Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Chad Schearer’ Category

La Paz – Las Arenas (Muertos Bay) Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of June 21-28, 2015

wahoo spencer sawaske tags jorge 6-15

Spencer Sawaske started his fishing week out on a high note right off the bat with Captain Jorge by sticking this nice wahoo.

Mike gravert tags pargo 6-15

Captain Mike Gravert who runs Intimidator Sportfishing on the Sacramento Delta knows how to put fish in the boat and this pig of a pargo liso got yanked ou’tve the rocks…a pretty awesome feat…by Mike near Bahia de Los Muertos!

michele conklin rooster tags small 6-15

Our amiga, Michele Conklin from Spokane WA with her first big catch-and-release rooster. Here with Captain Jorge.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

First-timer, Cullen Hennessey with dad, Brian, put the hurt on this big-time amberjack that went about 45 pounds. Captain Pancho poses up!

pargo rich sawaske tags 6-15

The man they call, “Ranchero.” Rich Sawaske with a tasty tough barred pargo he pulled from the rocks near Espirito Santo Island.

conklin pat photos wahoo tags 6-15

Dave Conklin tried to “lend a hand” with his wife, Michele’s big wahoo while Captain Jorge shows how to do it correctly.

Craig Corda tags rooster 6-15

Great amigo, Craig Corda, is always smiling especially when he’s holding a big fish like this fat rooster caught and released near Bahia de los Muertos.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Utah in the house! First timer, Lorna Gasser with Captain Armando and two dorado to start the trip!

pargo Randy Forrestiere tags 6-15

Headed for the dinner plate! Two great eating rockfish…a dog-tooth snapper and barred pargo for Randy Forrestiere.

10557565_10206698630414747_7501447555373010043_o

Kudos again to Bill Jubb for the big heart. At our recent Western Outdoor News/ Tailhunter Sportfishing Panga Slam event and tournament, Bill won $600. He turned around and paid for everyone’s dinners at the last night dinner, but also donated the bulk of the money to our FANLAP scholarship fund with enough money to send two kids to high school. As a result several other participants also donated additional funds raising enough to send 3 kids to school who otherwise wouldn’t have a chance. We’re grateful and blessed. Thanks, Bill. Thanks, Malina, Dave, Michele and Dave!

 

ROOSTERFISH and MORE DORADO HIGHLIGHT STRANGE FISHING WEEK

La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay Fishing Report for Week of June 21-28, 2015

Weather-wise, it’s been one of the best and hottest weeks of the year as we roll into summer.  We had one day hit 114, but most days are about mid-90’s and blazingly sunny.   School is finally out for all the local kids.  More families showing up here to vacation.

Fishing success has been difficult to track however.  Personally, it seem more like late May fishing if you look at the our daily fishing reports. Still alot of variety.  Still getting some cooler-water fish.  Warm water fish just seem to be getting up to speed, but not quite.   Basically, however, there’s a big difference between fishing Las Arenas and La Paz.

LAS ARENAS/ BAHIA DE LOS MUERTOS

Usually, this time of year is where we see the most variety of fish.  Not so this year.  At least, not so far. Right now, I’ve been telling our anglers, it’s BIG OR GO HOME!  This is home run territory.  Other than some smaller bonito or rockfish, it’s either big rooster fish, wahoo, or billfish.  If you get a shot and miss it, you get skunked.  That’s it.  Go home with a good story.  And alot of our anglers miss fish or they bust off.  It’s fishing.  That’s why these are bigger fish.  However, if you land one of these guys, then you’re the hero.

This past week, most of our roosters were 20-50 pound fish.  Nice trophies.  Nothing to bring home to eat, but a trophy photo and catch-and-release just the same.  Some of our anglers landed 1-5 of these fish some days.

The wahoo…a bit more anemic this week.  Is this the end?  We’ve had one of the most dynamic wahoo bites in memory the past 4 or 5 weeks.  Epic. We have caught more wahoo in recent weeks than the last 10 years COMBINED!  But this past week, there were only a few hooked and even fewer landed.  Chalk it up to angler error…hard-fighting fish…changing conditions?  I don’t know.  But, it’s been great and I hope it’s not done.

Marlin seem like they’re waking up.  We got a few.  Most released.  Most about 100 pounds.

Late Saturday, tuna between 30-70 pounds were landed by commercial guys at the south end of Cerralvo Island.  We’re exploring that as I write this report.

Again, nothing small.  Anglers are either totally blown away when they land one of these fish or they come back disappointed.  It’s the nature of fishing and at Las Arenas right now, you get 1 or two shots.  If you miss it, that’s it.

LA PAZ

Fortunately, we have two fleets!  Just for this reason so we can move our clients back and forth depending on conditions and the bite.  Luckily, most of our clients are here for a few days so they have the ability to fish with both of our fleets!

Our La Paz action has been well…just that…ACTION!

Dorado have been more active and there’s schools of smaller to medium sized dorado now showing up.  Limits or near limits of these smaller fish are not uncommon and we’re just waiting for some of the larger fish to show up.  We did get a few in the 20-30 pound range and larger fish lost.

Also, inshore, even this late in the season, pargo and cabrilla in the rocks and reefs have provided plenty of fun, action and frustration as the bigger ones bust folks off in the rocks.  But, this can be hours of fun.  Here’s what Richard “Ranchero” Sawaske said about it:

“(Captain)Raul, Randy  (Forrestiere) & I worked a stretch of Espiritu Santo on Fri. for pargo. If it wasn’t epic it was pretty damn close!  I’m a Pargo Guy & we got em all…Dogtooth, Liso & Barred! Not huge, but they don’t have to be! We put a dozen or more in the boat, got our asses handed to us by at least that many more & after 4 hours of intense action..well, we were Zing Pow-ied!! It was great! We were Gassed!”

For larger species…Billfish and sharks also providing action with both species being released or lost.  

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan and Jilly

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz -Las Arenas (Muertos Bay) Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of May 31-June, 7, 2015

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Dustin Bremmer had only one day to fish and he made the most of it with this fat yellowfin tuna and also a wahoo with Captain Armando.

Caleb Davis 6-15 edit tags small 6-15

This should be on a Christmas card! Six-year-old Caleb Davis is genetically progammed to be a good fisherman. Dad runs a sportboat out’ve Orange Co. , California. Gramps is our amigo, James “Hawk” Davis who lives in La Ventana and is a stellar angler as well. Caleb rocked this big wahoo all on his own.

Mike Candi Jimenez Armando tags 5-15

From Hawthorne CA, Candi and Mike Jimenez with Captain Armando did this nice wahoo with only 1 day to fish this past week. Nicely done.

Harry and Dani Gist wahoo tags 5-15

From Sacramento, a really fun couple. Dani and her husband, Harry Gist, also got themselves a wahoo this week. Standing on the beach at Bahia de Los Muertos. They got a bunch of pargo and cabrilla as well on their 2nd day of fishing and spent a day snorkeling at the island with the sealion.

