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FISHING REPORT

January 10th - 16th, 2016

Weather Conditions: Mostly fair weather, a few rain showers here and there.

Winds: 5-15 mph a few mornings showing some winds from the West turning to every direction.

Air Temperature: Highs are in the mid 80's, lows were in the mid 70's.

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.8 - 30.05

Sunrise: 6:26 am Sunset: 5:38 pm

Moonphase: The first quarter moon was on January 16th.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): Lots of bone fish for all of those who threw at them. Sarah and Matt, Greg, Marc and Jason, Terry and Cole, John, John 2, Jay, Tom, Ron, Todd, Stewart, Eric, Jim and Steve got some good fishing time in and were rewarded with out cooperative bonefish. Not to be left out� Shelly and Brandon, Brad, Matt and Mark, Joe, Russ, Rusty, and Ed, and Mike and Cindy rounds out the bonefishing crowd. We try not to take bonefish for granted here, but it seems everyone will catch a bonefish if they have the determination to work at it.

PERMIT (Palometta): Todd's permit was a part of his grand slam this week as was Charlie's� but Matt broke into the permit world with a lovely fish! Several more permit were landed this week thanks to the good permit weather.

TARPON (Sabalo): Ed was the tarpon master with 2 real good size tarpon he landed while blind casting down by Long Caye. Long Caye is known for its migratory tarpon fishing in the summer and early fall but many people don't know there are some big fish down there year round. It took some blind casting to some rolling fish to get them hooked up. Todd's tarpon was a part of his slam, Charlie was missing the tarpon for a while but pulled through.

OTHER SPECIES: Rocco got a nice snook, some barracudas were landed, jacks, snappers and others!

Grand Slam: Our grand slam heroes this week were Charlie and Todd. Charlie started the week on fire and Todd finished the week on a high note cranking in a bonefish, permit and tarpon in a single day. There is recognition by the IGFA for any grand slam caught so I hope you guys file an application for your certificate!

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - Pretty much if it was in front of a bonefish it worked, but our guides seem to like the simple lead eye CI special.

FOR PERMIT - Christmas Island Special, Bauer Crab.

FOR TARPON - Black Death, White toads!

This Week's Summary:

Permit were hungry and the fishing pressure is light at the lodge.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

January 17th - 23rd, 2016

Weather Conditions: Mostly fair weather, a few rain showers mid week.

Winds: 5-15 mph from every direction from full west, swinging to the north and all the way east and everything in between

Air Temperature: Highs are in the mid 80's, lows were in the mid 70's.

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.78 - 30.18

Sunrise: 6:26 am Sunset: 5:40 pm

Moonphase: The full moon was on January 23rd.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): "More bonefish than you can imagine" was the report from one boat last week. Everyone who wanted to catch a bonefish did so!

PERMIT (Palometta): Staci Landed 2 permit this week - Rusty joined the permit club and Todd and Jay grabbed a permit by the tail! Permit fishing is not for sensitive anglers, you must get used to rejection.

TARPON (Sabalo): Good tarpon fishing this week with many guests encountering the sliver king. Anywhere from 10 to 60 pounds!! Congrats to John, Champ and Todd for getting theirs to the boat. If your tarpon happened to get off not so close to the boat - come back again, it will happen!

OTHER SPECIES: Snook, Jacks, Cudas, snapper!

Grand Slam: Todd's grand Slam was reported on last weeks report, but in truth it was this week!

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - Christmas Island special is all you really need!

FOR PERMIT - Avalon (light version), Mantis shrimp

FOR TARPON - Black death, White bunny, Sand eel

This Week's Summary:

A very solid week of fishing for everyone at the lodge. A group of doctors from Wilderness Medical joined us for a retreat/business trip.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

January 24th - January 30th, 2016

Weather Conditions: Mostly fair weather all week with a mix of clouds and sun

Winds: Again this week, 5-15 mph moderate winds from full west, swinging to the north and all the way east and everything in between

Air Temperature: Highs are in the mid to low 80's, lows were in the mid to low 70's

Water Temperature: Temp: 78 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.85 - 30.18

Sunrise: 6:25 am Sunset: 5:45 pm

Moonphase: The full moon was on January 23rd and the last quarter moon was on the 31st.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): A nice quiet week at the lodge with just 5-6 boats going out on a daily basis. Our bonefish did not disappoint and their cooperation was greatly appreciated by all of those who went out this week. The Orvis Saltwater School dominated the fishing and the students and guests got bonefish daily. The theory is easy to understand, but not so easy to execute. Once you spot a school of bonefish, simply throw the fly just past the fish's perceived path far enough in front of the fish that you don't spook it, but not so far that he has too much time to change paths. When the fish is in visual range of the fly, a couple short strips and fish on!! Now here is the hard truth� seeing these bright silver fish is not easy, the wind is blowing, the fish are spooky and you have just a few seconds to deliver the fly on target to moving fish about 40 feet away! When it all goes as planed it is simple, right? Congratulations to all who succeeded this week!

