Yeah, well… so much for that spot of grouchy weather. It certainly didn’t stop our anglers from putting two more permit on the board today to bring our total to 492. The big surprise though was that neither fish came from Joe or Eizo, but rather from two of Eizo’s group. First timer to the P-Club, Mr. Tsuda Masahiro got his first permit, and Ms Mari Kitagawa landed a beautiful 16-pounder despite being handicapped from a stroke earlier in her life. She has to cast with her operable hand, then tuck the rod under her other arm and strip with that same good hand. Mari, we are deeply impressed!

It started out as another beautiful day here in Punta Allen, however, where the weather is born, it has been born again. It is 2:45pm. Thick, heavy, dark clouds have just taken over, the wind has kicked up some turbulance on the water and it looks like rain. Things change quickly in Ascension Bay.

The guys are all out fishing…who knows where.  Their quest for the 500th permit has made them all ultra-committed, willing to go anywhere. Hopefully they are still under bright blue skies, surrounded by schools of willing palometa.

I will re-post tonight.

Kaye

Joe Seelig with his number 20 for the season!

GAME CHANGER! It’s late on Saturday evening, everyone is exhausted but this is beginning to be big news. The games began in earnest at the P-Club today as Dr Joe Seeling put up yet another permit on the board, his TWENTIETH for the season!! And Eizo and his pal Mas from the far East added two more. It’s hard to imagine we’re talking about catching permit, but we are!

Eizo's first of the week, our 490th!

We’re now truly in striking distance of the big 500 this week. The question is, will Seeling extend his trip again (tomorrow is his scheduled last day, but he’s stayed on before – see below) and if so, which of these two sticks, Eizo or Joe, might claim the honor.

Of course these guys could both start farming fish and next week’s guests get the limelight. Stay tuned, we’ll update you every evening from here on out.

HE’S BAAAACK!… and the permit count has risen to 487, with two nice fish landed yesterday by LMF Dr. Joe Seelig. As you might recall, Dr. Joe was here only three weeks ago and set all kinds of amazing records (see March 9th posting). Well Joe turned 36 on March 28th and bought himself a birthday gift – three MORE days of fishing at the Palometa Club! By his own admission (and we surely concur!) he is a total permit junky. He’s actually a gift to us, bringing his enthusiastic personality and wonderful charm.

This could quite possibly be the week the celebrated 500th fish is caught, because as well as Joe being back in the hunt, we also have the previous record holder of most fish caught in a week, Japanese angling legend Eizo Maruhashi. Who broke Eizo’s record you might ask…Dr. Joe of course!

Eizo is here for his third trip in as many seasons and he’s brought four more master casters with him from Japan. We certainly couldn’t be happier to see them, especially after the tragedy in their homeland. Longtime guest Dave Staub from Colorado rounds out the group, here for his fourth visit to The Palometa Club, and he’s also a pretty good stick. So, we have seven boats out this week, all single anglers, each getting ALL the shots. The action is certain to get quite competitive quite quickly.

It’s very exciting around here today, and we can’t wait for the group to get back in this evening. Stay tuned!

Fina and Rosie, the dynamic duo!

I would like to introduce you to the two women on our staff here at The Palometa Club, Fina and Rosie. Fina has 3 children ages 25, 19 and 15, and now she is also the very proud grandmother of 2 year old Rafael and 5 month old Carolina.

Fina has been with Dick since the early days, when he managed a local lodge here in Ascencion Bay 11 years ago. When we made the desicion to build The Palometa Club, Fina was the first member of many to jump on board, it was a leap of faith for us all. Now well into our 6th season, we could not be a happier family. Fina is the backbone of the club, she has a take-charge attitude and her motto is that “there are no problems, only solutions” and she never takes no for an answer. Basically, Fina is the house manager, she comes in to work at 5:00 am, and stays as late as she need to. Helping in the kitchen, until breakfast is over and then she is off and running from room to room cleaning, sweeping, mopping and humming a tune while she works. When Fina is done cleaning you could eat off the floor. She is willing to do whatever it takes to get things done and Dick is sure that she could even pole a boat.

Rosie is the mother of three beautiful daughters ages 13, 4 and 7 months.  She is an outstanding cook, and worked for us for a few months last season. She was pregnant with her third child and eventually needed to go on maternity leave, we hated to see her go, and are thrilled to have her back on a full time basis. Rosie is delightful, hard working, very organised and keeps the kitchen in tip top shape. She is prone to break out with a case of the giggles that are infectious, we laugh until the tears are streaming down our faces. She is full of joy and we are blessed to have her. Now, let’s talk about her fabulous food. Rosie has been a chef for 13 years and it is obvious that she prepares her dishes with love, you can taste it. Everything from her fantastic soups, delicious entree’s and scrupmtious deserts, will knock your socks off. Her side dishes and special salsa’s are a work of art, with special added spices that I’m sure contain a secret ingredient or two. Mmmmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about dinner tonight.

Fina and Rosie work together like a well-oiled machine, it’s as they can read each other’s minds, and quite amazing to watch. Fina helps Rosie in the kitchen, both arriving before dawn, getting coffee started, preparing lunches for the guides and clients, right through breakfast and into prepping for dinner. They work tirelessly, and even when they are exhausted you would not know, because they are gracious, smiling and truly love their work.