DCIM100GOPRO

It was an incredible week for first timers and anglers who only had one day to fish! Dave Bosteter from Arizona only fished one day. He only caught ONE fish! But, check out his big striped marlin with Captain Pancho! He also did the fish on light tackle too! The fish could not be released.

Brian tags wahoo 5-15

Our son-in-law, Brian Reid, did a bit of damage this past week. He lives in Las Vegas AZ and this is one of his two wahoo he put in the tank off Cerralvo Island.

Henry harvey wahoo 6-15 tags

Our Sacramento amigos with Captain Victor, Henry and Becky Harvey managed to get a nice wahoo on but had several others almost to the boat. Henry also got himself his first marlin this week!

jessie wahoo 5-15 tags

Our gal…also our daughter…Jessie Reid of Las Vegas. She’s funny. Slept on the panga all day. Woke up for 5 minutes when her rod went off. She hooked this nice wahoo and went back to siesta! She makes alot of things look easy. Love how she rolls.

Fun photo with Orhan Gurbuz and popular Captain Rogelio "Jolly Roger"  Camacho and a nice cabrilla near Espirito  Santo Island.

Fun photo with Orhan Gurbuz and popular Captain Rogelio “Jolly Roger” Camacho and a nice cabrilla near Espirito Santo Island.

wahoo gato

Just a darned fine photo! Capitan Gato at sunrise with another wahoo. Thanks for the photo, Hawk Davis!

tags Kevin kaka verde y John nagy wahoo 6-15

Two of our fun regulars and great fisherman, Kevin and John Nagy with a pair of ‘hoos!

 

STORM BLANCA IS A BUZZKILL!

La Paz – Las Arenas/ Bahia de Los Muertos Fishing Report for Week of  May 31 to June 7, 2015

At the time you’re reading this, we’ll know what, if any effect,  Hurricane/Storm Blanca will have done to us.  I’m writing this about noon of Sunday trying to get this up and posted before we lose power.  We already lost power a few last night for short perdiods.  I’m hustling to write so excuse any typos!

As I write this, everyone is watching to see what will happen.  We have been tracking this for days.  It has been like watching a roller coaster ride because it has changed up and down by the hour.

Right now…The storm sits a couple of hundred  miles south of us where is seems to vary between a dangerous Category 1 and 2.  (It was up to to a 3 and 4).   The whopper that hit Baja last year was a Cat 4-5 with winds close to 200 miles and hour.    Named “Odile”, it’s fresh in our memories and  many of us are still recovering so we’re all anxious to see what nature has in store.  But, it’s coming.

As of this moment, they CLOSED CABO AIRPORT and the La Paz marinas have been closed for two days.  If you’re coming down in the next few days, I would suggest you call your airlines.  This will probably last through Tuesday.  Check!  As of right now, the La Paz Airport is open.

At the  moment, predictions have the storm diminishing it’s effect on us here in La Paz.  The eye of the storm has it going west and north instead of directly overhead.  It will make landfall much further north on the Baja Peninsula and probably bring California some much needed rain.  For us here in La Paz, we’re probably gonna get a few inches of rain today and tomorrow with some winds up to 60 MPH by tomorrow.  It’s not like Odile last year, but not to be taken lightly.

It’s NOT a hurricane, but it’s a very strong TROPICAL storm

For sure . strong winds in the 20-40 mph category are predicted to blow Sunday, Monday and Tuesday which is much  more problematic.  Even though the sun will likely be out, anything in double digits will make it impossible to be out on the water for our panga fleets here in La Paz.  Even if it’s safe, it’s not gonna be fun out there.  Plus, our bite has been so great for wahoo and roosters and our dorado bite just hit stride so I’m anxious to see how the bite will be affected post-Blanca.

To the government’s credit, the CFE crews are already out and marshalled in front of Hotel Marina.  These CFE guys and their big trucks saved us all last year when the big one hit us and many of us were out’ve power for several weeks.  The CFE guys are the power company guys and boat loads of the landed after last year’s hurricane and it was like the marines had landed or the cavalry showed up!  With no power, they’re no electricity.  No cooking.  No pumps to pump water.  Nothing!  The trucks are already here now and ready to go.   We talked to one of the CFE guys last night and he said they are actually parking themselves at various hot spots ready to immediately tackle problems.

Anyway, nothing to do but wait and see.  Last year, Odile took the same track and at the last minute turned inwards and kicked the hell outta lower Baja, after we all thought it was going to pass us up.

Fingers crossed!

As of 11 a.m Sunday morning, this is Hurricane Blanca

As of 11 a.m Sunday morning, this is Hurricane Blanca

ep201502_5day

As or Sunday, tracking Tropical Depression Blanca for the next few days.

ELECTION DAY

Another sidebar story…Sunday…today is election day.  NO ALCOHOL SALES IN LA PAZ are allowed.  So, with the storm and all, we figured we might as well close the Tailhunter Restaurant Bar and also let our employees spend the day with their families and taking care of their homes.

So, I ran out to the market Saturday night to stock up on batteries, tape, canned good, etc.  We are always prepared, but never hurts to have extras.  Last year before Odile, no one seemed to pay much mind and got caught flatfooted.  So, this year, everyone would be making a run of emergency supplies at the market.

I went to the market and there were PLENTY of supplies.  However, everyone was buying ALL THE BEER they could get a hold of!   People were more concerned with enough beer to get through election Sunday and in case stores are closed for several days afterwards!  I have heard that some stores have sold out of all their beer already!  Viva Mexico!   LOL

I have run into several friends who bought lots of beer on Saturday and stocked up their ice chests.  However, they ended up drinking it all up and now are in a panic now trying to find beer!

Anyway, here’s what’s been happening. It’s been a solid week!

LAS ARENAS/ MUERTOS BAY

Wow, that wahoo bite…not much to say except that in the last 3 weeks, we’ve gotten more wahoo than in the last 5 years combined.  I hate to sound cocky but this has been incredible.  Pangas are getting 1-5 wahoo per day.  The only clients of ours not getting a wahoo are those that are fishing for something else; flyfishers; or folks who are hooking them but losing the speedsters.  These fish are all quality 20-50 pounders!

We’re getting a little spoiled.  Some of our anglers have no idea just how we’re rolling in gravy.  They’re starting to complain!  LOL

“I only got ONE wahoo today.”

“I just had TWO wahoo today.  The other boats got more than me!”

Yikes!  Hahahaha…what can ya do?

Besides the wahoo, we’re still getting decent numbers of those tasty white bonito (meat like tuna!) and rooster fish have been in the 20-40 pound class.  Plus, we’re seeing pompano, jack crevalle, the occasional sierra (must be some cold water around), plus hooking a marlin or two as well as the marlin and sails are starting to wake up!

The bite diminished towards the end of the week on Thursday, Friday and Saturday as big rollers from the storm to the south started coming in and bait got harder to find.  We stopped fishing the area and see how things pick up after the storm.

