Polepole La Paz update

Yellowfin were our devilfish.  Never did get one and we traveled far to try to find them  Over to the north tip of Isla Cerralvo and down to its southern tip, out to the "Ocho Ocho" banks and back, up the inside channel, back over to the Isla Espiritu Santo.  Since we troll whenever we're running, we ended up fishing as much off the big boat as the kayaks, although typically got a morning and an evening session in on the yaks.  Plenty of dorado, mostly in the 10 pound range.  And 4 wahoo up to 36 pounds taken off the big boat.  Lots of pesky skipjack and needlefish.  And an endless variety of reef fish ... trigger, ladyfish, croakers, trumpets, puffers and more.

The mystery fish was a heartbreaker.   I'm pretty sure it was a LARGE yellowfin.  After getting the rod handed to me after 3+ hours, it was still plenty strong.  The fish was hooked on a new 3 piece Okuma Nomad Travel (663MH rated 30-60) rod I was using as a 40 pound rig.  Never again!     A series of gear failures SUCKED!!!  The rod broke, but maybe it's because the reel (Progear 454 yellowtail special) seized up.  It was a bit sticky afterwards.  I'll have to break it down to see if anything went wacky.  But come on, I wasn't pulling that hard.  It shouldn't have broken.  When we were tying off to the other rod, I was hand lining the fish and it went under the boat.  In hindsight I think it rubbed the line under the boat because the line was rough where it broke off.  Anyways, I keep running the scenario through my head and I'm just not sure what we would have done differently.  We were completely outgunned by a large fish.  And ... it took my lucky Yozuri diver that has caught a ton of fish out of La Paz.

At LAX right now on my way back home.  More pictures to come when I can.  I'm sure the others will chime in.

Sorry for no more updates scallen.  My phone completely died.  Yet another piece of gear failure.   

We'll likely do an April yellowtail trip and an October yellowfin (err ... dorado!) trip again next year.  Stay tuned ...

-Allen

Allen, maybe a couple honker rigs for PB trolling, like a 50, haha!!

Can't wait to hear more details and see pix!!  Nice to get home to mama and baby though eh?

Allen

Allen, maybe a couple honker rigs for PB trolling, like a 50, haha!!

Can't wait to hear more details and see pix!!  Nice to get home to mama and baby though eh?

Allen

We HAD a couple of 50's out and this pig decides to take the 40.  Go figure!

-Allen

oh yeah of course......looking forward to hearing more and pix once you gys re rested up a bit.

Allen

Trip started out on bad gear...get on the plane in San Jose and we have to get off... as soon as we get indoors the lights go out in our section of the airport... man is that someone telling me I can't go fishing??? They tell us they will hold the plane @ LAX... sounds good... NOT... So we fly into Cabo San Lucas instead of LaPaz with a 3+ hour bus ride... ok life is good sucking down suds on a bus headed to the Mothership... we had it good compared to Wally aka Fishfromtupperware? flying in from FL, who is non stop laughs and made some lemonaide out of his lemons...  So wally is in transit and we head out... we get to where were going for the first night and get the yaks wet... I was trolling around sardines and getting slamed but couldn't get a hookup... most likely needlefish...pesky and fierce in battle...had a large krockadile that got slammed while casting near shore...looked freaking HUGE when it rolled on top of the water "possible rooster"...but shook the hook...so lots of hits but nada on first day...take that back caught a pargo...my first on a small castmaster @ dock waiting to get going that morning...  first light of true first day were up at 4am and OTW by 5ish still dark but we couldn't wait...Allen dosn't have a head lamp, but fishing anyways, now I'm trolling 2 poles with bait...I'd hookup on one pole and get slammed on the other, nothing of size but every fish was a new one for me...trigger, pargo, needle...finally start landing fish...small and numerous...

should of took notes...it is all a blur about now of many, many fishing hours... Wally finally makes it out to where we are from a ponga his "taxi"  they make bait on the way and were off time to really "Get Some" trolling was the means to our way!!!  We get to our first great looking islan and get our "Yak on" and so begins a week of constant hookups... I start off trolling live bait and a broken back rapala...get slammed by a Darodo instantly, macks my bait and I reel up rebait and toss it back and BAMB my first Darodo Game on...I've got it on film and will post it latter, not big but my first and my heart was pumping, pulling me in circles jumping and jamming around, I would reel and than film, reel then film so when u see the vid u will know what I mean...finally get it tired out and realize I don't have a gaff but I have a lip gripper and finally get it onboard...WOOOOOHOOOO!!!  what a feeling!!! there was another that was following and if someone would of stuck around they would of had it... when we got dropped off we were told to head north there was a wicked current going off right there...when I finally get everything squared away I'm way away from everyone else so I start paddling for everything I have to get back to the group...wally got hooked up with a Mondo SkipJack!!! will let him tell his story...  Now we make another move... and it blurs from there...  Great Fishing-Great Friends-Great Food-Great Brews-Great weather!!! Viz to 90'  a heaven for fishing and fish!!!  So if you like the Idea of some serious fishing, with someone that knows how to "Get Some" you need to PM "PolePole" and "get some" of that next run!!! It was AWESOME!!!  on the last day trolling along I hear myself say "oh just another Darodo"  yeah right...got a bit spoiled on that kind of bite...nothing really big...but got one bout 19 pds for the trip and the Wahoo Day was incredible...double Wahoo hookup got a 36+ Wahoo, paul got a 33+     my 36 pounder was jack pot fish...but paul was 150 ft from winning on the mystery yellow... we had a $20 biggest fish of the trip bet going on...would gladly of paid to eat some of that tuna   BUT it's those moments that stay in our mind!!!!!!!

