ABOUT 15 BOATS PER DAY FISHING

May 28, 2005, Ed Kunze, Ixtapa Zihuatanejo, Mexico Fishing Report:

The 80-degree blue fishing water is only 3 to 4 miles off the beach at Ixtapa Zihuatanejo. The full moon period has slowed the sailfish catch a bit, with only a 1 to 2 fish a day average per charter fishing boat. But, what we lack in quantity, is more than made up in quality. We are recording some great catches of blue marlin and large yellowfin tuna at Ixtapa Zihuatanejo.

The Ixtapa Zihuatanejo sportfishing fleet is putting out an average of about 15 boats a day on the water. At least a third of those are fishing inshore, but we are averaging 2 blue marlin a day caught. That does not count the thrown hooks, nor the stories told by all of the broken lines or spooled reels. The average blue marlin is weighing in at about 250 pounds. A few of the blue marlin, like Luis Maciel's on the panga Gringo Loco, are hitting the 500 pound mark, and several others are in the 130 to 180 pound range. These smaller fish are ideal for a person to accomplish his goal for a blue marlin on the fly rod.

Ed Garvis, of Anaheim, Calif., fishing with Arturo on the panga Whisky III, took a 300 pound tuna. The schools are breezing in and out and when you find a feeding school of tuna, they are going to be big. Several of the commercial pangueros have boated tuna in the 150 to 250-pound class this week. As with the marlin and sailfish, almost all the fishing action is only about 8 to 10 miles offshore of Ixtapa Zihuatanejo.

Both of the Dos Hermanos boats have been fishing the inshore this week. Cheva and Adolpho told me this morning they have really been doing well on the big jack crevalle and roosterfish. Between the two boats, they are averaging about 14 of the jacks and 8 roosters each day. The timing is about right, because we normally see the big roosters arrive in volume at Ixtapa Zihuatanejo by the first of June.

(See "Mexico Fishing News" online for current fishing reports, photos, weather, and water temperatures from Ixtapa Zihuatanejo and other major Mexican sportfishing areas. Vacation travel articles, fishing maps and seasonal calendars, and fishing related information for Ixtapa Zihuatanejo may be found at Mexfish.com's main Ixtapa Zihuatanejo page.