San Juan Del Sur Nicaragua in mid March

[ajelstein]

Hi Larry, great show in Panama, I found it very timely as I will be traveling to south east Nicaragua in March. I'll be staying at a friends house near San Juan Del Sur for 9 days and am told I will have access to a tornament fishing boat (not sure exactly what is meant by "tournament boat" but I am thinking offshore since they have a full time skipper) the whole time. I do not have words to express how excited I am, I have never had such access to a fishing boat in the salt let alone in Central America.

Have you ever been down there in mid March? Do you have any idea what I can expect in terms of fishing opportunities at that time of year? I have tried to research the area online but there is relatively little detail available about that area...just adds for charter boats and vacation rentals. From what I understand so far it sounds like mid March is a little early for many of the popular offshore species but should be a decent time for roosters and maybe snook?

As for gear, I will leave the heavier offshore gear that I can't justify owning to the skipper but I am getting my own lighter gear together to fish for roosters and any other species I can actively target with lures (e.g., snook, jacks, etc...) from the boat around rocks and in the surf.
- I have a Calcutta 401D on order which I am planning to match with a 9' h surf rod, would you suggest 65# or 80# pp?
- I have access to a new Tranx 500PG for $375 that I am considering buying for the trip (and Muskie fishing at home) with an 7' xh inshore travel rod, do you think I will need it for big roosters, etc. or will the 401D be sufficient? If so what weight pp.
- Finally, as for lures I am planning to bring some large and small wide glides, a couple whapper ploppers, shimano waxwings, some of my homemade mr whigglies, sebile splashers, stick shads, koolie minnows and 228 Magic swimmers among other things. Do you think any of those are not worth carrying or is there anything missing?

I would really appreciate any input you can offer, I have no expierience fishing in Central America and I want to make the most of it.

Best regards,

Andy

[dahlberg]

Hi A
spool the 401 with 65 pp. Spool the Tranx with 80. In addition to the lures you've mentioned, I'd suggest a bunch of Sabiki rigs to catch bait if you need it, plus a good asst of circle hooks from size 4/0 thru about 9/0. Some wire and some heavy mono for leaders.
good luck!
best
L