PERMIT (Palometta): Tom G. had a trip of a lifetime as he was able to land 2 permit this week. For many people this is a lifetime total! Berth matched the feat with his matched set pf permit and John, Tom and Josh had a permit apiece during their stay here at El Pescador.

TARPON (Sabalo): Dick was the tarpon guru to start the week and in an unusual event, Junior landed a tarpon right in front of the lodge! A few other bites, a bunch of follows and who knows how many shots were made. Keeping your cool while face to face with a tarpon takes some practice!

OTHER SPECIES: Jacks, Cudas, and snapper!

Grand Slam: No slams this week.

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - Christmas Island Special - lead eyes

FOR PERMIT - custom crab patterns, CI Special size 4, Gotcha

FOR TARPON - cockroach in olive, black bunny, Olive toad.

This Week's Summary:

A very solid week of fishing for everyone at the lodge. A group of doctors from Wilderness Medical joined us for a retreat/business trip.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

Feb. 1 - Feb. 13, 2016

Weather Conditions: The weather ranged the gamete from clear, cloudy, rainy, calm windy with only a day or two of clear skies and low winds. It got really cold last week with a low in the mid-sixtys!

Winds: 5-23 mph rotating from North to east and everything in between.

Air Temperature: Highs were in low 80's with lows in the low 70's, dipping to lows of 60 and highs of 70 late in the week.

Water Temperature: Temp: 77 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.88 - 30.22

Sunrise: 6:20 am Sunset: 5:22 pm

Moonphase: The full moon was on the 8th.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): As the cooler days kept coming we could tell that the bonefish were a little less enthusiastic the colder it got. There were some slower days for those who continued to sightfish, but it remained quite productive for those who fished deeper where the water was a bit warmer. All guests were successful with bonefish each day; they pursued them even with the chilly weather. The high boat of the week was 20 fish.

PERMIT (Palometta): Tom G. got his hands on a permit to start the trip off right, Kate was able to get a permit, our friend Howard was thrilled with his permit. Louis was the last to add a permit to his fish totals this week.

TARPON (Sabalo): Jeff got a nice 70 pound fish out on a perfect day on the deeper flats of Savannah, Tom leadered his fish but was denied the picture, El Pescador's returning guest Rob got a tarpon on his first day out, but as the weather cooled off, so did his luck with those persnickety tarpon! Amanda got the prize ~ landing 2 tarpon in one day next to her tarpon-less spouse Jason. Jason was happier about Amanda's fish than he would have been if he caught them, so all was well. Louis, a French Canadian enjoyed landing a tarpon and playing a few other. Lots of follows, some bites and a few to the boat.

OTHER SPECIES: Jacks, Cudas, and snapper!

Grand Slam: Louis ended up with a super slam for the week and to him it didn't seem to matter to him that it was not all in one day - just landing each over the week was a thrill!

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - Christmas Island Special, Crazy Charlie

FOR PERMIT - Christmas Island Specials, Mantis Shrimp, Raghead crab

FOR TARPON - White Toad, Cockroach in olive, Purple Bunny, Cockroach in natural.

This Week's Summary:

A big thanks to Teagan, my 8 year old assistant, who helped me with the pin ceremony each evening! Rarely does a cold front make it far enough south to impact our fishing, but this one lasted about a week and we could see signs of fish leaving the shallow water in favor of the deeper warm water. We had to look a little deeper to find the fish as the water cooled.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

Feb. 14 - Feb. 20, 2016

Weather Conditions: Nice warm week mostly fair skies.

Winds: A couple perfect days with a 10 mph easterly winds and some other days 12-16 mph, and a few too windy days at 15-20 from the north.

Air Temperature: Highs were in low 80's with lows in the low 70's.

