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Articles
The
following articles I have written will give you a better insight
to the type of fishing we do here in
Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo,
our methods, and gear.
Zihuatanejo
/ Fly Fishing For Billfish
The boat was the “Intruza”, a 34 foot Radon with a wide
beam and an experienced crew. We were 16 miles out of Zihuatanejo
Bay and trolling a teaser spread at 6 knots. Everyone was alert
and ready for action, but Ruben the captain, was quicker. From
his higher vantage point, he yelled out “rigger, rigger”
and in the next instant, pitched his voice to a scream level with
"marlin, marlin".
I was stationed by the underwater teaser and Antonio "Pez
Vela" was next to the spreader bar teaser. Ruben slowed the
boat and started winding in the outrigger rod from his station
on the flybridge and at the same time I brought in the hookless
underwater teaser made out of a blue boat bumper with a string
of plastic squid. Pez Vela, waiting till the outrigger bait was
even with the spreader bar, hand lined the spreader bar in as
the lit up blue marlin charged the baits and the boat. The big
blue actually ate one of the baits on the spreader bar and from
my position in the center of the cockpit, I told P.J. Cunningham
"now!" The fifteen foot cast laid the 8 inch dorado
pattern fly next to the blue marlin's beak and was instantly engulfed.
A lot of things go through one's mind during these critical moments.
Probably foremost, was the fact that this was a huge fish and
I wondered "how in the world is a fly outfit, that is set
up for sailfish, going to hold up on this 300 pound plus blue?"
The problem with billfishing, and especially on the fly, Mr. Murphy
is always looking over your shoulder. What can go wrong will go
wrong and that was becoming very obvious when the marlin was not
content to just eat one of the teaser baits and the fly. It seemed
he wanted the whole boat. Pez Vela, reaching out, lifted the spreader
bar up on the swim step. The marlin finally came to its senses
and made its turn from less than 3 feet away. P.J. was stripping
line, in short 14 to 18 inch power pulls, as fast as he could
to get a hookset. But, he could not catch up with the fish until
it turned. A quick left hand strip and the forward number 8/0
hook was firmly in the corner of the mouth.
My original question was quickly resolved. The rod tip was actually
beyond the marlin’s head at the hookset, and in trying to
catch up to the fish, Mr. Murphy had wrapped the line around the
outside of the reel. When the big blue felt the bite of the hook,
the explosion that followed snapped the 20 pound leader as if
it was thread.
On the Pacific Ocean side of Mexico, the twin cities of Ixtapa
/ Zihuatanejo are rapidly becoming a premier sailfishing destination
for serious fishermen. Not only is the area known for it's popular
resorts in Ixtapa, and the old world charm of Zihuatanejo, but
the sailfish fishing can only be duplicated in a couple of other
areas in the world.
Supported by an international airport, good roads, great hotel
and restaurant accommodations and an adequate fishing fleet, the
towns are one of the best bargains for the fisherman who wants
to get a billfish on a flyrod.
Flyfishing for a billfish is best described as the ultimate adrenaline
rush. There is no mystique; it is just taking the challenge of
light line fishing to a new level. To have a blue marlin or sailfish
rise up in the trolled spread of hookless teasers, watch him charge
the boat and take the fly; this is sight casting at its best.
Blue marlin are not as abundant as the sailfish, but as P. J.
will contest, he had a second chance on another blue two days
later. We had already released a sailfish and kept a nice thirty
pound dorado. P.J.'s fishing partner, Alan Van Duyne had taken
those and it was P.J.'s turn again. Rubin screamed "marlin,
marlin" and we went into action again. I could see it was
only about 180 pounds of fury this time, and I honestly thought
we had a chance for this one.
The twenty foot cast with the hot pink fly was eaten and the hookset
made. The marlin did not jump. He headed straight for Hawaii.
The speed and power of the run was awesome. The flyrod was bent
over to maximum resistance, the line was screaming off the reel,
and we all stared in awe. A veteran fly fisherman, P.J. had a
satisfying smile on his face that reflected past battles with
27 pound steelhead from Idaho and 50 pound salmon in Alaska. Seconds
later, for some unexplainable reason, a brand new 12-13 weight
fly reel, from a reputable manufacture, froze up. End of second
chance in two days.
Most of the billfish taken here in Ixtapa / Zihuatanejo are the
large aerobatic Pacific sailfish, however, the methods we use
for sailfish are the same for the marlin and dorado. Assuming
you are facing the stern, we troll an outrigger rod, a spreader
bar teaser and an inline teaser all from your left side of the
boat. Most people are right handed and the cast will be made from
the port corner. As to not interfere with the back cast, the port
outrigger is secured in its up position. The cast is usually made
on a diagonal. You cast from one corner, to about fifteen to twenty
feet behind the boat at the other corner.
