Tailhunter Fish Report

WINTER WEATHER DOESN’T HELP THE FISHING

LA PAZ/ LAS ARENAS FISHING REPORT for WEEK OF JAN. 22, 2007

FISHING REPORT

I guess it can’t be good ALL the time!

Just one of “those” weeks that makes you appreciate all the great weeks we have the rest of the year. In a word, the past week was STINK! Basically, it was great weather if you were in say…Alaska!

I think the whole west coast of the continent must have been in cold weather this past week, although most folks wouldn’t complain if it was in the high 50’s and low 60’s in their own neck of the woods. For La Paz, that’s pretty much arctic weather with everyone wearing jackets and long pants! (Don’t laugh you readers in Denver!).

A good part of the week, it was either (pick one)…(a) windy (b) overcast (c) raining (d) all of the above. Not the best for fishing, but the good part is that we didn’t have any anglers except for one day which is characteristic this time of the year anyway. That one day we did get folks out, they did get some sierra and snapper inshore in the structure. That was it.

Sorry this isn’t more cheery like our other fishing reports, but what can I say? It’s WINTER, even in Baja! The coming week doesn’t show any rain in the forecast but more wind and overcast for sure. Water temps are holding steady at about 65 degrees in most places

UPCOMING STUFF

We just finished our third show of the year Sacramento CA at the International Sportsman’s Expo. What a great time and it was super to see so many of the old amigos and meet new ones. By the time you’re reading this, we’ll be on our way driving from California to Denver CO for our next show. From Thursday to Sunday, we’ll be at the International Sportsman’s Expo at the Denver Convention Center. If you’re in the area and we make it through the snows, hope you come by to say hi.

HEADS UP

Since the end of the holidays, our phones and e-mails have been ringing off the hook with reservations. We are seriously filling fast! Some dates are already booked solid, but we still have lots of prime spots left. Don’t wait. Not kidding! If you’re even THINKING about fishing la Paz this season, please give us a shout. We had such an outstanding season last year that many folks made reservations immediately for 2007 or jumped on the horn early. We want to take care of as many of our amigos as possible!

MORE HEADS UP

1. We still have a few more spots left for our 6th Annual Cabin Fever Classic this April 12-16 hosted at La Concha Beach Resort We have a blast and it’s a great opportunity to get outta your hut and enjoy some sunshine, good friends, fishing, tacos and beer after a long winter and help us kick off the beginning of our season. Cost is $630 per person double occupancy.

2. We’re taking whale watching reservations for the Pacific Grey Whales that are now showing up in Magdalena Bay. Get up close and personal with these great creatures! It’s a day-long-adventure that’s super for the whole family. Drop us an e-mail at riplipboy@aol.com for info.

AIRLINES

Lastly, if you’re in the San Francisco Bay area, Delta is now flying to La Paz from Oakland as well as Sacramento. Alaska Airlines is flying out of San Francisco. Out of Los Angeles, this season, so far we have Delta, Alaska and Aero Mexico flying to La Paz. Our good old “pals” at Aero Mexico are still flying out of Tijuana to La Paz but “promise they will be flying out of Los Angeles by February.” Hahahahah…oh right!

That’s my story!
Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International
Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355
FAX: (626) 333-0115
E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com
U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745
Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

INSHORE FISHING TAKES THE SPOTLIGHT

La Paz / Las Arenas Fishing Report for January 14, 2006

PHOTO: This is a great time for inshore species like pargo, jacks, snapper, sierra and these nice cabrilla (seabass) held by Forrest Kontomitras and Jeff Arnold of Los Angeles caught around Espiritu Santo Island

FISHING REPORT

The sierra bite has been excellent for anglers fishing both Las Arenas and La Paz. You don’t have to go out very far either which is nice on those days when the north winds blow. In La Paz Bay, some slow trolling in front of the Pemex station only minutes from the marina can produce quite a productive day. Actually, many of the headlands in the bay where there’s some type of drop off channel can hold the schools. We did get one boat out to the island this week and it got two dorado between 15 and 25 pounds as well as a few pargo. At Las Arenas, it’s the same thing. Sierra are close inshore but on the days the wind didn’t blow, it was possible to hit Cerralvo Island for pargo, cabrilla, jacks and snapper. There’s also some large bonito starting to show as well. Water temps are in the high 60’s and so it the air. The say winds won’t be a problem this week, but some a few light showers might his us later in the week.

FISHING TRADE SHOW CIRCUIT

Yup…we’re on our trade show circuit now. As I’m writing this, we’re just wrapping up a great show at San Mateo in the San Francisco Bay Area. It was great to see so many of the amigos stopping by the booth and we had a great time. Next on tap…Sacramento!

From this Thursday to Sunday (Sept. 18 to 21) we’ll be at the California State Fairgrounds at the International Sportsmen’s Expo. C’mon down and visit us in our booth.