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.9 - 30.22

Sunrise: 6:17 am Sunset: 5:53 pm

Moonphase: The first quarter moon is on the 15th.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): Celeste and Luke got out one day and lit up the bonefish flats with 12 bonefish each, not bad for first day, first time, bonefishers! Ron and Betsy were pretty competitive as well, Volker came all the way from Germany to catch a bonefish with us and, true to the advertising, he got many more than one on his first day. Not all the couples fished together, but all had a good time. Dwight, Tim and Jean, Pete and Lindsay, Ivan and Misty, Tom and Laura, Randy, Kerry and Debbie, Jon and Kathy, Curtis, Jay, Jeff, Mike, Jamie and Kevin, Mike, JD, Stephen and Jerry all brought joy to the flats of Ambergris Caye. Hundreds of bonefish were landed during Orvis' bonefish Bonanza Susan and Ray from the UK met their friends Mike and Sandy and enjoyed the flats, the town, and the relaxation easily found here at El Pescador. Returning guests Bill and Evie, Kevin, Doug, Matt, Will and Samantha started another trip here this week, it is always great to see old friends.

PERMIT (Palometta): Samantha had a big grin when I saw her on Saturday and I knew something was up. It was a 30 pound permit! 45 minutes of battle ended with the fish in her capable hands. Betsy was also proud of her first permit much to the delight of Ron ( who may have been a tad jealous as well). The women of the lodge tamed the permit this week!

TARPON (Sabalo): Duber, our Orvis host, landed the only tarpon of the week that made it al the way to the boat. Ron had one on for a while only to part ways with a spectacular jump, a few more bites and a few more jumps from other guest rounded out a relatively slow week for the Silver King.

OTHER SPECIES: Jacks, Barracuda, Snappers, Triggerfish and more

Grand Slam: No Slams this week

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - CI-Special, Crazy Charlie, Gotcha

FOR PERMIT - Christmas Island Specials, Peterson spawning Shrimp

FOR TARPON - Black death bunny, Chartreuse Deceiver

This Week's Summary:

A good weather week with lots of great guests that had the lodge in a great mood. Orivi had the winter Bonefish Bonanza and had 10 guides reserved for a great group, lots of couples, lots of fun, Big thanks go out to Duber, Orvis' host for the Bonefish Bonanza event, everything was smooth and successful.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

Fishing photo of the week:

El Pescador guest Samantha and her Permit

FISHING REPORT

Feb. 21- 27, 2016

Weather Conditions: Some rainy days, some cloudy days, in general not much sun this week.

Winds: Mostly from the North, Northwest, North Northeast and a wide range of 5-20 mph.

Air Temperature: Highs were between 75 and 85 with lows in the low 70's

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.9. - 30.22

Sunrise: 6:12 am Sunset: 5:56 pm

Moonphase: The full moon was on the 22nd.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): Bonefish bonefish bonefish, the silver ghostclad with mirrors, perfectly camouflaged no matter what color bottom they are on. They are built for speed and eating things on or even under the bottom. Ever see a bonefish puff out a critter that is covered in sand? The can jet spray water out their mouth to uncover prey! Remarkable. Kevin and Jamie, got the hang of bonefishing right away, Tom, Glenn. Larry, Austin, Ross, Rick and his son Connor, Sue and Ray (from England), Jeremy and Liza, Gene Greg and Terri, returning guests (now part of the family) Evie and Bill, Mandy and Glen Chris, Steve, Matt Boomer, Jim. All had a great time enticing bonefish with fly rods, spin rods.. everything! Gene, Greg and Terri, Mandy and Glen Chris, Steve, Matt Boomer, Jim. All had a great time enticing our lovely bonefish !

PERMIT (Palometta): Kevin was the start permit player this week as he somehow got at least one permit 3 days in a row with his sweetheart Jamie cheering him on. Although Jamie did not land a permit she had some shots and out fished Kevin in the tarpon department!

TARPON (Sabalo): Go Jamie!! She landed the first tarpon of the week showing Kevin how it's done (payback for the above permit lashing Kevin gave Jamie!). Glenn had the fun part: the eat and the first jump, this is where its at for a tarpon junkie, watching them eat a fly and then the unbelievable jump that usually follows. The jump can be a low greyhounding leap or a perfectly vertical gill shaking explosion. Miss Glenda "queen of the tarpon" decided to skip the old wisdom of starting with bonefish and went directly to tarpon. Awesome! Chris followed this up with a nice silver king, Austin brought 2 to the boat 1 day, and Bill celebrated his birthday in style with a beautiful; fish coming to hand.

OTHER SPECIES: Jacks, Sharks, Barracuda, Snappers, and a crazy pelican! ) Oh I almost forgot Evies trophy box fish!

Grand Slam: A soft slam for Jamie and Kevin with a bonefish, permit and tarpon over the course of the week between the two of them.

