Summer is definitely here amigos, the temperatures are up, the humidity is setting records and the seasonal rains ¨for better or worse¨ are back, kinda. Except for the rain coming back, the conditions are pretty much the same as last week. Pretty much we´re still seeing the same species in our world famous fishing grounds. The Bad news is no Yellowfin Tuna of any size to speak of as yet. Sure we have the Football YF Tuna in the 60 lb range roaming around El Banco north and Corbeteña. But short of Dorado and Yellowfin Tuna the fishing is great. Not perfect, but with Sailfish and Marlin to 700lbs you´re going to have to spend some time looking and do some work. And if you´re looking for the quick bite as the bait hits the water, well that´s not going to happen.
With Marlin and Sailfish ¨On Tap¨ combined with perfect blue water stuffed full of bait, it´s time to get serious. All around the west coast of Mexico from Cabo to points south of Manzanillo tournaments are springing up everywhere. Puerto Vallarta´s World Famous Fishing Grounds are turning a corner now as we enter the High Season for Fishing. It´s wide open at Corbeteña and El Banco to Punta Mita with the fishing grounds completely empty. No people or in other words ¨Deserted¨. You normally couldn´t pay for this luxury, and now you can have it all for the price of a decent boat and experienced Captain.
Being here in PV for as long as I have it´s funny how days in paradise can kinda meld together into seasons. The Season I see coming at us is very promising. Ten years ago, come July we had Yellowfin tuna footballs in early July. As we do NOW. Ten years ago as NOW we had perfect blue water at the deep water locations of El Banco and Corbeteña. Considered one of the top ten fishing locations in the world Puerto Vallarta is the place for fishing on the west coast of Mexico! Ten years ago we had super large Marlin move in overnight. Just like NOW. But ten years ago you couldn´t find space to drop a line around the rock or the High Spots. NOW, you can have the whole place almost to yourself. Imagine having one of the best places on the planet for fishing to yourself. It´s Mind Boggling and Priceless!
Well we´re looking at another week where the ¨lucky¨ one is the guy who showed up! With tourism down as the heat increases in Puerto Vallarta this is exactly when the serious Big Game fisherman wants to be here in our famous fishing grounds. It´s been wide open and those who do make it out on the water are catching trophy sized fish. Now picture yourself as the only boat in the area with species like this waiting for someone to show up. This is the exact situation here and now. Unusual, not so unusual from the last few years. With warm water conditions and plenty of bait these Trophy Billfish are closer in than you might expect, which of course means less fuel or as it actually equates to, less fuel buck for your ¨Fish Fix¨.
Being one of the top ten fishing locations Big Game Fishermen around the world begin to turn their attentions to the world class fishing grounds of Corbeteña, El Banco and the Tres Maria Islands. What they´re seeing is Marlin Populations increasing daily as larger fish follow. Sailfish are on-tap almost everywhere you are fishing, including the bay for the lucky. Bait fish like Bullet Bonito, Bullet Skip Jack Tuna, Flying fish, Goggle eyes and more make it a fast food factory for a finned fantasy. The cherry on the top is the fact our World Class Fishing Grounds are all but deserted. When was the last time you had conditions like this all to yourself? It´s all happening now in Puerto Vallarta’s Deep Sea Fishing grounds!
As we move into summer fishing with Puerto Vallarta’s Fishing ¨High Season¨ at hand we´re very interested in developing conditions. One thing that has happened this past week is an unusual increase in water temperatures. Now this can be of concern. Normal water temperatures for this area around June / July time frame is normally 83 degrees or so. This week we´ve seen spots around Corbeteña and El Banco at 88 to 90 degrees. Which for Marlin is no big deal, but for Yellowfin tuna, they don’t like these levels and will go to lower levels looking to have water temps cool their body temperatures down. Having said that, fishing is a notch improved since last week and we´re seeing more action at the deep water locations. It´s time to get on the water amigos, the fun on!
Summer fishing is shaping up nicely as we see Striped, Blue and Black Marlin numbers increase. Sailfish are more abundant in a big way. Bullet Bonito and Skip Jacks are all over the place being chased by these World Class Gamefish. Water temperatures are perfect for summer species. Dorado are trickling in slowly. We´re not seeing larger Yellowfin Tuna yet, it´s still early for them around Corbeteña or El Banco. The season is coming together, time to start making those summer fishing trip reservations and keep up with these Fishing Reports, Fishing High Season is starting now!
Every year I wait for the transition period between early May to early June to end as summer species like Marlin, Sailfish, Dorado and more start to filter back into the area. Right now we´re seeing Marlin of all species picking up in numbers do to abundant bait, perfect Blue Water conditions, and deserted fishing grounds. If you didn´t know Puerto Vallarta is one of the best fishing grounds for Marlin, Yellowfin Tuna and Sailfish in the world. That´s a big statement for sure, but it´s accurate. For the lucky few here in PV right now, you´ve got a wonderful opportunity to boat a world class gamefish. If you´re reading this online or in the states in a paper publication then sit back, I´ll do my best to get you off your butt and on a plane for Fish City, aka PV from now until the end of December you can get that Finned Fantasy you´ve dreamed about!
As the seasons change we always know there will be excitement. We had the first Hurricane of the season pass us by over 400 miles to the east, nothing to fret about, but as far as summer season goes, it marks the beginning of ¨High Season¨ for fishing. With plenty of bait, plenty of fish and perfect conditions, Puerto Vallarta’s World Famous Fishing Grounds are open for business.
May is may and we´re still dealing with the transition from winter to summer currents and that´s obvious with the swirling cold and warmer currents we´re experiencing now. While the days are longer and the sun is higher in the sky we´re not seeing any major changes from last week. Rooster fish have slowed down, the currents pushing bait out is the main culprit. Sardines are still in the area, but not like they have been which is of course a Rooster Fishes favorite fast food!