LA PAZ

Our Tailhunter La Paz Fleet has been consistent for action.  Inshore stuff for pargo, cabrilla, snapper, amberjack, rooster fish,  jack crevalle and bonito has produced 20-30 fish days with lots of released fish, but lots of fun battling these fish in the rocks.

The best news is late in the week we finally started seeing some larger schools of dorado that we’ve been waiting for.  Fish are small to medium…5  to 15 pounders with many of the anglers releasing the smaller fish, but it’s encouraging to finally see the dorado moving in.

Also more billfish in the area as well which should only get better with so many more smaller dorado around.

We fished La Paz until late in the week when the Port Captain closed the port and prevented all watercraft from leaving!

That’s our story!

Jonathan and Jilly

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas / Muertos Bay Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of May 24-31, 2015

wahoo riley florence jorge tags 5-15

Pretty good first trip for Riley Florence from Kansas. Got his first roosterfish and this nice wahoo as well with Captain Jorge and our Las Arenas Fleet.

roger wahoo 5-15 tags

Roger Thompson doing what he does so well. Nail big fish. He’s had another giant week and check out the thick wahoo here!

 

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Long run from Tennessee, with our Captain Victor, James Kilton and Kelly Donohue. Triple on the wahoo on the beach at Bahia de Los Muertos.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Charger nation! Our daughter and her husband from Las Vegas, Jessie and Brian Reid with quite a variety of fish. Wahoo…giant pompano…white bonito…rainbow runner and hugs triggerfish!

Donna Thompson wahoo 5-15 tags

She catches fish and always takes great photos! Our amiga Donna Thompson with another big skinny! The ‘hoo bit great off the island!

 

ash ibrahim tags rooster 5-15-

Ash Ibrahim from San Diego probably had the most fun of anyone this week when he brought his family. Take a look at this roosterfish then watch the video below of how he released it!

nicole ibrahim rooster tags 5-15

Big smiles for Nicole Ibrahim showing off her rooster as she came down this week with her family to celebrate her graduation from college!

rooster tony ibrahim tags 5-15

Nothing wrong with this photo! Anthony Ibrahim lives in San Diego is about to hit his 3rd year in college in Washington DC. He got himself a nice rooster that he photo’d and released!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Army buddies…friends for life! Owen Hofecker from Johnstown,  Pennysylvania and Paul de Haan from Bountiful,  Utah triple teamed with Captain Gerardo to put the hurt to three wahoo off Cerralvo Island.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Captain Armando with Doug Edwards wahoo and Penni De Haans striper. On the beach at Bahia de los Muertos. The marlin meat was nicely donated. After a 2 hour fight, the fish was not able to be released.

sofia pargo 5-15 tags

Nothing like the kids’ smiles! Sofia Ibrahim from San Diego got the biggest pargo of the day fishing around Espirito Santo Island. Brother Tony throws the photos bomb!

 

Riley Florence tags rooster jorge 5-15 small

First rooster for Riley Florence from Kansas with a nice catch and release with Captain Jorge.

Jim bovee sierra 5-15 tags

The water must still have some cool spots in it! From San Diego, Jim Bovee with a huge sierra!

Ash and Tony pargo tags small 5-15

Ash and Tony Ibrahim with some great dinner stuff…cabrilla and snapper taken off the island in some great action!

 

 

WAHOO ROOSTERS AND ROCKIES CENTER STAGE

La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Bay  Fishing Report for Week of May 24-31, 2015

For the most part, great weather and great fishing conditions most of the week resulting in some pretty solid catches.  Lots of sunshine and increasingly better looking water all-the-way-around helped our anglers put some bend in the rods for a 2nd straight week.

Our biggest problem was a scare that popped up on the radar about mid-week showing a big tropical storm headed our way that was going to bring rain and strong winds beginning this weekend.  With so many folks still nervous about Hurricane Odile from last year and many people still smarting over the recovery, the last thing we need is a storm!  As far as fishing is concerned, our bite has been so good the last two weeks, I surely wasn’t looking forward to ANYTHING that would mess up the waters or keep folks ashore!  Had this storm hit us, it would have brought 2-4 days of intermittent rain.

However, the fishing gods smiled on us and other than some winds late in the week, the sun has continued to shine brilliantly in a cloudless sky and the storm moved off into the pacific without even casting  shadow!  Whew…

LAS ARENAS/  BAHIA DE LOS MUERTOS

That wahoo bite that kicked in two weeks ago continued again.  As I said last week, I’ve never seen a wahoo bite like this here in our waters in the 20 years I’ve been  down here in La Paz.  Almost every day, each of our pangas got 1-4 wahoo and lost others.  Most days, if a panga came back without a wahoo, it was because:

1.  They weren’t trying for wahoo or

2.   They lost the wahoo they hooked

I’ll let our amigo, Roger Thompson tell you best:

“We were on the water at 5:30 this morning and had our first wahoo on the boat by 6am. At 6:15, we had another. Next was a double hookup around 7am and we landed both fish. We also saw 1 giant free swimmer just under the boat while fighting these 2. We hooked 2 more wahoo and lost 1 just before 7:30. Hooked another around 8:15 and this one came unbuttoned 10 feet from the boat. I hate it when that happens! No more wahoo bites for an hour and decided we caused enough damage for one day so we stopped to reel in the Rapalas and head back to the ramp. I slowed down, put her into neutral, and shut it down…….then wham. The short one got slammed and the bonus fish was in the box after 10 minutes of high speed runs and wahoos!

I guess what I’m trying to say is it’s an early morning bite for sure. It reminded me of the “good ole days”!

These fish were all quality fish between 26 and 42 pounds. “

Some of our amigos who fished multiple days with us in the area actually got to the point where the didn’t want to fish for wahoo anymore!  There were others who just didn’t want to take any more wahoo home and there were alot of very happy captains who were getting 1-3 wahoo as “gifts” to take home!

The other “fish” we’ve been doing pretty solidly on are the rooster fish.  It’s not wide-open, but there’s some medium-sized 20-60 pound fish cruising around and if you wanted to catch a rooster, there was even-money that you had a good chance on any given day of hooking 1-2 fish.  Way better than say, two weeks ago . All fish are getting released.

Also seeing a few more dorado in the area.  I’m surprised there aren’t more around by this time of the season already.  Normally, we’re thick with dorado by now!

LA PAZ

We had consistent fishing with our La Paz fleet headed straight out and working north of the city around Espirito Santo Island or around the corner between Tecolote and Las Cruces.

We are definitely seeing more dorado action with fish between 10-20 pounds at the largest, but again, I would have expected more dorado by this time.

The best bite has been inshore among the rocks.  Good action on some really sweet pargo, yellow snapper, amberjack and big cabrilla.  Lots of larger fish getting lost in the rocks.

We’re seeing a few more marlin around that are actually willing to bite.  Several were hooked and lost.

