LA ZONA REPORT FOR MAY 15 TO 18

Friend, Wilson Cox, reports good fishing out of La Zona which is located on the Uruguay River on the Argentina/ Uruguay border.  The water levels were normally high but fluctuated during the weekend whereas large rocks were exposed near the dam.  Wilson said trolling Mag 30s and CUCU lures were extremely productive.  Also home made heavy wire spinnrbaits were really good but destroyed after a few dorado bites.  According to Wilson, the weather was exceptional!  The staff and guides did a tremendous job says Wilson.  Having been a La Zona seasoned veteran, Wilson claims this was one of the best trips he has taken to the "zone", and is already planning on returning in 2016.
The largest golden dorado landed in his boat was by his partner, a 46lbs monster.  Wilson says everyone missed a few over 40lbs near the boat, but he did landed 5 golden dorado at 36lbs.

LOUISIANNA POTENTIAL STATE RECORD REDFISH

Angler Darrel Gilbert recently landed the redfish of his dreams.  While fishing with Capt. Mike Frenette of Redfish Lodge of Louisianna, Gilbert landed and released a monster redfish measuring 53.5 inches with a girth of 31 inches.  The bull red was estimated at 65lbs which exceeds the Louisianna state record of 61lbs.  The current IGFA all tackle record for redfish is a monster 94lbs 2oz caught out of North Carolina.
Gilbert was fishing the shoreline in the South Pass out of Venice, LA.  He was using a pumpkin and chartreuse Strike King redfish magic glass minnow tied to a 3/8 oz jighead and positoned about 2.5 inches above a popping cork.
The Venice area holds lots of monster redfish.  I have personally fished with Capt. Keith Kennedy of Born to Fish Charters and highly recommend his services.  Who knows, maybe you can top Darrel's record catch as they are swimming in the waters around Venice!

LAU LAU RIGS

Heavy duty rigs are required to land the monster Lau Lau.  For my recent trip to Suriname, I made numerous rigs before settling on using the Gamakatsu Octopus Single Eye 4X STRONG 10/0 hook tied to an Owner ST66 4/0 treble with 300lbs Kevlar Cord.  The Gamakatsu Octopus 4X is an extremely sharp and strong hook capable to penetrating the hard mouth of the Lau Lau.  Owner ST-66 or Owner ST-76 are in my opinion the best treble hooks on the market and are extremely strong and razor sharp.  The Kevlar cord was very easy to work with in tying knots.  I first tied the single hook to the Kevlar cord then ran about 5 inches before tying on the treble.  I superglued each knot and placed some shrink wrap over the knots for added protection.  A 6ft- 300lbs Kevlar Cord was then used as a leader

and tied to a 325lbs SPRO swivel.  First, a sinker slide was placed on the leader so heavy sinkers up to 16oz could be taken off without tying up a new rig.  Part of the fun of these trips is experimenting with new rigs before the trip actually takes place.  I found that when using the heavy egg sinkers, I placed a screw eye into one of the holes which could hold the sinker in place but let lose in case of snags so I would not lose the entire rig.  Also, give Kevlar Cord a look for your next leaders for monster fish!

TOP RODS FOR LAU LAU

During the trip to Suriname's rain forest, I had a long search for quality 2 piece fishing rods capable of handling monster Lau Lau.  With strict restrictions on the size of checked baggage, my normal 1 piece rods could not make the trip.  The best rods I found to team up with the previously mentioned Daiwa Opus spinning reel and Fin-Nor Marquesta 30T conventional reel

where the Okuma AC 602MH which is a 2 piece casting rod at 6ft length.  The rod is more of a jigging rod, capable on landing any fish species on this planet.  The rod is very comfortable, lightweight, and has quality guides and reel seat.  The choice of spinning rod was the 2 piece Magna MX-3 Gorilla Big Fish spinning rod.  This rod is made in Europe mostly for carp fishing.  It comes from www.psfishing.com which can ship to the USA with no problem.  The rod was extremely strong and handled the Lau Lau without a problem.  One of the guys in the group also bought a travel rod made by this company and it looked fantastic.  Check out their site as most have never heard of it.
With the size problem imposed by airlines, I have contacted various fishing tackle companies such as Daiwa to take the lead of making quality strong 2 piece rods for the International River monster seekers.  Will hopefully see some new products to my liking very soon!

