Nice article about Guatemala

[Squidnation]

Found this today in ALL AT SEA Magazine and thought it was a great read. Check it out-

A Visit to the Sailfish Mecca of the World
More Editorial by Dee Spear
May 2005 Issue


Hot Pacific Sailfish action was the result of a recent trip for some St. Thomas fisherman visiting Guatemala, where the average size of Pacific Sails is ninety pounds, with a range of 60-150 pounds.

Neptune Fishing Supplies in Red Hook, St. Thomas organized a group of nine in which seven were anglers; Chris Margolin, Mario Austin, Nick Pourzal, Jim Jamison, Richard Spenceley and Stewart Loveland from St. Thomas; Richie Kirst and Chuck Evers from Florida, and Drew Margolin from San Francisco. The common bond of being fishermen united this group from varied professions and places.

They all met at the Miami Boat Show. Chris Margolin said “the Big Game Room was like Sopchoppy’s happy hour during marlin season, with many familiar faces.” The group left Miami Saturday evening and flew to Guatemala City. That evening, they traveled to Antigua, one of the oldest cities in Guatemala where they spent the night. It is positioned between two dramatic volcanoes, rich in culture from the 1500-1600’s era. Many magnificent architectural structures still grace the city. After a day of sightseeing and a visit to the local bazaar, the group drove to the port of San Jose on the West Coast.

Their lodging was Villa Vella near the fishing village of Iztapa. At each arrival “home” they were greeted on the steps by the wonderful staff with trays of refreshing rum and cokes. Inside, fresh warm tostones were waiting. There were fantastic meals every night, swims in the pool and beautiful black volcanic sand beaches.

Each of the three fishing days the group would leave the villa at 7:00 AM to board their two boats. One was the famous forty-three foot “Captain Hook” with Captain Ron Hamlin at the helm, and the other was “Nany”. The group would fish 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM and return to the villa for more personalized service and fishing tales.

Ron Hamlin is renowned for several world records; in 1999 he tagged 2,555 billfish. Of those, 432 sailfish were on the fly fishing rod. He is published author of the book “Tournament”. Chris said, “There were so many fish - anyone can catch them on the thirty pound tackle. However, to watch Ron captain the boat with three sailfish on at the same time and so gracefully maneuver the boat to get all three is astounding. It was awesome to fish with a true legend of our time.”

The waters were teeming with whales, porpoises, manta rays, and small bait, which attract the sailfish in prolific quantities. The peak sailfish season is November through April, although they can be found throughout the year. The “roughest conditions” the group experienced were typical two to three foot swells and almost no wind chop. Most of the time the ocean is flat calm. Very different from our predominant local conditions.

The fishing style was to use circle hooks, which is easier on the fish because the design prevents gut hooking and provides for easier release of the fish. This is quite different from typical “J” hook fishing. The incredibly fast and efficient crew kept three pitch bait rods rigged and ready. There were three teasers and two rigged baits run in the spread. When a hungry sailfish came up on a teaser, an angler would pitch a rigged bait to it and wait for the bite. It took training and patience to wait a full five seconds before starting to reel and it took restraint not to vigorously set the hook.

In our local waters, it would be rare to see such high numbers of fish, but in Guatemala, if you missed a few hook ups, there was consistent opportunity at more fish. The sheer number of bites afforded the opportunity to refine fishing skills even for the most seasoned angler. With such a vast number of shots, it was an incredible education to learn the behavior of the species and the tackle, and an effective means to gain confidence in this style of fishing.

At the end of three days and 135 sailfish released, the group was ecstatic with the results. They drove the hour and a half back to Guatemala City and returned to their respective homes, tired but elated and filled with self-satisfaction and new gained knowledge. Chris says he is anxious to implement these new learned techniques on fishing in St. Thomas waters this upcoming marlin season.

I asked Chris to use five descriptive words for the trip; his answer was “I want to go back”.

[Robja]

There is no other place in the world that you can get those kind of numbers week in and week out. When I was there in Feb. several years ago we caught 63 in 3 days on 2 boats and they were apologizing for it being so slow. They also apoligized about having to run 35-40 mi off. Seems the week before they were 14 mi off the beach but an earthquake caused them to move offshore.

[Squidnation]

We are going in dec with the family, jan with a big crew from sf.com and march with a tv crew. Let me know if you are interested in the jan. Trip. We have a couple of spots left

[Robja]

We are going in dec with the family, jan with a big crew from sf.com and march with a tv crew. Let me know if you are interested in the jan. Trip. We have a couple of spots left

Thanks for the invite but right now we are looking at going to the Galapagos islands to fish for whites.

[Ozimo2]

I stayed at Villa Vela when Ron was running the old Captain Hook. Villa Vela was operated by South Fishing. We fished on the Nany and caught 72 sails in three days. It was, by far, the best fishing trip of my life.

[SLAYER25]

FISHING IN INSANE DOWN THERE