That's My Story

PHOTO 1: So…uh…if I go to fish with you, will I catch any fish? Do you really have fish there?

So, there I was in my booth at the hunting and fishing expo in Salt Lake City. We do shows like this every winter around the country. At these shows we’re one of maybe several hundred other like-minded booths and displays all promoting hunting and fishing operations from South Africa to Alaska and from Mexico to Egypt.

Picture this. My booth, like others is covered with huge full-color glossy images of smiling folks holding big fish. I have three giant flat screen TV’s playing rod-bending fishing action. Marlin are leaping. Reels are screaming. Anglers are yelling and laughing on the soundtrack.

And someone walks up. Looks around at all the displays and staring directly at a big picture of a tuna says, “So..uh…is fishing any good where you’re at? “

I’m not sure how to answer that.

Is this a trick question? Are there hidden cameras?

Is this guy joking?

Of course, my wise-guy answer on the tip-of-my-tongue wants to say, “No, fishing sucks. I”m just standing here in this booth selling fishing trips for the helluva it!”

Or, “No, fishing isn’t very good, but it will get better soon!”

Or, “No, fishing stinks, but that’s why our fishing trips are so economical. You get what you pay for!”

But, I bite my tongue. A grit my teeth and grin. It’s an honest question.

Of course, no outfitter, fishing guide or charter operator in his right mind is going to tell you that fishing stinks. We all have good products and services and are here to sell trips!

But, “good fishing” is relative. Fishing success is subject to a zillion variables. It is dependent on seasons; winds; currents; and water temperatures. Bait stocks; water levels; and even lunar and meteorological events can have an effect on “good fishing.”

The honest answer is that fishing just can’t be good every single day. Even in the fish-rich waters of Baja, I’m probably being blasphemous by saying that there are indeed days when it would have been better to stay on the beach drinking a frosty one.

But the other part of that honest answer is that, it’s rare to have a bunch of bad days fishing in Baja. There’s a reason people keep coming back year-after-year to these legendary fishing grounds. There’s a reason for all the big fish pictures in my fishing booth. Lastly, like anywhere else, you surely won’t have a good fishing day if you don’t put a rod in the water.

What’s worse is the angler who walks up; leans on my counter and says, “I went to Baja and fishing is way over-rated. Weather was terrible and we didn’t catch a danged thing!” (And he tells everyone else within earshot as well…like he had just bellied up to the bar!)

So, I ask him to be specific. “What time of year did you go fishing in Baja, Sir?

“I came down in January.”

“And how many days did you fish?”

“Just one. It sucked.”

“So, did you catch anything at all?”

“Well, we caught three of those fish they call Do-RAH-doe…you know…green and gold things and we also got ’bout 6 yeller-fin tuna.”

“Sounds like a pretty nice day to me!”

“Well, we didn’t catch no marlin and it was rough too! I’ll never go back”.

So, based on exactly a single day of fishing in winter and simply because no marlin bit, this guy has come to the conclusion that fishing was terrible.

Listen, take all the advertising and pretty pictures with a grain of salt. But… Just a grain! Fishing isn’t always going to be stellar. No outfitter or charter operator is going to show you pictures of a bad day of fishing! No one takes photos on bad fishing days!

But understand that even in Baja, not every day is world-class. Not every fish is a record beater. The sun does not always shine and the water is not always flat. The fish you hunt may not be the fish you catch.

But, don’t forget as well. This is Baja. It’s never bad for long. Each day you head out on the water towards the dawn, there’s the possibility that all the dots will connect. All the lucky stars will line up. Each day fishing in the Baja just might be the best fishing day of your life. And that’s why the rest of us keep coming back!

That’s our story!
Jonathan

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Jonathan Roldan is the Baja Columnist for Western Outdoor News. If you ever need to reach him directly, he lives in La Paz, Baja Mexico. and can be reached at riplipboy@tailhunter-international.com. His website is http://www.tailhunter-international.com/