Remembering were in the beginning of our fishing season, things are shaping up nicely. Water temperatures are where they should be. Bait is abundant and varied. Hurricanes have pushed fish into the area and frankly it’s a little exciting, not to mention motivating to get on the water. But we don’t live in a perfect fishing world and a little bit of knowledge about conditions can completely change your day. If you’re fishing in Puerto Vallarta’s Bay of Banderas right now, you’ll be glad you read this article. It could make all the difference in the world!
So far this summer, we’ve seen at least five hurricanes. Now that seems like a bad thing until you realize Hurricanes push fish into the area. And with five of these scary beasts passing us, the fishing in Puerto Vallarta’s Bay of Banderas is returning to its famous self again. That doesn’t mean the conditions and fishing are perfect, but it’s moving in the right direction. The water is high visibility blue. Water temperatures are in the ‘prefect’ range. Marlin, Sailfish, Yellowfin Tuna and more are moving into the area. Right now, we have fish from El Banco to Marina Vallarta! Sounds pretty good, doesn’t it. But there are always challenges in the world of fishing and this week is no different.
Every year at the end of our tourism season here in Puerto Vallarta, fishing goes into a holding pattern. What we see is the cold-water temperatures start ticking up, little by little. This year it’s been a little different. If you’ve been reading my recent articles, you already know we’ve been dealing with confusing fishing conditions. After unusual drops in the local water temperatures, at the wrong time of the year I might add, it’s been nothing less than frustrating. We’re now seeing drastic temperature increases. With the stretch of ‘iffy’ fishing, things are improving slightly. There are some active fishing grounds if you know where to look. As we move into spawning season, skills are important, but local knowledge and experience means inexperienced Captains and Crews will be making excuses at the end of the day.
As we exit March and move into the spring fishing season, things can be strange and unpredictable. But seldom is it ‘weird’. With the unusual swing conditions from La Nina to El Nino and then back to La Nina or colder water conditions, any resemblance to our normal yearly expectations are now out the window. Water temperatures have dropped again in the last two weeks to 67 degrees Fahrenheit. Normally this happens about mid-February, not early March. Dropping water temperatures as we enter ‘spring’? But that’s what’s happening. When you have 120 lb Yellowfin Tuna, Sea Bass, Grouper and Striped Marlin, all in our world-famous fishing grounds is nothing short of ‘weird’. Stay tuned, this is an interesting report this week.
Ok, after my last article, you should have a pretty good understanding what has been happening in our world famous fishing grounds of Puerto Vallarta in and around the Banderas Bay. The dirty water conditions continue. We’ve been dealing with these changing currents and dropping water temperatures. The dirty water is breaking up a bit, but the clean green is coming in behind it. Having said that, find blue water and you’ve got some world class fishing. We still have some challenging conditions, but with the proper information, what seems like a disaster in the making can turn into a world of surprise and excitement. Part of this is luck, admittedly, but the other part is skill and local knowledge! At this time of the year, the inshore or in the bay fishing is fun and affordable. But the days are rapidly coming to an end when Sailfish, Striped Marlin, Yellowfin Tuna, Dorado and the rest will be leaving for warmer waters. As we move into the winter fishing season, things will change, but that doesn’t mean the fishing is bad or diminished. We just switch gears, species and processes. Soon we’ll be talking about Snapper, Grouper and Bass! Stay positive, it pays dividends in memories and never ending smiles.
OK, this fishing report is going to be a little different from what I normally write about. I’ve been writing articles for more than twenty years now regarding Fishing in Puerto Vallarta, focusing on the entire area in and around the Bay of Banderas. Now I could throw plenty of facts and data about what’s happening in the fishing grounds, and I’ll get to that. But with the rapid change from La Nina, to El Nino, then back to La Nina conditions in just a touch over a year, you have to understand this has never happened in my lifetime. So I’m going to try and attempt to describe and explain a bit about what’s happening now.
I’ve said it before and I’m saying it again, fishing in Puerto Vallarta, the Bay of Banderas has been nothing short of weird this year. In my last article, Dorado were thin in number, but still at El Morro to Punta Nayarit. Then, all of a sudden, Dorado move back into the bay, even with the cold water. Sailfish numbers are still strong, but the Blue Marlin Population is getting smaller in both size and numbers. Water temperatures are prematurely dropping, and massive amounts of bait are coming into the area. And on top of that, the Whales are back! It won’t be long before our warm water species bug-out. For those looking to catch that bucket list fish, the clock is ticking amigos.
As all my loyal readers know, we went from a La Nina condition, which changed to an El Nino Condition. Then they changed back to La Nina conditions all in eleven months. Very strange indeed and the aftershocks are erratic fishing. For those fishing in Puerto Vallarta’s world famous Banderas Bay, there is still plenty […]
If you’ve been reading my articles, you know that the world and fishing in Puerto Vallarta and the Bay of Banderas have been dealing with a mid-summer switch from El Nino to colder La Nina conditions. You may say, what does this mean to me? Well, we know that water temperatures affect weather patterns for one thing. But we’re talking about fishing; cold water is bad for the warm water species. This week water temperatures went from 87 degrees to 81 degrees, a drastic drop. Then all of a sudden Jack Crevalles are back in the bay and Striped Marlin are moving in. Now this may sound like a good thing. But in reality, it could mean an early “winter fishing” season. Black and Blue Marlin are still running the neighborhood, but we’ll be keeping an eye on the coming weeks to get a better feel for what’s happening. But for now, the fishing is great! With Sailfish, Striped Marlin and yes, even Jack Crevalles in the bay all add up to great fishing action in Puerto Vallarta’s world famous fishing grounds.
As we continue moving deeper into the best time of the year to be fishing in Puerto Vallarta, we’re seeing Marlin and Sailfish numbers increasing. Yellowfin Tuna are running around the “Rock” at Corbetena. Dorado are also picking up in size and number. This all may sound perfect, but we all know perfect is a ‘moving target’. With Bluewater and perfect water temperatures, the conditions are just this side of perfect. But we all know nothing is ever ‘perfect’. The challenge this week is how to deal with fish that have all the bait they could want. Skip Jack Tuna are massive at Corbetena. The bite is a moving target. So there are some challenges, but these challenges can be overcome with determination and a positive attitude. All of PV’s Fishing grounds are alive with action. It’s also tournament season, so if you’re here in PV it would be a shame if you don’t get on the water amigos!
