When it comes to fishing in Puerto Vallarta, you can only Say: FISH ON!

 As we march deeper and deeper into the Summer Fishing season in Puerto Vallarta we continue to scratch our heads trying to make sense of this season so far. Now the fishing is wonderful, no other way to describe it. But we are not seeing some regular players in the mix this year, Mahi Mahi or Dorado as they´re more commonly known as around Puerto Vallarta. With small football Yellowfin Tuna from Yelapa to Cabo Corrientes and Sailfish at the other end of the bay, short day anglers are hitting the mother load! Deep, blue water locations are producing like years gone by. Marlin, Sailfish, Yellowfin Tuna, as long as you aren´t expecting Dorado, you´ll be a happy and tired person at the end of the day amigos!

 The last couple of seasons have been hard on the Sportfishing industry from Hawaii, to Florida to Mexico. The economy has kicked us all in shins or worse and like you would expect those heading out for a day on the water are in short supply. So far this year I can name four Sportfishing companies in Marina Vallarta that have gone under. Some have been here for many years and had a loyal clientele. Fuel prices are taking sharp jumps to the upside, insurance is not getting any cheaper, lower tourism makes finding deals harder by the day , and the negative crap they´re putting up on the news services are all taking their toll on Mexico’s tourism areas like Puerto Vallarta. That’s the bad news, the good news is the exchange rate for dollars is about as favorable as it will ever get. The hotels and air fares are very reasonable and the business people who own shops are doing what they can to keep prices to a minimum.

 Because people have a little less disposable income these days, we have been offering options when it comes to fishing. Buy options we’re looking for ways to keep prices down and service / quality high. One way we do this is by changing the game a little. I now have a single engine panga that has all the electronics, all the tackle, everything that is essential for a fun day on the water. Now a four hour trip on this boat, a Master Baiter’s® Boat is $195.00 dollars. Good for up to three people max, and it will go for up to eight hours for $295.00. This is the cheapest boat in Marina Vallarta that is insured and safe. With the way the fishing is at the moment, it means you can come in with a Billfish and not have to empty the vacation budget piggy bank!  So if you’re worried about the budget, this will fit and you won’t have to feel guilty!

 El Banco or The Bank in English has been smoking when it comes to Yellowfin Tuna.  Sitting on the high spots will get you action we haven’t seen since last year. Tuna in the 60 t o 150lb range are a daily occurrence for those who are out there. It´s not unusual to find you and maybe another boat out there with the whole area to yourselves. For this time of the year, this is very unusual and worth taking advantage of. Black Marlin have finally started to s show up, but the Marlin action is mostly Blue Marlin and Striped Marlin for now. Bait is not an issue, there is plenty so no worry there. We’ve also seem some Amberjacks (45 lb s) and Cubera Snappers (55 lbs) hanging around so anything is possible.

Corbeteña has finally s tar ted t o live up to its reputation! In my not so humble opinion I believe the Rock to be the most versatile location Puerto Vallarta has to offer up when it comes to fishing grounds. With a nice little finger below the water line, trolling lures across this small ridge can produce Wahoo unexpectedly and was doing just that last week. You know you had a lucky day when you boat a Wahoo on Monofilament line with a hook perfectly set in the corner of it´s mouth!  With teeth like a razor, anyone boating this coveted blue plate special must have been under his / her lucky stars! Blue and Striped Marlin as well as smaller Yellowfin Tuna have set up house. With Sardines in the area, bait is not an issue. Cubera Snappers are taking bait as well and you don´t even have to be bottom fishing, they´re coming up to your bait right now!  The water has been dirty on some days, but just a touch farther out will take care of that problem with plenty of blue water to be found.

My weekly cookie cutter report for the Marietta Islands still has me smiling. For an eight hour day, the Islands can´t be beat. Sailfish are there, still waiting for them to take baits though. Rooster fish are still attacking bait like a freight train, Sierra Mackerals are large, Snappers plentiful, Pompano in the 40 lb range, Bonito, and the list goes on. Just remember not to get too close to the reefs, they´re still protected if you’re out there. Mikes fishing party goes charges $170 dollars per person for an 8 hr trip. My single engine panga for three is less money and if the action slows down, you can go find the birds, Mikes will stay in the spot. Not a bad thing, but the panga is a better option. I have lot s of options, so if you´re interested, just ask and I’ll fill you in.

