Saltwater Rods....

[Darian]

Didn't want to hijack the prior thread but I'm deciding whether I need another, heavier rod for saltwater in the Isla Cerralvo/La Ventana area. :confused: The heaviest fly rod I have now is a Cam Sigler, 12 wt. I'm completely satisfied with this rod but haven't tackled a billfish or Yellowfin Tuna with it, yet; not that I would hesitate to do so if the opportunity comes along. The fishing takes place out of Panga. So, casting qualities (good) of the rod are as necessary as fighting.

My questions are:

Would I need a heavier rod for Sailfish :question:

Is a 14 wt. rod necessary for Marlin :question:

What are your experiences with various brand name rods (TFO, Cam Sigler, Sage, Loomis, etc.) :question:

[stevie steelhead]

I was faced with this same question a few years ago when I began to fish La Paz to the East Cape, and a yearly trip to Loreto, and occasionally to Costa Rica, etc.
My 12 weight was not good enough for the bigger striped marlin, any yellowfin tuna bigger than 30lbs. was difficult on the 12 weight.
I also wanted a rod that I could cast to rolling tarpon and big bull dorado. So I found a great deal on a sage RPLXi 13 weight when they were closing the RPLXi series. Coupled with an Abel 13 I have caught tarpon over 100 pounds in CR casting a heavy big game shooting head.
I'm armed with that set-up in the same fishery you are going to. My back up is the old 12wt. for big fish.
I use a good 10 weight for everything smaller.
Thats my limited personal opinion.

[Darian]

Thanks for the info guys. Fishing out of a Panga allows a guy to follow a fish very quickly if necessary. In 4 years, I've never seen a Blue Marlin at Isla Cerallvo.... Like you, Carl, I tend to cast to a fish that appears out of nowhere with whatever I have in my hand.... But, it sounds like I won't need to acquire a rod heavier than my current 12 wt. :cool: Still looking for my First billfish (of any kind) on the fly. :cool: :cool:

Thanks again.... :D

[Darian]

You just reminded me to pay attention to one of my problems.... I've been failing on the strike (probably from Buck fever :rolleyes: ).

2 years ago, we had Marlin and Sails breezing around the Panga in a large group. The captain told me to cast and let the fly sink without retrieving (....He had previously chummed and created a bunch of scales sinking in a blood trail :cool: ). Out of the blue a very large shadow (maybe over 6' in length) appeared and my fly disappeared. :eek: My mind said,.... must strike. I struck and pulled the fly out of his mouth.... :rolleyes: :rolleyes: Talk about feeling dumb....#-o I accepted the captains laugh graciously and continued fishing.... By then, the fish had dispersed. :confused: SOooooo,.... Thanks for the reminder. :nod: :nod:

Heard a lot of good stuff about the RDCF. I haven't been fishing the surface much but have promised myself to try this year. Especially for Roosterrrrssss. I'll get some pic's and post a report on the outcome. :cool: :cool:

[Scott V]

Carl what does this mean,
"The blues fights really dirty, they don't jump very much, and just sound."
What do you mean by sound? I have not heard that term.

[Darian]

Scott,.... When a fish sounds, it goes down deep and just sulks or takes off down deep. :evil: If it's sulking, it'll re-energize unless you put constant pressure on it. Better if you can make 'em run down deep (altho not necessarily on the angler :confused: ).

You're gonna get to find this out down there. The first day, the panguero's try to break people in on fish that're hard pullers. :-k Think Skippies (Black Skipjack). If you've never seen one, they look a lot like a Pacific bonito on steroids. :eek: They take the fly (enthusiastically ;-) ) on or near the surface and immediately sound. Then they circle. Arrrrrrggh!!!! Tough buggers. :mad: A big one will be over 10 pounds but you'll think it's at least 20.... :lol:

Sometimes there're some Yellowfin Tuna underneath the Skippies. If you can get your fly down to them (without a Skippie grabbing it), you can get some great Sashimi.... 8) Carry some Soy Sauce and Wasabi and a filet knife with you. MMM, MMM.... :D :D

[Scott V]

Thanks Darian, I am so bloody excited I am having a hard time controlling myself. My wife has requested that I bring home some Yellowfin, I told her I would if I can. And I will definitely be eating some sashimi on the boat if I get the chance.

I have never seen any of the fish in person, only in pictures. So I will be a like a virgin bride on her wedding night, excited, but a little scared too.:D

[Darian]

Carl, you mentioned that you cast to the tail of the fish. Is that to assure the fish turns to improve the potential for a hook-up :question: :question: Since I haven't been doing that, I'm wondering if I haven't missed some chances at a good fish.... :confused:

Scott,.... The number and diversity of fish species you'll encounter during a trip to the Sea of Cortez is truly amazing. As you've probably heard/read, excited fish are "lit up". :eek: The colors they display are like nothing I've seen before. ELECTRIC!!! With the clarity of the water, you can see your catch quite a distance from the panga. That makes it easier to see the flash and colors. 8) As Carl said, they lose their colors shortly after being brought aboard. I try to keep only those fish that the Panguero can use or that I know I'll use for dinner that day and no Billfish. 8) 8) 8)

One thing to remember.... Not all of the fish you'll catch down there are edible. :confused: While most are very good tasting, some are downright inedible (Skippies = strong, dark, oily flesh).... Yeccchhhh!!! :puke: IMHO, the best are Mahi, Yellowfin Tuna, Pompano and Snappersssss. Lots of others, too. :unibrow: :unibrow:

You're gonna have so much fun down there.... :D :D :D :D

[Jay Murakoshi]

Darian,

You should have enough rod in that 12 wt. We'll chase um if we have too. The 3 marlin I hooked last year were on a 10wt. The biggest was around 120lbs. Jump and threw the fly didn't stick him. I landed one sail on the 10wt but we chased him down and drove circles around him so we had him in in no time at all

Scott,

Start curling 15lb barbells. I'm hoping your first fly rod baja experience will be a 16lb skip jack and then the big rooster

I'm working on a 5 minute baja trailer that I will be posting on my web site. I'm using a company called Vimeo instead of Youtube, much better quality. I've also started using Pay Pal.

Hope to see you guys in Pleasanton this weekend. For those of you who are going on Friday, there's a change in our Bass presentation. It's scheduled for 12pm not 10am.


OH YEAH, one last thing.... I might be tying up some large bill fish flies and rainbow trout patterns with the wig hair material. The rainbow trout flies can/will be used down at Lake Casitas near Ojai... I just saw a couple photo's of two LMB in the 8lb and 9lb range that were caught last Wednesday on a 14" rubber rainbow trout


Jay

[Jay Murakoshi]

Darian,

You forgot WAHOOOOO

jay

[Darian]

Yup!!! That's Renee's domain.... :D I've found a Wahoo fly tied by Ray Beadle in Ken's book, "MEXICO BLUE RIBBON FLY FISHING" and am going to bring a couple to try. :unibrow: Gotta mention that Ono (Wahoo) is just about the best fish I've ever tasted.... Yeah!!! 8) 8)

[Darian]

Hi Carl,.... That's quite a coincidence. Sounds like you have a good friend there. I haven't met Mr. beadle but if you would, please say hello for me. :cool:

I've been reading about Ray Beadle and have really tried to find out about his flies, etc. Found something on Blanton's BB and in Ken's book. :D :D I'm gonna put the Wahoo version to work at Las Arenas in June. :nod: :nod: