Day 3 - Same routine. Got bait from the bait guys and headed out to the spot we'd started at the prior two days. Guide throws bait, water starts to boil and roosters are busting. Watch as a rooster turns on my fly, and boom, fish on! My friend quickly hooks up also, and we start slow chasing. I can tell this one is smaller, but am just excited to catch another rooster. I get mine close to the boat, and the guide laughs and says it's a toro! Ha, how did that happen? Guess the jack beat the rooster to the fly. Buddy gets his in - it's another in what the guide estimates is the 40-50 lb range (again, I don't have the experience to know if these estimates are close, but these are definitely big fish). And yes, I'm wearing the same clothes - I've never needed clothes for fishing multiple days in under the beating sun before...and my other shirt was to baggy, it kept getting in the way when doing a two hand strip.
We go get back in position, bait starts flying. Cast, two handed strip as fast as you can. Cast, two-handed strip as fast as you can. Repeat, repeat. Friend hooks up. Our guide has been really good about trying to get the other person hooked up for a double before we start following the hooked fish. He does a couple more throws of bait, and then says, we should go follow the fish, it's a big one. Huh, that's different, he's never been anxious before. For the next hour plus my friend fights the fish. He's putting the wood to it, so much that a couple times the guide tells him to back off, doesn't want him blowing up the rod. He finally gets the rooster in, and it's huge. We've been catching big fish, and this one is just bigger. Guide estimates it in the 70-80 range, says that's as big as they get, and they catch maybe 2-3 this size each year. The pic has the two of us, to try to provide context for the size of this fish.
We go back and start fishing again, but the sun is high on the water now, fish are down deeper and not nearly as aggressive. My friend is done for awhile, just sitting and drinking a beer. After a little bit, I try to change my mojo.
Doesn't change the mojo, though I'm feeling pretty good now. We go to another spot, and as the boat settles in, we can see big jacks swimming under us, about 20 feet down just above the bottom. My friend decides to dangle a fly down to them, while the guide starts throwing bait and trying to get some roosters up. And my friend fricking hooks up with one of those big jacks on the dangled fly. He's definitely got the mojo going today, damn. I have a couple roosters follow, briefly grab and then go. This happened multiple times over the trip - I think my flies are just a little to off from the bait, and the fish are shying at the last moment. Friend gets a grande toro in after another hour long fight. He's a sweat drenched wreck and we're out of bait, so time to go in. But it was an epic day, one that leaves you kind of shaking your head and laughing - my friend will probably never catch a bigger rooster, and he deserves it, he's put in a ton of time and a lot of days not catching fish in the East Cape. I've never really even thought about this fishery before, I'm just following along.
Back on shore, karma turns on us. It's the presidential election, and alcohol sales are banned - everywhere, including restaurants - until 8 am tomorrow morning. Would have been nice to have know that yesterday.... Our guide lets us know that he has to guide another client tomorrow, but don't worry, his nephew will take us out for our last day tomorrow. The guide really knew what he was doing - very fishy and just a fun guy to fish with.
Day 4 - I wake up early, anxious to get out fishing. I really want to get one more rooster. I don't know when I'll be in this scenario again - tossing flies at aggressive grande roosters each day. We meet the nephew at the launch. There's a delay of about 45 minutes with the bait - the bait guys are having a hard time catching the bait. We get out to the same spot, nephew starts throwing bait. Today the fish aren't boiling as much and don't seem to be as aggressive. And the nephew is throwing it to far, at the edge of our casting range. We try to explain in poor Spanish that we need the bait closer to the boat, so we can cast beyond the boiling and strip through it. He gets it momentarily, and my friend hooks up with another rooster. At this point I'm getting slightly jealous. I keep casting and finally hook up. Dorado? Damn.
A little later, I get another dorado. And then it's dead. And soon we are out of bait and head back to the launch. Trying to get one more rooster, we spend 30 minutes or so casting to the little roosters near the launch, but with no bait, I can only get a follow or two.
We pack up and head to La Paz for some dinner and to plan out our two diy days. The Malecon in La Paz is a great place to people watch and eat.
First diy day ends up being lost to laziness and drinking beer at the beach. Second diy day is not very successful. A couple small barred jacks and very small brownish red rockfish like fish. Without someone throwing bait, it is challenging getting interest from the little roosters that are in close on the accessible beaches. I admire the guys that catch roosters without bait being thrown - much tougher. And now it's time to head back home to the family!
