puerto vallarta - the full report!!!!!!

puerto vallarta with osuna brothers, 3/20 to 3/22/2017

just got back from puerto vallarta last night. fished for three days on the marla IV with the osuna brothers.
a yellowfin tuna lit up my rod on the second day. it taped out at 165 pounds. the rod is a centaur from united composites that was custom wrapped by jon vadney, the reel is an okuma makaira 16 with 100 pound braid and an 80 pound pro challenger fluorocarbon topshot from alan chui. i just now checked the drag now that i'm home and it was set to 35 pounds at strike and 45 pounds at full. total elapsed time is 9 minutes from hook up to gaff! full report to follow.

Awesome as always. Thanks for sharing Alan!

Awesome looking H2O.
I wanted to see him hoist a #165 over the rail. 
Great job!

Hell yeah. Can't wait to put my Mak15 to the test against some....uhhh....just a little bit smaller tuna.

here's a walk around tour of the boat.  i should have done this as soon as i arrived, not on the morning of the last day when i was all beat up and making all of those "old man" noises. 

Great vid,can't wait for full report.  Might try and drag my son on a trip wth the bros soon.

the best bet is the $122 companion fare that you get with an alaska airlines visa credit card.  my fare was $350.  for another $122, i could have brought another person, so two would be flying for $472. 

Thanx but already got it.  We use the hell out of it.  Actually, the wife and I each have one.  That way we get to use companion passes for both of our kids.  Met a guy on a flight, he said he had 20 credit cards.  That's a lot of passes.

puerto vallarta has been nothing short of incredible.  this was my third trip with the osuna brothers in last 15 months.  as you can imagine, i have been very happy with the operation.  the advantage of this kind of trip compared to san diego long range is that it gives you a crack at yellowfin tuna in a 100 to 300 pound class, for the least amount of money and in the least amount of time.  for a grand total of $3k and 5 days away, you can fish for a solid three days and often come home with as much fish as you can carry.  and you don't even need your own gear.  so if a shot at a cow tuna is on your bucket list, pull $3k out of your kid's college fund (hey, he's going to become a tattoo artist, anyway), take 3 days of vacation plus the weekend (your boss is an idiot), convince your buddies to do the same (maybe they've got the same boss), and start booking your trip.

first, send an email to danny osuna and get your dates.  you can pick a two day trip or three.  i prefer three days.  the boat will carry four guys.  if it's just two of you, they might be able to fill the other two slots, but it's better to have a set group of four.  and tell danny that when you fly down, you will meet him at the "OXXO" at the airport.  he will know what you are talking about. 

next, you get an alaska airlines visa card.   when you get this card, you accumulate miles for flights (you're going to want to go back!) and you get a companion fare for $122.  my flight was $350 and i went alone, but i could have brought another ticket for $122, so our flights would have been $236 each.  don't worry about the airline going broke.  they will make up for it with the extra luggage charges.  more on that later. 

now you need to plan what you are going to pack.  first is the passport.  next, clothes and a shaving kit.  pack the grungiest clothes you own and throw your toiletries into a ziplock.  at the end of the trip, you can leave these items on the boat and the osunas will distribute these items to the pangeros, the local fishermen. 

for luggage, you first need to decide how much fish you want to bring back.  let's say you want to bring back 150 pounds of filet.  go to amazon.com and buy three of the "50 can insulated tote bags."  get the type that you can fold down flat!!!!!  they cost $20 each at amazon, or $28 at target, and they will hold 50 pounds of frozen filet and keep it frozen during the entire flight home.  for the flight down to mexico, fold up two bags and stuff them into the third, along with your clothes, shaving kit and vacuum sealer bags.  now you have your single piece of checked luggage. 

oh, yeah, you will be vacuum packing your catch.  order up some 3.5ml 8x12 inch sta-fresh vacuum sealer bags.  a pack of 200 of the 8x12 bags will cost you $40 on amazon.  you  can load 1 to 2 pound chunks of filet in each bag.  these are simply not available in mexico, so i order a pack of 200 bags per person and leave the rest for the boat.  we also brought down a nice vacuum packer on each of the last three trips but it's likely you will not need to. 