 That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

 Jonathan and Jilly

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas/ Muertos Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of April 19-26, 2015

don white wahoo pancho 4-15 tags small

There’s a little honey hole hotspot just outside of Bahia de Los Muertos that’s just off the rocks that has produced some really nice wahoo this season and has to surprise folks about just how close to shore it is! Don White, our Oregon amigo and Captain Pancho pulled this wahoo there late this week!

 

Tom Brown pancho Dorado small tags 4-15

Captain Pancho with Tom Brown and a dorado taken just off the rocks at Punta Perico just outside of Bahia de los Muertos near Las Arenas. As waters continue to warm, we’ll see more dorado showing up!

 

 

pargo tags gary tsunoda small 4-15

Double handful of big barred pargo for Gary Tsunoda who pulled these guys out’ve the rocks out north of La Paz Bay. Great eating!

 

jack crevalle debbie 4-15 tags small

Big big jack crevalle for Debbie White who always seems to get a large fish every time she fishes with us! Not too many fish like the jack that can rip it up. The Mexican name for them is “TORO” which means “bull” for good reason!

 

Tyler lyon rooster tags small 4-15

It was another pretty good week for roosterfish for our anglers who fished out’ve Las Arenas/ Bahia de Los Muertos. Tyler Lyon with a pretty fresh one. The fish was released. Tyler got this one on a flyrod.

pargo gary tags small 4-17

Gary Tsunoda was totally dialed in on pargo and red hot on the bite! Colorful fish!

 

MIXED WEEK FOR WEATHER and FISHING

La Paz – Las Arenas / Muertos Bay Fishing Report for Week of April 19-26, 2015

Weather and fish-wise, it was an up-and-down week.  I think we’re in that “transition” season when it’s not really winter and it’s not quite springtime.  There are areas of warm water.  There are areas of cooler water.  There are areas where the surface water is cold and the water below is warm…and vice versa.  We have sunny warm days that look like postcards and we have cloudy windy days and even some showers on other days that aren’t quite so hunky dory.  And that’s the kind of week it was.

Consequently, we have several things going on with the fish.  On one hand, there’s alot of variety.  Cooler water fish like amberjack, pargo, cabrilla and sierra are still around.  But, in the same area, you might get rooster fish, bonito, marlin, dorado and wahoo.  That’s a good thing.  Variety is nice.

On the other hand, if you’re coming to target a certain species, that species might not be biting on that day.  Or, due to changes in the weather, the conditions just aren’t that great.  Then, there are other days when everything seems to go off.  You just gotta get out on the water and take a shot.

LAS ARENAS / MUERTOS BAY

This is still the area for the most action and the most variety.  This is where I’ve been sending more of the first-timers or families or when kids are here.  There’s no shortage of stuff to catch most days.  Get bent.  Have fun.  Pull on some fish!  Just go have a ball.  There’s rooster fish; some dorado; a shot at wahoo; maybe a marlin; trigger fish; sierra; pargo; cabrilla…and lots of bonito.

A word on these bonito before you turn your nose up at it.  These are “bonito dientero.”  Toothed bonito…also called white bonito.  In addition to being tough fighters, the meat is pink and white not dark like the bonito you might be used to.  It cooks up great and we encourage folks to keep some.  After it’s cooked or made into sashimi, most folks can’t tell that it’s not tuna.  Tastes pretty good!

LA PAZ

I’m a bit worried.  I think the waters have gotten a bit too warm now.  The mackerel are hard to come by and without the larger baits and with the warmer temperatures, it seems the yellowtail have gone deep or gone away.  Not much in the way of yellowtail this week.  Got a few, but they were small.  If they are still around, they only seem to be interested in the larger baits or iron.

However, there’s still some big fish around.  Trophy barred pargo and cabrilla, amberjack and chunky rooster fish are around.  Also seeing more and more sailfish and marlin as well.

WHALESHARKS

This week there were 3-8 whalesharks each day in the bay to swim with.   

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan and Jilly

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

http://www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of March 1-8, 2015

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Tal Nazani from San Clemente CA got one of the prized wahoo this week!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Quite a buffet for John and Joe Vondrak and Vic Carlso with dorado, yellowtail and bonito.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Our own Captain Gerardo shows up a yellowtail caught from Bahia de Los Muertos.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Phil rocks the pose with a couple of really nice Mexican cabrilla (seabass).

 

VARIETY OF SPECIES TOPPED BY WAHOO

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Week of March 1-8, 2015

It wasn’t a great week of fishing.  It wasn’t bad either.  It had it’s moments.  It just kinda depended where you were fishing and what day you happened to pick to fish.

There weren’t alot of fishermen this past week, and there weren’t alot of fish.  But on the better days, there was some incredible variety.  Very surprising for this time of the year that we normally call off-season.   But, it’s kind of typical as well.  Perhaps it was a combination of variables.  I usually don’t put alot of stock in the full moon thing, but we did have a big moon.  Maybe not much in-and-of-itself, but there were also some windy days as well and checking water temperatures, there were some big patches of cooler water around.  So, maybe it was a combination.

However, as I said, this week had it’s moments!

There were some nice ones.  Probably the most exciting was the showing of wahoo off Cerrlavo Island.  Pretty early in the year to be sticking the speedy ‘hoo!  We got few but also lost a few.

Plus, we finally put some yellowtail in the boats as well as a few dorado.  Mix that in with some pargo, cabrilla and even some rooster fish and a bunch of bonito and there was some OK action to be had.

THANKS TO LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA and BOISE, IDAHO!  NOW to SALT LAKE CITY ISE SHOW!

WP_20150307_013

Our shows in Long Beach at the Convention Center for the Fred Hall Fishing Show and at the Idaho Sportsmans Show were off-the-hook, with lots of friends coming to visit us…share some laughs…and talk about coming to fish with us in La Paz!

For the past two weeks, Jill and I have been forced to split up our tour schedule because of the crazy show calendar.  I did the Phoenix Show and she went to Yakima WA.   This past week, Jilly held the fort in the booth at the great Boise, Idaho Sportsmans Show.  I covered us at the Long Beach Convention Center for the 69th Annual Fred Hall Fishing Show.

What a time we had!  We can’t thank everyone enough for all the great time and all the amigos who came to visit us.  Personally, I want to give a big shout-out to everyone who also came by to wish me a happy birthday and also for all the thoughtful gifts and food.  Wow!  Just incredible.  And for everyone who looked in on Jilly in Boise and helped her out we are especially grateful.  We booked lots of fishing trip reservations for the season and we’re looking forward to seeing so many of you again later in the season down in La Paz.   For all the rest of you, let us know what we can do to assist you with coming to see us!

DSC02034

Here we come Salt Lake City at the Expo Center in Sandy! We always have a great time visiting with our amigos!

