Pêche au gross à Calheta, Madeira

Madeira is a Portuguese archipelago situated less than 400km north of Tenerife (Canary Islands). Portuguese sailors discovered the islands of Madeira, Porto Santo and Desertas in 1419. Today, Madeira is a popular tourist destination, famous for its wine, flowers, landscapes and its fishing possibilities.
Due to the geographic situation of Madeira, the island enjoys an abundance of fish of various kinds like Blue Marlin, Blue Fin Tuna, White Marlin, Blue Marlin, Albacore, Big Eye Tuna, Yellow fin tuna, Wahoo, Spearfish, skipjack tuna and many others.

Blue Marlin Fishing in Madeira

Every year, towards May blue marlin start to show up in the waters around Madeira. Marlin fishing has become very popular in Madeira since the 70’s, when anglers started catching regularly 1000lb+ Blue Marlin. Every season thousands of Big Game fishing enthusiasts fly to Madeira to fish this amazing predator. Most of the Fishing Charters in Madeira support catch and release.
The best fishing area for Marlin fishing is the southern part of Madeira. Here, the spectacular cliffs protect the area from the North Eastern winds, which often make fishing impossible on the north coast of the archipelago. The sea bottom quickly gains depth, which means “fenders in, lines out”. At relatively short distances from the coast the depths can reach over 3000m!
Apart from Blue Marlin, you can also count on two other lightweight billfish species: White Marlin and Spearfish (also from May to September).

Tuna Fishing in Madeira

In January the first tuna appear in this Madeira area, especially the Big Eye Tuna. In April and May these magnificent fighters prowl the offshore grounds in search of sardines, anchovies and mackerel. The biggest Big Eyes can be found in summer, when they surpass easily the 80kg barrier.
Albacore and Skip Jack arrive for the summer months, which are excellent light tackle tuna species. Bluefin tuna are around towards the end of summer. From late summer into early winter large wahoo are the best sportfish.

Bottom Fishing and Jigging in Madeira

During winter, when the big game season is very calm, it can be very interesting to go bottom fishing or jigging in Madeira. The irregular sea floor that consists of rocks, reefs, drop offs and holes is the beloved home to Grouper, Red Snapper, Amberjack, Horse Mackerel, etc. A perfect place to explore with large soft bait, jigs and inchiku lures.

Océan Atlantique