last item, figure out how to get the international plan on your cell phone.  you may not need to make a call, but the ability to get data without a wifi connection can save your ass!  what you might need is a map!  actually, before you even leave home, go to google maps and zoom in on puerto vallarta and Marina Riviera Nayarit at La Cruz, Marina Cruz de Huanacaxtle.  if you do that, your cell phone will remember the details of the map and you can use that to get there if you have to take a taxi.  you should also save Oso's Oyster Bar, because you might be having dinner there the first day! 

ok, so the big day is here.  your cell phone will work for mexico.  you have your tote bag with two additional tote bags crammed inside, your passport, clothes, shaving kit, vacuum bags and anything else you want (a hat, sun glasses, cameras, and lots of sun screen).  personal electronics can go carry on.  notice that there was no mention of fishing gear.  if you want to bring a rod tube and a bag of reels, these two items will travel as an extra piece of checked luggage and will cost you $25.  i pack rods and reels.  you do not need to.  you check the tote bags and board the plane with a small carry on with a ball point pen.   got everything?  ok, let's go!


march 19th, 2017



even after all these years, i've never gotten over the novelty of flying!







once you cross into mexico, you will lose your in flight Gogo internet connection.  take advantage of the down time to fill out the mexican customs form.
that's why you needed that pen.  flying down, you can see the mainland from the port side of the plane. 







and welcome to puerto vallarta!



exit the plane and walk down the ramp with your carry on, passport and customs form in hand.



you're going to approach this customs line.  put the camera away.  let's not irritate the federales!





ok, customs was no problem, now get your bags and get in line for luggage inspection! they are going to ask you if you have more then $500 worth of gear in the tote bags.  say no, tell them maybe $200 worth of fishing junk. just smile and keep repeating, "voy a pescar," or "i'm going fishing!"   if you pass the questions and answer session, there is a button to hit to light up a screen.  if the screen lights up green, you walk through.  if the screen lights up red, they go through your bags.  they know the cost of bulk line and fishing tackle and will tax you accordingly.  keep repeating, "voy a pescar," or "i'm going fishing!"





ok, you sailed through customs and luggage inspection.  now there is only one way to the outside of the building.  follow the crowds until you see sunlight. 



once you get outside of the building, you are looking for the "OXXO" convenience store.  they are all over puerto vallarta, but this one is tucked in between the main airport building and the parking lot.  it's a 50 yard walk.



park your gear and wait.  this is where you will be picked up.  yup, you see a rod tube and reel back that went as one piece of checked luggage, and a 100 quart ice chest that i had to pay $78 for because it was oversized.  the last two years, they did not charge me. 



now, because of a screw up on my part, i missed scotty osuna.  i ended up taking a taxi to the marina for $80, and scotty sat at the airport for 3 hours waiting for me.  my wife set up the international plan for my cell phone ahead of time, so i had access to a map.  once my taxi driver got me to the main entrance of the marina, i was able to look at a map of the area and figure out where the boat was. i should have told her thanks, but if i do, she'll get mad at me for getting lost in mexico!  i think i'll just keep my mouth shut!



scotty made it back and we got everything organized. 



the boat is a 36 foot blackfin.  it's not a big boat like the others that run out of puerto vallarta, but there will only be three fisherman and a crew of four for this trip. 



they've spent alot of money on gear in the last year.  all new makaira 15's, 20's and 50's!



we load up with bait and hit the road!





scotty osuna will be our skipper for this trip, his younger brother roberto is our chef, the deckhand is ernaro and our juvenile delinquent is scotty, jr., who just got kicked out of school for ditching classes. 



i get to share the rail with "painless paul," an anesthesiologist from oregon, and his son patrick.






