Lee-B
Posts: 675
Registered: 10/21/02
Location: Oxnard
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![[*]](./images/xpsilver/default_icon.gif) posted on 8/16/03 at 09:02 AM |
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Loreto Trip
Well, my first panga trip is one for the books, if it was bad it happened.
It started out with me going to borrow a 12wt to go along with my own 11wt for the trip. However, that rod had been loaned out previously and not
returned because it had been broken so I was waiting to see if it would show up in time repaired. In the mean time I was waiting to see if some gift
certificates to Cabela's, through my wife's work, would be available in time to order my own 12wt. I also ordered some sailfish flies that I hoped
would arrive on time.
Long story made short.....the loaner never showed up, the sailfish flies arrived the day before we left and I got the gift certs two day before we
left. Yeah....wrong! I ordered two 12wt rods overnight delivery but they didn't arrive until 4 days later.
No biggie, I'll make do with what I have and go have a good time.
We left for LAX, parked at the ParkingSpot and got there 3 hours early to handle any problems. Check in was a breeze, the wait was on. We went up to
the bar area, pulled out the cards, made a drink out of our flask and settled in. Our flight showed no gate and the first "delayed" sign came up. No
big deal, I've never flown to Loreto with out a delay. A couple more delays and the "boarding" sign comes on for our flight but we still have no
gate. We all rush through security, if you can call a crawl a rush, only to find out the plane has been delayed yet again. Now I hate cell phones but
they really came in handy because we had three to four people calling Areo California. OUR FLIGHT WAS CANCELLED! Not only was it cancelled but we were
told they only had 26 seats for Sunday's plane. We rush down and get on Sunday's flight, go to get our car to drive the 45 minutes home so we can
come back and do it again on Sunday. The ParkingSpot didn't charge us for that day which was very nice of them and we wrote a letter to the bosses to
let them know.
Sunday was total de-ja-vu with no gate and delays but we did manage to leave 3 hours late.
Monday morning I get a Taxi to the marina from our hotel, the Camino Real. My charter arrives, we discuss the wind and call the day off and they take
me back to my hotel.
It's only 8am so I take out my 8wt and hit the beach and rocky ledges around the hotel. Almost immediately I get into the pargo, they loved the Tres
Generaciones I brought. Mixed in with the pargo's were some trumpet fish and one that I just called an aquarium fish because it looked like something
you found in a big saltwater tank. So I had fun, made it to breakfast with the wife at ten and enjoyed the rest of the day.
Tuesday I did the same thing to arrive at the marina, the wind was blowing harder but I was told that it was calm the day before out at the first
marker, 1.5 hours out. Fine, we board and head out. Once past Carmen the swells started to pick up. When we reached the marker, the swells were 5 to 6
feet and I got all of my 248lbs tossed off the seat into the air and slammed knees first on to the boat. OUCH! Also about this time, the two Dramamine
I took, one at 5am, the other as we left the marina were not working in these swells. Long story short, I was dropped off on the beach in front of the
hotel after chumming the whole 1.5 hours in.
I slept for 2 hours and felt good when I woke up so I spent the rest of the day with the wife in the pool.
Wednesday. I had told the charter that I didn't want to go out for my second day because I wanted at least one whole day with the wife because of our
cut short by one day vacation. The original plan was to fish the first two days, then hang out the last two days relaxing. So that morning I hit the
beach for an hour in the early am and picked up some more pargo and one nice jack crevalle. The jack was taken on a #4 pink and white shrimp-corbina
fly.
And wouldn't you know it that Wednesday, it was flay as glass out there.
On the plane back I heard from a lot of the fishermen that the fishing was not good that week, bad in fact and that a lot of them also got sick out
there. It was a learning experience, the hotel is wonderful and Pam at Baja Big Fish Company is very accommodating and friendly. I'll either be going
back in February of late June, early July to give it another go and this time I'll not have to order anything the week before I go.
So now that I've typed this and posted it, I'll go and put the ice pack back on my swollen left knee......ah memories.
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Alan K
Posts: 5
Registered: 8/18/03
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| posted on 8/19/03 at 04:33 AM |
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Lee
Sounds like you made the best of an otherwise bad situation. Little different than simply driving down to Rosarito and catching 2lb perch at La
Fonda, huh? But then again, the opportunity to pull on a 50lb bull is pretty enticing. Hopefully we'll have decent weather in La Paz in Oct,
fishing the Las Arenas area for bulls and open water for yellowfins with Ken & Jay. We are suppose to fish 4 days on pangas, though expect to get
blown off the water for 2 days. But on the windy days, if we can make the crossing, Im hoping to find shelter around Isla Cerralvo and fish the
rocks for pargo and other aquarium species.
Going on a one-day this Friday out of Fishermans Landing, with hopes of bringing home some fresh sashimi
.
Alan K
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Anonymous
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| posted on 8/19/03 at 09:15 AM |
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Lee,
Thanks for the report.
Loreto has given me some great times and some not so great times. I manage to forget the not so great times. Next trip will be better. See you on
the beach.
Mike B.
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Lee-B
Posts: 675
Registered: 10/21/02
Location: Oxnard
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| posted on 8/19/03 at 09:57 AM |
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I hope this works....
Lee-B has attached this image:
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