Punta Colorada report - Dec. 4th-15th

[David Lee]

Just got back last night .....

Epic trip , spotty fishing . Hotels are mostly empty , and the wind is down for the most part . Candida and I landed 18 different species !!!

Big fish were a 14 Lb. Sierra on the beach (likely a world record !!!!!!) , and a nice Rooster of 17-20 Lbs. . I'll post up photos as I finish getting them up online -

Great trip !!!!!!!

David

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

That sounds like it was another wonderful get away for both of you.

[David Lee]

That sounds like it was another wonderful get away for both of you.

That it was , Bill !

For 5 days out of the 12 .... we were the ONLY guests down there - I cannot say enough good things about the Hotel , or especially the staff !! The Punta Colorada staff were warm , patent (our Spanish isn't too good ....) , and most had a wicked sense of humor . Beautiful , fun folks that went way out of the way to make sure we were taken care of well . The food was great (MUCH better than our 2005 visit) , and the re-modeled rooms were spotless clean .

The few gringos that came and went were pretty much the same - loud , rude , and treated the staff like they were slaves . I have never been more embarassed in my life to be an American than I was as I watched the other guests bitching about nothing . One dude even asked my Barman Johnny for drugs while I was in the bathroom - If I'd have been there to see/hear that , I would have run his arse up a pole .

Treat everyone exactly the way YOU want to be treated - you get warm , friendly staff . Pretty easy , huh ??

The 11 1/2 days I fished were always the same - up at 4:30 AM , gear up , and go out to hunt the beach (I don't do Pangas ....) . Some days were hard hunting , with lots of work for just a few bites . The amount of baitfish inshore was just unreal ...... Sardina from under an inch to 3 inches were in huge clouds , and the Mullet (5-12 inches) were thick , too ! I think the fish were just glutted-full - I doubt the full moon helped much , either .

Roosters were inshore , but few ran the beach untill the end of our trip . I had shots at Roos' to 25+ Lbs. . One BIG Jack was running right below the Hotel on Sunday - He had two Roos' w/ him , one of which ate my fly . It was something else to see that COMB rise-up and ROCKET in to nail my Clouser from 40 feet away !! SCREAMING , 100-yard runs for 12 minutes and he was mine !!

The Sierra .......
I had walked a mile north of the Hotel - had one Leopard Grouper , one tiny Flag Cabrilla , and a Corenet fish (Ugggggg - can you say SLIMEY ?!?) on the sand . Walking back for breakfast , I stopped at the rocks below the point . The wind had dropped from the past day , but there was a lot of suspended sand in the water ..... making it cloudy . I was a bit discouraged from the slow fishing , and made a short , 60 foot cast . Three strips and THUNK -

I had the great presence of mind to set the hook hard three or four times , and for whatever reason made a little 'O' w/ my left hand in case the line needed to be cleared - the following 10 seconds were a blur .......

The fish accelerated and ran 120 yards in perhaps 4 or 5 seconds . No shit .

I have never seen anything like that in my life , EVER .

I had 150 yards of 30 Lb. backing on the Teton 8-10 LA reel - the Sierra ate it up so fast that it was beyond comprehending . I palmed the spool (my middle right finger brushed the backing as it was going out ..... I'll have a sweet scar when it heals) and put the brakes on her as I saw black arbor where there had been "plenty" of backing seconds before .

I cranked her in about 50 yards , then another run so fast that it was beyond belief . 7 minutes later , the Sierra was in the wash .

Bobby Van Wormer , the owner of Punta , had been there since 1957 - He had NEVER seen a Sierra that size before , and couldn't quite believe it . The Mexicans were blown away - most thought it was a Wahoo from across the room . They all begged me to apply for a record certification but I have little time or interest for that kind of stuff . I killed the Sierra for two reasons - the first ? The fish was pretty much fried after the fight (Sierra don't release very well ....) , and we were low on Cervechi stock (we ate LOTS of Cervechi on this trip ) . I had no problem taking the Sierra and would likely do it again .

I switched to a Teton 9-11 the next day . It holds 250 yards of 30 Lb. .

Sometimes ..... it only takes ONE fish .

David

[Darian]

David,.... What a great trip!!! Congrats on that big Sierra. 14 POUNDS. That's a GRANDE. :eek: =D> Lotsa good ceviche' with cerveza. :unibrow: :unibrow: Got a Rooooooooster, too. A grande Rooster is my wish for the trip this summer. [-o<

One question, did you use a short wire leader when fishing for Sierra :?: If not, that fish is an even greater accomplishment.... \\:D/

It must've been enjoyable to be the only guests in the hotel for a a while. That means the food/staff had only you to cater to. Livin' In the lap of luxury.... :nod: Betcha missed all of this cold weather up here.... :lol:

[David Lee]

Hi D. !!!!

Nope - I've come to the conclusion that for flies ..... wire isn't needed (for ME , anyways ....) . We fished plugs for a while on spinning tackle when the wind was up , and because the plugs are longer than your average fly .... there's a better chance of another Sierra hitting the lure hangin' outta his friends mouth . I use 9-inch wire for plugs/spoons .

I'm no expert by ANY measure of the word ...... I've landed only three Sierra , and lost 4 in the wash - the ONLY losses I've suffered have been Sierra shakin' loose from the hook - I did have something bite-off a Sierra on the 2005 trip - it (Sierra or Needlefish) went thru the leader three feet up from the fly , so wire would NOT have helped .

It's ALWAYS better to be lucky , rather than good . I'll stick w/ what works for me .

R/E the staff .....

I became friends w/ most of them on the 2005 trip . They were great when I was a stranger , and they're even better now that we know each other . After talking with them ..... it's a huge suprise and dissapointment to discover that guests almost NEVER bother to talk to them , except to ask for stuff .

I know most folks are going to Baja (or where ever ...) to FISH , not make new friends . I've learned that we , as Americans , don't have the best image around the world . After watching the gringos in action ..... I understand why . All it takes is please , and thank you . If people would just learn it in Spanish and try just a little bit ...... we'd probably look better .

Oh - Loreto and Johnny made KILLER Ceviche (thanks for the correct spelling) - very different than mine (more Tomatos , fewer Chillis) .

David

[Scott V]

Welcome back David, I am glad the two of you had a great time. I can not wait for the pictures, I have no idea what a Sierra is.

[Hairstacker]

Wow, another awesome trip David! Totally enjoyed reading the details and congratulations on the sierra and rooster and the 16 other species you ran into! Don't suppose you fished with any Tap's Bugs? Ha!

Sounds pretty exciting to be casting into the surf and never knowing what you might hook into. . . . :shock:

Anyway, really glad to hear you and Candida had such a great time!!

[Matt Frey]

Sounds like an awesome trip David. Looking forward to seeing some photos! I hope you and Candida are doing well.
Matt

[Mrs.Finsallaround]

Is this what you're talking about when you say "Sierra"?

http://www.fishbase.org/Summary/SpeciesSummary.php?id=136

[k.hanley]

David that's well done on all accounts. Happy holidays to you and Candida.
Cheers, Ken

[Darian]

I'm a bit disappointed to hear about the staff perception of us (Gabacho's) .... Maybe it has something to do with being a remote location. Too bad the visitor's you saw were such a bad example.... :confused: Most of the people that I've been with, down there, were fun and great to fish with. :cool:

On our first trip down there (a remote location, also) my partner and I saw some minor examples of bad behavior on the part of visitors. It was the exception, tho. :\\

The one thing that has come across in my five trips down there was the friendliness of "the locals" everywhere we went....

For those thinking about going down there for the first time, just exercise prudence, relax (....it's Mexico, have a Marguerita) and keep a smile on your face. :D :D Hopefully you'll have a trip like David's.... :unibrow:

[David Lee]

Here's a few photos -

[David Lee]

more photos

[David Lee]

#1 is a small Ladyfish .

#2 is the big Sierra , 14 Lbs. on Van Wormer's scale .

#3 is where Sardina go to die .

#4 is a Halibut Candida caught . I got the same 'but a few days later on fly .

#5 is a Mexican Lookdown . I landed 9 in a row off the same rock .

#6 is my Rooster . Ramon said ocho kilos , I thought 14 or 15 Lbs.

#7 is a Mexican Hogfish . Lovely things .....

#8 - Ramon lending a hand .

[Jay Murakoshi]

David,

Roosters being my #1 species I target, I would have to say it looks to be 15#. I have caught many roosters and by looking from the head to the cottal stock and the girth, 15# would be my guess.

Earlier this year, a few people in my groups had roosters to 45lbs and one estimated by the captain to be 60 + pounds before he broke it off. He's coming back in '09 to hook at land it.

Looks to be a good vacation. Punta Colorada is one of my favorite spots for beach fishing.
Have you ever hoofed it to the light house from the hotel. Is Alejandro still booking the captains

Jay

[Charlie Gonzales]

Great report and pics Dave.I guess you dont need me to wish you a Merry Christmas after a trip like that. Look forward to seeing you on the river this spring.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Great photos David and Candida.

