Landing the Big One

The Bisbees series of fishing tournaments have a storied legacy in Baja dating back to 1981. In 2000, the tournament expanded to include the East Cape. The annual East Cape Offshore fishing tournament takes place in Buena Vista, located just next to the Costa Palmas Resort, and this year the winning team caught a black marlin weighing in at 538 lbs.

The Sea of Cortez, also known as the Golf of California, has been a lurid temptation for fishermen from all over hoping to experience the thrill of reeling in “the big one.” Within Baja waters, anglers can expect to encounter blue, striped and black marlin, along with sailfish, wahoo, yellowfin tuna, rooster fish, snapper and grouper. Today, marlin fishing tournaments, like the Bisbee’s East Cape Offshore, continue to draw international acclaim with professionals and lifelong fishermen and women sailing the Baja waters for a taste of the blue-water action.

The event featured more than 350 anglers on 62 teams. Collectively, tournament contestants landed 6 black marlin, 47 blue marlin, 2 dorado, 28 striped marlin and 15 yellowfin tuna. Other team winnings ranged from $7,225 USD to $140,675 USD.

Additional winning teams were:

Second Place: Feelin’ Azul $8,788 for a 493-pound black marlin on day one of the tournament also (the larger fish swept all the jackpots on Day One however, they had the second largest fish).
Day Two Jackpot: Sporty Game $140,675 for a blue marlin.
Top Releases: Reel Quest $37,750 for four blue marlin and two stripers.
Second Place Release: Reel Gold $13,005 for four blue marlin.
Third Place Release: Karma $7225 for two blues and four stripers.
Day Two Tuna: Altata Bay $18,700 for a 80.3-pound yellowfin.
Day Three Tuna: Awesome $18,700 for a 78.1-pound yellowfin.

Tuesday, August 21, 2018