There are as many opinions concerning equipment
selection For Baja as there are anglers who fish there.
A lot of what you will want depends on your fishing
style, and your pocket book. There are fish along the
shore of Baja that if hooked will never be landed. They
don't make fly equipment, in any weight, that will
tame some of these brutes. That said, be aware that no
matter what you use you always have the chance that
one of these salt hogs will latch on to your fly.
If you could only take one rod, make it a ten weight.
A twelve weight will wear you out if you are casting it
all day, much worse than a ten weight. If it weren't for
the fatigue, I would recommend the twelve over the ten.
Even a small yellow fin Tuna will take a twelve weight
and make it feel like a three weight.
Should finances allow outfitting your trip then I would
pick a fourteen weight for billfish. A twelve for some
of the schools of tuna, a ten weight for Dorado. And
an eight weight for beach fishing. I would also have a
back up rod for each size. Now this is a lot of
equipment and if you are buying top of the line stuff
you will be putting out a fortune. I recommend picking
up inexpensive rods for the ten, twelve and fourteen
weight rods. If they break, so what? Save your money
for the nicer rods you will use closer to home.
Your reels should be top notch. A top notch reel is one
with a cork drag system. I know a lot of new and fancy
drag systems are out there but none have been around
long enough for me to trust them. I have never fished a
bad cork drag. Unfortunately most of the reels with a cork
drag start around $400. So plan on spending some money
here.
Reaction time is very short in tropical waters. You may
only have seconds to react to a school of tuna. I find that
it is hard to change spools as conditions change, simply
because they can change so fast.
I like to have a reel for each of my rods.
Beach fishing is a ball and can be done with a six
weight as long as you know that once a day we
hooked something we couldn't stop. I suggest
an eight weight as it will give just a bit more
penetration in the wind.
~Mike Croft
Part 1|
Part 2|
Part 3|
|
