[614050]

Just got back from a 9-day on the Royal Star. Great trip, caught a 77# YFT on 60# setup and a 55# on 40# tackle. Limits on YFT and yellowtail (a nice 30# fish, too) with a few dorado, grouper and wahoo.

I'd recommend this trip for anyone that likes a good adventure, good food and good company; nothing like it anywhere else!

 

[613920]

if i may ask how much did the trip cost you?

-Mike

 

[Capt. Marc]

Hi,

Nice fish. Do they package and freeze the fish for you or do they have another way of dealing with the fish?

Thanks
Marc

 

[Jaiem]

Curci,

Don't ask.

Those trips aren't cheap. I've looked into the Excel and Royal Polaris. Both get very high recommendations. But they aren't cheap trips. Fare alone can be $3k per person. Then add in air fare and tackle. OTOH, it isn't the same as out party boat fishing. You get a good room, 3 good meals a day, etc. Like being on a floating lodge.

My dream trip.

Jaiem
ArtsNFlies.com

 

[614050]

This was one of the premium boats, the Royal Star, which works out to $230/day (my 9 day worked out to be $2150). Other boats will get you just under the $200/day mark.

BTW, most vacations to the waters around Baja will run you more than $200/day for your room and eats. IMO, it's a bargain.

Jaiem is talking about the dream trip for cow tuna over 200#, which run $3-5K (that's a 16-day trip). Don't confuse them with trips 3-10 days; they're very different creatures.

I tend to go basement bargain myself and use frequent flyer miles to get to SD from Newark.

Tackle can be rented or if you go on the premium boats they'll lend them gratis.

Processing your fish runs about $.50/lb to vacuum seal you catch in heavy poly; the meat lasts well over a year this way. Roughly $150 to send about 200# fish to LGA. You can also donate your catch to a hunger charity for a tax write off or to another charity that feeds the workers at ground zero. All of these options are handled by a fish processing company , Sportsmen's Seafood.

 

[614050]

oops, forgot, here's a pic of the jackpot trio...

 

[Jaiem]

Crag,

You'e right. Fare for a 10 day trip is around $2200. But NTL you still have to factor in rods and reels (assuming you don't bring your own, which if you do you still have a good chunk of change invested there), lures and extras.

BTW, I went to Baja/East Cape last summer and it was dirt cheap. It cost us about $800 and change (plus air which was about another $800), including meals and airport transfers. We stayed at the Playa Del Sol, had our own boat and guide and caught a lot of fish. Click Here for my article about the trip.

Jaiem
ArtsNFlies.com

This message was edited by Jaiem on 11-27-01 @ 9:41 AM

 

[614050]

J.,
That's an excellent rate. How'd you get a panga for less than $125? That was the bottom price I found a few years ago (looked at Rancho Leonoro, Punta Pescadero), but the boat was pretty beat up and not very safe-looking.

 

[Jaiem]

Crag,

It was a package deal through the hotel. Playa Del Sol is in Los Barillos, a couple hundred yards up the beach from Palma de Cortez (they share the same fishing fleet).

The boats were fabulous, in very good shape and awsome fishing platforms. They also had cruisers and super cruisers but we chose the super pangas for a more "up close" experience. Next time we'll go half the trip with the super pangas and the other half on the cruisers, the latter seem to target the billfish more (they don't take the pangas too far offshore).

We had two great guides. The first day's guide was very thorugh and professional. We had another guy for the rest of our stay (the first guide had been requested specifically by people coming down that week). He was also excellent. We really worked his tail hard. By the end of the week he was dragging. But never complained and still gave us a great day fishing.

Jaiem
ArtsNFlies.com

This message was edited by Jaiem on 11-28-01 @ 8:46 AM

 

[614050]

I spent 4 days at Punta Pescador, great light tackle fishing and the panga captain was very, very hard working, got us into fish even when fishing was slow for their standards.

There were some freelance pangeros for around $100 but I'm kind of a safety freak around boats and they weren't too inspiring.

Thanks for the trip report (pictures, pictures, pictures, take more!). I'll have to check out the East Cape again, it's been too long.

Thanks,
Patrick

 

[Jaiem]

Crag,

We've got rolls of pics, just haven't scanned all of them.

Here's a pic of one of the red snappers (pargo) we caught. That was an awsome fishery! Gotta do more of that when we go back!!

Jaiem
ArtsNFlies.com