CABIN FEVER CLASSIC

We’re filling up. Our 6th Annual Cabin Fever Classic set for April 12-16 has just a few spots left. It’s being hosted at La Concha Beach Resort and always promises to be a fun time for everyone. Three days of fishing is $630 per person double occupancy and it’s always a hoot. This is not a tournament! It’s a chance to get together with some other fun folks who just need to get out of their cabins after a long long winter and put their toes into some warm sand; their lips on a cold margarita and their hands on a bent rod! If you want more info, e-mail us at riplipboy@aol.com

PASSPORTS

Don’t forget, if you plan to fly anywhere in North America this year, you WILL need a passport. (Yes…if you forget your geography, Mexico is part of North America!) Don’t wait until the last minute.

That’s my story!
Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International
Website: www.tailhunter-international.com
Phone: (626) 333-3355
FAX: (626) 333-0115
E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com
U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745
Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

ON THE CHILLY SIDE BUT FISH STILL WILLING TO BEND!

La Paz/ Las Arenas Fishing Report for January 7, 2007

Photo: There were blizzards of snow back home in Wyoming, but 11-year-old Tyler Caldwell of Wyoming got into some nice sunshine and a big smile with his first ocean fish and his first dorado to bring in the new year. In between wind guts, dorado have been a welcome surprise this winter.

FISHING REPORT

Well…we’re in the lull after the holidays. Not many fishermen in town. Mostly snowbirds actually just trying to see what warm sunshine feels like. In fact, our clients lately have been from Colorado, Wyoming, upper New York, and Washington state. Most aren’t really even interested in fishing although they’ve done a day or two, unlike during the warmer months when our visitors can’t get in enough fishing!

Mostly, you can just hear them sigh as they walk around in shorts and t-shirts in 70 degree weather while the local La Paz folks are bundled up in long pants and jackets! Visitors think the locals are crazy for being bundled up!

Fishing hasn’t been too bad, but again, it’s really dependent on the winds. When the north winds are blowing, it’s almost impossible to get out unless you want to jar your teeth loose or wear a wet suit to stay warm. However, a few days a week it is possible to get out and no one has been too disappointed.

Dorado have been the nicest surprise (see attached photo…they got 18 fish one day among all the family) with most of the bite being north of La Paz around the point and out towards Espiritu Santo Island. The problem is getting across the short channel which can be like a wind tunnel when the gusts come up and churning like a washing machine. Once you’re at the island, you can fish in the lee side or along the coves.

Even on the days when the wind is blowing, fishing inshore for cabrilla, sierra, big bonito and pargo has been fairly productive. We even put out some boats this week from Muertos that got into some fish in the bay and out towards the islands. Bring a jacket but the fish are there!

Water temps are more seasonal now. All the water around La Paz is in the lower 70’s or colder. I haven’t had any divers lately to see where the thermocline is or how cold it is, but I imagine it’s another 5 degrees cooler at depth or more. There is a spot of warmer water to the south of Muertos where the satellites show water temps in the upper 70’s still, but with the wind it’s not somewhere you wanna go in a panga. We’ll keep you posted. They’re already getting marlin around Cabo so perhaps if this body of warm water sticks around we might seeing some early billfish, but I won’t hold my breath.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

We just finished our first show of the season and are on our way out’ve the AWR Tackle Show in Las Vegas and are headed up California now to the San Mateo ISE show which takes place from January 11-14th. It’s being held at the San Mateo Expo Center from Thursday to Sunday. We’ll have our booth there as usual so come by and see us if you’re in the area. There’s always great stuff to see and great food to eat and it’s a nice day for the family!

The week after, we travel up to the California State Fairgrounds at Sacramento for the big International Sportsmen’s Show taking place January 18-21. This is the biggest show in Northern Cal and runs Thursday to Sunday and they’ve expanded the facilities this year.

AIRFARE

Seeing alot of nice airfare this year from San Francisco and Los Angeles direct to La Paz or Cabo. Alaska Air flies from both areas and I just saw an advertisement this week for $89 dollar (each way) tickets if you go to www.Alaskaair.com Delta is also being competitive and now has daily flights from Los Angeles

It’s not too early to think about dates to come fishing with us. Now that the holidays are over and the fishing/outdoor shows are starting, we’re getting alot of inquiries and bookings and some of the more popular dates are already filled or filling but still plenty of room for you! Just fire us an e-mail and we’ll fine tune something for you!

UPCOMING

January to March – Come down and let us set up a day of whale watching at Magdalena Bay. These are the prime months when the whales are in Baja en masse and it’s a great experience to see these incredible creatures.

April 12-16 – Sixth Annual Cabin Fever Classic in La Paz. Five days and four nights of hotel with 3 days of fishing and our usual cast of characters and crazy fishing. Ask for details. Cost is $630 per person double occupancy (two per room and two per boat). We’re filling up and some folks are staying extra days/nights to fish longer or extend their vacations.

That’s my story

Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International

Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745

Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

DORADO STILL AROUND BUT NOT MANY ANGLERS!

