Sure, I’ve read all the pretty, ephemeral literature espousing “the gentle arte of angling with the flye”.  Hell, I’ve even written some myself.  And yes, it can be a delicate and quieting pastime.  But somewhere along the way, the hunter/gatherer inside your head gets tired of the Yeats’ “little silver trout”, and says in his Joisey accent “Hey!  Let’s go catch a big damn honkin’ fish!”

That’s when you need to turn your attention to your local saltwater.  That’s where you’ll find sharks.  To this day, no other creature cultivates dread, respect and awe quite like a shark.  First of all, they’re butt ugly.  Big and mean.  And dumber than a linebacker.  Oh yeah, and they like to eat people.  Even you, if your sorry butt slips over the side of the boat.  Which could easily happen when you pursue these things with a fly rod.  So there’s a unique element of danger to this type of fishing: Catch this bastard safely - or die trying.  Clearly this quarry is not one that any sane fly fisherman would target.  Which is precisely why it’s so appealing to me.


No Respect

Sharks, as a rule, have been looked down upon by fly fishers.  I was reluctant to even bother when Conway invited me the first time.  But then I hooked a mako who literally jumped over my head – three times.  Six years later, it’s me who’s hooked.  I’m not alone in my obsession; many fly fishermen are now seeking new opportunities in the salt, especially close to home.  Let’s face it, tarpon, permit and bonefish are all wonderful and live in the nicest neighborhoods, but you can’t go there every weekend!   Sharks however, and especially the apex mako, provide plenty of action close to home.

The mako is the only shark to be recognized by the IGFA, and for good reason.  He’s wily, fast and mean.  He jumps higher than any billfish, and has moves that can break hearts, tackle, and sometimes, boats.  With his sleek, muscular body, nasty business end and killer’s eye, the mako is an alpha predator of the first order, and perhaps inspiration for our pre-Cambrian forefathers to finally lumber out of the water – wide-eyed and wild, gasping for air and clutching their gluteus.  The mako is to sharks what the Ferrari is to cars: Hell on wheels.


Sharks in the ‘hood

The shortfin mako or bonito shark is a year-round resident of southern California.  These relatively smaller fish – 20 to 150 pounds - are the juveniles in their first three years. The bigger makos – up to1,200 pounds – come to whelp in the nearshore canyons during the winter months, but these are dangerous, unpredictable, man-eating beasts, and no match for even the toughest fly gear.  If you ever see one that size, slowly drop out of his sight below the gunwale, put your fly rod away so you don’t piss him off, reach carefully for the ship-to-shore and whisper your coordinates to the Coast Guard, while quietly wetting yourself.  

After three years and approximately 150 pounds, makos become pelagic and follow their favorite species, which are bluefish on the east coast and bonito in the west, and also include seals and swordfish as they become larger.  In fact, many of the harpoon boats out here regularly spot makos in the 800 to 1,000 pound class.  As fly fishermen, we target the younger and more manageable sharks between 40 and 150 pounds, manageable being the operative word there!

On the East coast, makos remain a staple of the big game hunters, but their numbers have been greatly decimated by the longliners. And while their range includes the entire east and gulf coasts, you’d be hard pressed to find them in any numbers. Expert captains like Fred Archer, Gary Caputi and Jake Jordan say that although the mako is a harder fish to find on the East coast, the size on average is larger.  A new IGFA record was set in 2001 on 80 lb. conventional tackle during the Oak Bluffs tournament – a whopping 1,221 pounds!


Sight Fishing or Chumming

One of the more interesting recent developments in SoCal mako fishing is hunting for the “finners;” the surface-feeding makos, visible under the right conditions.  Usually best done in the early morning on greasy-calm water, we can sometimes see the telltale dorsal fin hundreds of feet away.  We throttle way back and quietly slide up on the fish at a distance and make long casts ahead of his path.  Imagine sight casting to hundred-pound surface-feeding fish with a fly rod!

