FISHING THE PACIFIC 



pedition found very fruitful in February 1952. There were 

 a great many marlin sighted, all heading north, and a great 

 many sailfish as well as striped and black marlin. 



La Plata Island, just south of Cape San Lorenzo, is the hot 

 spot. By all means go there. It has a fine anchorage, some auto- 

 mobile roads, and is a very interesting island. Here the com- 

 mercials are constantly taking big black marlin out of 

 dugouts with handlines as they do out of Manta which is just 

 north of Cape San Lorenzo. Manta has fine beaches but no 

 hotels. Unfortunately the country has done nothing about 

 getting the fishing going but it was given every chance to 

 start things in 1950 and 1951. 



Wendell Anderson, Sr., when leading the Yale University 

 Expedition caught a black marlin just over 500 pounds while 

 trolling late in February, 1953. This is the earliest I have 

 heard of marlin being taken. Emilio Estrada caught fish he 

 believed small silver marhn off La Plata in October, 1952, but 

 I feel certain they were small striped marlin. La Plata was the 

 southernmost site reached by Ruiz in 1526 when exploring 

 the coast of Ecuador from Panama after Balboa discovered 

 the Pacific or Blue Ocean. There for the first time he saw one 

 of the crafts used by the natives— a bamboo sailing craft with 

 lateen sails made of cotton and steered by large paddles in the 

 bow and stern— engaged in commerce from Manta to 

 Tumbes in Peru, the northernmost town, and also carrying 

 pilgrims to La Plata Island which was then a sanctuary and 

 quite an important place. 



At the end of that century Sir Francis Drake got into the 

 news again when, after capturing a Spanish galleon, he 

 stopped over in La Plata to distribute among his companions 



no 