La Paz / Las Arenas Fishing Report for December 31, 2006

Photo: Captain Joel lends a hand on this nice dorado about to get cleaned on Balandra Beach. Despite winds and waters that would seem too cold for mahi mahi, there’s still dorado to be caught north of La Paz

FISHING REPORT

Understandably, with the holidays being here, not many fishermen around. Mostly, it’s snow birds trying to get some sun on white legs and arms and attempting to escape colder climes like New Hampshire and Canada that fill the town right now. Locals are walking around with long pants and jackets. The tourists have their shorts and t-shirts!

The fish are there when we have fishermen! No doubt about it. When it’s windy, the inshore fishing produces some big jack crevalle, sierra, and snapper plus schools of bonito shooting through. During those days when we can get further out or towards the islands or outter banks or ridges, there’s still dorado unbelievably even though it’s the dead of winter! Go figure. Oh well. No one is complaining. But honestly, the winds are the factor. When it lays down, we get dorado and there seems to be a direct correlation between the amount of wind and the amount of dorado. Less wind = more dorado! The cool thing is that most folks down right now are here f0r some sunshine, tacos or just getting away. Unlike the warmer months when the primary focus is fishing, the expectations right now are muted so whatever we catch, as long as the weather is good, putting some fish in the boat is a nice bonus and even if it’s not dorado, the other fish like the sierra and snapper are fun and good eating.

WHALE WATCHING JANUARY to MARCH 2007

Just a head’s up again that whale watching should start in the next months when the grey whales start showing up in Magdalena Bay. From about the middle or end of January to about March (it all depends on when the whales show up and leave…they don’t e-mail me their “schedule” so please don’t ask!) we’ll be arranging our day trips to go see the whales. It’s really an incredible experience to get close enough to the whales to touch them in the calm shallow waters of Magdalena Bay. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime-experience that would be great for the family. Let us know if you’d like more information.

CABIN FEVER CLASSIC APRIL 12-16, 2007

More calendar stuff…our only officially hosted event to kick off the year is the Cabin Fever Classic on tap for April 12-16th at La Concha Beach Resort. Our most popular event, many anglers, couples and amigos return every year just for this! Three days of fishing and basically a great excuse to eat some tacos, drink some beer and get outta your freezing cold cabin and have some fun with some great people. We have a blast every year. Spots are filling and are limited so get in touch with us ASAP and we’ll give you more details and get you dialed in. Last year, we hammered big yellowtail and pargo!

FISHING AND OUTDOOR SHOW CALENDAR 2007

Tailhunter International is heading out on it’s 2007 road tour and we hope you’ll come by to see us at our booth. Here’s our schedule for the next few months. Our first show will be in the San Francisco Bay Area at San Mateo January 11-14. Here’s the list:

Jan. 11- 14 – International Sportsmen’s Expo, San Mateo Expo Center, San Mateo CA
Jan. 18-21 – International Sportsmen’s Expo, California State Fairgrounds, Sacramento CA
Jan. 25-28 – International Sportsmen’s Expo, Denver Convention Center, Denver CO
Feb. 7-11 – O’Laughlin Outdoor Shows, Portland Expo Center, Portland OR
Mar. 7-11 – Fred Hall Fishing and Boating Show, Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach CA
Mar. 15-18 – International Sportsman’s Show, Salt Lake City CA
Mar. 29-April 1 – Great Outdoor Show , Anchorage AK

Hope to see you there!

PASSPORTS for 2007

One final note, don’t forget that if YOU are flying into Mexico this year, you MUST have a passport. Homeland Security no longer will allow you back into the U.S. with just your certified birth certifcate and your smiling face on your driver’s license. This is new for 2007 for anyone flying in North American and the Caribbean. Right now, if you’re driving, you’re OK for another year. By 2008 you’ll need a passport for ANY travel over international borders.

Happy New Year everyone! May it be an awesome 2007 for you, your families and all of us!

That’s my story!
Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s
Tailhunter International
Website: http://www.tailhunter-international.com: Phone: (626) 333-3355
FAX: (626) 333-0115
E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com
U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745
Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

DORADO STILL AROUND WHEN WINDS NOT BLOWING

La Paz/Las Arenas Fishing Report for Dec. 23, 2006

Photo 1: Just wanted to start the report out with a “Feliz Navidad” to everyone!

Photo 2: Guess what? It’s December and dorado like these are still around! Hard to believe, but fish like this are a nice winter surprise!

The FISHING REPORT

Because of the holidays and because I plan on being tucked into my “long winter nap” Sunday (Christmas Eve night) waiting for Santa, I wanted to get the fishing report out early. Basically, the last place I wanted to be was staring at my computer screeen as much as I love putting up my fishing reports!

Anyway, amigos…

It’s winter. The winds are loco. They blow one day and not the next with on rhyme or reason. You can come down and get 3 solid days of warm sunshine and flat waters or get 4 days of chop and windbreaker weather. Still, it’s a nice time to be in La Paz if you have to stay on the beach. Town is quiet and in the holiday mode and you can smell tamales cooking everywhere!