Another method, is to target the kelp paddies that pepper the offshore waters here in San Diego.  These kelp have long trailing arms that shelter baitfish and attract everything else that swims, including makos.  We’ll putter alongside and throw big streamers at any paddy bigger than three feet across.  Sometimes there’s a lurking mako, sometimes a couple of yellowtail.  The dilemma, however, is that yellowtail won’t hit a fly on a wire trace, and makos will bite through mono, so you’re potentially damned if you do/damned if you don’t.

Chumming remains a consistent and rewarding method to attract sharks, and apart from the aching boredom – is rather exciting!  The boring part is the wait, sometimes for hours.  The exciting part is the mystery of what might follow the smell home to your little boat!  We’ve been visited by vast schools of mackerel, bonito, yellowtail, yellowfin, packs of blue sharks, single and multiple makos, giant ocean sunfish and even the rare hammerhead.  


Over the years, we’ve tried a variety of commercially available chums and a few concoctions of our own making.  The store-bought is the easiest, neatly frozen in 5-gallon pails for about $25 a pop.  But a fresh albacore carcass or two works very nicely as well.  Oily, dark fish like mackerel and bonito work beautifully – and often can be caught trolling on the ride out to the mako grounds.  Once a year, my poor suffering wife “advises” me to clean out the garage freezer, and from this potpourri of frostbitten chicken, salmon, tuna and mystery slabs, I make an unholy slop that Conway swears at, but I swear by, as it has led many a mako to temptation.

When and Where

Conway advocates fishing the warmer months, May through October.  There’s better weather, smoother seas, and opportunities to fish for other pelagic species such as yellowtail, albacore or the sushi brothers: yellow- &  bluefin.  His log from the 2001 season records an amazing 135 makos brought to the boat and released during these months.

The California coast drops off quickly, and you’re in deep water within sight of land, which means you don’t have to travel far to find makos.  Usually we set our slick in water between 40 and 100 fathoms, although shark guru Fred Archer says 20 to 30 has been super-productive in his experience.  We gauge the tides and wind and plan our drift over good bottom, bait, and temperature breaks.  If there’s little or no wind, we’ll power-chum, motoring along at 2 or 3 knots to help disperse the slick.  We look for uncrowded areas where other boats are unlikely to cut through and disrupt the scent trail.  There’s always some kook who’ll blast by at full tilt blasting 80’s rock from his tapedeck, totally oblivious to the stealthy trap you’re trying to set, which is why we prefer weekdays over the bedlam of the weekend.

We’ve found early morning sessions to be most productive, although Fred Archer says that night fishing for makos brings out bigger numbers and wilder fish.  We all agree that the week before the full moon is the best phase.  

Appropriate Gear

Rods from 10 to 14-weight, the shorter the better.  You don’t have to cast far, but you may have to lift and turn a very reluctant fish.  Beefy reels with good drag systems, I prefer large arbor designs which give you an advantage on retrieval. Floating or intermediate lines and short, five-foot heavy leaders that terminate in 18” of single strand wire.  After you’ve caught a few, go to IGFA-regulation leaders.  Big 3/0 – 7/0 saltwater patterns such as the chum fly, or any big anchovy or mackerel pattern.  Favorite colors are red, white (helps visibility on overcast days) and chartreuse.  We use both circle hooks and regular gaps, but always crimp the barb, because it’s quicker to release when the mako is at the boat.  Always carry a long-handled release gaff, which allows you to remove the fly while the shark is in the water, and your hands are not.

Fly shops/Guides:

Currently the only San Diego based mako fly guide is Conway Bowman.  He also fishes for the visiting pelagics in season.  Conway can accommodate up to two clients in his 18-foot skiff, and runs half-, three-quarter- and full day trips with gas and bait provided. He can be reached at (619) 822-6256, or emailed at elmoscador@aol.com, his website is www.bowmanbluewater.com.
Stroud Tackle at 1457 Morena Blvd., (619) 276-4822 is the oldest and most eclectic fly shop in town.  It’s also the setting for the opening chapter of Richard Louv’s Fly Fishing for Sharks: An American Journey.  Fred Archer pioneered west coast shark fishing, but now runs his charter business in Cabo San Lucas.  He is a veritable encylopedia of knowledge about shark fishing.  His website is www.archersportfishing.com