 We’ll after almost 3 months on the road, we’re finally coming near the end, but not quite yet!  Jill and I will be together again instead of doing shows separately.  Next stop, Salt Lake City at the ISE show at the Sandy Expo Center.  The show will be Thursday to Sunday and always promises a great time and we have so many of our amigos in the area.  Come see us and let’s talk about visiting us in La Paz this year.   Here’s details and how to get advance online tickets: http://www.sportsexpos.com/attend/2015/saltlakecity/

We’ll see you this week!

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan and Jilly Roldan

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of Feb. 22-Mar, 1, 2015

Archangel rooster

Captain Archangel shows off one of the nice roosterfish like the ones we got this week. We just didn’t have alot of photos to put in the report since everyone releases their roosterfish! (Which we encourage!) A good week for roosters a little earlier than normal for the year.

CHECK OUT THESE GREAT VIDEOS FROM JORGE ROMERO OUR WHALES GUIDE WITH OUR CLIENTS!

ROOSTERFISH –  PARGO and WHALES HIGHLIGHT WEEK

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Week of Feb. 22-March 1, 2015

There just weren’t that many fishermen in town this week.  Most folks in town this time of year are snow-birds just trying to get away from the colder areas they live in.  Or as one visitor told me this week, “We give up.  We live on the east coast and could not stand one more snowstorm.  We went as far as we could go as long as we had sunshine.”

It was surely a good week to be in town.  Temperatures were in the 80’s although there were some afternoon clouds that dropped some quick showers up in the mountains.  Pretty pleasant overall.   And not much wind which was pretty good for fishing…if we had more fishermen!  But, it’s to be expected during the off-season when we’ve always got the potential for some strong northern winds that can bounce you off the water.

But, for the few fishermen we had, there was some decent inshore fishing.  The highlights were the pargo and rooster fish.   We don’t have alot of photos this week because…well, most of the rooster fish are released (yay), but there were some nice 10-20 pound fish.  Close in tight to Bahia de Los Muertos and south towards Boca de Alamo.

The other fish that came up nice were the pargo.  But, we don’t have alot of photos of them either this week because…well, the fish bite, but if you have ever fished for pargo, you also know how tough they can be pulling these sluggers out’ve the rocks.  Probably not a tougher fish out there and this time of year is when the big redfish come up into the shallows to spawn.   We “estimate” that the fish that were lost would’ve been in the 10-30 pound range.

Other species included bonito, sierra and cabrilla (sea bass).

WHALES

Although we didn’t have alot of fishermen, we DID have some great whale watching and that’s what alot of folks come to La Paz for this time of the year.

We’re having a spectacular year with an abundance of grey whales in Bahia Magdalena and daily trips headed out and lots of whales this year.  Normally, they’re gone by mid-March but show no signs so far, of leaving in any hurry!   It’s been a great opportunity to literally get close to the whales and touch them.

WHALE SHARKS

whaleshark 1 tags 11-12

How about swimming with an animal the size of a school bus?

whaleshark small

Thanks to Kody and Rick Kasper for these great photos and this week’s great video of Kody underwater.

There have also been some great opportunities right in the bay to swim with the whalesharks.  The “babies” which are about 10-15 feet long are in shallow water but an incredible experience to get in the water with anywhere from one to more than a dozen whalesharks in shallow water.

FRED HALL FISHING SHOW – Wednesday to Sunday

10955876_892800824074371_892800387407748_49159_564_b

There’s nothing like this show if you’re into fishing!

FredHallLB_021712

They line up early and long to get into the show looking for deals!

Crowd_030513

Only part of a skyview of the main hall and the packed aisles in the Long Beach Convention Center!

This is it!  This is the BIG ONE of the YEAR!  We’ve been on the road now for 2 months and had some spectacular shows in Sacramento…Denver…Puyallup (Seattle)…Portland…Phoenix and Yakima.  And now…we’re splitting up again!

I’ll be at the Long Beach Convention Center for the Fred Hall Fishing and Outdoor Show from Wednesday to Sunday.  This is the 69th year for this show and it’s always packed with great gear, trips and lots of amigos!  It’s the big party!

IMG_1982-proc

Our Tailhunter Booth…often a gathering spots for our other amigos in the fishing business. Just some of our “fishing brothers” waiting to see you this week in Long Beach!

BOISE IDAHO SPORTSMANS SHOW- Thursday to Sunday

Regretfully, Jill and I have to split up this week.  She’ll be at the Boise Fairgrounds from Thursday to Sunday.  Another great show and we hate splitting up.  Jill really wants to be with me in Long Beach and I’m sure going to miss being with her and not seeing our friends in Idaho.  But, it’s a way great super show!  Come see Jilly!

IMG-20140215-00670

Jill will be in the booth at the Boise Fairgrounds and has all the info you need to set up your 2015 Fishing Adventure in La Paz with Tailhunter Sportfishing!

 STILL SPOTS FOR 2015 PANGA SLAM

DSC02888

Dave and Michelle Conklin from Washington got some nice dorado at last year’s Panga Slam

PANGA SLAM

BEACH LINEUP of DORADO at last year’s Panga Slam!

Still some spots available.  Dates are June 16-21 and is gonna be a blast with 3 days fishing / hotel/ several great parties and dinners and a big island snorkel party as well.  All this personally hosted by Jill and myself and Executive Editor Pat McDonell from Western Outdoor News.  It promises to be another great time.  For more information, contact us here at Tailhunter at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com or call 626-638-3383.

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

http://www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of Feb. 15-22, 2015

yellowtail pargo snapper triggers sierra tags

There’s a variety of fish that came up this week. Red snapper…yellowtail…sierra…and yes triggerfish. All great eating fish.

Kennedy whales

Our whaelwatching tours are in full swing and the whales are being incredibly cooperative! Kevin Kennedy and his group got the full experience in the calm waters of Mag Bay. Not sure how much longer these amazing animals will be here, but normally, they’re around until mid-March or so! Contact us and we’ll set you up!

 

DSC05382

We say good-bye to a fantastic La Paz Carnaval . Many watched the parades from our Tailhunter Restaurant and had a great time.

DSC05399

Great costumes and floats!

IMG_0874

Amy, Nicole and Kody Kasper enjoying one of Carnval parades in front of our Taihunter Restaurant on the malecon waterfront.

OK WEATHER GOES WITH OK FISHING!

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Week of Feb. 15-22, 2015 

Good week for weather and fishing this past week…relatively speaking!  I mean, it’s still winter so there were some breezy days, but compared to other weeks, the conditions were much more fishable and given that many of the folks in town are snow birds just wanting to get warm  (especially those trying to thaw out from the east coast of the U.S, not too many folks are complaining about 83 degree days.

The fishing was predictable.  With good weather, we’re able to get into more species and more variety to the fishing as well.

Among the larger species, some yellowtail popped up off Cerralvo Island including some nicer grades of fish in the 20-30 pound class.  Some nice horses.  Bait hasn’t been good as far as the mackerel are concerned which is what the yellows really charge, but using iron and heavier jigs (of course losing stuff in the rocks), scrambled egg and blue/white patterns produced fish.  Also slow trolling mackerel-patterned crank baits like the bigger Rapala xRap 20’s and Yo-Zuri’s in blue and grey got hits as well.

