Fishing report Guatemala archive

Current Guatemala Pacific Coast Fishing Conditions
Pacific Coast sport-fishing report

Week ending July 10th 2008

The Running of the Bulls

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending July 10th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

As many of you who have fished in Guatemala will know, we keep a “weather eye” on two key indicators first thing in the morning on the dock.

The first is whether the volcano “Pacaya” is swathed in mist and high cloud – a sure sign of moisture at high altitude and often a cold front coming through.

The second is a quick glance at the steam rising from the condensing towers in nearby Puerto Quetzal – an obvious indicator of current wind strength and direction. The integration of these two data points generally forms the “Dock weather forecast” for the day and the successive couple of days – albeit with diminished accuracy.

This “Dock forecast” is generally very good from October until June – when the Pacific Coast of Guatemala is blessed with light winds, calm seas and mostly sunny days for weeks and months at a time…..a remarkable correlation to the weather forecast. This time of year however proves to be more of a challenge to the sages of the dock, for as fast as they can cast an eye over distant Pacaya and so voice their opinion of the weather to come………. it will have changed. The onset of the rainy season means that the winds can come up and change direction quickly – causing the bait and the billfish to scatter and much less concentrated.

Largely because of this, we have been raising only 5-10 billfish per day for the last few weeks, and the Blue Marlin have been noticeable only by their absence.

On the positive side, the rains in the mountains have caused their regular flooding of the rivers and tributaries – pushing debris out to the ocean. Trees and crates are to be found floating at 10-15 miles from the dock – and provide perfect ecosystems for juvenile fish to flourish. These in turn attract one of the most prolific and efficient predators of the ocean, Coryphaena hippurus AKA Dorado/Mahi-Mahi/Dolphin.

Once the Dorado start to feed, there is little that will stop them ! They will consume almost anything as juveniles – achieving remarkable growth rates of as much as 3 inches/week and doubling their weight every six months. This makes them not only prized fare for the table, but also a great sport fish particularly on light tackle.

This can be a great time of the year to come down and take advantage of the plethora of fishing that is available – from billfish to dorado to roosterfish…………and also to take advantage of our Summer Special :

Fish 3 or more days and receive one day FREE http://www.greatsailfishing.com/en/specials.htm

We are booking strongly already for some of the popular dates next year, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Week ending May 6th 2008

Sailfish and a good Blue Marlin bite !

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending May 6th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

We highlighted in last weeks report the strong Blue Marlin bite that we have had for the last several weeks in the rich blue water of the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

Two groups in particular had an extremely memorable experience;
John Bottone fishing in saltwater for the first time successfully
released his first saltwater fish and billfish (a good Sail of about
100lbs !) on his inaugural day – but on his second day hooked into
a monster Blue Marlin ! Fishing with him was Steve Robinson, an
experienced (ex) charter captain from the Florida Keys – he recounts
the battle here.

Fishing at the same time on board the Reel Diver was the
Styles party – with another member Bryn Jones also attempting
to release his first billfish. The first day was slow, with only 3
Sailfish releases – but things heated up dramatically from then on !
After crossing the barrier of his first release, quickly followed by
a half dozen more, Bryn was first to the 50lb outfit as the a decent
sized Blue Marlin appeared in the spread. Johnny the mate on
the Reel Diver in a flash heaved the rigged Dorado belly into
the teaser stream perfectly to the side and slightly behind the fish –
and the Blue inhaled it without hesitation. The fight lasted a
relatively short, but memorable, 15 minutes – and Bryn successfully
released his first ever Blue Marlin as well……see the picture right…
he looks like a Happy Camper !

The next two groups fishing with us – the Mueller and Kano parties saw consistent Sailfish action on both conventional and fly – raising 15-20 Sailfish per day and having very good hookup rates as the fish were extremely aggressive.

The blue water was swirling around a lot – ranging from a relatively close in 25 miles to as far as 50 miles from the dock – But we were able to find good action every day. The season is still strongly underway !!

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Some go to church and think about fishing, others go fishing and think about God"
~ Tony Blake

Les, Carlos, Kevin and Jim
The GreatSailfishing Company

Contact us at :

enquiries@greatsailfishing.com or to register for our weekly fishing report and other information please click here :
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contact us at greatsailfishing@yahoo.com

Steve Robinson 900lb Blue Marlin!!

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending May 8th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Once offshore and the spread running at trolling speed we hooked up with two sailfish, double header to start not even a 20 minute wait. After landing both fish and photographing, we commenced again.

15 minutes later we hooked up again, the captain saw the Marlin take the starboard outrigger bait. No time for a pitch bait on heavier tackle.

The hook up was a very large Pacific Blue Marlin. The boat was the Tranquility. (31 ft Bertram).

We estimated it to be between 300 – 500 lbs initially, that is until we got it leadered for the first time. I know enough Spanish to understand “ocho ciento cincuenta”!! Which is what the captain yelled. I have seen many fish in the 300 lbs class growing up in the Keys and this fish was… well far larger not only in length but the width was unbelievable. It was a quite a few feet longer on both sides than the width of the stern. John (the angler) said it scared him when he first saw it.

The tackle was a TLD 25 Shimano reel spooled with 20 lbs test, 80 lbs leader. It hit a rigged naked ballyhoo and not the mackerel pitch bait!

The angler was John Bottone from New Jersey, first time saltwater fishing. I talked him through the entire battle, pouring more water on the reel than John. The reel was always in motion.

The fight took more than 4.5 hours. Touched the leader 3 times but could not get the fish under control. On the last touch the 1st mate triple wrapped the leader and tried to horse it in causing the leader to brake, sounded like a 22 gun going off…

We have some video and two very poor pictures, one of the fish about 12 ft down and one on the surface.

We are trying to edit the video so we can get some still shots. We have it jumping twice on video. The size of the splash area was unbelievable.

Not a rumor….

Found out that you cannot bring any billfish to the dock, even if an IGFA world record……which at the worst would have been 800lbs Marlin on 20 lbs.

Lifetime memories.

“Its all about the experience”….. what a tag line you got!