TOP REELS FOR LAU LAU

One of the decisions I had before heading to Suriname was finding adequate reels to handle monster Lau Lau.  For the adventure, I settled on using both Daiwa's Opus 5500 spinning reel and a Fin-Nor Marquesa 30T conventional reel.
The Daiwa Opus is an amazing reel for a very low price.  It features a bite and run ability in which turning the handle takes it out of the baitrunner mode and into main gear.  The 5500 model holds lots of heavy braid and has a powerful drag.  I found this reel to be very great value capable of handling a Lau Lau.  I ordered about 5 of these reels and plan on using them on my next visit to Thailand for huge Mekong Cats at Bung Sam Ran!
The Fin-Nor Marquesa 30T is amazing.  It has an adjustable lever drag which lets you crank up the pressure for maximum stopping power when the Lau Lau takes off.  It has a 6:1:1 gear ratio and picks up 51 inches of line with a single handle turn.  The "T" model comes with a top bar and adjustable clicker which is perfect for live bait fishing.  It has a max drag of 40lbs of which all was needed to stop the Lau Lau runs.
S0 if these reels can handle monster Lau Lau, I would try them on any species which swim!

SURINAME FOR MONSTER LAU LAU

Had the opportunity to fish in Suriname with 4 good friends under the guidance of Paul De Boer.  Paul picked us up in Paramaribo, Suriname for a drive to his favorite monster Lau Lau river.  Lau Lau or better known as the piraiba which has been reported to grow over 10ft long and weigh in access of 350 pounds.  Paul has guided numerous anglers to monster Lau Lau and knows the best rivers and times to increase your odds.

Our "home" for the week was a small houseboat complete with 2 bunk beds, a freezer, and small stove.  I found this to be very comfortable and sure beats sleeping on a hammock in the jungle. The meals were delicious consisting of a variety of rice dishes created by Chef Paul.
There is not much wildlife observed during our stay.  A few parrots and macaws are seen and heard each day.  We fall asleep and are awaken each day by the noise of howler monkeys.
The temperatures in the rain forest are extremely hot and humid so a mid day rain shower feels very refreshing.  Paul provided numerous bottles of water and soda for us to prevent dehydration.
Live bait is the best for tempting Lau Lau and nets are placed out each evening.
On the second day of the trip I land a bonus 6ft tarpon, but this is not what I came all the way to Suriname for.  Before the weeks end, all of us land monster Lau Lau so our dreams of monster fish once again come true with the largest Lau Lau going 7ft 2 inch, 6ft 7in and 6ft 6in.
Lau Lau are extremely powerful as evident by screaming drag runs.  I had to put my reel  in "full drag" which is about 45lbs pull and it still screamed!  The guides quickly maneuver the boats toward the midd

le of the river once a big Lau Lau is hooked to keep it from running into the shoreline snags.  Photos are quickly taken, all Lau Lau are revived then released to catch another day.
Paul De Boer is definately the go to guy for monster Lau Lau.  You can check him out on Facebook

International Tackle

Each time I head out on International Fishing Trips, one of my goals is to try and visit a local tackle store. Often, these stores have some great lures which we do not have access to here in the USA.  For example, I recently visited Fish Finder in Suriname.  The store was loaded with fantastic fish mounts such as giant wolf fish and golden dorado.  Also there were numerous aquariums stocked with monster peacock bass and others.  On the shelves were the Marine Sports TNT chopper which is my favorite to fool giant golden dorado over rocks.  Peacock bass anglers would definately find this lure interesting.  Also I found the Rapala Giant Shad Rap in Peacock Bass colorationZuri hydro magnums were available as I cannot find them anymore in the United States.  I have landed my 3 largest golden dorado on these lures so far.  So, when you have a layover overseas, try and visit a local tackle store and you might be surprised on the quality of tackle available.

. I use the Giant Shad Rap for numerous species, but have never seen it in this coloration.  In addition, the Yo-