Also, given it’s only February, I was nicely surprised by the rooster fish we got this week.  Nothing big but fun-sized 5-10 pounders are great on light tackle, especially so close to shore.  Normally, we tend to see these fish about a month later.

Same with the dorado.  Again, nothing gigantic, but good-sating sized 6-12 pound “doraditos” again made for some good light tackle action.  Just like the roosters, I wouldn’t expect the mahi to be in so early in the year.

More typical were the other species we caught. Especially, the inshore types.  This included snapper and pargo, some decent 10-pound cabrilla and sierra along some of the beach drop offs.

The coming week’s weather is looking pretty good so hopefully better fishing reports next week.  Truthfully, this time of the year, there aren’t that many fishermen in town, but everyone is hooking up and getting good variety.

WHAT A WEEK ON THE ROAD!

Jill yakima

Jilly is all smiles in the Yakima booth!

DSC01986

Once again…had a BLAST rocking the booth in the Phoenix University Football Stadium. Hard to believe the Super Bowl was played there two weeks ago!

Due to scheduling, Jill and I split up this week on our Tailhunter show tour.  Jill went up to Yakima, Washington for the Central Washington Sportsmans Show.  I was further south at the International Sportsman Show in Phoenix.  We both had a great week and it was great seeing so many new and old amigos!  Thanks to everyone for coming and visiting us and for those of you who booked trips to come see us this year in La Paz, we’re looking forward to seeing you again later this year!

We now move off to Southern California to set up for the massive Long Beach Fred Hall Fishing and Hunting Show at the Long Beach Convention Center  March 4-8.  Once again, we split up!  Jill goes north to the Idaho Sportman’s Show at the fairgrounds in Boise, Idaho!  If you’re going to be anywhere near these venues come out to see us and say hi!

That’s our story.  Have a great week!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan and Jill

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

http://www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of Jan. 18-25, 2015

yellowtail donna tags small 1-15

She’s one of the best! Donna Thompson gets our first yellowtail of the season putting the wood to two nice yellowtail off Cerralvo Island with live bait.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Two more of our super amigos…from Bakersfield, California…Ken Gragg and Carl Lange put a handful of pargo and a cabrila in the boat fishing just outside of Bahia de los Muertos. These are tough fish to pull out’ve the rocks!


Kasper sierra dorado 1-15 tags

Captain Jorge and Richard Branson from Virgin Airlines? Nope…it’s our amigo, Rick Kasper who actually has been a double for Branson, but as an actor and host of his own outdoor TV show has also been a double for Gary Bussey. He’s also a fun fisherman! He’s showing off a dorado and a sierra here although they let a few get away!

YELLOWTAIL AND PARGO MAKE A SHOWING…SO DOES DRIZZLE AND RAIN!

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Week of Jan. 18-25, 2015

The week started on some real high notes.  Not only did we have some really fishing-condusive weather, but the fish decided to join in as well. However, as the week progressed, by the end of the week, not only did winter winds return, but we also got the surprise of rain which dampened things a bit.  Fortunately, being the off-season, we didn’t have to cancel anyone’s fishing trips as they weren’t many folks fishing this week anyway.

However, let’s talk about fishing.  The best news is that we finally got into yellowtail.  The big fork tail jacks really laid low last year when El Nino conditions warmed the waters and made bait and the  big fish a rarity.  However, this week we took some nice quality-grade yellows around Cerralvo Island near the high spots both north and south ends with bait and iron with fish going 20-30 pounds.  Some hefty hamachi!  Hopefully, this is just the start of things to come.

The yellowtail require the cooler waters and normally, we don’t see many until about February or March.  They stick around until about May when the waters start warming and we see the warm water species like dorado, billfish and wahoo move in.  We barely had any yellowtail to speak of at all last year.  We’re hopeful that the yellowtail we saw this week are the vanguard of a nice yellowtail season.

Another fish we really didn’t see last year were the pargo…the big snapper that come up in the springtime just like the yellowtail.  These big red/ copper fish are powerful and in the spring come into the shallows to spawn.  One of the most vicious fish to tangle with and a real frustrating game fish to put in the boat because of their power and the rock cover they love, we got a few of those this week as well.  Most of the big ones get lost because they’re just rugged sluggers, but early in the week some 3-8 pounders came up (a good sized one is 15…a brute is 40!) so, like the yellowtail maybe this year we’ll get them back.

In addition to the yellowtail and the pargo, there were some dorado and sierra taken plus cabrilla.

Then, the wind came back up again from the north and as the weekend approached, skies got cloudy and a few days of rain hit us.  As I’m writing this, we’re still looking at rain then it will let up next week and the forecast calls for some rain late in the week again as the month ends.

WHALES WATCHING ON BAHIA MAGDALENA GOING FULL

whaleswdennis 421

If you want to really do one of those “once-in-a-lifetime” things or check something off your “bucket list” our Bahia Magdalena Whale Watching is in full swing.  The grey whales have come down from the Bering Sea in the longest migration of any animal on the planet.   They showed up a bit early this year and we’re running daily trips to see them.  They usually stay around until about mid-March and the bay is where they come to mate, give birth and basically hang out in the warm calm waters where we can get up close to them in their natural environment.  If you’d like details get in touch with us at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com or give us a call at 626-638-3383.

SPOTS FILLING FOR JUNE PANGA SLAM

dorado Christian Regan tags small 6-14

Group shot small tags 6-14

We still have a few spots for our 2015 Tailhunter International / Western Outdoor News Panga Slam.  With 3 days of fishing…a snorkel day party on the island…several fun dinners…a fishing jackpot and much more, this is one of the highlights of our season!  We’re limiting it to only 24 spots and there’s just a few spots still left.  We’ve love to have you join us!  Write us at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com for all the details!

THANKS WASHINGTON!  NOW ONTO PORTLAND SPORTSMANS SHOW!

WP_20150122_003

Our good friends, Dave Rose and his family dropped in to say hi and pose for a quick shot. Great family and they’ve visited us a number of times in La Paz. Great to see them.

WP_20150122_001

Jilly working the counter at our booth at the Puyallup Fairgrounds in Washington.

Just a shout-out thank you to all our amigos who came to visit us at the Washington Sportsmans Show at the Seattle Fairgrounds in Puyallup, Washington.  After shows in Sacramento and Denver and about 3,000 miles of driving, this was our third show of the year and it was a great time. We saw so many of our friends and signed up lots of amigos for their 2015 fishing trips with Tailhunters in 2015.    We now have a few days to catch up and re-group then hit our next show in Portland at the Portland Expo Center from Feb. 4th to 8th.  If you’re in the Portland area, come see us and talk to us about fishing in La Paz!  We’ll see you there.

