The clock is ticking and the end of the summer fishing season is upon us. But there is still time for those late to the game. Surprisingly Dorado are still in the bay. Sailfish are still taking bait, Striped Marlin are moving in and the winter fishing season is coming on strong. Soon fishing in Puerto Vallarta will be all about winter species. But not yet! If you’re looking to boat a Yellowfin Tuna, the clock is ticking. Thinking about a Blue Marlin, it may already be too late. But those looking for Dorado still have a chance. Sailfish will “hang” for a while, as long as we have plenty of bait. For those here in Puerto Vallarta looking to go fishing, we’re still targeting summer species, but the clock is ticking. Tick tock, tick tock.
Finally, a report I can “sink my teeth into”. I’m sure from that statement you understand that the Red Tide problem has finally moved out. And what is happening in Puerto Vallarta’s fishing grounds is exciting. Yes water temperatures are still down and it looks like the winter fishing season is arriving early. All of that is true, but for now we have action all around our world class fishing grounds. As colder currents and dropping water temperatures are indications of the switch to winter fishing, early this year I might ad. What we’re seeing now may be what we would normally see in February when the Dorado north near Cabo flee the cold water. As they, the Dorado pass Puerto Vallarta fishing grounds heading south, they’re hungry, this should last for a little while. The good news is we have action, YeHa!!
Normally at this time of the year, we’re in the best of the “best time of the year” to be here in Puerto Vallarta for world class fishing. Normally, but this year we’re seeing some interesting challenges. As you all know were’ in an El Nino year. What does that mean, well nobody really knows how to answer that question. Pretty much all we can do is look at what’s happening, analyze the situation and then make your best guess. Frankly there isn’t anything new about that, but when it’s an El Nino year, it’s hard to predict. With strange currents and dropping water temperatures, we’re seeing Jack Crevalles moving into the bay. This is a winter species that will hang around in warmer water if the bait conditions are to their liking. In the last few days we’ve seen Jack Crevalles picking up in numbers. To the optimistic, this is all just a glitch in the fishing season. To the pessimistic, it’s the end of the summer fishing season. Me, I find it’s almost impossible to predict the future now that I dropped and cracked my crystal ball!
It’s been a real rollercoaster kind of year. If you recall, we moved from a La Nina year directly into an El Nino year. When you go from one extreme to another, something is going to happen. The entire summer in PV, even in an El Nino or warm water environment, the water never got as warm as it should have. We never got over the 88 degree mark in the middle of September. At that time I noted to myself that “I hope this doesn’t mean an early chill”. By that, normally by the end of December, right about the week before New Year’s Eve, we always get the “chill currents”. When this happens, water temperatures drop like a rock and the next thing you know we’re looking down the throat of our coming winter fishing season. With the recent cold snaps north of the border and in Canada, these weather patterns push their “influence” all the way to Mexico. This week we’ve seen the normal results of weather shocks like this in the form of cooler weather here in PV and cooler water temperatures. Now this could be temporary, but it’s an early indicator of what could be coming. For now we’ve seen some changes, but nothing drastic as yet. If you’re in Puerto Vallarta looking for world class fishing, then you better get in the game before it’s over amigos. We’ve had a wonderful season, but all good things eventually come to an end.
After another week of outstanding fishing, things are starting to slow down just a touch. Yes, we still have Marlin, Sailfish, Dorado and more in our world class fishing grounds of Puerto Vallarta. But now we have Krill. Krill, also known as “Whale food”. These tiny squids and micro fish are back in the area of course with the Whales. This creates a specific set of challenges we deal with on a yearly basis. How do you get fish to pay attention to your presentations, aka bait, when they’re stuffed with Calamari? No worries, we have been dealing with conditions like this from the beginning of time. There are always challenges and as challenges change, captains have to come up with solutions. Krill for the most part are more abundant in the bay, but they will be all around the Bay of Banderas’ fishing grounds.. Again this is normal, but it’s a pain in the backside at times. Larger species like Marlin and Yellowfin Tuna are not affected by this Whale food since they like larger baits. So one challenge can produce opportunities if you know the seasonal basics. As we enter the final stretch of fishing high season, there are some big fish out there waiting for you to show up!
As we begin to see the end of the peak fishing season we’re lucky to have good if not unpredictable action. Fishing is a “liquid” sport and I mean that in forms of the word. Fish move and they’re moving all around the bay. With winter here the Whales are back as are the Porpoise everyone but fisherman love. For those looking to boat that bucket list fish before another year passes, I’d suggest you “Get it in gear” before the Marlin head for South America.
