Punta Colorada /East Cape report - December 8th to 15th

[David Lee]

Hope you fellas are sittin' down ........

Victory at sea conditions - 25 MPH north winds , 7 rows of breakers , ANGRY (and I do mean ANGRY ) surf .

I did quite well

NINE species on the fly in the surf - Roosterfish , Sierra , Ladyfish , Pompano , Lookdown , Green Jacks , Jack Crevallie , Yellowfin Croaker , Pufferfish .

And ....... something that ran me 150 yards out into the sea and ROCKED me (there's a nice T-14/running line setup decorating a cave out there somewhere .....) .

Leadcore and mono ruled the day . More to follow , I have to clean some VERY used reels - Got fishes every day but Sunday and this morning , not massive numbers , but enough to make a swell trip .

Only one 'incident' , most everyone there was mucho cool . I'll post a few photos tomorrow ..... and will be hosting anyone that wants to try this madness next October/November at the same place

Brave new world for this humble man out there ..... I think I've found what I'm looking for

David

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Sounds great to me David.

I guess that Jim Christensen and Andy Guibord have hosted a couple of trips to Punta Colorado Hotel.



Secret hot spot?

I had a friend go with them and he said it was very nice and a good place to take the misses.

I think Jim said their best guide said it was good from June through October, in the warmer months.



http://www.bajaresorts.com/punta.htm

[David Lee]

Secret hot spot?

El Faro @ Punta Arena - SHUSSSHHH !!!

Ladyfish and Sierra are the greatest light-tackle gamefish I could ever imagine - a dinky 3 lb. Machete will make you re-thing ANY Steelhead ........ they're THAT fun ! If I cash in tomorrow and leave this world , I hope a Ladyfish is the last bite I get .

The story's to come ....

David

[Tony Buzolich]

You had a good time. Great! Can't wait for the stories and details.

Glad you're back,
TONY

[sculpin]

Hey David I'm glad you enjoyed your trip and look forward to the rest of your report.It sounds like the North Winds were doing their usual winter thing. I have to agree with you about the Lady Fish . My wife and I spend time in the area during the winter and even though the wind howls at times I really enjoy it there. If we can find a house to rent we are going down next month. I'll trade warm and Lady Fish for winter Steelhead any day. I met and fished with PM and Will yesterday on the upper Klamath and it was 19f at about 9AM. Need I say more.

Mark

[k.hanley]

Nice job amigo. Now you have a taste of why we like the Baja grab so much. Happy holidays and safe travels.
Cheers, Ken

[Hairstacker]

All right David!! Sounds like you had a WONDERFUL trip, I'm very happy for you!!! \/ Can't wait to hear ALL the details!

[David Lee]

I didn't have a chance to throw small Bonefish flies , the conditions were just not right . Almost all the time , small , under 2 1/2 inch white deceivers and gray siliclones were the ticket . The monster (Amberjack ???????) I lost ate a 1 3/4 inch clouser , but the 'clone was THE fly . I brought only three of them , and you should see how they look now !!

I used 7 and 8 wts. , and the Wong Wod - a Loop 8/9 two-hander . I doubt a 12 wt. could have stopped the monster from beating me down . Because the surf was SOOOOO NASTY , leadcore/mono was pretty much the only way to fish effectively . When the fish were within 70 or so feet , WW got the nod . Totally effortless casting a double in the surf , and very , very effective . Of course , as I packed the rods on the last morning , the surf went completly flat - I was pretty bummed about that .....

The fish -
Jack Crevallie( Toro) - none over three lbs. for me , but my most common catch thru the trip - they pull like hell , and have some teeth and sharp scutes on the tail (careful while landing ...) - very nice fish that will tax you in the surf .

Green Jack (Cocinero) - nasty little guys , one of the toughest fighters out there . No teeth , but sharp belly fins . I'm glad they were small ...

Mexican Lookdown - Only got one the first morning , beautiful , tough fish - landing it was rough on an 8 wt. in the suds !!

Yellowfin Croaker - a few in the wash before dawn - hard fighters .

Pufferfish - Sharp strike , then like dragging a wet sock in . Not much fun to handle .

Roosterfish - I caught a small one in the suds on Paul Cs. Sardine . It never quit fighting . No teeth , no spines , very hard fight .

Pompano - Again , only one ..... sharp strike , major thrashing on the surface . Mine was a nice one , according to Peter Langstraat - for a fish less than 14 inches long , hardest fight you can imagine .

Sierra - Oh , my ........ fast , fast critter , and very beautiful . I landed one , and had quite a few shake the hook when landing . I did not use wire , and was bitten off only once (at the tippet/leader area by another Sierra .... wire would NOT have saved me) - The teeth on these fish are fearsome - DO NOT GET A FINGER ANYWHERE THAT MOUTH . They came in in force with the Ladyfish one evening , and were a scream to fight .

Ladyfish - Plain looking fish , kind of like a Squawfish w/ huge eyes and a yellow cast to them . Put a hook in one and ........ time stops . A. W. Dimmok wrote (in 1900 ...) that if Ladyfish were the same size as Tarpon , they would kick the shit out of the Tarpon .

He was correct .

Picture the hottest Steelhead you've ever caught , then multiply by about twenty - they are INSANE , BESERK FIGHTERS - at one point , I had one of maybe twenty inches make a 12 foot long jump two feet high , and rip 28 feet of leadcore head and about that much running line out of the water - They are very hard to land (boney mouth , crazy-assed jumping , etc.) and one in 7 to the beach was the best I could do . Absolute ass kickers on a 7 wt rod . I'm not a hardcore saltwater angler , but I've caught a lot of different fish ..... in my opinion , the Ladyfish is the greatest thing with fins for the light tackle flyrodder . Peter has had 30- fish evenings on these things , I cannot imagine doing that .....


More to come , along w/ photos .

David

[Hairstacker]

Great descriptions David! Pufferfish sure don't sound very gamey -- wet sock? On the other hand, those ladyfish sound positively INSANE! I'll bet, in your mind's eye, they've replaced that evil rainbow you ran into on the Pit. Gotta wonder what the heck that monster was, eh? On another note, were you using your Teton? Did you like how it performed?

[Adam Grace]

I'm glad to hear that you had a fun trip David!

I hope that you have pictures to share with us.