 As I mentioned earlier, the best bang for your fishing dollar this week was hands down inside the bay. We talked about the football Yellowfin in   Yelapa  to 40  lbs, but at the other end of the bay, just in front t of La Cruz Marina down to the hotel zone of Nuevo Vallarta, Sailfish, Jack Crevalls, Bonito and Snappers are hitting anything that looks shinny. If you put a hook on your car keys, they´d hit those! Now everyone is looking for a great captain, but even a bad captain can put you on fish right now, so there are no excuses for not catching something worth bragging about. T he Sailfish are very large and if you don´t look carefully, you may just think you boated a Striped Marlin. And of course they´re in the bay as well running up to 80 kilos or 180 lbs! Now this is not normal and will not last long. But the flying fish that were all over El Banco or The Bank have moved into the bay, so the Sailfish and Stripers followed them in. The water temperatures are perfect also running in the 84 to 86 degree range, so really there is nothing to complain about when it comes to fishing in the bay… but we s till do of course.

 Those of you who know bay fishing or just have been reading my articles for years will be familiar with the ¨Trash Line¨. During the summer when we get the seasonal rains, the water from the rivers flow into the bay and wit h it comes silt and organic materials. Seeds, bugs, leave all sorts of stuff Rooster fish and Dorado love to feed on. With the rains finally kicking in, there is a beautiful t rash line to take advantage of in the bay. With the dirt y water separated from clean blue water by a line of crap floating on the water, this is what you want to find. Again, Rooster fish, Dorado, even snappers will feed off this line and you can normally expect to have a great day if you come across one of these. So the bay is where  t he action is this week, don´t let anyone tell you differently  just to squeeze a few more bucks out of you on a longer day. Six hour s will do the trick for you amigos. Four works well also, but six gives you just a little more time to deal yourself a better hand.

Travel Update: If you are coming to Mexico be warned the United States has dictated to Mexico that they need to track the flow of American Dollars to combate the drug trade so cashing Dollars in Mexico has gotten expensive for local businesses. To combat  the drug cartels, or so the story goes, Mexican Businesses now have enforced limits to how much American Dollars can be deposited in bank accounts or cashed in for pesos. Now nobody is telling anyone about any of this in the states, so you have been warned. I would suggest contacting your bank in the States and cashing in dollars for pesos before you come down. You will get the bank to bank rate which is close to 14 pesos to the dollar. That is better than 20% more than you will receive at the banks in Mexico…. But the United States is sticking it to Mexico again in an effort to do whatever it can to keep Americans locked inside their borders using fear, intimidation style broadcasting, and now the Dollar is being declared as unacceptable in Mexico because the United States is demanding track ability of where American Dollars are going and how they move around. In a Mexican society, it´s all about dollars since they keep their value and are just a more stable currency. Mexican pay many of their bills in Dollars for rent, or other services. Now this has been deemed a bad thing so visiting tourist are finding it impossible to cash dollars in places that used to readily accept them…. You´ve been warned, get pesos before you come to Mexico and you´ll beat them at their own game amigos!

Remember, don´t be fooled by imposters in Puerto Vallarta using my corporate and trademarked name of Master Baiter’s® Sportfishing and Tackle. If anyone other than Stan Gabruk, the owner contacts you via email, you are being scammed! These folks have gone as far as coping my web site almost word for word to confuse my age old clients. You can reach me at my web page of MasterBaiters (dot) com (dot) mx, that way you know you have the original and only Master Baiter´s which is located in Marina Vallarta! Trade Marks on file with proof is necessary!

Until next week, don´t forget to kiss your fish!

Master Baiter’s is now all over the place. Stan Gabruk post articles as a feature writer in publications, reputable web sites, Vallarta Fishing Experience host and member of better known fishing social networking sites. As the Premier Fishing Company in Puerto Vallarta, we pride ourselves on service and value to our customers. All boats are insured and have correct and legal operational licenses. Feel free to contact Stan at: CatchFish@MasterBaiters.com.mx. You can also purchase one of my famous shirts online now at: www.MasterBaitersGear.com   Blog: www.masterbaiters.wordpress.com   Facebook: search for MasterBaiters Stan, or look for me on Twitter: www.Masterbaiters/twitter.com and for local information that is priceless visit: www.Banderasnews.com and keep up with Puerto Vallarta…