On the days it’s not windy…

There’s still some pretty good fishing considering it’s winter! Dorado are still north of town around the island and in the channel willing to eat a slow trolled sardine, bonito or slab of dead bait. Nothing like our warm weather fishing, but on the calm days everyone has caught a few dorado in the 10-20 pound class with an occasional 30 pound bull (and tales of other fish lost!) and mixed in with a few cabrilla, snapper or sierra, that makes for a nice ice chest of fillets! No one is complaining.

Still, a word of advice if you’re coming down in the next few…bring a windbreaker or sweatshirt!

QUICK AIRLINE NEWS

Delta Airlines is now flying daily flights out of Los Angeles direct to La Paz! Yay! Flight prices look pretty good for 2007 and it looks like they’ll be neck-and-neck with Alaska which is also flying into La Paz.

DON’T FORGET PASSPORTS!

This is the biggie! Starting in 2007, if you’re flying in or out of Mexico, you MUST have a valid passport. Don’t wait until the last minute. They’re not hard to get and pretty cool to have!

Travel tip: I still carry a copy of my certified birth certicate with me when I fly. I also carry photo copies of my passport and my driver’s license with me as well and I put them in a ziplock bag and hide them somewhere else in my luggage. That way if I ever lose my real paperwork, I can at least have copies with me at all times.

LASTLY…

Just wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. This last year was a tough one for us losing our only airline into town plus a series of storms that really busted us up a couple of times! Still, I gotta say that we had one of the most outstanding fishing seasons I’ve ever seen and I appreciate everyone who came down despite all the hardships and changes and had a good time or made the best of it. We kicked butt more often than not and it was great seeing so many amigos catch their first first; largest fish; first of a species; most fish, etc. or see a kid, friend or loved one have such a great time! Even moreso, I appreciate all of you who also didn’t make it down or couldn’t make it down for all the support and good wishes. You hung with us too! We’re still hanging in here and no one has told us to take our ball and go home yet and we are still blessed with good health, our families and friends around us. To each of you reading this, I wish you the same. Stay safe. Stay healthy. Enjoy those who care about you and God bless always!

Here’s a little Christmas story for you:

One beautiful December evening Pedro and his girlfriend Rosita were sitting by the side of the ocean. It was a romantic full moon, when Pedro said, “Hey, mamacita, let’s do Weeweechu.” Oh no, not now, let’s look at the moon!” said Rosita.Oh, c’mon baby, let’s you and I do Weeweechu. I love you and it’s the perfect time,” Pedro begged.
“But I wanna just hold your hand and watch the moon.” replied Rosita.Please, corazoncito, just once, do Weeweechu with me.”Rosita looked at Pedro and said, “OK, one time, we’ll do Weeweechu.”Pedro grabbed his guitar and they both sang…..

“Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas,Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.”MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

“Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, Weeweechu a Merry Christmas,Weeweechu a Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year.”MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!!

That’s my story! Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International

Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745

Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

TOO MUCH WIND AND NOT ENOUGH FISHERMEN

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for Dec. 17, 2006

Photo 1: Verda Boyd and Tim Zimmer are both sheriff’s officers from the San Francisco BayArea 0f California so they’re used to clouds, wind and chilly conditions. They always come in December when no one else is around and always seem to do well and have a good time. Here, Verda shows off a day’s work of sierra.

THE FISHING REPORT

Crummy week! Earlier in the week we had anglers, but had to cancel most trips because the winds were whipping so hard. By the time the winds calmed down later in the week, all the fishermen had gone home. We really were living on borrowed time. The dorado bite from the summer continued a good 2 months longer than expected right into late November with great conditions when we had no right to be expecting that kind of warm water fishing. However, two weeks ago the winds whipped up out of the north like they do this time of year and it’s amazing how fast the water temps dropped a good 5-10 degrees in some spots to the lower 70’s so I think the warm water season has finally come to a close and getting cooler.

Photo 2: Verda holds up a nice dorado taken off the south end of Espiritu Santo Island. I think this officially marks pretty much the end of the warm water season and the end of the best dorado bite I have ever seen that lasted from late May to early December with some of the most prolific mahi fishing ever. That’s Tim Zimmer peaking out from the background. He’s been cursed lately and Verda keeps outfishing him even though he rigs up all the gear and baits everything the same!
Photo 3: Tim is finally on the board! Tim holds a nice jack crevalle which like the dorado is normally a warm-water species. It tastes terrible so we release most, but they are terrific fighters. On the right is popular Captain Raul “Papa” Martinez.