march 20th, 2017

we got to the southern most of the tres marias islands and we're fishing.  doc was up first, so i took advantage of that and slept in a little.  the crew caught some live squid while it was still dark, and when we arrived, put one on a hook and sent it down 120 feet.  5 minutes later, the rod lit up and paul was on!  it was a 45 minute fight.  fast forward 30 minutes into the video and watch the last 10 minutes when he's on the bow.  it was pretty funny!



it taped out at 145 pounds.  nice fish.  well done, doc!!!!



now the real work starts!  we took the bags and folded them back so that ends of the bag would not get wet when we dumped the fillets in. 



roberto cut out the loins and i removed the blood line, then the guys vacuumed packed the fillets and tossed them into the freezer. 







and that was it for tuna for the rest of the day.  we had one "hit and run" on the balloon, but nothing more.



roberto made us rib eye steaks for dinner!





that evening we made bait.  we were targeting large squid, but kept five bait rigs out anyway.  we were rewarded with one really lost pargo. we were miles offshore and in thousands of feet of water!  he's going on the menu for tomorrow night's dinner!




march 21st, 2917

patrick was next up, so again i took advantage and slept in a little.  i heard the commotion outside at about 8am and figured it was time to crawl out of my bunk.  sure enough, patrick was hooked up! 



his fish taped out at 175 pounds!



here's the first 45 minutes of his fight, with some of mine mixed in. 



or better yet, here is the last 10 minutes of patrick's fight. 



so half way into patrick's fight, my 80 pound rig lights up.  here's the video!  the bow pulpit was a little slippery with flip flops on and i almost slipped twice.  when fighting a fish like this, i just push the lever forward until i get the drag i need.  i checked the drag when i got home and it was somehow set to 35 pounds at strike, not 25, so when i was fighting the fish, i was probably using 40 pounds of drag.  it's no wonder he came in so fast!



my fish taped out at 165 and patrick's taped out at 175.  with one fish around, we get to call this a successful trip.  anything else is gravy!



we broke for breakfast, then cut up the two fish. 



the rest of the morning was slow, as was the rest of the afternoon.  roberto made us burgers for lunch.



here's some of that pargo i promised you for dinner!  it was great!!!!



well, unfortunately, that would be it for the yellowfin.  still, a good day!








march 22nd, 2017

this is probably as good a time as any to give you a tour of the boat.  i woke up at 7am and everyone was up already!  feeling a little sore but the advil will help!  remember when you take a shower, make sure the fresh water pump is on or you will quickly run of of water pressure!



doc had a fish on for a few minutes, but the hook pulled!



roberto made us chorizo, eggs and pancakes for breakfast!





we had sushi for lunch!





and we had baby back ribs for dinner!



time to go home!  the ride downhill was the nicest i've ever had!




march 23rd, 2017

we got back to the dock at 6am, woke up for a bit, then got another hour's worth of sleep.  doc and i had breakfast at the little stand at the top of the ramp. 





danny was there working on his boat, so i grabbed everyone for a photo. 



scotty gave me a ride back to the airport.  since i only had 100 pounds of filet, i loaded up my ice chest and left my insulated back with danny for my next trip.  the reel bag and rod tube traveled as my piece of free checked luggage, and the ice chest was dinged for $78 for being overweight.  going through US customs back at san francisco, i had to declare the fish, but they all saw the rods and i cruised right through.  my wife picked me up right on time, we drove home, even dropped of some fish with friends first, and arrived home by 9pm.  thanks to paul and patrick dennis for letting me share the rail with them, and thanks to the osuna brothers with marlas sportfishing for a great trip!

Congrats on the nice cow   Thanks for taking us with you on another great fishing trip!  Really appreciated your wonderful report, pictures, and videos!!!

Looking forward to reading it all when I get home from work.

Wowwww 

Impressive as always Alan.  Thanks for the step by step, I gotta do this trip someday!   

amazing trip and story telling as always...can't wait to check out all the videos. Definitely something I want to do...

That was an awesome read! I'm so jealous Alan!