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - CI-Special, Crazy Charlie, Gotcha

FOR PERMIT - Peterson spawning Shrimp

FOR TARPON - Black death bunny, White toad, light natural cockroach, olive toad

This Week's Summary:

A fairly poor weather week but some remarkable catches by some beginning and experienced anglers.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

Feb. 21- Mar. 5, 2016

Weather Conditions: Coolish weather, generally fair to partly cloudy.

Winds: Mostly from the North, switching to the east 5-15 mph

Air Temperature: Highs were between 75 and 80 with lows in the low 70's

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.96 - 30.20

Sunrise: 6:09 am Sunset: 5:59 pm

Moonphase: The last quarter moon was on the 1st.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): Keith got his fill of bonefish right out of the gate, Fred, Orv and Sue, Paul, Virgil, Bob, Ann and Mark, father/son Patrick and Patrick, Sue and Jim all enjoyed bonefishing this week. The largest fish was about 4 pounds and a few guests hit double digit numbers daily.

PERMIT (Palometta): A small percentage of anglers are successful when they first come face to face with a permit. Congratulations to Keith for his first permit ever and it was done with great humility by giving the credit to his guide. Father and son team Patrick and Patrick Jr. teamed up for a total of 4 permit for the week making it look easy. 4 permit is a lifetime achievement for many veteran anglers� not a week!

TARPON (Sabalo): No tarpon were landed this week, partly due to the fact that it was a lightly attended week and not many people were fishing for them. A few were fooled but none were on for more than a few seconds.

OTHER SPECIES: Jacks (3 species), snappers, cudas

Grand Slam: No Slams this week.

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - CI-Special, Crazy Charlie, Bitters

FOR PERMIT - Peterson Spawning Shrimp, Avalon.

FOR TARPON - Chartreuse Toad, black bunny

This Week's Summary:

A quiet week at the lodge with some good weather.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

March 6th - March 13th, 2016

Weather Conditions:

Winds: Winds were vicious for most of the week from 20 miles an hour with gusts to 29. Mostly out of the east, so at least there was shelter on some of the west side of the island.

Air Temperature: Highs were between 80 and 85 with lows in the mid 70's

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.82 - 30.07

Sunrise: 6:03 am Sunset: 6:01 pm

Moonphase: The new moon was on the 8th.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): Our guests were able to lean on the bonefish to make great days out of the really strong winds we were struck with this week. John brought a great group of his Montana fly shop friends with him this week http://www.thetackleshop.com/. John,& Kayla, John#2, Rick, Bill, Tim, Tom, Wayne fished daily and most had some personal bonefish records this week. Check out the shop if you are ever heading to Montana. Lots of returning guests arrived for anywhere from their 2nd to their 10th visits. Jim and Lindsay and their friends John and Linda never seem to stay long enough as their week flew by. Emily and Chris brought future fishing pro Jack - Jack is less than 2 but will be fly casting soon. Emily didn't get to fish last time ( because of little Jack being really little) but this time she made sure to get her very first bonefish under her belt. Ian and Robin were bone-fishing machines, Leslie, Grayson and Sophia spent a day on the flats with a nice shore lunch, CJ and Taylor fished hard, Toby and son Quintin got some bones, and Fred, Jeff, Jed, Mike, Davis, and Angus all had fun with our bonefish populations.

PERMIT (Palometta): Jeff landed a permit early in the week inspiring others to have faith even in the wind. Taylor brought a permit to leader, returning guest Jim was able to get another permit to add to his permit total and Chris got the most this week with 2 to the boat.

TARPON (Sabalo): Returning guest John had the only real encounter with a tarpon this week as he jumped one early on right out of the gate. With the heavy winds this was no easy feat!

OTHER SPECIES: Jacks, Shad, Snappers, Barracuda (someone hooked a ray), Ladyfish

Grand Slam: No Slams this week.

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - CI-Special, Crazy Charlie, Bitters

FOR PERMIT - Avalon, raghead crab, Christmas Island Special.

FOR TARPON - White Toad

This Week's Summary:

Despite the windy weather our guests were able to accomplish some pretty solid results! There was more wading than normal since the most sheltered areas were very close to shore on west facing flats.