Pretty wild considering you are foot with a fly rod!!!

I wonder if the Sierra is actually a King Mackerel?

[jbird]

here are a couple related species...

http://indian-river.fl.us/fishing/fish/mackspan.html

http://www.flmnh.ufl.edu/fish/gallery/Descript/CeroMackerel/CeroMackerel.html

http://www.mexfish.com/fish/srra/srra.htm

Notice the size of the sierra at the bottom of the mexfish page. I remember Gary Graham posting a monster sierra a couple years ago. I have seen a few come out of the water crashing bait that were 3' plus. They do look like wahoo except for the yellow polka dots.

Ive gotten into schools of cero mackerel in the florida keys and they are a very similar fish.


Great report David!

feliz Navidad!!!!!

Jay

[Darian]

Hey David,.... In that photo with the LadyFish, are you trying to eat the fish or the rod :question: :question: :lol: :lol:

[Jay Murakoshi]

David,

I've seen lady fish that size get eaten by big roosters. A lot of times when we have a school of lady fish there are roosters under neath them. When the school parts you will see the black streaks

Ya want roosters late april and early may is the best time

Jay

Darian,

this coming year is the year of the rooster

[David Lee]

To everyone who posted -

Thanks !! Nice to get a 'high-five' from your peers !!

JM -

Thanks for the call on the Roo' . I know you have seen more of them than most folks , so I'll call it 15 . The Roosterfish is not so much of a target species for me .... they're just too difficult to target when I'm there in Winter .

Species and #'s for our trip -

Roosters - 10 , biggest 8 and 15 Lbs.
Jacks - 1 , by Candida
Cortez Halibut - a bunch
Sierra -3
Barred Pargo - one nice one
Yellow Snapper (Pargo) - 4 by Candida
Yellowfin Croaker -1
Pacific Porgy- 1 nice one
Mexican Lookdown- 10
Mexican Hogfish -2
Leopard Grouper- a bunch
Flag Cabrilla- a mess o' them , all tiny
Bullseye Puffer - 1 , Candida
Corenet fish - 2 (wear gloves , the slime won't wash off)
Ladyfish - not nearlly enough (perhaps 10-15 ??)!! Best thing on the planet , IMO
Unknown , perch like w/ blue eyes
Unknown , wrasse w/ vertican bars
Unknown, looked like a Lingcod w/ round tail - big , powerful jaws

I'll post more photos in a few days (waiting on the film ....) .

Thanks again to everybody for the positive comments !!!

David

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

I emailed Gary Graham about your Sierra Mackerel and he said the all tackle record is 19 lbs. in Ecuador, South America

In Baja 13 lbs. is the largest recorded.

David......you are at the record and off the beach to boot with a fly rod.

Probably could be the fly caught world record Sierra Mackerel?

[David Lee]

Bill -

Thank you !

I only wish that everyone here could have seen/heard that first run - I doubt I'll EVER see anything like that again .

Not too bad for a landbound seasick hack in the "OFF" season , eh ?

It's a very beautiful , VERY special place .... and we'll be back again .

VIVA BAJA !!

David

[Jay Murakoshi]

David,

Your two "unknown" perch like species might of been Grunts or Burrito Grunts. Did you get photo's of them

Jay

[Darian]

Jay,.... Cock a doodle doooooooooooo..... :thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[Scott V]

this coming year is the year of the rooster


I hope so, I would love to get a rooster on my first saltwater trip. I have seen video on them and can not wait, but I must wait.

[Ed Wahl]

Yow! Thanks for the pics and story David. I think when I eventually do manage a DIY trip south of the border I'm gonna do it like that. At least the walking and casting part. Ed

[David Lee]

Yow! Thanks for the pics and story David. I think when I eventually do manage a DIY trip south of the border I'm gonna do it like that. At least the walking and casting part. Ed

Hey , Ed !!

The price is right , if you know what I mean .

It's almost impossible to goof it - read what's out there , go to known locations , fish hard . Even thought these are VERY different fish than we have here ..... they're STILL fish ! Having seen you beat them more than a few times , I have no doubts as to the body count you'll rack up .

More photos on the way .... folks at wally are slow -

David

[Phil Synhorst]

Hey David, you've been kinda quiet on the board lately. Now I think I know why, my theory is you were saving it up for this fantastic post.

I'm glad to hear you and Candida are well, and had a great time south of the border. Thanks for sharing the story, I look forward to seeing the rest of the pics soon.