I learned a few lessons: 1. need to bring way more flies. 2. bring an assortment of eyes and some super glue. We had a lot of flies that lost one or both eyes. 3. Practice casting the heavy rods a lot more. 4. Practice two hand retrieve. It needs to be really really fast but also with each strip being long. 5. Next time bring a second sink tip line that has a faster sink rate, or maybe a full intermediate. As the sun gets higher, the fish seem to go down, even when they are hitting the thrown bait.
We go get back in position, bait starts flying. Cast, two handed strip as fast as you can. Cast, two-handed strip as fast as you can. Repeat, repeat. Friend hooks up. Our guide has been really good about trying to get the other person hooked up for a double before we start following the hooked fish. He does a couple more throws of bait, and then says, we should go follow the fish, it's a big one. Huh, that's different, he's never been anxious before. For the next hour plus my friend fights the fish. He's putting the wood to it, so much that a couple times the guide tells him to back off, doesn't want him blowing up the rod. He finally gets the rooster in, and it's huge. We've been catching big fish, and this one is just bigger. Guide estimates it in the 70-80 range, says that's as big as they get, and they catch maybe 2-3 this size each year. The pic has the two of us, to try to provide context for the size of this fish.
We go back and start fishing again, but the sun is high on the water now, fish are down deeper and not nearly as aggressive. My friend is done for awhile, just sitting and drinking a beer. After a little bit, I try to change my mojo.
Doesn't change the mojo, though I'm feeling pretty good now. We go to another spot, and as the boat settles in, we can see big jacks swimming under us, about 20 feet down just above the bottom. My friend decides to dangle a fly down to them, while the guide starts throwing bait and trying to get some roosters up. And my friend fricking hooks up with one of those big jacks on the dangled fly. He's definitely got the mojo going today, damn. I have a couple roosters follow, briefly grab and then go. This happened multiple times over the trip - I think my flies are just a little to off from the bait, and the fish are shying at the last moment. Friend gets a grande toro in after another hour long fight. He's a sweat drenched wreck and we're out of bait, so time to go in. But it was an epic day, one that leaves you kind of shaking your head and laughing - my friend will probably never catch a bigger rooster, and he deserves it, he's put in a ton of time and a lot of days not catching fish in the East Cape. I've never really even thought about this fishery before, I'm just following along.
Back on shore, karma turns on us. It's the presidential election, and alcohol sales are banned - everywhere, including restaurants - until 8 am tomorrow morning. Would have been nice to have know that yesterday.... Our guide lets us know that he has to guide another client tomorrow, but don't worry, his nephew will take us out for our last day tomorrow. The guide really knew what he was doing - very fishy and just a fun guy to fish with.
Day 4 - I wake up early, anxious to get out fishing. I really want to get one more rooster. I don't know when I'll be in this scenario again - tossing flies at aggressive grande roosters each day. We meet the nephew at the launch. There's a delay of about 45 minutes with the bait - the bait guys are having a hard time catching the bait. We get out to the same spot, nephew starts throwing bait. Today the fish aren't boiling as much and don't seem to be as aggressive. And the nephew is throwing it to far, at the edge of our casting range. We try to explain in poor Spanish that we need the bait closer to the boat, so we can cast beyond the boiling and strip through it. He gets it momentarily, and my friend hooks up with another rooster. At this point I'm getting slightly jealous. I keep casting and finally hook up. Dorado? Damn.
A little later, I get another dorado. And then it's dead. And soon we are out of bait and head back to the launch. Trying to get one more rooster, we spend 30 minutes or so casting to the little roosters near the launch, but with no bait, I can only get a follow or two.
We pack up and head to La Paz for some dinner and to plan out our two diy days. The Malecon in La Paz is a great place to people watch and eat.
First diy day ends up being lost to laziness and drinking beer at the beach. Second diy day is not very successful. A couple small barred jacks and very small brownish red rockfish like fish. Without someone throwing bait, it is challenging getting interest from the little roosters that are in close on the accessible beaches. I admire the guys that catch roosters without bait being thrown - much tougher. And now it's time to head back home to the family!
I learned a few lessons: 1. need to bring way more flies. 2. bring an assortment of eyes and some super glue. We had a lot of flies that lost one or both eyes. 3. Practice casting the heavy rods a lot more. 4. Practice two hand retrieve. It needs to be really really fast but also with each strip being long. 5. Next time bring a second sink tip line that has a faster sink rate, or maybe a full intermediate. As the sun gets higher, the fish seem to go down, even when they are hitting the thrown bait.
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