CABIN FEVER CLASSIC IS ANNOUNCED

Everyone has been asking and I’m sorry for taking so long to pick a date, but I just wanted to make sure we had airflights and they weren’t sky-high (so to speak), especiallly after the experiences of last year when so many of us got stranded by Aero California! However, now that both Alaska Air and Delta Air have joined Aero Mexico in flights to La Paz, let’s rock! In fact, we’ve been checking random dates for much of 2007 and there’s some good rates out there! Delta seems to have the cheapest, but if you shop around they’re between $300 and 400 dollar round trip which is about 1/2 of what it was sometimes in 2006!

Anyway…here’s the scoop!

Event: SIXTH ANNUAL CABIN FEVER CLASSIC

Dates: April 12-16, 2007

Package: 5 days in La Paz/4 nights waterfront hotel at La Concha Beach Resort/ 3 days panga fishing Las Arenas with option on 3rd day to fish La Paz weather permitting/ round trip airport transfers La Paz airport to hotel and back/ boat/ skipper/ tackle/ ice/ fish cleaning/ fish freezing/ breaktfast, lunch, soft drinks, water on fishing days/ shuttles to boats/ welcome cocktails/ beach taco barbecue/ all taxes

Price: $630 per person double occupancy (two per room and two per boat)

Extras: tips/ bait/ alcohol/personal items

Notes: This started as a joke and has become one of the most popular events we’ve ever hosted. The idea is to officially start our fishing season by getting you out of your “cabin” after a long winter! We don’t promise there will even be fish, but we do promise a good time with some really fun people, many who come year-after year! Some only come for this event and become regulars!

As mentioned, we have no idea what we’ll catch. Maybe nothing! It all depends on what Mother Nature throws at us. However, in the past, one year we caught a ton of big roosters and jacks. Another year, dorado showed up and blew us all away. Another year, I think we had 15 different species of fish! Last year, was the year of the giant yellowtail with huge 30 and 40 pound yellowtail showing up in shallow water plus big pargo in the rocks! You just never know! But, we sure had a good time!

If you’re interested, just fire me an e-mail at riplipboy@aol.com and we’ll hook it up for you. We already have about 10 people booked with deposits even though we didn’t even know the dates so let us know ASAP. We have limited space for this one!

WHALE WATCHING SEASON APPROACHING!

Yes, it’s here again. From about January to March, the California grey whales show up in Baja. It’s incredible to see so many whales in the calm lagoons of Mag Bay. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience that would make a great gift for yourself or family. We can set it all up for you. Get up and close and personal with these magnificent creatures. Just click this to get to my other webpage: http://www.tailhunter-international.com/jonathansblog.htm. Best time is in February when the whales are usually all in place and aren’t nervous about having the pangas around them and will often come right up to the boats!

TAILHUNTER’s SHOW SEASON for 2007

Everyone is asking us when we’re going to be in their neck of the woods for our fishing shows! I posted it a few weeks ago but happily put it out again. I’ll do it every few weeks so the info is fresh. Please come say hello. It’s always nice to see old friends and make new ones!

January 11 to 14 – International Sportsmen’s Expo San Mateo Expo Center, San Mateo CA
January 18 to 21 – International Sportmens’ Expo California State Fairgrounds, Sacramento CA
January 25 to 28 – International Sportsmen Expo Denver Convention Center, Denver CO
Feb. 7 to 11 – Pacific Northwest Sportsmens Show, Portland Expo Center, Portland OR
March 1 to 5 – Fred Hall Fishing & Boating Show, Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach CA
March 15 to 18 – International Sportsmens’ Expo, Sandy Convention Center, Salt Lake City UT
March 29 to April 1 – Great Alaskan Sportsman’s Show, Anchorage AK

NEW WORLD RECORD BLUE MARLIN ON A SPEARGUN!

Check this out! Just click: http://video.msn.com/v/us/msnbc.htm?g=725799E7-A6A9-481A-BFA8-41775E00826D&f=00&fg=email Pretty incredible. Remember, this is the world of freediving…no tanks allowed!

That’s my story!

Have a Great Week!

Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International

Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

WINDS WHIP ANGLERS AND MAKE FISHING TOUGH

La Paz – Las Arenas Fishing Report for December 10, 2006

Photo 1: Steve Clarence from Menlo Park was hadn’t done much fishing and this was also his first trip to La Paz, but here he holds bragging rights for a slugger of a nice bull dorado north of La Paz. Mahi like this are still biting in between some really strong northern winds all week

THE FISHING REPORT

This is kind of tough to write…mainly because this was perhaps our roughest week of fishing in a long long time. We knew it had to happen sometime and well…the northern winds didn’t just blow a day or two! They blew most of the week and most anglers opted to try to wait it out. It even rained one day also.

The problem is that these winds come from the north. For our boats heading out of La Paz, that means heading directly north and getting either wet or getting their kidneys and teeth rattled. If you wanted to fish the Las Arenas area, yes, it was possible to fish Muertos Bay. However, the problem was that the sardines we use for bait were all NORTH at Cerralvo Island. There’s that word again…”North!” So, again you’d have to go crashing north to get bait and that’s no fun either.

