Sailfish and Dorado Dominate, Corbetena Calms, El Banco Marlin

As we get deeper into the early stages of Puerto Vallarta’s high season for fishing, we’re still waiting for the “fishing” public to arrive. Nothing new here, this is pretty much normal. As we see the conditions pick up, there really aren’t very many fishing charters. We have great fishing, but it’s hard to give a report, when there are so few anglers hitting our fishing grounds right now. Now this may sound negative, but in reality it’s an opportunity to have Puerto Vallarta’s world famous fishing grounds to yourself. Now this is priceless when you have 300 lb Marlin, Sailfish, Dorado and more waiting for you to arrive! So forgive any holes there may be in this week’s report, but the bottom line is we have great fishing and if you head out to these fishing grounds, then next week, I’ll be writing about you! If not, I’ll be writing about somebody else.

Again with the short supply of tourist and Anglers, we’re sitting here waiting for you to give us a call. But until then we’re still seeing Marlin at Corbetena, both blue and black in the 250 to 325 lb range. Sailfish are here as well, but for some reason they’re a little thin in numbers at the rock. Yellowfin Tuna are on the “Chiquito” side running about forty kilos or 80 lbs. Not a bad sized Yellowfin Tuna, but not the “cows” we used to see years ago. Still, it’s super early in the season to make any real calls about if it’s good or not. Dorado are running the area, but straight up, there aren’t many and those that are in the area are in the 20 lb size. Not bad, but not great. I’d like to say things are different at El Banco, but I can’t. So the bottom line on our deep water fishing grounds is Blue water, Plenty of bait and good fishing even if I can’t exactly tell you what you’ll be boating, ha ha. Seriously though, you’ll have some great action if you’ve got the inclination and fuel money. Stay tuned, it’s fishing and things can change quickly.

What appears to be the best bang for your fishing dollar this week is a ten hour trip north of Sayulita. This whole area is full of Sailfish and 20 lb plus Dorado! That’s not to say there aren’t other species in the area, especially around the point of Punta Mita. There are also Sailfish and Dorado off the point, but the farther north you go the better your chances of finding and boating these world class Pescado. Over at El Morro to the south of Punta Mita, there are still Red Snappers for those in the area as are Bonito and Jack Crevalles. Frankly, my suggestion is go to the point of Punta Mita or Punta Nayarit as it’s now called and start trolling north closer to shore. No more than eight miles off shore for best results. Once you’re out there, check your catches stomach to see what they’re feeding on!

Inside the bay it’s another wonderful week of action and Dorado! For now it seems if you’re targeting larger Dorado in the 30 lb range, you need to be in the area around Los Arcos rocks. Capt. Pablo on our new super Panga “T” is either incredibly lucky or just a super talented Captain, either way he always comes in with fish and happy people. With such great action in this area, most of our clients have opted for the six hour at Los Arcos chasing bucket list Dorado anywhere from 20 to 35 lbs. It just depends on how lucky you are. Frankly it’s shocking there are larger Dorado in the bay than at Corbetena, but that’s how the fish cookie crumbles. Additionally we have Sierra Mackerels in this warming water, Jack Crevalles. Bonito, and a freak outside chance of smaller Sailfish. Capt. Pablo boated one the other day, sorry no pictures. It’s hard to gaff a fish with a camera in your hand.

Those familiar with the fishing in Puerto Vallarta, know and understand once we enter July we start to get what I call the seasonal rains. Right now we’ve seen the rain pattern in the early evenings for a few hours at its worst. A few short showers later the air is fresh and cool. Another nice thing about these evening showers is the fact it washes the organic materials from plants and more down the mountain sides into the bay. This forms what we call a “Trash Line”. Now a trash line is a fishermen’s friend if you know how to read and use this natural phenomenon. This will be dirty water, coffee colored, but it’s not deep. Normally only a few feet thick, you can identify a trash line by the line of organic leaves, twigs, seeds, trash, you name it on the leading edge. The other side will be clean water where the smaller species in the bay will hang out. You see, in front or below this trash line is and easy “fish fast food”. Find a mature trash line deep in the bay or at the point, then you’ve got a Dorado wonderland. Find a floating log, debris, or even a floating refrigerator and again, you hit the Dorado jackpot! We’ll be talking more about the trash line, stay tuned.

Details: Right now the bite is still about 08:00 so plan accordingly. With high visibility blue water everywhere, the fish will see your baits easily. Right now Skip Jack Tuna are your best live bait option. But running a Petrolero colored lure or one that mimics Dorado coloring can’t hurt your cause. Water temperatures are a perfect 85 degrees. The stage is set for a great season so stay tuned and keep informed. Remember you can always call me for any information or questions you may have.

FYI: For years I haven’t paid much attention to things like tours, focusing on my expertise of fishing. But I realized I was not providing a service my clients were looking for and losing out on a fair amount of money. That has now changed. If you’re heading to Puerto Vallarta, we can handle everything, tour wise that is, before you arrive so you don’t have to do the “horse trading” scenario with shifty types who are hard to trust. As a Master Baiter’s Client we’ll get you on a boat with arm burning action, save you money on your family tours and even freeze your catch for free until ready to head back to your home port. We’ve been going strong now in PV for 23 years, you can’t do that by being anything less than straight with new clients that eventually become repeat customers. My nephew Rodrigo handles the tour stuff, so when you call don’t be surprised how he has a bit of an accent, but will treat you right… enough said.

Until next week, don’t forget to kiss your fish!

Web page:  www.MasterBaiters.com.mx , Local Phone at: Our international number is: +52 322 209 1128. #MasterBaitersSportfishing on Instagram, Facebook: Master Baiter’s Sportfishing & Tackle. The trade mark Master Baiter’s ® Sportfishing and Tackle is protected under trade mark law and is the sole property of Stan Gabruk.