Dick and I appreciate our staff so much, we are truly a family here from the guides to the house staff to our gardener/ rod cleaner. The love exudes here, and when you come visit it will become as clear to you as the bright blue sky, that this is the God’s honest truth.

Kaye Cameron

So here’s the report we just got from The Palometa Club manager Dick Cameron: “Well Steve Davenport Sr. finished the week strong with his second permit of the week. The entire group spoke of schools everywhere and shots throughout the day. The boat with Greg Chester and Ty Harding was in fish ALL day long. Gregg said he had 70 shots. Larry Garlick played a nice permit for 10 or 15 seconds before it became unglued, and Dianne and Penny had shots everywhere they stopped. The Greene’s had another exciting, albeit interesting day. Their love of toothy critters culminated in a couple of barracuda landed and a tug of war with a shark that was eventually won by the shark.”

Permit Standings: season-to-date 61, lodge total 485

 

Larry Garlick has added one nice 15-lb permit to the count but while the last two days have been full of opportunities the fish gods have definitely been a bit stingy.

So how do you assess your chances of catching the “famed fish?” Right now we have a group of twelve at the lodge with one more day of fishing before they head home. They have all just gone through our second week of the Grizzly Hackle Permit School with Jeffrey Cardenas, so they’re on their game. They could easily bump the number up significantly today …or not. That’s permit fishing! Then next week we have four ladies coming in, two of which are very good sticks. The following week we have some new anglers we haven’t fished with before, so that’s harder to predict.

Since it’s quite possible for a group of good anglers to catch a dozen permit in a week (we’ve done it several times before) the 500th fish could easily happen during these next two weeks, particularly if a few more dedicated rods decide to come down and try to capture the honor. Stay tuned!

Kaye Cameron and her little guy Digger.

Permit might be the best thing in the water, but when your feet hit the ground after a day of fishing you will be greeted by man’s best friend, my dog Digger.

Dick was away working up north in Valdez, Alaska when I decided it was time for me to get a dog. I had wanted a Westie for a few years, and after searching website’s I found a breeder, and bought myself a little guy. I had no idea the effect he would have on our lives and the lives of our guests at The Palometa Club.

Digger is a friend to all, has a loving, gentle and tenacious personality, and has been trained to mind his manners. He’ll be three-years-old in June, and has the ability to make a frown turn upside down. Westies are not “typically” water dogs, but he loves to go out on the boat with us in Alaska and goes crazy trying to get the shrimp and crab while we are pulling pots. A couple weeks ago Joe Seelig was fishing with us here at The Palometa Club, and invited Dick to come along. Digger was messing around on the beach like he does every day, playing with the guides and guests while they got ready to push the boats. Joe and Dick loaded up and the motor was running, I was waving goodbye and all of a sudden Digger runs full speed ahead, jumps into the water, head held high and starts swimming like crazy towards the boat. Yes, even Digger wanted to go fishing, he’s heard a lot about permit and he just might want to see one for himself. It was quite a sight, everyone was laughing and laughing, including me. I knew what was coming next; Digger got out of the water and on to the sand and began rolling in the turtle grass, and I just let him roll and roll and roll. He was one nasty, stinky little guy…off to get a bath.

Digger is an asset to The Palometa Club. He has become our mascot, my companion and therapist for guests who need a little puppy love. Getting Digger was one of the best decisions I’ve made besides marrying Dick Cameron and opening The Palometa Club.

Kaye Cameron

Guide Charlie Croc, Steve Jr. with palometa, and proud papa in back.

Lots of permit spotted today (Sunday, March 13) but just three scrappy ones fooled. First time saltwater fly fisherman Harry Popiel landed his first palometa, while father/son combo Steve and Steve Jr. Davenport each got on the board today. This brings our year-to-date count to 59 and our quest for 500 permit to 483! We’ve been averaging about 10 to 12 permit a week lately which would indicate that our 500th fish will likely be caught during the March 18 – 25 or March 25 – April 1 week. There are still a few spaces available in both those weeks, so take advantage of our special 500th Permit Promotion and come help us make history… and just maybe you’ll be the one to catch this landmark fish and win all of our incredible prizes!

Click here for complete details: 500th Permit Caught Special Promotion

Dave Huffman with our first over 30-pound permit of the season.

ACT FAST, THIS WILL PROBABLY HAPPEN IN THE NEXT THREE WEEKS! We had 85 guests our first season when we opened The Palometa Club five years ago. Now we average twice that every year, but we still remain a small, exclusive fishing lodge dedicated to the highest level of service we can provide the serious (and beginning) permit angler. This philosophy, and the fact that we simply have the best saltwater fishing guides anywhere in Mexico, contribute to a very high success rate in landing permit on the fly. That is why it is not entirely surprising (but amazing nonetheless!) that we are about to catch our 500th permit – we’re at 480 right now (check out our fishing reports)! To commemorate this incredible event we are offering a special rate and fabulous prizes to the lucky angler who can land this historic fish.

Click here for all the details: 500th Permit Caught Special Promotion