That being said, we did get some boats out and they didn’t do too badly. In fact, sierra were on fire. Some of these were chunky speedsters and it was almost impossible not to get a limit or two of these fish. Using either bait or wired smaller Rapalas or hoochies were dynamite on these fish that are known for their slashing attacks and sharp teeth. Think of a baby wahoo and that’s what a sierra looks like (see the photo below). On top of that, these are just incredible for the table either as ceviche or cooked up in any number of ways.

Aside from the sierra, there’s still dorado around the island. Hard to realy judge when not that many boats are there, but the mahi are still biting. Again, however, you’d have to head north and waiting for a break in the wind or weather was really the key. Once you got to the grounds, you were in good shape.

Overall, definitely cooler this week with most of the time being cool, cloudy and/or windy too. Air temps were in the 70’s but water temps were still rather warm although you can sure tell things are cooling down! Folks were saying this was the first time all year they had seen me in long pants!

Photo 2: Steve Marabella or Wilmington holds up a sierra (kind of like a “mini wahoo”) which is what we caught alot of this week. These fish can arrive in schools and it’s not uncommon to hook several dozen which can be great fun on light tackle. Some of the larger fish will go 10 pounds. Don’t let the official name “sierra mackerel” throw you off. Unlike their cousins, these sierra make great eating!

GOT SOME DISPOSABLE INCOME?

If you have some extra green stuff in your pocket during the holidays or a fat checkbook, Cerralvo Island is officially for sale. Yes, you can be the emperor of all you see..as well as several herds of wild goats and a bunch of pelicans!

AIRLINE FARES

Amigos, I don’t know if you’ve started looking at airfares for 2007, but if you follow my fish reports you know that Alaska is now flying into La Paz and, beginning this week, so does Delta. Aero Mexico is already flying in as of this year. There’s also some rumors that Frontier, Jet Blu, Avolar and Interjet will also have flights this year. I was hoping that the increased competition would help lower the ticket rates from the rip-off prices they were charging in 2006.

Well, we started to scan a few things and wow…Delta (which will be going under the name of Atlantic Eastern or something like that) has some super low prices. In some cases they were over 100 bucks cheaper than Alaska and more in the 300-400 dollar range than the robbery prices Aero Mexico and some of the other carriers were charging. Keep an eye out. This is good news!

WHALE WATCHING!

If you’ve ever wanted an experience of a lifetime, don’t forget that we start whale watching out of Magdalena Bay about the end of January until March. Get up close and personal with the whales in shallow calm water! Ask us about it. We’re now taking reservations!

That’s my story!

Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International

Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745

Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

DORADO STILL BITE DESPITE LATE WEEK WINDS

La Paz / Las Arenas Fishing Report for Dec. 3, 2006

Photo 1: Sid, Brad and Mike Sicoff from Calabasas CA finally made it down to La Paz after being deterred earlier in the season when Aero California was suspended. Better late than never, they slammed some of the great late season dorado!

FISHING REPORT

Maybe things are starting to turn. It finally seems like fall is in the air as temps drop a little bit on the water as well as in the air and we had some windy weather late in the week. However, it sure seems like the dorado don’t know it’s Christmas yet!

La Paz Fishing

It was definitely a bit more brisk this week than before. In fact we had two days when it was basically a bit too snotty and uncomfortable to be out fishing. However, earlier in the week, that nice dorado bite we had through the Thanksgiving holidays continued on. What can I say? How can you argue with big 3o pound dorado in the chum line or getting double bendo on a 50 pound bull dorado coming out of the water and charging the panga? That’s a kick no matter how you look at it and that’s what we’ve had going. Add to that the island and cove fishing for pargo, sierra, snapper and cabrilla and you get the best of all worlds. Heck, if the tuna joined in, we wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves. However, hold on…late week, I got some whispers that there were some tuna at El Bajo and we’ll keep you posted on that one!

Photo 2 : Mike Sicoff hefts a toady beast of a dorado after a solid day of action with fishing more reminiscent of summer-time bites!

Las Arenas Fishing:

I feel badly for our captains at Las Arenas. Man….it’s been a rough year. Not only did we lose so many clients when the airlines took a dump, but because the fishing has just been so much better out of La Paz the latter part of the year, everyone has been fishing La Paz more than Las Arenas. This week we had to cancel trips for Las Arenas simply becuase it was too darned windy to go out. However, on the days we did send boats, there were dorado as well as pargo, sierra and even a full yellowfin tuna near the island as well as outside Punta Perrico. Hopefully, waters will calm a bit and we’ll be back out. There’s great variety there right now.

