BLUE MARLIN ARRIVE IN NUMBERS

Feb. 17, 2007, Ed Kunze, Ixtapa Zihuatanejo, Guerrero, Mexico, Baja On The Fly:

This week's fishing action at Ixtapa Zihuatanejo is staying true to the improvement from last week.

The sailfish average catch by local boats is holding at between two and three sailfish per boat per day.

However, the blue marlin have showed up to join the party along this section of the Mexican Pacific coast fishing area.

Early in the fishing week, foretelling what was about to come, several huge blue marlin were taken here.

A couple of these blue marlin came in at around 750 pounds, and a few more blue marlin were between 450 and 650 pounds.

But in fishing by boats out of Zihuatanejo Bay on Thursday, six big blue marlin hit the dock, and then yesterday, on Friday, another eight blues were landed.

In addition, several more blue marlin were taken by private fishing boats based out of Marina Ixtapa.

More of these large blue marlin are lost than are actually landed. Almost every boat in the blue water is getting a shot at one. Almost all the blues have been taken on a slow trolled live black skipjack tuna.

The condition of the inshore fishing action around Ixtapa Zihuatanejo is kind of unknown at this time, as most sportfishing captains here are telling their clients to try for the marlin.

Ixtapa fishing area water temperature is 80 to 84 degrees; air temperature 75 to 89 degrees; conditions mostly cloudy.