Steve

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Fishing is such great fun, I have often felt, that It really ought to be done in bed"
~ John Voelker

Les, Carlos, Kevin and Jim
The GreatSailfishing Company

Contact us at :

Week ending April 28th 2008

(When is) Enough is Enough !

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending April 28th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Overall, we have had a great spell over the last few weeks of consistently strong numbers of billfish raised day after day. The only downside has been that the blue water has been consistent as well - hovering between 40 and 50 miles offshore. This makes for a long run in the early morning and evening, but a small sacrifice to have to make for the great fishing to be enjoyed.

We have had a few exciting episodes over the last couple of weeks; mixed in with the concentrations of Sailfish have been good numbers of Marlin, some as large as we have seen in Guatemalan waters. Steve Robinson came down with his group, one of whom had never caught a saltwater fish, never mind a billfish ! First day John (that angler !) easily made that hurdle, catching and releasing a feisty Sailfish early in the day. Now he could relax ? Not so……second day out, lines in the water, a marlin bite on the flatline and John was in the seat. A good hookup, and the captain estimated a good fish in the 500lb class – unfortunately it had chosen to bite on the 25lb class gear, and was now firmly attached to a Shimano TLD and 450yds of backing ! Over the course of the next 51/2 hours (yes 51/2 hours !), the captain pitched his experience and skill in boat maneuvering against the fish, while John tried to gain line at every opportunity. As time wore on, and the Captain managed a couple of glimpses of the Blue – he raised the stakes several times, until his final estimate at the boat of a Blue Marlin of 850-900lbs. After all this time, it was important to achieve a quick release at the boat, so a touch of the leader and the huge fish swam away – not sure now who was the most grateful that the fight was done ! Congratulations to John on what was truly a world-class angling performance – 850lb Blue Marlin on 25lb gear.

Soon after this escapade, we welcomed pro angler Mark Maus down to fish a couple of days and film a show with us for The Outdoor Channel. You know…..the thing about fishing, is…You just never know……so we were under some pressure to find Billfish in sufficient numbers to accommodate all the camera angles, shots, perspectives, underwater film etc etc required nowadays of a professional show. Fortunately, it was lines in – and 4 minutes later Mark and I had a feisty double underway…..while Jason our cameraman worked like crazy trying to get the appropriate batteries in the appropriate microphones, lenses on cameras etc etc.

This pattern continued over the next days fishing as well – and by lunch on day 2 we pretty much had it “in the can”. Mark – as a pro-fisherman, had an interesting perspective on the fishing in Guatemala, that while “I have traveled all over the world billfishing and making shows – from Costa Rica to Baja to Panama – this is BY FAR, the BEST BILLFISHING THAT I HAVE EVER EXPERIENCED” , he also commented however, that as a (primarily) “Traveling Anglers’ Destination”…..when is “Enough is Enough” ????

He calculated that we had raised a billfish every 6 minutes while we were trolling to raise fish for the show – which while ideal for us filming for TV, may in fact be too much action for a group of guys fishing for fun or a family just getting together. Good Point……Nice Problem to have I replied !

Finally, CONGRATULATIONS to Sheri Larkin who fished With us earlier in the year, and submitted one of her pics of a particularly acrobatic bull Dorado to Sportfishing Mag for their photo competition and promptly secured an excellent third place ! You can see the winning pics here.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy the rest of the season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company

We are already booking strongy for some of the popular dates next year, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Week ending March 15th 2008

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending March 15th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Opportunity knocks ! This has been a remarkable season – consistently
strong numbers of fished raised almost every day, regardless
of the moon phase, time of day or current. The only thing that
has really mattered has been finding good blue water.

This past week we have seen the deep blue water move out further
to between 30 and 40 miles – but once we have the baits in the
water, the fish have been there.

The boats have been raising 20-40 sailfish each day – giving plenty
of shots both on conventional tackle and the fly. With so many fish
chasing the teasers, there is inevitably competition between them to
get to the bait – and this has resulted in some spectacular scenes
of pods of billfish slashing at the ballyhoo being trolled close to
the transom.

By the time they have good sight and timing on the teaser, and it
has been yanked away – the sails are fully lit up and ready to
pounce on the fly as presented to the side and just behind their
last attack.

This is a great time to come down and hone those flyfishing skills
to catch 100lb+ pelagics on a 13wt.

There have been fewer Marlin showing, but they are still around
and every trip has the potential to deliver not only large numbers
of sailfish, but a Blue Marlin as well !……….things are fishing well in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy
the rest of the season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company
We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t
wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below)
to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to
some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"The fish is not so much your quarry as your partner"
~ Arnold Gingrich

Les, Carlos, Kevin and Jim
The GreatSailfishing Company

Contact us at :

Week ending February 24th 2008

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending February 24th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

The “common wisdom” is that when the full moon lights up the night sky, the predators can find their prey and continue to feed throughout the night – and so are less aggressive the following day. Perhaps it was the eclipse of the moon that did it………..but if anything the billfish are hungry – and getting hungrier every day !!

We welcomed back Jody V. and his group to Guatemala – and of course even though we wish all of our clients good success, it is very pleasing when old friends come down and first day out from the dock enjoy great sport.

First day results :
Joint Venture 29 Billfish caught and released
Balena 37 Billfish caught and released
Reel Diver 42 Billfish caught and released

The weather has been clement, calm seas and very warm – blue water temperature over 80deg at 24 miles. The fishing has been consistently getting better, with regular raises for all boats in excess of 50 per day.

A strong Marlin bite, good numbers of Sailfish raise and caught – and
even food for the table……….things are fishing well in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala. The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy what is turning out to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company.

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Men and fish are alike. they both get into trouble when they open their mouths"
~ Jimmy D Moore

Les, Carlos, Kevin and Jim
The GreatSailfishing Company

Contact us at :

Week ending February 3rd 2008

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending February 3rd 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

So far so good – this has been a great season to date, with a strong and steady bite since early November. It’s always great to welcome back old friends to Guatemala, and to be able to reward their loyalty and perseverance with outstanding fishing. The rich Pacific waters off the coast of Guatemala are regularly mentioned in fishing magazines and TV shows as consistently some of the most productive billfishing in the world - witness the February 2008 issue of Sportfishing magazine (right) that discusses the strength of the fishery (and The Great Sailfishing Company in particular !). They also talk about Bluefin off the Outer Banks….we can only manage Yellowfin in good numbers as well as Sailfishing and Marlin……….but the weather is a lot more clement.

The boats have been putting lines in at only 22 miles or so – or as soon as they crew spot billfish either breaching or lounging on the surface. There is plenty of bait in the water, so it is really a question of sighting the fish to set lines in the most productive areas. We have been averaging >20 raises of billfish almost every day, with regular catches of Blue/Black Marlin included in the mix as well as good sized dolphin.

There seems to have been little regard or effect from different moon phases this season – perhaps an indicator of the sheer volume of billfish that are hanging all along the blue water line.

A strong Marlin bite, 20+ raises per day being the norm at the moment – and even food for the table……….things are fishing well in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Week ending January 14th 2008

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending January 14th 2008 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

The New Year has continued at the same pace as we left the old one behind. Plenty of billfish being raised and caught consistently from 12-35 miles from the dock.

I am writing this report from Boston as we prepare for the fly-fishing show this week – and it is hard to imagine the completely different world of sunny skies, calm seas and aggressive billfish from here. We have just enjoyed our first Nor’easter of the year (but not the first of the season),
and as I was digging my way out this morning, my mind easily wandered to the Pez Vela Marina in Guatemala .

It is quite a contrast from the snow boots and shovel to the amble down the dock to the waiting boat. The sun waking from long shadows on the deck, the crew preparing the baits – the gentle rumble of the exhaust as the boat kicks into gear.

About the only thing we have in common this morning is our concern about ice……..albeit for slightly different reasons.

We have welcomed several groups down over the New Year period, and they have all enjoyed a strong and consistent bite. Mark Weekes and family came to visit all the way from Tokyo , and fished for eight days straight. You have to admire the stamina.

They had a great variety of fishing, from big bull Dorado, to light tackle and flyfishing for schools of splashing Bonita. The highlight however was hooking up to his first marlin on the fly. The Blue took the fly close to the end of day, but it was a good size fish even on a 15wt., and Mark settled in for a long fight. The cap’n was unsure exactly how large the marlin was, and so played the fish, the boat and Mark quite gently until he got a good eye on it. He estimated the Blue at 250lbs., and started working the boat towards the fish which had sounded hard. The sun was setting, and there was still little purchase – all Mark could do was to keep good pressure on the fish and try to raise its head. Eventually almost 3 hours later, the fish was at the boat and revived to swim away.

The Joint Venture returned to the dock in the dark, only a few stragglersremained to see the marlin release flag flying – but we had the pictures and the memory locked away.

A strong Marlin bite, 20+ raises per day being the norm at the moment – and even food for the table……….things are fishing well in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala. The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t
wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below)
to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to
some of the finest fishing anywhere

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Next to prayer, fishing is the most personal relationship of man"
~ Herbert Hoover

Les, Carlos, Kevin and Jim
The GreatSailfishing Company

Week ending December 22nd 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending December 22nd 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

This will be a short report for this week – like most other guys, we have

left all of our Xmas shopping until the last minute. It’s not that we hadn’t

thought about it, or hadn’t done anything about it – rather we had

(mis)placed all our trust in the new promised land of eCommerce.

The proposition is so tempting – browse in the comfort of the home office, don’t even have to lift a finger turning the pages of the fishing catalogs when a click of the mouse will do – and hey presto ! The whole family has a new gaff for the season – even one of those nice gold ones for my wife.

Unfortunately, there is weak link in the chain – and it is called the US Postal service. Whatever happened to those dedicated men of days gone by, when the mail would get through no matter what the weather or what turpitude was placed in their way………..now a little bit of snow causes delays at the “sorting facility” - and I have to go to the mall on Xmas Eve.. Well actually, I have to go to the car park at the mall first and cruise for a couple of hours sparring with the school moms who have advanced degrees in finding open parking spaces before anyone else.

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t

wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below)

to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to

some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Fly-fishing is the most fun you can have standing up"
~ Arnold Gingrich

We would like to take the opportunity to wish all of our friends, clients and prospective clients our very best wishes for the season. May you have a wonderful Xmas and a peaceful and joyous New Year.

Les, Carlos, Kevin and Jim
The GreatSailfishing Company

Contact us at :

Week ending December 10th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending December 10th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

It’s dark up there at the moment – there is just about no moon to facilitate feeding at night, and that seems to have made the billfish concentrate in packs. If you’ve ever seen the wonderful footage on natural history programs of pods of Sailfish working together corralling bait into tighter and tighter balls, you will have a good image of what the fishing in Guatemala is like at the moment.

The image to the right is Mr. Schafferius with his first Sailfish on the fly - CONGRATULATIONS..........quite a screensaver ! Finding the bait and the blue water is almost guaranteed to find sails (and sometimes marlin) in good concentrations. Sometimes these bait balls are relatively close to each other, and sometimes they are widely dispersed. The fleet has been finding them this past week at distances ranging from 10 – 40 miles from the dock – but once a working area is found, it has been possible to fish it the whole day with continuous action.

Our groups fishing this week had consistent action throughout the day, and for the most part after a relatively short run of about 12 miles. Talk about consistent fishing – on Friday we had 3 groups out on our boats, and two boats returned in the evening having brought 20 sailfish to the boat (thankfully they were all members of Kim Graham’s party !) so the betting had to be deferred to the next day. The Buchel party, not to be outdone, wished that they had been part of the sweep, returning to the dock a few minutes later with a final tally of 24 sailfish caught.

Amazing (fun) Fishfact of the week :
Starfish have eight eyes – one at the end of each leg……
…..amazing but true !

A strong Marlin bite, good numbers of Sailfish raise and caught – and even food for the table……….things are fishing well in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"There is certainly something in angling that tends to produce a serenity of mind"
~ Washington Irving

Contact us at :

Week ending December 2nd 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending December 2nd 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Sometimes the requests for Santa are fairly straight forward - a new reel, a traveling rod case, a splendid GreatSailfishing tshirt - sometimes however, they can be a bit of a challenge.