2007 Show Fishing Show Schedule Announced for Tailhunter International

Amigos, we’ve finally set our schedule for our 2007 season of fishing shows and we’d love to have you come by our booth to say howdy! Here you go:

January 11 to 14 – International Sportsmen’s Expo San Mateo Expo Center, San Mateo CA

January 18 to 21 – International Sportmens’ Expo California State Fairgrounds, Sacramento CA

January 25 to 28 – International Sportsmen Expo Denver Convention Center, Denver CO

Feb. 7 to 11 – Pacific Northwest Sportsmens Show, Portland Expo Center, Portland OR

March 1 to 5 – Fred Hall Fishing & Boating Show, Long Beach Convention Center, Long Beach CA

March 15 to 18 – International Sportsmens’ Expo, Sandy Convention Center, Salt Lake City UT

March 29 to April 1 – Great Alaskan Sportsman’s Show, Anchorage AK

Hope to see you there!

That’s my story!

Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International

Website: http://www.tailhunter-international.com/

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745

Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »

FISH DON’T KNOW IT’S WINTER AND CONTINUE TO BITE!

La Paz / Las Arenas Fishing Report for November 26, 2o06

Photo 1: Al Burriesci from Auburn CA is getting his tan and his dorado as he hoists this good-looking bull dorado. He hooked it and others north of La Paz from that hot spot at the SE corner of Espiritu Santo Island

THE FISH REPORT

It’s sounding like a busted record, but dorado keep biting even though we’re into the holiday season. It’s surprising even old veterans but no one is complaining as rods get bent so late in the season!

La Paz Fishing

It’s been the most consistent fishing I think I’ve ever seen. Since August, the La Paz dorado bite has been off the charts. Who would have thought that this deep into November we would still be hooking dorado and these aren’t punk fish either! This past week we’re taking trophy-class bull that are pushing the 30-60 pound marks. Not all fish are that size, but bottom line is that there’s some great quality still out there not to mention just alot of fun. Hard to believe, we still have marlin in the area too! Just incredible…(see the story below)…

This is from long time amigo Walt Korbler who has been coming for 8 seasons:

“As far as the trip was concerned, all went well, except that I was not able to fish Las Arenas due to the winds. La Paz was great anyways with all the big dodos, I caught and released 8 on my first day, and 4 on my second. Jack even gave his “amazing new superpanga” on my second day with captain Miguel. Miguel is a great fisherman, we even hooked a blue marlin and had it on for a while, but it came unbuttoned, since the knot broke.(thank God I did not tye it). Anyways all in all a great trip!”

This is from our another good amigo, Sid Sicoff:

” Thursday we hit the jackpot with (Captain) Martin, he is the best!
We caught 8 dorado bulls. Something for the first day of fishing. I must say that I have been coming to La Paz for over 15 years and now I really am a happy camper with you and your staff. The bonding experience that I am having with my son Brad and my son-in-law Mike is something most fathers only pray for. We expect to return very soon to experience this one time in a life experience.”

Las Arenas Fishing

Well…when the winds are down fishing is surprisingly good! But, that’s the problem. Conditions have been inconsistent but still, considering all things, there’s quite a bit of variety for our anglers who soak some boat at Las Arenas. Take a look at the photos below!

In addition to occasional late-season tuna, there’s still some roosterfish around (almost unheard of!), sierra, cabrilla, snapper and pargo. We even had a few striped marlin hookups that didn’t stick but what a great surprise for the anglers who were just soaking some sardines to have 100 pound billfish suddenly come up and grab the baits. Nothing like going from a lazy morning of fishing to all hell breaking loose in nano seconds! Either way…Great fun on light tackle and a great way to stick some different fillets in the cooler without having to go chugging too far offshore. Still a pretty place to be and one of the nice things is that even when the winds blow you can still hide a bit in the coves and the lee side of the island and still get some fish.

Photo 2: Dennis Deaver and Ron Nass from Northern CA show off a great day of fishing at Las Arenas. This is about as good as it gets for variety. What a smorgasbord. In front of the ice chest are some yellowfin tuna. On the ice chest, the reddish fish to the left are pargo (pargo lisa). The darker brown fish are seabass (cabrilla). Towards the back is a yellow snapper and towards the front is a red snapper and they add a small dorado to the mix as well.
Photo 3: Larry Manis from Los Angeles made his first trip to La Paz and is holding a dorado headed for a stack of tortillas.

Something Extra:

I don’t know if you’re a fan of TV fishing shows but I’ve worked on them and been on them and for that 1/2 hour or hour of fishing footage, there’s tons of footage taken over days or even weeks most folks never get to see. Here’s some funny outtakes from Bill Dance the champion bassmaster: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=3432265409994388404

Have a great week, everyone!

That’s my story!

Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s

Tailhunter International

Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745

Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 ESCAPES ANOTHER HURRICANE SCARE AND FISH KEEP BITING!

La Paz-Las Arenas Fishing Report for Nov. 19, 2006

Photo 1: Steve Marabella from Wilmington CA is a happy fella. Although this fish blew apart his favorite Penn 500 reel, he got the last laugh and landed the big dorado which went home in his ice chest along with alot of other fillets.

