Tony Reyes report May 8th through the 13th
Here we are again. Another Reyes trip under my belt and more experience as well. I never seem to get tired of these trips and the fishing is always more consistent then fishing anywhere else IMO..
We left Orange, Ca. around 9:30AM and arrived at the border at 1PM after having lunch and obtaining insurance for a Mexican drive. One thing I have to note is that I was never aware that you could span your insurance into whatever 24 hours that you needed to cover. In other words, I wasn't really sure if I was going to drive home on Friday or Saturday and the lovely insurance agent informed me that I could run my insurance from noon Friday until noon Saturday! That worked out perfect for me and left me 2 options in case we got back early enough and I had enough energy to drive back that night instead of waiting and staying another night in a hotel.
After crossing the border in Mexicali we parked and got our free 7 day visa's and were back on our way again. Gas is around $1.30 to 1.50 cheaper then the states and we took full advantage, thanks Pemex! Our drive to San Felipe was easy and enjoyable with the exception of the unorganized road construction and the diversions from the main road. We ended up arriving at the boat around 4PM. Arturo was there and helped Jim and I unload our bags and gear. Getting to the boat early allows you also to choose the stateroom of your liking and I immediately chose the corner room closest to the stern!
We chose to stay on the boat that night instead of staying at a hotel. I saved a bit of money but the power on the boat was turned off so nothing worked including the bathrooms! The next day the Mexican Official showed up to make sure everyone had their visa's and we were on our way. We traveled all day and night and when I woke up Monday morning all the panga's were already in the water ready to go!
Now this is where my report will go a bit astray because I'm not one for remembering names so the islands and so on I'm not going to bother with too much. We started off cruising out to one of the many islands and chasing the birds. Cabrilla boils were happening along with some Yellows. We ended up with a few Cabrilla and no Yellows that morning. We started to get hammered by wind and had to hide behind an island for cover. Our Panguero decided that we should try and make it out to a tiny little island where there is usually some good Cabrilla action but it didn't pan out. Tons of dogs around though..
After getting beat to hell by the wind it was time for lunch and to make a move. The wind was still ripping and the rest of the afternoon it wasn't much action at all. Mother Nature decided to pull the plug:picknose: The days fishing wasn't all that bad for some of the guys though and a few ended up with nice tallies of Yellows and Cabrilla with trolling being the key on Mirror-lures. I despise trolling though and my fish count suffered because of it:finger:
The next morning we woke up again at a new site and the wind seemed to have subsided. Fishing was again tough and we scratched out a few Cabrilla. When we got back to the boat for lunch we got a look at everyone else's catch and I have to say that I was a bit jealous! Again guys had done very well on the troll with their pink and purple mirror-lures. The catch of the day was a 38lb White Seabass in front of San Francisquita and the same gentleman also hooked the largest Yellow of the day that I believe was 34lbs! Nice going.
As usual with most Tony trips the guys get together at night and hang out for a session of **** talking and drinks and this trip was no different! What a great group of guys and the jokes and hilarity ensued late into the night.
The next day was more of the same as Jig fishing was tough and we couldn't make bait either of the previous nights. I had tied on about every jig in my box and hadn't had much success. The afternoon started our with a bang and the Yellows decided they wanted to play! Our Panguero hooked up first and the melee began. Me and my partner and Chartermaster Steve Needham couldn't get bit. The fish didn't want to stay up either because guys kept trolling through the boils and it was very frustrating to say the least! I tied on a 6x-jr scrambled egg and dropped to the bottom in about 190' of water and that turned out to be a good move because my line took off! Bam Yellow on! 24lber not bad. After the chaos had calmed a bit and most of the boats had takne off to other locations we saw birds going nuts about a mile or so away and tons of water movement. We took off! Ended up being a huge school of Porpoise at least 2 or 3 acres in size and they were all talking to each other like I have never heard before. It all seemed so unreal.
Next day we ended up with Yellows boiling again and we picked off a couple of singles here and there. The commercial guys were out strong and had netted a couple of schools of Yellows that were approximately around 4-500 fish. Another group of guys on another panga asked if they wanted to sell some of the Yellows and they replied, "yeah $10.00 each!"
Well we kept looking around for some action and finally we got it. Big giant boils. Sierra was there for the taking as many as you could catch in the 3-7lb range with Yellows beneath them! I caught over 40 Sierra and then I started shaking them off. I caught a few Sierra and watched bigger sized Yellows chase them to the boat! I also picked off a few Yellows from under the Sierra. Off to lunch.
As per usual we made another move with the big boat and the panga's trailing. This time we were looking for Cabrilla. The weather was beautiful and the sea was flat calm. Bad thing was there was absolutely no current. I ended up taking off my shoes and socks and diving overboard to cool down a bit. That sure hit the spot and it was time to attack. The Cabrilla started to boil and I picked off 3 with the smallest at 4lbs and the largest at 7. I got bit 2 other times but it wasn't to be and they let my jig go before I could set the hook. During one of the boils a Golden jumped clear out of the water, truly a beautiful fish. Another day done and not too shabby for not having any bait.
Friday morning was here and I was already starting to feel sad that the trip was so close to coming to an end. With that in mind I was ready to kill some fish and let me tell you this was the best 3 hours of the trip. We headed out and started chucking iron, boils started to ensue and next thing you know our guide is on. He brings that fish in and then again he is on! I can't get bit and Steve is also starting to get frustrated. Next thing you know Steve is on too and I am the odd ball. They both bring in their fish and we make another move to start our drift over and it was my turn. I nailed 9 Yellowtail consecutively and ended the trip with a bang! The range was between 16 and 24lbs. I also popped a nice sized Pargo. Not a bad way to end the trip!
On a side note another one of the guys also nailed a 38lb Broomtail that was a sweet fish. I didn't take a picture of it though as I usually don't take pictures of other people's fish unless they are in it with the fish themselves, sorry.
Ernie, Billy and Tommy were some of the best guys on this trip and had a great time fishing and talking trash. I was always smiling around these guys and they pulled in their fair share of fish as well.
The staff on the Reyes does a wonderful job of keeping you fed and making sure your fish are cleaned daily as well as vacuum packed so they are as fresh as they are gonna get! The guides try their best to keep your rods bent and put you in the best possible scenarios to catch fish. $995.00 is unheard of for what you get on this trip and I will be out again 2 or 3 more times this season. Here is a video of the guys cleaning the fish right after we got back from a morning session.
All in all I had a great time and would like to thank the staff of the Reyes and all of the fisherman that made the trip a success. I will leave you with a few more pictures and a fish count.
There was a couple of Boobies on the boat!
Also the bait the fish were eating as these came out of the stomachs of a few of the Yellows we nailed, these were small.
The Captain:
A few Humboldt's were also caught:
And finally the fish count:
Thanks for reading guys. If you want more information about trips on the Tony Reyes please feel free to contact me via PM or at the Longfin 714-538-8010.
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