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan and Jilly

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of Jan. 11-18, 2015

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Barred pargo and cabrilla (Mexican seabass) like these two nice fish taken by the Montejano Brothers (Andy and Raphael) have been biting nicely inshore lately. Typical action for this time of year and tough to get outta the rocks. But GREAT eating!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Some fat sierra and schoolie dorado are were not uncommon this week. No roosterfish to show you because all the roosters were released!

whaleswdennis 321

The grey whales have arrived earlier than normal and are already in good numbers at Bahia Magdalena and we’re already running day trips to get on the water with them!

POST HOLIDAY BLUES

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Week of Jan. 11-18, 2015

There weren’t that many fishermen around this week, either because there simply weren’t that many around or those that wanted to fish were kept off the water by pesky northern winds.  But, this is typical of winter fishing in our area and frankly, it’s pretty common few weeks after Christmas not to have even many tourists in town.  You could almost call La Paz “sleepy.”  Even the locals are keeping it low key and under the radar, perhaps still recovering from the holidays.  Stores, streets and restaurants are almost empty sometimes!

We did get a few folks out on the water with air temps in the mid-70’s and a bit choppy.  Sierra were biting along the drop-off points where shallow water slopes into deeper areas like near the Las Arenas lighthouse and also in the channel areas where current move between rocky spot.  As well, the sloping areas also produced jack crevalle and some pompano…both related plus their more popular cousin the rooster fish with some smaller school-sized fish that might have gone about 15 pounds.

Bonito were prevailant not to far from shore either and a few stray free-swimming dorado were hooked as well.

WHALES HAVE SHOWN UP EARLY IN BAHIA MAGDALENA!

whaleswdennis 413

Yes, please rub my head for me! We love getting our photo taken with visitors!

Normally, from about late January to late March, the grey whales take up residence at Bahia Magdalena where they spawn, breed and give birth.  In these shallow warm waters, this is the end of the largest migration of mammals on earth as they come down from the Bering Sea near Alaska.   We’ve started running daily trips to the Bay to spend a day getting close to these amazing gentle animals and it’s a great life-time experience for the whole family.  If ou’re interested,  you can get more information by calling us at Tailhunter at 626-638-3383 or e-mailing us directly at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com for an even faster response!

THANKS DENVER AND NOW ONTO WASHINGTON!

wreath copy

In our booth at the Denver ISE show and a special shout-out to Kelly and Diego Jimenez, our amigos from Loveland, Colorado. Kelly made this incredible wreath for us out’ve shells and other items collected from the beaches around Las Arenas. Kelly and Diego are making their 3rd trip in a row to us this year!

From one of our favorite cities…DENVER…we just had an incredible time at the International Sportsman’s Expo at the Convention Center downtown.  Thanks to everyone who came to visit us in our booth to say hi and talk about their past and future fishing adventures in La Paz.  What a kick and we never tire of seeing everyone!

So now…we head to our 3rd show on the “road tour.”  First was Sacramento.  Now, we just finished Denver.  This week we set up for the Washington  Sportsmans Expo at the Puyallup Fairgrounds near Seattle, Washington!  This is always a super-fun show and it’s going to be nice to be in the green trees again in a beautiful state and seeing all our amigos.  The show runs from Wednesday to Sunday.  Please come visit us!  We’re in our booth every day.  For more information and to buy tickets, click this link: http://www.thesportshows.com/shows/washington/

2015 TAILHUNTER/ WESTERN OUTDOOR NEWS PANGA SLAM & JACKPOT IS FILLING!

dorado verda tags small 6-14

Captain Jorge and Verda Boyd started off the first day of last year’s Panga Slam with a nice bull dorado taken just off the area of La Ventana.


rooster tim 6-14 tags

Tim Farrell took a photo of a trophy rooster fishing with Captain Archangel during last year’s Panga Slam. Tim caught several nice fish and released the all!

We just announced the dates for our 2015 Panga Slam two weeks ago  nd the response was incredible!  Still some spots available.  Dates are June 16-21 and is gonna be a blast with 3 days fishing / hotel/ several great parties and dinners and a big island snorkel party as well.  All this personally hosted by Jill and myself and Executive Editor Pat McDonell from Western Outdoor News.  It promises to be another great time.  For more information, contact us here at Tailhunter at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com or call 626-638-3383.

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan and Jilly

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report from Tailhunter International for Week of Dec. 21-28, 2014

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Captain Pancho with a nice rack of sierra and a cabrilla.

pargo tags 5-12

Pretty typical inshore winter catch of some great eating, pargo, snapper, cabrilla and triggerfish.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Incredible day trips right now to swim in La Paz Bay with the whalesharks in the shallow waters! On any given day there are up to several dozen 10-15 foot “juveniles” in the bay.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Above or under the water, these gentle animals are a fantastic experience. This is about a 20 footer, feeding on the surface in only about 10 feet of water!

 

 

SUNS OUT BUT SO IS THE WIND!  

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Week of Dec. 21-28, 2014

The weather was tough on us this week.  Quite a few windy days as is often the case during the winter months when the north winds come down and hit us and just make it difficult to get out or, even if we do, it’s just rugged out there or, the big waves make it tough to get bait.  And that’s the way it was for the majority of the week.

I feel badly because most of the folks that fish this time of year are snow-birds just enjoying sunshine who want a day of fishing while in La Paz.  This is unlike during the regular season when folks fish every single day of their vacation and are specifically in town to fish.  For the folks now with only one day to fish, that means we either have to cancel; or they have to just gut-it-out and have a rough day; or we have to juggle their fishing days to find a day where the winds are diminished.

More often than not, we either have to tell folks who only have one specific day to fish that it’s best they not go out, or they go out and really just have a bad time and get beat up and wet and not catch much fish…and that’s not fun either.

On the other side, at least it’s sunny!  Day time temps are in the low to mid-70’s and really pleasant.  Although it was windy, winds should calm down by the time you’re reading this.

We did get out a few times this week.  All of our fishing during the winter months are out’ve Las Arenas/ Bahia de Los Muertos areas.   Because of the winds, waters are pretty turned over and green and dirty in some of our hot spots.  However, we did get into some decent sierra along the beach drop-offs.   Some were hefty 4-5 pound chunkers and ALWAYS great eating.  There were a few small pargo, snapper and cabrilla caught.  We had some school-sized rooster fish caught and released and the bonito helped provide some action as well.

As a side note, many folks don’t know that La Paz has become quite a mecca for whalesharks which have been increasing in numbers the last few season in La Paz Bay where they’re protected.  At times there are 1/2 dozen to several dozen “juveniles” up to 15 feet long or more all in shallow water and great for snorkeling!   We’re running 2-3 hour trips to swim with the whalesharks every day that the winds are favorable.  The juveniles are just a few minutes away and it’s an incredible family once-in-a-lifetime experience.   You are NOT allowed to touch or ride the animals but still…getting just a few feet away from these gentle animals (they are true sharks with no teeth that eat plankton, krill and other small critters) is something not to be missed.

