As mentioned, I began by heading west to Porta Del Sol - the rain shadow area of the main island. Rincon to the north, Mayaguez a major city, to Boqueron (fishing mecca) a beautiful coastal area down to Cabo Rojo (most beautiful beaches), Joyuda (seafood restaurant capital) and El Combate's cliffs and lighthouse facing the Carribean sea in all it's glory.
I hiked down to that beach and snorkeled for hours among a small group of sun worshippers, couples and families taking in the incredible beauty of a remote pristine beach as Sucia is.
I had to crack up a little about the presence of an old friend at Boqueron...
I guess little guy gets a lot of respect no matter whose tire tracks it decides to nest in! Monomoy guys can relate I am sure.
I made it to many of the spots I analyzed by aerial prior, the above is the spot I claimed I would be at. There is a road that leads close to the water and I walked miles of grass flats to the inlet. There were jacks, cuda a plenty and guides were running clients into the lagoon for tarpon (unmistakeable once they jumped).
It was a good spot for shore exploration but I would go at dawn and during max tide flow if I go to this spot again. And don't leave the bug spray in the jeep if there is no wind.
A little further up at Paraguera, which ranked among my favorite places on the entire journey, the resort fishing area was a gem cut into sparse surroundings. It boasts an intricate complex of mangrove islands, cays, coves and is very close to bluewater fishing. The inside teemed with 5-6 foot long tarpon and the diving and kayaking was tops.
If I had not been in a rush to get to Culebra, I would have lingered in Paraguera for days eating fresh lobster and drinking pina coladas between 50 pound tarpon.
I ran into a couple from New Hampshire who were getting married at the cliffs of Cabo Rojo soon, checking out Paraguera. Nice couple, I wished them a happy marriage and rented a skiff.
I will get into that story in more detail later, but I jumped four tarpon in about 90 minutes and got slammed by several others. I literally pulled the fly away from anything over 60-70 pounds, choosing to fish for the 30-50 pound instead. I had to laugh about that fact but it's really foolish when you are alone on a small skiff with a 9wt to hook up with a beast of that magnitude.
Most of the tarpon were cruising along the mangroves not far from shore. The skiff allowed me to get to open water and cast into the edges like a bass fisherman. The fish would run for deep water and I had to clear the line and fight the fish to the deep side of the boat, which worked out well.
Most of my Paraguera footage is on the Camcorder, which I will have to convert to web media at a later date.
On to Guanica...