We had an inquiry from the North Pole that had been relayed on from Russia - Sergey Ilinykh really, REALLY wanted to hook up to a Blue Marlin that would challenge his technique as well as his equipment.
He had been monitoring our fishing reports from Guatemala, and had browsed the claims on our site that has been promoting the remarkable Marlin bite over the last couple of seasons at www.GreatMarlinfishing.com - and he figured this was the place to make his bet.

Although he didn't have to visit the North Pole before arriving in Guatemala - he did have to fly through Amsterdam's Schiphol airport, which can be a challenge to his technique all by itself. Sure enough, some weather and flight delays caused him to miss his connection, and inevitably he would arrive a day later than planned. Now the decision - sacrifice a days fishing, or curtail the Tikal trip by a day ? Approximately 3 seconds later, he relayed the message to us in Guatemala - pickup at the airport, head straight for the coast.

The fishing has been great the last couple of weeks, as reported in our prior reports; lines in at 10 miles, a strong and steady Sailfish bite. Raises in the 20+ have been consistent day after day. One of our groups last week raised over 50 Sailfish in a day - out came the fly gear, and Mr. Schafferius successfully also added his first billfish on the fly to his (considerable) list of achievements.

With this knowledge, Sergey boarded the Joint Venture with an air of optimism.

It didn't take long until the first Sailfish were in the boat - but it was clearly Marlin that he was after. Midday .... sailfish bashing the left teaser....when the Cap'n calls out "Marlin on left rigger" - and sure enough there was the long shadow looming under the bait. Francisco (aka Guapo) handles the reel as his 25 years of experience have taught, and carefully guides the bait towards the transom. The marlin follows, the shadow becomes less grey, lights up and chases, he yanks at the last minute... Hermano pitches the belly-bait on the Penn 50W - and they are hooked up to a magnificent, and very large Blue Marlin.

The weight estimates continued to increase as the fight bore on - first it was the "regular" 350lbs....then it became 500lbs....the fight wore on. The original hookup was at 19 miles, but she was eventually brought to the boat at 27 miles 4 hours later. The cap'n estimated the weight at over 700lbs - too large to be brought in for pictures, so the effort moved instantly to revive and release. It took some time, but eventually she shook her massive bill and slipped off into the deep blue water.

Santa always does his best.

More days, more fishing and more Blue Marlin have followed. To be updated in next weeks report.

A strong Marlin bite, good numbers of Sailfish raise and caught - and
even food for the table....things are definitely looking up in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed - come down and enjoy the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don't wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below)to check on dates - we would look forward to welcoming you to
some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Be patient and calm - for no one can catch fish in anger"
~ Herbert Hoover

Contact us at :

Week ending November 26th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending November 26th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Fishing over the last few weeks has been steady, with raises in the high double digits the norm. – a slight dip over the full moon last week, but numbers of releases for both Sailfish and Marlin have been strong since.
The bite has been especially vigorous first thing in the morning, and this has been made easier and more convenient for anglers with the blue water moving in as close in as only 10 miles.

We welcomed the Schafferius party to our new villa this week – complete with swim-up bar, satellite TV and amenities…….all the comforts of home without the washing up !

More importantly, we welcomed them aboard the Joint Venture for their first days fishing, and put lines in at 9 miles from the dock. The action came thick and fast, with Sailfish aggressively pursuing the teasers. They raised 20 Sailfish on their first day out – with 15 bites and 8 releases. Also in the mix, and brought to the boat was a 350lb Blue Marlin and some good sized Dorado for the table.

The season has now started in earnest, and the early indicators are good for plenty of billfish this year – hopefully the marlin will hang around as well !

Correction : I reported last week of “Grand Slams” being released (Blue/Black marlin and Sailfish). I regret that this was in error and due to my poor translation (literally) of the Captain’s report. In fact they reported several “Slams” of Blue Marlin, Sailfish and Dorado. Apologies for that – we like to be accurate in our reporting.

A strong Marlin bite, good numbers of Sailfish raise and caught – and even food for the table……….things are definitely looking up in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy
the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"The Gods do not deduct from man’s allotted span the hours spent fishing"
~ Herbert Hoover

Contact us at :

Week ending November 18th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending November 18th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

I’m the first to recognize that “Local Knowledge” is one of the most important factors in a successful fishing trip. The complex interaction of tides/moons/currents/temperatures/depth etc etc. become almost overwhelming, but years of experience in a particular locale decipher them into almost a “3rd sense” for where the fish are.

This seems to have been taken to a whole new level in Guatemala however, where the local fishermen now seem to be able to PREDICT the fishing months ahead.

The “Presidential Challenge” took place this past weekend, and after weeks of relatively inconsistent fishing at seemingly random spots, all of a sudden the fish have become more concentrated starting at only 15-18 miles from the dock.

Most boats were raising 15-25 sails per day and at the end of the tournament 30+ sails caught over the 3 days was sufficient to be in the hunt. There also several “Grand Slams” on Blue Marlin, Black Marlin and Sailfish brought to the boat over the course of the tournament. Seas were very calm with hardly and surface movement at all until about midday.

The “Joint Venture” also fished Sunday and found not only good numbers of sails at the same mark (15 caught), but also large schools of voracious Albacore that were readily attacking small skirts trolled quickly on light tackle – providing great sport as well as good steaks for the table.

A strong Marlin bite, good numbers of Sailfish raise and caught – and even food for the table……….things are definitely looking up in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy
the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Good things come to those who bait."
~ Unknown

Week ending November 11th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending November 11th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

A strong Marlin bite, good numbers of Sailfish raised and caught – and even food for the table……….things are definitely looking up in the rich fishing grounds off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala.

Groups fishing last week found blue water ranging from 20 to as far as 70 miles from the marina; but the good news was that the strongest and most consistent bite was found closest to shore at around 25 miles. In fact at the beginning of this week, boats were getting their first bite as close in as 5 miles !!

The weather has been kind, and warm days coupled with calm seas made the relatively short run to “lines in” a pleasant experience – even sipping coffee to make sure the adrenalin was on full standby.

Most boats were raising between 10 and 15 billfish per day, and the Blue Marlin showed consistently in the spread as well some even taking the fly without hesitation.

There is plenty of variety in the water at the moment, with Dorado and Tuna readily available to provide fresh Cerviche on the boat as well as a good fillet for the evening meal prepared by the chef in the villa.

The boats are ready, the crews are primed – come down and enjoy
the buildup to what we hope is going to be a great season fishing with The Great Sailfishing Company.

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t
wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below)
to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to
ome of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Why do people go fishing ? Some say they fish to get fish. This is obviously false.
~ John Randolph

Contact us at :

Week ending November 3rd 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending November 3rd 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

The calm seas and clear skies belie the frenetic pace of activity around the docks and yards of the Marina Pez Vela. The bulk of the preparation for the peak of the season has been completed – now we are just adding the finishing touches. Polish on the gelcoat, a final sand of the hull …. a bit of spit and a bit of polish. We are ready, and by all accounts the billfish are ready as well.

The boats are still doing more prospecting than usual to find good concentrations of fish, with raises ranging from low single digits to 20+ within a day of each other. The consistency continues to improve week by week however.

We were pleased to welcome Snr. Gelido and his group all the way from Argentina this week. The reputation of the quality sailfishing off the Pacific Coast of Guatemala has obviously now extended about as far South as it can get !

There has been a strong current of deep blue water consistently at 40 miles from dock which has become the automatic lines in point for the fleet – and to start fanning out from there. The Captains have reported that the fish seem to be following the bluewater further inshore, which we hope will lead to greater concentrations closer in over the next few weeks………….but still…………..20+ raises in November seems like a good start to the season, along with a few marlin raised as well - maybe a good marlin www.GreatMarlinfishing.com season to come as well !

We still have availability for some of the popular dates, so don’t wait, give us a call at 1-877-763-0851 or send us an email (below) to check on dates – we would look forward to welcoming you to some of the finest fishing anywhere.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"I don’t want to sit at the head table anymore, I want to go fishing”
~ George Bush

Week ending September 24th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending September 24th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

This is the time of year when there is a real buzz down in Guatemala . You can sense that the season is about to start with vigor. Most of the heavy preparation has been completed – boats that have languished for some time on stands while their innards were refurbished are now floating again.

The docks are busy with crews doing maintenance and cosmetic work : triple spreaders lay on the dockside like hurdles, clouds of dust hang in the air from power tools preparing for paint.

The weather is falling back to its more predictable pattern of light winds, calm seas and blue skies. ….however not yet everyday.

We welcomed the Crosby party to fish with us this week onboard the Joint Venture – and their first day out faced one of the exceptions; a strong Southeast breeze was whipping up 2-3 feet seas with some white tops. The Joint Venture at 23000lbs dry is a sturdy fishing and cruising platform in such conditions, but the buffeting does make the positioning of the boat with finesse more difficult, particularly for fly-fishing.

Perseverance paid off however, and the group raised 7 good sized Sailfish, bringing 4 to the boat for obligatory pictures. They started their second day just where they had left off : lines in at 40 miles …. but much calmer seas. During the course of the day they managed some specimen fish. As well as the anticipated Sailfish, they raised and hooked up to 3 Blue Marlin, one estimated at 600lbs. We will be posting pictures on GreatMarlinFishing . Also in the mix were Bull Dolphin up to 35lbs and Wahoo.

We kept our eyes open for schools of Spinning Dolphin that would indicate the presence of Tuna to try and add to the species caught, but none were seen in the grounds being fished that day.

There's always tomorrow !

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Scholars have long known that fishing eventually turns men into philosophers. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to buy decent tackle on a philosopher’s salary”
~ Patrick F. McManus

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Week ending September 9th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the two weeks ending September 9th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

It’s times like this that we are glad to have a mountain range and substantial land mass between our boats nestled in the Pez Vela Marina and the warm currents of the Caribbean . First Dean decided to make an appearance, but thankfully stayed on a true ENE track – but then Felix called and said he wanted to visit. We knew from experience that by the time the storm made it to the volcanoes guarding the coast, the winds would have subsided – but several inches of rain over the highlands can become a torrent as they flow down to the coast and can easily overwhelm the flood infrastructure and cause devastation.

The town of Puerto San Jose next to the marina was battered by heavy rain for 6 hours, and many of the culverts were quickly overwhelmed – but the multiple inlets cut into the town absorbed the bulk of the flood and directed it into the floodplain and from there out to sea.

No serious injuries, minor damage – but tons of debris being washed miles out to sea. This quickly became a sanctuary for smaller fish to hide below – and so the food chain took over. This was apparent as soon as the boats headed out after the storm. A minimum of two pairs of eyes were needed on the flybridge to look out for “floaters” (almost a misnomer as they are large logs that actually float just below the surface) that may lurk and can rip a hole through even the heaviest of hulls.

Beneath almost every log however, the Dorado schooled – and so provided sport and dinner for all. In my opinion, casting a 9wt to a 15lb dolphin is at least as much fun as swinging to a 13wt to a 100lb sailfish. You have the spectacle of the aerobatic fight, but frequently get to sight cast to a targeted fish 60ft away and really flyfish. This is the time of year when almost all species can be found in the bait rich water. One day fishing brought 10+ sailfish to the boat as well as a full complement of dorado and tuna – the only thing missing was a Marlin…..maybe this week !

Week ending August 5th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the two weeks ending August 5th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Even charter boat captains have to take a vacation at some point – and so it is even down in Guatemala . The billfish are still fairly well concentrated (which is more than can be said for the Captains) – but with fewer boats venturing out each day, it is harder to have enough scouting capacity out on the water to find them efficiently.

This is particularly the case when the blue water only starts at about 35 miles from port.

One of the great attributes of a 100% catch and release fishery is that there is hardly any selfishness between the boats. When the bite is found, the only limitation to getting the co-ordinates is the ability of the ear to decipher the “Guatamaltique” chatter over the radio at full pace !

Both the Joint Venture and the Reel Diver headed out from the dock in search of both billfish and fish for the table (Dorado and Tuna). We welcomed the Hamer party to fish with us over the weekend.

The Captains found a strong bite at about 45 miles from port, and fished reasonably consistently – raising single digits of sails. Each boat also managed a good sized Blue Marlin in the 350-450lb class, which occupied crew and clients alike for some considerable time !

The weather cooperated and remained calm and warm for this time of year.

It seems like the Marlin are hanging around much more than they have in past years – a consistent bite all the way through the normally quiet summer months.

Hopefully a good omen for the coming season – we hope you will come and give it a try !

We had a great time, thank you so much......... it was absolutely amazing and exceeded our expectations………you guys did a fantastic job and your staff…………….were fantastic.”

The fish are still here, and are still biting aggressively – it’s not to late to come down and enjoy the “Low Season” in Guatemala , home of the World’s Best Sailfishing.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Fishermen are born honest, but they get over it”
~ Ed Zern

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Week ending July 30th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the two weeks ending July 30th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

When the weather cooperates, we are continuing to see some excellent concentrations of billfish in the waters off the Pez Vela marina. Most days have been warm and calm, but we are in the official rainy season, and so it can also sometimes be a little unpredictable.

We were pleased to welcome Sherri Larkin and her group recently – and they encountered both sets of conditions. The first day out fishing on the Joint Venture the seas were a solid 3-4 feet and the going was rough at times. Despite this, they persevered and were rewarded with 3 good size sailfish to the boat.

Their second day out however was at the other extreme: calm seas and balmy temperatures….and the bite was HOT. They hooked into two Blue Marlin (one of which was specimen size for Guatemala at 600lbs+) as well as bringing some dorado home for the table.

The Sailfish made an excellent showing for this time of the year, with 30+ raises and 15 to the boat for the day.

So much for the low season !

Overall a great trip ……………”

We had a great time, thank you so much......... it was absolutely amazing and exceeded our expectations………you guys did a fantastic job and your staff…………….were fantastic.”

The fish are still here, and are still biting aggressively – it’s not to late to come down and enjoy the “Low Season” in Guatemala , home of the World’s Best Sailfishing.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"The best time to go fishing is when you can get away.”
~ Robert Traver

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Week ending June 24th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending June 24th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

We were pleased to welcome Michael Brennan and his two sons to Guatemala this past week to experience The Great Sailfishing adventure. They were inspired to fish with us after watching Cindy Garrison’ s ESPN escapades on the Joint Venture.

The weather and seas were calm as they set off on their first morning with Capt. Marvin. We hadn’t ventured out of dock for a couple of days, so were a little uncertain about the prospects, but with good blue water starting at 22 miles the crew was optimistic.

Shortly after lines in the first Sailfish was in the spreads. This was a good sign – the fish was lit up and aggressively chasing the teasers, first on the port side, then rapidly switching to the starboard. As soon as the freshly rigged ballyhoo was in the water however, it quickly switched attention and pursued the meal with venom. An easy hookup and release followed in short order.

While this had been going on, Capt. Marvin had been surveying the surrounding water, and had observed Sails free jumping a short distance away. He kicked the Reel Diver into gear and started to troll the mile or so to the last jumper he had seen. Didn’t get far however before two hungry sails started following the short line – and more action ensued.

This continued almost non-stop – eventually raising over 40 Sailfish for the day, bringing over half to the boat and release. Could this continue ?

The second day proved that it could – even in the “low season”. A similar catch rate for Sailfish, many Dorado and many more smiles occurred the second day out – the final day was capped off with two Blue Marlin.

To quote the crew : “There are Sails all over the place !”

Come and experience The Great Sailfishing adventure for yourself – try our “Off Season” !!! We even have a SPECIAL running to make it easy for you !

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"If fishing is interfering with your business, give up your business.”
~ Paul Schullery

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Week ending June 17th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending June 17th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina . The great thing about summer fishing in the bait rich watersoff the Pacific Coast of Guatemala is that just about anything can happen, and frequently does.

The size of the fleet fishing each day is diminished, and so it can be more difficult to find the concentrations of Sailfish that are a hallmark of the region during the peak of the season – but they are there.

We welcomed the Lunquist party this past week and both the Joint Venture and the Reel Diver went out looking for the bite. The Captains worked together to find good blue water and steady fishing.

Lines in at 30 miles produced a steady pick of good sized Dorado which provided fantatstic action on light tackle. The rains in the previous week had washed out debris from the land, and this provided good targets to aim for while still continuing the search for billfish.

Each boat came in with a release record of 2 Sailfish for the day – but everyone was happy as there had been continuous action with Bonita and some good sized Dorado. The Joint Venture brought 24 Dorado to the boat and the Reel Diver had 12 – so plenty of good fish for dinner.

As the summer progresses, we anticipate more “Bull” dolphin as the bait becomes more concentrated under some of the large logs that float out to the fishing grounds from the estuaries – so come an enjoy some great fishing as well as a fine dinner, with billfish action mixed in !

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Calling fishing a hobby is like calling brain surgery a job.”
~ Paul Schullery

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Week ending March 31th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending March 31th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Finally – the fish have started to show in the numbers and concentrations that Guatemala is famous for. The McCarthy party had a great visit with double digit releases each day, as well as a monster dorado of close to 50lbs. We were pleased to welcome father and son the Prices all the way from the UK for 4 days of fishing on the Reel Diver. They demonstrated some great hooking skill – and managed to have 87 Sailfish to the boat over their 4 days offshore.

The fishing is consistent now with at least 20 raises each day and many days over 20 releases as well. The blue water has been best with lines in at 30 miles. What has been even more pleasing has been that the action has been constant all day with a steady bite from early morning until the end of the day.

We are hoping that it will last and is only an indicator of the season
kicking off later than usual……but we will continue to report the action
each week as it develops……stay tuned !

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Angling may be said to be so like mathematics That it can never be fully learnt"
~ Izaak Walton

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Week ending March 26th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending March 26th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina . As one of my old bosses used to tell me.."The
hardest part of Forecasting is the predicting the future bit...."

......and we have been predicting/hoping for some weeks now for the bite to pick up to the standards expected of the rich waters of Guatemala . Finally the blue water has moved closer in and the
appropriate stars seemed to have lined up so that the billfish have concentrated and are feeding well. There has been a steady improvement each day over the last week, with the numbers of fish raised each day now comfortably in the teens and twenties.

The "Reel Diver" had a high day late in the week with 35 raises and constant action through the day. The Karr party had "11 by 11" fish to the boat yesterday, when they decided to switch and try some reef fishing for Pargo and Grouper - but a strong start to the day ! The Blue Marlin are still around, but the numbers have diminished as the conditions now are clearly more favourable for Sailfish.

We are hoping for the bite to continue through the new moon, and look forward to the last part of the season (hopefully !) being the best part of the year for our clients over the next 6 weeks.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Reading about baseball is a lot more interesting than reading about chess, but you have to wonder :
Don't any of these guys ever go fishing ?"
~Dave Shiflet

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Week ending March 4th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending March 4th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

I was hoping for one of those days; it has been a while since I managed a day on the water, and much longer since I managed a day with my wife and two sons.

We were inspired by the reports from the Carr party last week of Blue Marlin to be found as well as Sailfish far to the West - so as the sun rose, we parted ways with the majority of the fleet and ran West for an hour to find blue water. It has been slow for Guatemala this "peak season" for some reason - single digits have been the norm, and this day started in much the same way. The crew worked hard to keep the baits fresh and trying different patterns to try and tempt the sails to turn on - but it took 3 hours of trolling to raise the first sailfish.

My 11 year old son took the challenge and Capt. Marvin did a great job of working the boat to get the sail over the transom in 10 minutes for my youngest son's first ever sailfish ! We took a quick 300
photos. and released the fish to swim away.

My 12 year old son was next in rotation, and patiently concentrated on the teasers for 2 hours. Doesn't it always seem to happen this way ? We were just finishing off our lunch that Oswlado the first mate on the Reel Diver had lovingly prepared, when The yell resonated from the bridge : Marlina !!............. and there it was, focused on the centre teaser. Oswaldo grabbed the 50WT rigged with a freshly sewn bonita belly and pitched it while I thrust the remnants of lunch into the trash. As I looked up, I could see the huge shadow of a very large marlin redirect its focus now to the fresh bait just tossed. It inhaled the bonita and the reel
screamed - the fish was well hooked. "Mas Mas" screamed Capt. Marvin to wake us up from the action - and we pitched Rigged ballyhoo back to two more apparently hungry bills. Two quick hook ups and
we were there.......3 Blue Marlin hooked up at one time !! Now what to do ??

Some of the chaos was relieved when in the melee two lines crossed while all three marlin were running and we lost one of the fish - regrettably the largest. We still had a double header underway however. We maneuvered the boat so that one fish was off the bow and one was off the stern, and we started to feed line to my son's fish so that we could focus on bringing the other fish to the boat. Oswaldo made busy
connecting line as the fish off the bow just continued to run.... Twenty minutes later, we had the first Marlin, approximately 300lbs to the leader and a clean release was executed. Now my son was faced with
a still fresh marlin and 1000yds of Dacron between him and the fish......he faced the challenge with a brave face.. An hour and several bottles of water later, we hauled in Matthew's first Blue Marlin - a good fish of around 400lbs. Some quick pictures, and the third marlin of the afternoon disappeared into the deep blue water. It had been a Great Day out on the fishing grounds of Guatemala .

Kevin Styles

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Game fish are too valuable to be caught only once"
~Lee Wulff

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Week ending February 26th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending February 26th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

This is seeming to be a confusing season; we had a great bite in late December and early January….and then it went cold. Both in the sense of the veracity of the bite, and also for the relative water temperature. It appeared like we had recovered, and the fishing was coming back to the “norm” of catches in the teens for February………… but it has stayed stubbornly in the single digits for most days.

Up and down the Pacific coast, we hear similar reports of less aggressive and less numerous bites than expected for this time of year……..but we live in hope and anticipation of it really turning on.

On the positive side, we are seeing and catching a good run of Blue Marlin : The Carr party had 2 good sized Blues in the spread on their penultimate days fishing. Unfortunately the fish refused the fresh Bonita belly baits, and despite being surround by tasty teasers of all flavors, and just wouldn’t bite seriously. I’m happy to report however that that was resolved on theirfinal day as they hooked up and brought to the boat a 500lb Blue Marlin……a good trophy to accompany the 7 sailfish caught that day. Congratulations !

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"The gods do not deduct from man's allotted span the hours spent in fishing"
~Babylonian Proverb

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Week ending February 12th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending February 12th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

As you walk down to the dock in the early morning……you can sense it. The season in full swing – the clients know it, the crews know it, and
most important of all, the fish know it and are cooperating. It is still dark, and the marina is a hive of activity, as almost every boat has spreader lights on and the crews are working to prepare the boats for the day. Coolers are being stocked; ice is being delivered in 100lbbags, bait is being rigged and drags are tested and set for the day.

Even though our crews do this almost every day now, they still have a smile on their face, as the fishing has been good, and just as importantly, it has been consistent.

The run to the blue water has come in a little to about 25miles, but once
the lines are in, the action has generally started quickly, and has remained consistent throughout the day. Most boats most days are reporting catches in the mid teens to twenties, with the fish being particularly aggressive for the early bite – multiple hook ups are the norm in the morning.

There still seem to be plenty of marlin – both striped and blue – around and they have been aggressive even towards the smaller baits and teasers that we are dragging for the Sailfish.

We anticipate it only getting better from here !! Come down and let’s go !

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Scholars have long known that fishing eventually turns men into philosophers. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to buy decent tackle on a philosopher's salary..”
~Patrick F McManus

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Week ending February 4th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending February 4th
2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

OK – so now I’m confused…but maybe the fish are as well. The
“Common Wisdom” purports that during the brightest moon phases, the predators are more able to find a meal at night – and so feed constantly, diminishing their appetite and usual aggressive feeding during the day. It was during a full moon in March 2006 that the Sailfish were practically jumping in the boat – and Guatemala (re)set the record book with up to 124 to the boat in a single days fishing. When fishing here was slow (by Guatemala standards) through the new moon in January, we weren’t anticipating much help as it rose through full at the start of the month. But just to confound us………….the bite steadily picked up, and continues to improve.