The hookless teasers that seem to work best are actually 6 to
10 inch long dead baits. By tying a loop in the end of the line
of the teaser, it can be inserted into the bait's mouth and sewn
shut. Repeated stitches and adding a chin weight will give you
a bait that will ride true and act natural. We like to split the
bait from the vent, all the way through the tail to create a "split
tail." After you break the backbone, you have a very enticing
bait, with a lot of action.
The single rod on the outrigger has one bait and the spreader
bar has four. To imitate a small school of fish, the spreader
bar baits are staggered at different lengths behind the bar. Once
a billfish is raised, the captain slows the boat down and we simultaneously
bring in the teasers. The billfish does not sense the change in
the boat's speed. He is not actually charging the boat; he is
just trying to get to the baits, which are being pulled away from
him.
This brings him in close, and a short cast is all it takes. The
fish is so engrossed and enraged by his next meal getting away;
he readily grabs the fly and makes his turn. The trick to setting
the hook is to not use the rod. By using a power strip of 14 to
18 inches, with your left hand, you can get a good hookset or
feed a little more line back out if the fish is not there. One
of the first things that the inexperienced fisherman wants to
do is drop back too much line if the first hookset comes up with
only water. This puts the fly behind the quarry and when the teasers
were just in front, the billfish is not going to be looking backwards
for his meal.
If the first hookset does not get him, and it appears that he
has taken off, leave the fly in the water and the captain may
speed the boat up a little or the crew may drop back with the
teaser bait to raise him up again. He is in the area, but he is
confused. A good crew can get him back, and the chances are very
good he will take your fly. If he does not take the fly on the
second chance, because he is still tantalized by the teaser, you
will not have too much line out. With a lift of the rod and a
quick flick of the wrist, you can lay the fly right in front of
him again.
Probably the most underrated part of fly fishing for billfish
is the responsibilities of the person(s) handling the teasers.
I would say that proper teasing is 40% of the success for a hook-up.
First
the sailfish has to strike the baits. Without a strike, there
is zero chance of success. But, the second you see a strike, the
teaser man must be quick to the rod. This is why I like to use
a 6 foot light action rod. It will not exactly indicate a strike
before it happens, but a long light action rod will indicate those
strikes when the billfish just barely hits the bait.
Once you know there is a fish interested in the baits, the teaser
man must get the bait to the boat quickly, and coordinate with
the captain at the same time. If he brings the bait in too soon,
he looses the fish. If he stalls too long, the fish eats the bait
and renders it useless. A good teaser man will let the fish almost
get a hold of the bait and then forcefully jerk it away. The force
brings the bait to the surface and the billfish will follow. Once
the fish is on the surface, slashing at the bait as it is being
pulled away, control of the billfish is much better than trying
to guess where it is at and/or what it is doing when it is below
the surface.
The flies that seem to work the best are either in a dorado colored
pattern with greens and blues, blue and white (flying fish), or
pink and white. The flies are from 5 to 9 inches long and have
a tandem hook set up. The front hook is a 8/0 super sharp, beak
style, with an O'Shaughnessy bend. The stinger hook being a 7/0
of the same, with the only difference of having a bent eye. They
can be connected to each other by snelling the stinger hook, wrapping
the tag line on the first hook with thread and then covering with
epoxy. The connection of the first hook to the shock leader should
be crimped or create a loop with a perfection loop.
When
crimping, I like to create a double loop on my hook connections
before I crimp, and then use two crimps for strength. For the
finishing touch, and even more security, I push the sleeve towards
the hook, and lightly burn the end of the tag line before I pull
the sleeve back out and crimp it. This creates a small hard ball
on the end of the monofiliment shock leader and will help resist
being pulled through the crimp in case of a potential failure.
The best combination I have found, to get you from the fly line
to the actual fly itself is a combination of methods from two
excellent fly fishermen. P.J Cunningham and Alan Van Duyne of
Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho come off the fly line with a braided
mono-core loop, using 50 pound mono-core or Kevlar line with three
nail knots along the splice section. Each nail knot is secured
with a drop of Super Glue. They then double a 5 foot section of
50 pound mono, twist it with an electric drill and create a loop
at each end. The result is a 2 foot butt section that will stretch
and absorb some of the punishment the billfish will inflict during
the course of the fight.
The
IGFA leader system I like is a simple one foot section of 100
pound mono shock leader, with a perfection loop. The 18”
minimum class leader is then looped to the shock by using a double
bimini. With a double bimini also at the other end, it is attached
to the 50 pound butt section.
Sometimes
I prefer a floating line with no shooting head. When you make
your cast, the billfish usually attacks it the instant it is in
the water and near his head. However, your cast may be a little
early, or if you miss the hook set, the fish is still there, but
there is not enough time to make another cast. A sinking line
that has put the fly down below the surface a couple of feet,
will not allow you to impart any action in the fly. I have caught
many a billfish using a shooting head, but it just seems you have
more versatility with a floating line. Most of my flies have a
slightly weighted head and will sink on their own. By lifting
the rod tip you can get it back to the surface or just under it.
This allows you to weave the rod in a sideways action, and you
can really make the fly dance.
If
you missed the first strike, the fish may be right there, or he
will be close by. The boat is dead in the water by now, everybody
is screaming advice, and the teaser baits have either been chewed
off or they are in the boat. By giving the fly a little action,
a billfish will not hesitate to come back to it and take it as
if it was the only meal he was going to get that day. Once, after
a novice had missed a sailfish a couple of times and the fish
was gone, I had taken the rod in my hands and I was showing the
client how to get a little action out of the fly. The boat was
dead in the water and the crew was setting up and getting ready
to go look for another sailfish. The darn fish came back so fast
I only had time to set the hook and then hand the rod off.
For
the novice, it is not so important to adhere to strict IGFA regulations
as it is more important to hook, fight, and successfully release
the billfish. I have often provided the rod and reel and all the
tackle to first time fishermen and I have found there have been
no sacrificing of strikes when using a very simple, yet a very
heavy-duty setup. By taking a 6 foot section of 100 pound fluorocarbon
leader and tying a perfection knot loop on the end, a loop to
loop connection can be made to a 25 or 30 pound butt section of
about a foot long. The running line of a 12wt fly line is rated
at about 35 pounds. By having a short 30 pound butt section, if
a break occurs, you will only lose a fly, and not the entire line.
The 6 foot 100 pound “shock” leader not only gives strength
and abrasive protection, but also allows the deckhand a decent
handhold to leader the fish. Again, this is not IGFA legal, but
it is very effective for an inexperienced angler to get a chance
at tagging releasing a billfish. When you have seen grown men,
yelling and hollering like they had just made the winning touchdown
for the high school state championship football game, it is not
hard to justify a deviation from a rigid set of rules. As time
passes and the anglers fine-tune their skills, it is at this point,
the introduction to line class leaders need to be addressed.
There
are several good fly rods and reels on the market, but basically
it is just a matter of personal choice. A 12 wt outfit or larger
works best, because the reel has a large drag surface area, and
plenty of backing capacity. I prefer a 14wt rod. It is a little
heavier than needed when using IGFA leaders, but it is not like
you will be making 80 foot casts all day either. The main thing
you get with a big outfit is lifting capacity. I have seen many
a fight become a 1 hour plus prolonged battle because the 11/12wt
rod was not heavy enough to put the pressure on the fish. This
is especially true when most of the battle is over and the fly
line has a few wraps on the reel. The billfish does not want to
come to the boat and will stubbornly stay just out of reach. Each
time the motors rev up to back down on him, he panics and will
strip off a few more yards. This does nothing to shorten your
fishing day nor does it help the fish. When the fish can be brought
to the boat fairly quickly, there is a greater chance for its
full recovery.
The fly line needs to be durable and of first quality. At least
500 yards or more of 30 to 50 pound test braided line backing
will complete the outfit.
Dorado are always a possibility when fishing the blue water. It
is a good idea to have a second rod rigged and ready for one.
Many a time, a nice dorado has come over to investigate when one
angler is hooked up to a sailfish. A few quick casts by your fishing
partner, can often yield big dividends. This is especially true
when a dorado is raised up in the teasers. They will eat the fly
as readily as a billfish and there is often another lurking nearby,
giving you a shot at a double hookup on these fine tasting fish.
The
Pacific sailfish is one of the most exotic of the game fish in
the world. When hooked on light tackle or a fly rod, their aerobatics
are spectacular. Leaps, full twists, greyhounding, and tailwalking
can all be expected during the course of one hookup. Extra sharp
hooks reduce the possibility of a lost fish, but even if he does
escape after several heart stopping leaps, call it a "long"
release and go get another.
When is the best time to fish for billfish in Ixtapa / Zihuatanejo?
The sailfish are here year round, with the average month raising
three to five fish a day. December through the middle of February
are our peak months. During this time, on conventional tackle,
10 to 14 releases a day are not uncommon. Captain Margarito Romero,
on the “Gaby,” holds our unofficial record by catching
and releasing 24 sailfish in one day. He was using conventional
tackle and fishing in February, but it is a good indicator of
the outstanding possibilities of catching a billfish here.
The average hooked to raised fish ratio I have been experiencing
is about 1 fish for every 3 raised. To hook a couple of billfish,
you really need to be in a region that gives you the opportunity
to encounter lots of fish. This is why the Ixtapa / Zihuatanejo
area has become so popular with fly fishing enthusiasts. A few
seamounts, islands, and pinnacles combine with deep currents to
draw nutrient rich water up to the surface, creating an incredible
fishery. The adrenaline rush you experience, when you have hooked
and released your first billfish on a fly, will keep you coming
back again and again.
How
to get here: There are direct flights from LA and Houston. Other
flights will require a plane change in Mexico City. During the
peak season, in the mid-West and Minn. areas, travel agents have
several direct charters a week, and at a very reasonable rate.
Ed
Kunze
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