Charles and I started our day at 4:30 a.m. leaving La Paz and driving to Punta Arena where we were going to fish for sailfish with a friend and a great guide Enrique.
The sailfish is one the most beautiful creatures of the sea, and, for me, it’s the beauty of the blue water. This fish leaps and jumps when hooked thus making it a true show fish in all respects. Being the fastest fish in the ocean its runs are awesome. The life span is about 5 years. The average weight is around 125 lbs, however the world record is 221lbs. Fishing for them is almost the same as for all billfish. What I do is troll (why do I always troll?—sometimes the fish will find you first and give you a big surprise by hitting the lures when you least expect it), looking for birds or just looking for them on the surface of the water sunning. Sometimes you can even see them chasing bait fish. When you find them you cast a live bait to them; this never fails; remember to use a 9/0 eagle claw circle hook (I like the 2004), throw a lure or, even better yet, a fly.
Punta Arena is about 45 minutes from town, but in the dark it’s an hour and half because of the cows on the road, which is a big problem in Mexico. When we arrived the boat was waiting and out we went. First we needed some bait so we caught small green jacks, and, after about 20 minutes, we had enough.
We set up our rods with skirted lures and started to troll when a big sailfish came up behind the lures though it wouldn’t take them, so my son immediately cast a green jack to it, and in a few seconds he had a hook up. The animal went crazy, doing all the tricks in the book, shaking, jumping and leaping. It was a spectacular fight. At one point the giant sail was hitting the boat with its bill. When it calmed down, Enrique grabbed the bill and released the jewel to go back home. It was one of the biggest sailfish I had seen and the biggest that my son had ever caught. Before the day was over we had caught two more sails and one marlin—it truly was a great day for my son and me.
Watch our shows on WFN or on the Internet at www.asobonline.com if you need info on fishing in Mexico write us at thegriz@asobonline.com we’ll be happy to help.
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