Hats off to Allen for making a rough start smooth, and for putting together the most awesome fishing trip I've ever had... from cooking up some killer meals to asking "what do you need?" always looking out for us...

My thought on the nxt time is maybe a little earlier for the tuna...that was my goal, didn't get it but had so much fun trying to...Thanks Paul for all your "dry humor" and your constant wit... and I will put the vid up of your BATTLE when I can figure it out...  It had to be 200+  glad it was your arms and not mine  looked like a job to me... sure wish you would of got that fish to the boat...wasabe and soy...ummmm sashimi...ummmmmmm  that one fish would of filled our coolers cleaned!!!  Next time!!! bro...  YOU WILL "GET SOME"

WOOHOO Mike!!!!

Super f*ing stoked for you bro and can't wait to see the pics and vids!!!!

Sounds like the trip of a lifetime!!!!!!
 
Sincerely,

Jim

just a little bit...

WAAAHOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
WTFG bro!!
 
Sincerely,
Jim

the double...

sitting here watching your team put the "WhoDat" on um and the giants game and post....WOHOOO!!!  Dude wished you could of been there the divin was off the hook...u would of been in heaven!!! Talked to some guys from England that saw us out fishing couple of times... talked to them on the plane back to LAX...were free diving 90 FOW for 30-40 pd groupers....guy showed me a vid...unbelivable the level they were diving at...they did a 2 week ponga dive trip... were talking bout yakkers in England...

sitting here watching your team put the "WhoDat" on um and the giants game and post....WOHOOO!!!  Dude wished you could of been there the divin was off the hook...u would of been in heaven!!! Talked to some guys from England that saw us out fishing couple of times... talked to them on the plane back to LAX...were free diving 90 FOW for 30-40 pd groupers....guy showed me a vid...unbelivable the level they were diving at...they did a 2 week ponga dive trip... were talking bout yakkers in England...

I hear ya bro!!! One day!!!

Saints win, Giants win, belly full of LingCod and good red wine...best Halloween EVER!!
 
 
Sincerely,
Jim

Wow, amazing trip there guys. Sure would like to try that one time. Great report, stoked for you all.

I just got back from Rancho Buena Vista yesterday too. Had two slow days of "lure dragging." We only got one marlin the first day about 60 pounds then on the second we got two small dorado. On the third day we tries for wahoo in the morning and got an immediate hookup off Punta Pescadero but with no wire leader he got off. Then right after another drive by before we jumped a small school of football tuna who were quite uncoopreative. We only got one small wahoo off of that stop. We then headed way off shore to try our luck and got another quick dive by then back to lure dragging for ten minutes.

Then we got a call that a huge school of tuna was only nine miles away and we gunned it over to them. We sopped the boat to get the gear ready and I saw four large tuna staring at the bow of the boat. They figured it was a boat and beat feet outta there. We started trollong with huge tuna all over us and I pop a 120 pound sailfish(?) I got him in quickly and we went back to trolling then BAM fish on! This one was a tuna and on 50WT gear my partner got it up in a hurry. One 75 pounder in the box. Then we tried throwing small pinner sardines at them to no avail. So we went over to a bouy and got bigger bait. We got into a school of perfect sized bonito and then went back to chasing the school.

I saw birds circling overhead about a mile out so we went right under them, tossed out a bonito and WHAM another tuna. I got the rod to start and I knew it was a big one and on 40 pound tacle it was going to be a fight. I haned it off to my partners wife who only got five minues on it before handing it back to me. I got 20 before I handed it toy partner who then gave it back to me after 10minutes. This went on for almost an hour before we got to color on it then he stayed down twenty feet for another 10 minutes. We finally got him to the gaff. A 100 pound tuna. Pictures to follow.

WTG did u do sashmi???  Nice haul... tuna/marlin/dorado... 

more pics... PolePole had the good ones...

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