OUR YEAR IN REVIEW!  BRING ON 2015!

Well, 2014 is almost one for the books and I thought it would good to wrap up the year with a full review…

It was as crazy a year as I have ever had in my almost 20 years working here in La Paz.

With El Nino hovering, we entered the year with some trepidation.  El Nino seems to have a zillion variables that change the whole complexion of fishing and sure enough, it started right from the get-go.

El Nino conditions are characterized by warmer than normal waters.  Good in some ways, but bad in so many others.  So, crazily, our waters never really did cool down.  We started the year catching dorado which was a great surprise in some aspects, but the downside was not so good.

For one our cooler water species never really did show up.  While the dorado were biting, we never got into the good yellowtail or the amberjack, sierra or pargo that are so popular in our cooler months. We got a few, but it had to be called a big disappointment.  One aspect of the overly-warm water was the lack of bait.

yellowtail Tim Butterworth tags small 4-13

Tim Butterworth with a fat yellowtail caught with our Tailhunter La Paz fleet.

From Idaho taking a break from teaching school, Mandy Pollock let's Tailhunter Capt. Boli struggle with this big yellowtail from the north side of La Paz.  Still a few yellowtail around and this was Mandy's first trip to La Paz.

From Idaho taking a break from teaching school, Mandy Pollock let’s Tailhunter Capt. Boli struggle with this big yellowtail from the north side of La Paz. Still a few yellowtail around and this was Mandy’s first trip to La Paz.

Jorge dorado small tags  4-14

Jorge Ramiro, everyone’s amigo, with two nice spring-time dorado which showed up early this year with the warm waters!

 

Baitfish require cooler waters so that nutrients come from the deep.  The baitfish feed on the nutrients and without those necessities, bait either died off or moved away to find food.  Insofar as we’re a live bait fishery and bait is an important aspect of our sportfishing, it makes it hard to fish, let alone catch fish without bait!  This was to plague us throughout the year.

It didn’t help either that in the Bay of La Paz, bait catchers from the fish farms were scooping up what little bait was available, sometimes at night leaving virtually nothing for the sportfishing fleets and commercial local fishermen who rely on the bait to make their livings.  It wasn’t until almost mid-year that the bait catching stopped.  Surprisingly, our bait stocks suddenly increased!

But, bait was to be an issue all year long.  We made do with what we could get.  That often consisted of a mix of sardines, mackerel, caballitos, baby bonito, ballyhoo and dead bait like cut squid, cut bonito and the like.

It will produced some great catches throughout the year like the dorado, marlin, sailfish and some others.  The most remarkable catches of the year were the rooster fish and wahoo.  We had an above average year for rooster fish underscoring La Paz’s reputation as the “Roosterfish Capital of the World” with fish in the 30-80 pound class not uncommon.

rooster kacie tags armando small 5-14

Kacie and Captain Armando put this nice big rooster in the boat for a photo then quickly released it!

Rick rooster 5-14 tags

Captain Jorge and our buddy, Rick Kasper, always has the knack for big fish like this world-class huge roosterfish caught just off the shallow beach near the Las Arenas lighthouse then released.

rooster brian davis 5-14 small tags

From Louisiana, Brian Davis stuck his giant roosterfish with Captain Pancho that might have tipped the scales into the triple digits, but was gratefully released.

As for wahoo, the cycle came around this year.  After a few years of negligible wahoo to show, we had a fairly outstanding year for wahoo with fish in the 30-50 pound class and larger often taken and the best spots around Espirito Santo Island.  For folks who had never caught a wahoo or rooster, this was the kind of year where many anglers finally got their first of each species, sometimes on the same day.

Rich Pomeroy tags small wahoo 5-14

Lots of amigos got their first wahoos this year like Rich Pomeroy from Northern California who was on his first trip to La Paz.

Kris Honkola wahoo 1-14 tags 10-14

Big wahoo like this one caught by Kris Honkola were a great catch this year in 2014

The biggest issue of our year was the weather.  It played havoc all year.

As is characteristic of El Nino years, storms are more common and we gritted our teeth and watched hurricanes and rainstorms threaten us and sometimes drop some rain on us and stormy conditions.  We have over a dozen come our way, but dodged almost all of them until the big one finally turned on us in a surprise of historic proportions.

Hurricane Odile slammed into Baja with winds up to 150 miles per hour.  It turned out to be the biggest hurricane in Baja history causing widespread devastation.  La Paz was in it’s path and, although the fury of the storm was spent in about 6 hours, the destruction and aftermath were felt for weeks and La Paz and Baja are still in the rebuilding process.

WP_20140915_023

Hotel La Concha in La Paz just hours after hurricane Odile ripped through.

AIRPORT 1

The Cabo San Lucas Airport was brand new but left in shambles.

Power lines and debris are knocked over on a street after Hurricane Odile hit La Paz

Hurricane Odile devastated neighborhoods. Baja is still re-building but financially, recovery will be long-coming .

 

As far as fishing, we were back to fishing within a week of the storm.  However, since airports were shut down or destroyed, there was no way for clients to come into Baja and hence suffered many weeks of cancelations and lost bookings during the part of the season which is traditionally the busiest time of the year.  The ripple effect on much of the economy will take a long time to recover.

But interestingly, right after the hurricane, fishing took off!  Some of the best fishing took place in the weeks and months post-Odile with dorado, wahoo, sailfish, marlin, and other species biting better than they had at any time of the year and with continued warm waters through Christmas, continued to bite!

Marlin Snead 10-14 small tags

Bucket list marlin for Steve Snead from Idaho who battled this guy for a long fight despite his bad back and released the fish to fight another day!

Cathy and Craig tags wahoo dorado small 10-14

Craig and Cathy Corda had a gigantic nice day on the water with dorado and wahoo!

Caray dorado tags mike robbi 10-14

First timers, Mike and Robbi Caray with one of several big dorado caught with our Tailhunter La Paz fleet.

Here’s hoping for a mo’ bettah 2014, but as long as all of us are safe, happy and have each other, all  is good.  Here’s to wishing you the best with a big MUCHAS GRACIAS for being part of this great adventure!  God bless you all!

That’s our story!

combo-signature-black letters

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: 

www.tailhunter-international.com

Mexico Office: Tailhunter International, 755 Paseo Obregon, La Paz, Baja Sur, Mexico

U.S. Mailing Address:  Tailhunter International, 8030 La Mesa Blvd. #178, La Mesa CA  91942

Phones:

from USA : 626-638-3383

from Mexico: 044-612-14-17863

.

Tailhunter Weekly Fishing Report:  https://fishreport.jonathanroldan.com/

Tailhunter YouTube Videoshttp://www.youtube.com/user/pangapirate

“When your life finally flashes before your eyes, you will have only moments to regret all the things in life you never had the courage to try.”

Read Full Post »

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »