the skin and increase your risk of skin cancerskin cancer. UVB is the chief culprit behind sunburn, while UVA rays, which penetrate the skin more deeply, are associated with wrinkling, leathering, sagging, and other effects of photo-aging (over exposure)photoaging. They also exacerbate the carcinogenic effects of UVB rays, and increasingly are being seen as a cause of skin cancer on their own.”

All the mumbo-jumbo about SPF (Sun Protection Factor) is only the measure of a sunscreens ability to protect you from UVB rays…that’s the stuff that burns you and makes you red. It’s not much of a defense at all against the deep damage of it’s counterpart UVA rays which can be causing serious mischief with your skin sans the red flag of a sunburn.

But here’s how the SPF code works. The example given by the Skin Cancer Foundation is this. If it takes 20 minutes for your unprotected skin to get red, SPF 15 theoretically prevents reddening 15 times longer or about 5 hours. I have clients that toast up in 10 minutes of Baja sun. SPF 15 would theoretically give them about 2 ½ hours of protection.

But there are caveats. First, no SPF no matter how strong is 100 percent effective. Second, regardless of strength, no sunscreen should be expected to be effective longer than 2 hours so you have to keep lathering it on.

Here’s another danger according to the website. Most folks don’t put on enough to begin with. No, I’m not talking about those weird hand prints and marks showing where you missed! Experts suggest at least using at least an once for each application or you are actually getting only a portion of the SPF protection. For you fishermen, that’s about a shot glass of tequila’s worth!

“During a day at the beach, one person should use one-half to one-quarter of an 8 oz. bottle/” Further, it should be applied about 30 minutes prior to exposure to allow it to properly “bind to the skin.”

Since I hate putting anything even remotely greasy on my skin, I’ve only been using about a squirt of sunscreen of sunscreen. I figured I’m already brown so I don’t need that much. Mistakenly I often waited until I was already in the sun to dab it on when I should have been slathering it on like good barbecue sauce on ribs.

If you do start to toast, it’s obvious. Get out of the sun and into the shade. In actuality, “Sunburn literally cooks the protein in the skin,” according to Dr. Zoe Draelos, clinical associate professor of dermatology at the Wake Forrest University School of Medicine.

The doctor recommends soaking a washcloth in skim milk to soothe skin. The coolness helps with the pain and the milk creates a protein film that helps ease the onset discomfort.

I’m getting older. A lot of my fishing amigos who have been with me for years but are older than me are coming down with one type of skin cancer or another. It’s not pretty and I’ve already lost a few. One after the other.

Being warm and toasty is nice. But, cuidate mucho (be very careful) say my Mexican friends. Even the captains wear long pants and shirts and use sunscreen…the smart ones.

That's my story. If you ever need to reach me, e-mail me at riplipboy@aol.com

FULL MOON - SCHMULL MOON! JUST GO FISH!



Originally published in Western Outdoor News the week of Feb. 18, 2008



I’m back in Baja at the moment, but for the last 6 weeks, I’ve been bopping around the western U.S. attending all these great outdoor fishing and hunting shows. Let me tell you.

The U.S. has been going through some of the most outrageous winter weather in 2008 and there’s nothing like traveling through places like Wyoming, Utah, Colorado and Idaho when it’s 20 degrees below zero. The wind is blowing another 60 mph and the blizzard completely blots out the road in front of you!

All-in-all, we’ve had a great time and our upcoming shows in Seattle, Long Beach and Salt Lake City promise not to be so nasty. However, after these shows, I have nothing but the healthiest of respect for you truck drivers and other carriers out there who deliver the load every single day on these roads through the worst of conditions.

Of course, these shows have a lot to do with folks looking to make vacation plans to Baja for the upcoming year. Right next to, “What’s the best times of year to come down?” I get, “So does a full moon make any difference in the fishing?”

I guess my take on the full moon is a bit slanted.

Anyone in the business of taking people fishing can back me up on this. Whether the moon is full, half or half-crocked, it’s our jobs to put people on fish. We don’t have the luxury of telling you, “Nah, don’t come down those dates, Mr. Smith, the moon is full.”

A fishing day is a fishing day. Our livelihood depends on our success. Our success determines whether anyone ever comes back. I know I’m really reaching for excuses when I pull out the, “It’s-because-the-moon-is-full” excuse. So I don’t. I’ll blame currents, wind , shabby bait or bad burrito lunches before I use the moon as an excuse.

As one of my colleagues once told me, “Using the moon as an excuse is for people who can’t fish and you better get out of the business.”

So, let me put in my two cents since so many have asked me.

I used to always try to fish the dark of the moon before I got into the business. It was habit. It was luck. It was superstition. Whatever. I usually did well. Better than most, but sometimes you gotta fish whenever the window of opportunity presents itself.

If the boss or significant-other gives you a pass and the moon is full, you don’t turn that down. You go fishing. “Sorry, Honey, I’d rather mow the lawn than go fishing with the guys because the moon is full.” NOT!

I have been fishing most of my life and fishing the Baja for several decades. In the last 10 years alone, I’ve fished as many as 300 or more days. That’s more than most folks will fish in their lifetimes.

Some of the most incredible fishing in my life has taken place when the moon was in it’s blazing glory. No rhyme. No reason. When the fish are hungry and you have the right bait and you present it to them just right, they’re gonna eat.

Even moreso in Baja. Perhaps the tuna might take a powder, but there’s a zillion other species like roosterfish or pargo or yellowtail that would be happy to chase your feather or inhale your caballito. The beauty of fishing Baja is that there’s always something biting!

But there’s another theory I have and I’ve watched this for years.

Yes, a lot of fish are caught during the darker moon phases. I see that yearly here in La Paz where I am located. But, there’s also a lot more fishermen here during those darker moon phases. If the bite is on for say, dorado, then by sheer numbers of lines in the water, the dorado counts will look outstanding. No doubt.

However, when the moon is in it’s brighter phases, there are overall fewer anglers on the water. Fewers lines, boats, and less traffic on the honey holes. However, check how many fish are being caught PER ROD! That’s the key. So what if 20 boats catch 4 fish per boat and you only get two? Even though the counts show 80 fish, that’s a long day between fish. When there’s less traffic on the water, I’d rather see 10 boats catch 8 fish each!

What I’ve seen is that there are more fish per angler! Fewer anglers catching more fish per person. I like those numbers a lot.


That’s my story. If you ever want to reach me, my e-mail is riplipboy@aol.com.

COME TO MEXICO! GET A DISCOUNT!

Originally published the week of Feb. 5, 2008 in Western Outdoor News


It you want to make changes, it’s a well-known true-ism that you don’t punch them in the nose. That will only get YOU punched in the nose in return. If you really want to get some results. Hurt people in their wallets. Most conflicts do eventually come down to economics.

Well, ever since the latest outbreak and increase in road violence in northern Baja, tourists have been doing just that. They’re going to Disneyland…or the Colorado River…or Palm Springs. They are definitely NOT spending shopping weekends in Tijuana or running down to San Quntin for some fishing or Ensenada for a few days of fiesta.

If they’re not traveling, then they’re not spending. All the political clout in the world will not do as much as a bunch of local businesses clamoring that their government MUST do something as gringo revenue has dropped off sharply in the past few months. Mexican businesses are feeling the pinch and they demand action.

Statistics have shown that last year alone, tourism declined by as much as 1.5 million visitors. That loss means a lot of hotel rooms, margaritas, tacos, gasoline, fishing boats, ceramic Tweety Birds and Elvis-painted-on-velvet were not purchased.

Gringos got tired of hearing all the bad news and seeing no improvement. Mexican businessmen are in an uproar.

Alarmed at this, Mexico is going all out to bring YOU back. They are pulling out all the stops. Are you ready for this? Are you ready to pack the car up for a quick road surf trip down the Mexican highway this weekend?

According to one Mexican official, “We’re not going to put up with this anymore!” and promises a hard line against bandits, organized crime and corrupt police.

So…

They’ve started a new program called, “Get Your Passport!” and are printing up all kinds of posters, banners and ads proclaiming, “We Want You Back!” Turn on the spin machine.

According to the program, if you have your passport, you get DISCOUNTS at restaurants, hotels and from other vendors. That’s it. That’s the program. Discounts!

Hold me back! Whoo-hoooo!!! Honey, get the family and round up the neighbors, it’s safe to drive across the border again. Pack the longboard, beers, and ATV’s.

Listen, I agree to some degree that a lot of this crime stuff is overblown and amplified. It’s news. It’s dramatic. It doesn’t happen every day or to every single person who drives across the border. Tons of people live in northern Baja and commute and visit back and forth across the border daily. No problems. Not a hint of problems.

Further, not all Mexican people are banditos either or waiting to pounce on gringos from behind every bush. That’s ridiculous. But so many people get painted with the same brush! To think that would be like my Mexican friends who ask me if they will get shot on street corners if they visit Los Angeles because they see so many bad TV news stories about drive-by shootings. Just as crazy!

But there’s no denying that violence has been on an increase on northern Baja especially for gringo drivers. That is a serious problem. And there’s no denying a real fear that exists. Visitors aren’t shying away if the fear isn’t real.

However, giving me a discount to step into the rattlesnake cage isn’t going to diminish my fear of snakes or guarantee the rattler won’t bite me!

I give the Mexican government credit for trying. I hear they’re even going to give polygraph tests to the cops.

Can you hear that? It’s me sighing. You can’t even trust the cops…many of whom are good hard-working professionals struggling in a system that’s a mess from the get-go in a society just trying to survive watching rich gringos coming into their country seemingly loaded with money.

But there’s corrupt cops a-plenty (as there are in EVERY country including the U.S.) and smart banditos who put police lights on to pull over unsuspecting motorists and roust them.

I don’t know the answer, but giving me a “discount” if I have my passport ain’t it. I think most folks will still pass and head to Vegas instead where the only banditos are one-armed and only take your quarters.

Oh, did you also hear, as of Feb. 1, passport fees went up. No discounts! Check it out online:

http://www.gadling.com/2008/01/30/passport-fees-go-up-february-1-2008/





That’s my story. If you ever want to reach me, my e-mail is riplipboy@aol.com.