DESTINATION ANGLER
The spotlight falls on Puerto Rico.
Situated in the Caribbean between the US Virgin Islands and the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico has long been a popular holiday destination, and in recent years more and more British anglers are starting to visit.
Spanish is the dominant language in this unincorporated US territory, but English is spoken almost everywhere on this beautiful island.
KEY SPECIES
Tarpon and snook are the major inshore species, and both are abundant, especially within the vast system of mangroves, lagoons and interconnecting channels known as the Torrecilla Lagoons, which extend right into the centre of the capital city, San Juan.
Good inshore fishing is available at a few other locations around the island. Large numbers of tarpon ranging from under 10lb to huge specimens well in excess of 150lb are caught. Snook are especially plentiful, and these average 1-5lb, with the occasional larger specimens too.
Offshore anglers focus on excellent blue water fishing for blue and white marlin, sailfish, tuna, wahoo and dorado.
WHERE & WHEN
There is good, if not excellent fishing for many species throughout Puerto Rico during every month of the year.
The hurricane season runs from June until October, with August and September generally seeing the most disruption.
Between November and February, cold, northerly weather fronts occasionally move across the island from continental USA, chilling the water temperature. The passage of one of these fronts can slow the fishing for several days.
Tarpon are probably the most sought-after species for visiting anglers, and while these can be caught year-round, the best season for tarpon is from November until early July.
TACKLE
Most anglers fish in Puerto Rico with a local guide who, depending on the size of boat, will take two, three or occasionally four anglers.
All guides supply the necessary tackle and, from my experience, this is generally of good-to-very-good quality.
As is usually the case when fishing blue water offshore, all necessary tackle for trolling is inevitably provided.
For general fishing, a medium-weight spinning rod will cover most inshore situations. Pack a selection of lures and be sure to include deep and shallow diving plugs, stick baits, soft plastic weighted shads, and don’t forget some small surface poppers, which are deadly for both snook and tarpon. Make sure that all your lures are rigged with strong hardware.
Live and dead baiting is especially productive for tarpon. Local fishermen catch and sell bait for $1 a fish, and these are best fished in conjunction with strong circle hooks tied to a 60-80lb monofilament or fluorocarbon leader
Many anglers who fish Puerto Rico plan on fly-fishing. I carry two fly outfits. The first is an 8wt rigged with a floating weight-forward tropical taper line, which is perfect for snook and small tarpon. The second is a 10wt, which I fish with either a weight-forward floating or a sink/intermediate tip line, which is ideal for larger tarpon.
Of course, it is essential that all flies are tied on quality hooks – when casting in these waters you can never be sure if you are going to hook a 10lb or a 100lb tarpon.