Salt Water fly fishing is the fastest growing outdoor sport and for good reason, and we have said for years now that the Sea of Cortez offers the largest variety of fish species to be found anywhere.

You can spend your time in La Paz, Mexico fishing with a variety of techniques. Fly fishermen love coming here because the fly fishing conditions are superb, thanks to the rocky shoreline and honeyholes close to land. If fishing from a boat is more up your alley, local guides use super pangas to get you to the most productive grounds.

Inside the Bay of La Paz you can go after Triggerfish, Bonito, Roosterfish, and Jacks. Offshore fly rodders need to go only several miles outside of the Bay to target Tuna, Mahi Mahi, and the ultimate catch, Billfish.

Spearfishing is not a one-size-fits-all fishing technique, but those who love it are in it for life. Another great advantage of La Paz is that you can come any time of the year for a spearfishing trip and have an amazing and productive time in the water. You can be a beginner or a pro spearfisher, these waters won’t let you down. Whether you’d like to do bluewater or bottom spearfishing, there are La Paz fishing charters that can take you to the best spots.

You can go after easy prey like Leopard Grouper (Cabrilla) and Roosterfish, while other fighters of the deep like Dogtooth Snapper, Mahi Mahi, Marlin, and Yellowfin Tuna will give you a run for your money. Cerralvo and Espiritu Santo islands are the spearfishing epicenter, as well as seamounts like La Reina and El Bajo.

Spearfishing in La Paz is one of the most challenging yet rewarding activities in the Sea of Cortez. With a yearly influx of a wide variety of pelagics, the Sea of Cortez and in particular La Paz offers world class spear fishing and boasts a number of IBSRC records.
La Paz Spearfishing Guide
La Paz is truly one of the few spearfishing paradises, with all year around fair weather conditions and the productivity of its hunting grounds allow spearfishermen of any level, beginner to expert, to truly experience the thrill of a lifetime!

In the winter months ( December to end of March ) the water temperatures are relatively low ( around 22 to 24 celsius) the use of a 5 mm wetsuit is a must; for the rest of the year a lighter 3mm suit is going to be perfect ; and in July, August and September ( with the water reaching over 30 celsius) a tropical suit or lycra can be used specifically as protection from the hot sun and possible encounters with the rocky bottoms.

Water visibility can be, especially in the winter months, not at its best and in July it is often reduced to a few meters ( due to mixing of warmer and colder water carrying the nutrients that make this stretch of ocean so rich) ; but the added challenge of less transparency can be very rewarding due the fact that in these conditions the fish are easier to approach.

Both blue water hunting and bottom spearfishing are possible in La Paz, even in the same day different species can be targeted using different techniques and different types of equipment; these will be discussed in the “guide by species” that follows.

Spearfishing in La Paz is mainly done around the two main islands of Espiritu Santo and Cerralvo and some smaller islands or sea mounts ( el Bajo, el Bajito, la Reina); the depths are normally quite accessible ranging from a few meters to a maximum of 25 meters.

The beginner spearfisherman may find it quite challenging to capture one of the pre mentioned species but the rich grounds of La Paz offer a large variety of other prey that will offer a very exciting and rewarding option and delicious eating. In depths starting at only 2 meters, on the rocky bottoms of the island, we will find a big concentration of Trigger and Parrot fish, sometimes huge specimen, Yellow Pargos, Croackers and different species from the Jack family that will assure an exciting spearfishing day and a perfectly fine dinner for even the less experienced or the intermediate spearfisherman wanting to tune his or her diving and shooting capabilities.

La Paz fishing seasons depend on what you’re after. Billfish and inshore species are best in spring and summer, while the reefs are most active over winter. La Paz fishing is amazing all year round, though. You can catch great gamefish on the flats and food fish on the reefs every month of the year. Marlin and Sailfish may tail off in the cooler months, but Wahoo and Tuna are always around and King Mackerel are at their peak.

You’ll find barracuda, grouper, red snapper and others year round and from April to August you have mahi-mahi, wahoo and tuna and of course countless Sailfish in the winter months.