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

FISHING REPORT

March 14th - March 20th, 2016

Weather Conditions: Mostly Fair weather all week

Winds: Moderate winds form 10-15 most of the week from the east

Air Temperature: Highs were between 80 and 85 with lows in the mid 70's

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.75 - 30.09

Sunrise: 6:00 am Sunset: 6:02 pm

Moonphase: The first quarter moon was on the 15th

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi): The bonefishing was no surprise with boats landing as many as 25 fish. Each day out. Barry, Jim. Bill, Buddy had their way with the bonefish although their true passion was permit. Long time guests, Scott, Gina & John (first bonefish ever honors for Gina this trip!) all had a blast, Lon and Jan returned again this year with Jan tanning like a champ on the boat and by the pool and Lon handling most of the fishing duties, Norm and Beth's 18th visit to EL Pescador was an honor for us� somehow the permit and tarpon did not get the memo to play fair with them! Jim, Carey, Jeff, Brian, John and Dana, Jim and Cameron, Ron and Sheri, Ann and Roger, JC and Bri, Evelyn and Bruce, Nancy and Chip, Willie and Jenn, Warner and Christine (father daughter team) Duff and Donald ( father and son) all enjoyed the prolific bonefishing we have on and near the island.

PERMIT (Palometta): Poor John had more permit eat this week than just about anybody, but none came to the boat. They cut off, the spit, they broke - but the bottom line is he did the hard part, he fed them! Buddy, Bill, Jim and Barry came down to El Pescador on a mission, they all wanted permit and that they did! At least 2 permit each went to the 4 friends! Returning guest, Vito go a permit pretty early on in his trip!

TARPON (Sabalo): Scott jumped some tarpon, Barry, and Bill landed some and had a soft slam for the week as well! Donald got a beautify 25 pound tarpon and the happiness was apparent to all!

OTHER SPECIES: 2 species of jacks, 3 kinds of snappers, snook, barracudas, and lots more!

GRAND SLAM: Week Slams belong to Barry and Bill!

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - CI-Special, bitters, lead eye crazy Charlie, Silli legs, and countless other flies.

FOR PERMIT - Christmas Island Special, Avalon, mantis shrimp, Bauer crab

FOR TARPON - Cockroach, black bunny, tan toad

This Week's Summary:

A great permit week with some great folks at the lodge. What more could you ask for, good friends, good fishing and good beer!

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

Fishing photo of the week:

El Pescador guest and a beauty of a Tarpon

FISHING REPORT

March 20th - March 26th, 2016

Weather Conditions: Mostly Fair weather all week

Winds: Moderate winds form 10-25 most of the week from the east

Air Temperature: Highs were between 80 and 85 with lows in the mid 70's

Water Temperature: Temp: 79 F. degrees

Barometric Pressure: 29.79 - 30.17

Sunrise: 5:50 am Sunset: 6:04 pm

Moonphase: The full moon was on the 23rd.

WHAT GUESTS WERE CATCHING:

BONEFISH (Macabi):

PERMIT (Palometta): Permit were on fire this week - lots of personal bests - big fish, small fish, fish caught in windy weather, calm weather, sun and clouds. The common denominator was working hard and sticking it out! I don't know where to start about the Osborne/Hince family! Tom (the father) landed three in1 day, Jason got one to the boat, and Suzanne fooled and landed 3 over 2 days of fishing, outside that productive family Bump got on the board with 3 in one day, and Chuck in his annual Pilgrimage to Belize landed one late in the week.

TARPON (Sabalo): Tarpon fishing picked up with Kris and Ned both landing one, CJ and Bri both got tarpon to the boat making 2 couples who all landed a tarpon. Not so with Ann who proudly out-fished her fishing mates with a solid tarpon, Roger landed a beauty, Will did the same, Tom outfoxed a resident tarpon, and lots more had a few shots at some smart fish following the fly for 20 feet but never sealing the deal. Matt finished up the week with a tarpon that completed his slam.

OTHER SPECIES: 2 species of jacks, 3 kinds of snappers, snook, barracudas, and lots more!

GRAND SLAM: Matt started his stay out with an over the top day with a grand slam on Saturday, despite 20 mph easterly windy Mr. Matt inspired the crowd with his first grand slam ever! Tom had a soft slam! (A permit tarpon and bonefish all in one trip)

FLIES THAT WORKED

FOR BONEFISH - CI-Special, Crazy Charlie pink & tan, mini clousers, and countless other flies.

FOR PERMIT - Christmas Island Special, Avalon, Squimp, Silli Legs tan

FOR TARPON - White bunny, Blue/white deceiver, gummy minnow, black death

This Week's Summary:

Another great permit week with with tarpon fishing coming on during the full moon ( which is against conventional wisdom)

Fish On!
Ed Blank [email protected].

Fishing photo of the week:

El Pescador guest Matt and his Tarpon