So much for the fish playing by the rules (see last weeks “Favorite
Quote”.

The blue water is still a ways out, at 35-50 miles, but Rick Quade
and party made the run (despite the full moon!) and were rewarded
with counts in the high teens to low twenties. Each of our boats also
had a Blue Marlin in the 350-450lb class over the weekend as well.
The marlin action has been constant this season so far – even reports of
“Granders”, with at least one caught. Blacks and Stripeys have been
making a showing in the spread.

Following on from our filming for ESPN with Cindy Garrison, we were
pleased to welcome Mike Keyes of “Keyes Outdoors” down this past
week filming a show for FOX SPORTS to be shown in 5m homes in
Mid West. Lookout for The Great Sailfishing Company coming to a TV
in your neighborhood!

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"Three-fourths of the Earth's surface is water, and one-fourth is land. It is quite clear that the good Lord intended us to spend triple the amount of time fishing as taking care of the lawn.”
~Chuck Clark

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Week ending January 28th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending January 28th
2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

It has been unusually slow fishing for Guatemala over the last couple of weeks – the common wisdom among the wizened captains has been that the water temperatures at the colour changes have either not had enough gradient, or the temperatures themselves have been a couple of degrees below normal.

This had resulted in bait not concentrating, and hence the Predators find it harder to find food, and they themselves become harder to find.

The weather has improved significantly this last week – and it certainly seems to have positively effected the fishing. The bluewater has come in to about 30 miles from the dock, we are seeing regular billfish raises in the low teens per day – along with catches of good size (20-25lb)
yellowfin tuna and dorado.

Our catch of the week has to go to the Wuori party, who are demonstrating their skill at hooking up to the sails – but somewhat unusually for Guatemala also managed to hook up to a feisty striped marlin this week – and saw another in the spread.

Our Favorite Fishing Quote for the week :

"It has always been my private conviction that any man who pits his intelligence against a fish andloses has it coming”
~John Steinbeck

Contact us at :

enquiries@greatsailfishing.com or to register for our
weekly fishing report and other
> information please click here :
> http://www.greatsailfishing.com/en/register.html or
> contact us at greatsailfishing@yahoo.com

Week ending January 15th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending January 15th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

Well it has certainly been a mixed bag this past week. The fish remain somewhat unco-operative – the fleet is spreading far and wide each morning to find blue water and aggressive fish. The first has not been generally found until 35-50miles from the dock, which makes it a long first run. The good news here is that fresh coffee is served on the way out, and the big heavy Bertrams make as good a coffee platform as the comfy couch at Starbucks.

The second remain more difficult – the fish are there ok., but seem to be finicky and slow to really chase the teasers or the proffered baits. The mixed bag for the Fetterman party came in the form of feisty yellowfin tuna that make about the best sashimi that money can buy – especially on the high seas with all the accoutrements. The mixed bag for the Edgar party was formed by good sized bull dolphin that were duly served up to the group for dinner that evening ……..it always tastes even better when you just caught it yourself that afternoon.

The billfishing seemed to improve from the low single digits that we
experienced at the beginning of the week – and we are encouraged
(or at least thinking positivey) with the waning crescent moon. My sense
is that a couple of decent sacrifices to the fish Gods should do it for us
so please come down and help out.

We were asked by Mr Nowery to correct the fishing report from last week –we scored him with 3 raises on their first day, when in fact it was 5………. apologies to his team………..but one was a monster and almost counted as three…………..

Hope you enjoyed watching Cindy and her sister fish on the Joint Venture on ESPN2 last Sunday……………or almost as much as we enjoyed watching them ……………….and the fishing was great as well.

We wish all our clients, past, present and future a Happy New Year

Our very Best wishes : Les, Carlos, Kevin & Jim

To register for our weekly fishing report and other information please click here : http://www.greatsailfishing.com/en/register.html or contact us at enquiries@greatsailfishing.com

Week ending January 7th 2007

This Guatemala fishing report is for the week ending January 7th 2007 and is prepared by The Great Sailfishing Company operating out of the new Pez Vela Marina .

This fishing report is slow in arriving, as the fish have been slow in biting so far. Maybe they enjoyed the New Year festivities too much, maybe they are just starting the year out slowly………..maybe it was the moon shining full in the sky – but whatever it was, the fishing has been slow at least by Guatemalan standards. The Nowery party had 3 raises on their first day fishing with us – one of the sails caught was enormous – about
the largest that Cap’n Marven has seen in 15 years fishing the waters, estimated at > 135lbs.

Michael Stough fishing with us also on the 35ft Strike was having a slow day flyfishing………..right up to the point that a Blue Marlin surfaced on the naked ballyhoo trailing on the flat line. He had an opportunity for a couple of casts with his favorite fly, but the Blue had the smell of bait already – so he pitched the pre-rigged belly bait on the 50lb tackle. This immediately caught the attention of the fish and the fight was on. For the next 2 ½ hours Michael, the Marlin and the boat each tried to outmaneuver each other through guile and stamina. Eventually the boat and Michael succeeded in bringing the marlin to the side of the boat and touch the leader. The mates swung into action and held on to the 350lb Blue for as long as possible to revive her at the side of the boat forcing water through her gills until she flicked her massive tail and swam away….tired but ready for another day.

Fishing seems to be picking up this week as the moon wanes, with
reports of double digit raises and more Marlin showing.

If you have yet to fish with us, you have the opportunity to see just how good the fishing is by watching Cindy Garrison on ESPN2 at 9.30am this weekend (January 14th). This is the second of the episodes That she filmed with us just after Thanksgiving last year. There are Some great shots where she jumps into the water with the sailfish at the boat – only to realize that it was one of a pod of about 6 others that had trailed it to the boat. She came down with her sister – and it didn’t take long for her sister to catch her first ever sailfish……aother great memory of Guatemala fishing !

Best regards and tight lines,

Jim, Kevin, Carlos and Les

To register for our weekly fishing report and other information please click here : http://www.greatsailfishing.com/en/register.html or contact us at enquiries@greatsailfishing.com