Once again, in late season surprise, we got a hurricane scare as “Sergio” started brewing to the south. No one can even remember having storms so late in the season let alone so many hurricane warnings in a single year. However, like so many, nothing much materiliazed and the fish continued to bite!

LA PAZ FISHING

Hard to complain too much! Despite it being so late in the season…despite the fact that some days are seasonably windy…despiote the fact that we should only be fishing inshore for rock fish…the DORADO are still biting!

Sure, we’re getting typical fish like snapper and some of those great sierra, but it’s pretty unusual that we get this kind of dorado fishing in November. Heck it’s almost Thanksgiving! Dorado are warm-water-blue-water fish! However, around Espiritu Santo Island the honey holes keep kicking out the fish. These aren’t small fish either. Check out the photos! These are still the slugger-style fish that has made this perhaps the most increcible dorado season in memory. Will it last? Who knows? We’re enjoying it while we can.

Photo 2 : One of the prettiest flyfishing shots I have seen in a long time. This is Bill Mitchell from the Carmel CA area. Bill had problems all season coming to see us. First it was Aero California screwing things up. Then Hotel Los Arcos went on strike over the summer. Well, he finally made it down and the fish gods were good to him as you can see by one of the nice dorado he nailed. (See story below for more details)

LAS ARENAS FISHING

Earlier in the week, strong seasonal winds pushed our pangas all over the ocean and the tuna outside, but as the week went on, the weather conditions improved and so did the fishing. In addition to the nice football yellowfin tuna, sierra, dorado and a few billfish were also hooked. Pargo and snapper fishing also kept anglers in fillets.

FIRST PERSON REPORT

Louis Guillen was just down with us and fished two days…one day at Las Arenas and one day at La Paz. He was nice enough to write up his trip for us…(also see photo below)

“I had a great trip to La Paz!.

Tuesday, I fished La Paz with Capitan Miguel, and it was a wide open bite for Sierra trolling goma squid in the morning. We targeted Dorado by Espiritu De Santo, but no luck. Though the trigger fish were happy. Bottom of the ninth, and a few fish in the box. Miguel went to his secret honey hole and we boated some forearm size Pargo.

Wednesday, I drove up to Las Arenas with Carlos. It was a GREAT trip. Victor was my Capitan and he got me into fish. “Jefe Capitan” or “Patron” (???) He baited my hook with a sardenas and threw it in. I hooked up instantly and my reel spun and sprayed water in my face. Victor laughed and said, “Bonito …mucho Bonito” We moved to a second spot and we saw a boil behind us. The current was moving down stream from our Panga, so I knew I would get bit soon. I adjusted my drag and and watched my line. BAMMMM!!!

Yellow Fin Tuna … That one broke off after a long fight, but Victor kept another one on the string for me. He gave me the bent rod and we were able to boat that one. BAMMM!! another one on the hook…this Tuna fight went on for a while, and it drew other Pangas to us. It seemed like Victor and I we were the only ones hooking up. We would later discovered at the beach that my suspicions were true. While other Pangas got 1, 2, or none, we boated 12 Tunas and about 4 or more broke off. It was an early morning bite. I told Victor in Spanglish, “Mis Brah-sos es hurting!” …he replied, “No problem,” and laughed.

There was a bunch of needle fish and I swear they were trying to aim for our Panga. One dove into the water just before it was about to go through, or over our Panga. Victor turned his back as if to say, “tear up my ass and not my nuts.” They were like surface to air missles out of the water. I think they wanted Victor and I to go away and leave their cousins alone (Tuna). “

Cheers! Louis.

Photo 3: Louis Guillen (right) with Captain Victor on the beach at Ensenada de Muertos (Las Arenas) with his great day of fishing yellowfin tuna.

FIRST PERSON REPORT

“Jonathan,
Excellent trip. We had a 6 YFT and 2 Rooster day at Las Arenas. And out of La Paz we had a 7 Dorado day and an 8 Dorado day….BIG fish, bulls pushing 50 LBS.
And several Triggerfish, Bonita, etc. Las Arenas was all flyrod, but La Paz was all conventional gear….It’s tough to use the flyrod out of those super pangas on the La Paz side. As you know, once we get into a bunch of Dorado, rods are thumping, reels are screaming, bait is flying, etc, and the only place to cast is from a precariously balanced point on the bow, where the fish AREN’T….But it was lots of fun. I’ll try to email you some pics.
Thanks for all your conscientious help….We’ll definitely do it again.
Bill
PS That (Captain) Raoul is awesome.”

That’s my story! Happy Thanksgiving everyone…Be safe!

Jonathan

Jonathan Roldan’s Tailhunter International

Website: www.tailhunter-international.com

Phone: (626) 333-3355

FAX: (626) 333-0115

E-Mail: Riplipboy@aol.com

U.S. Office: 3319 White Cloud Dr., Suite A, Hacienda Hts. CA 91745

Mexico Office: Carr. a Pichilingue KM 5, Numero 205, La Paz, Baja Cal Sur, Mexico

“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 »