The magazine for all things Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo
Serving the Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo community since 1999
Available at select spots all across Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo
The magazine for all things Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo
Serving the Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo community since 1999
Available at select spots all across Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo
FishingMeet the Captains: Capt. Felipe
Felipe Santacruz Orozco, born and raised here in Zihuatanejo, is 45 years old. He has been fishing for a living since he was 15. That translates into 30 years of local knowledge and productivity. And, productive years they have been. Captain Felipe owns and operates the panga Yellowfin. His on-the-water-experience with the Yellowfin includes expertise in almost every form of sport fishing that we have here in Zihuatanejo. And, when we are talking about expertise with Felipe, it is the “expert” definition of the word that prevails, and not the “I have done that before” definition. Every day fishermen make arraignments with captains for fishing trips. The fishermen may ask a boat captain whether or not they have expertise in a certain area, naturally the answer is “yes” in order to not lose a charter for the next day, whether it is true or not. Maybe the Capt. has had casual conversation with his friends and basically understands the concept, or he has maybe actually tried it once or twice. Obviously this will lead to a frustrated client by the day’s end. But, expertise with Felipe is just as natural as starting his dependable out board engine: it is there, and it works. What kind of expertise are we talking about? The bread and butter fish of the Ixtapa - Zihuatanejo area is the sailfish. So, naturally, like many other very worthy captains, he has been there and done that. But, how many captains can perform expertly for the fly fisherman, or do a bait and switch? How about a kite or dead drifting live bait on ultra light line when the conditions present themselves? There are many ways to catch a sailfish, and all of them are a lot more exciting for the client than just having the deckhand set the hook and hand the rod off. Felipe has mastered them all, giving his clients a much more meaningful day on the water. Felipe is very quiet. He hardly talks at all when he is fishing. His thoughts are on the rods, and where he is heading. When a fish strikes a trolled bait, he will not say a word. He just casually lets out line until the right moment, and if the client is not paying attention, the only thing he will see or hear is a rod bent over almost double, with a drag screaming. If you want to bottom fish, you have to understand the demands from the incredible number of restaurants and hotels here in the area which keep a night fishing fleet of boats, and a day fishing fleet working seven days a week to supply them. In other words, the bottom fish here, for sport sized fish, are almost completely wiped out. Felipe is the only captain here who can consistently catch decent sized pargo, cabrilla, grouper, and pompano on a regular basis for his clients. When he fishes for the giant tuna, he has the experience and quality tackle to get the job done. His largest tuna to date is 338 pounds. Now, that is world class! It is the same with marlin. His largest blue marlin is 535 pounds. This last July, I remember his wife asking him to catch a dorado for a birthday party they were having for their daughter the next night. Very few dorado had been caught all that month, but as he did not have a client for the next day, they went fishing together. By 10 A.M., after releasing three sailfish, a 40-pound dorado was gaffed. She had complete confidence in him. With Felipe’s wife, the old saying of “it is called fishing - not catching,” takes on a different twist; it is called “shopping.” As a fly fishing captain, Felipe is outstanding. It does not matter if it is inshore, or the blue water. He has been there and done it. He truly understands the art of teasing a game fish close to the boat with a hook-less bait, in order for the fly caster to have a shot at catching the fish. |
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