Bahía Solano & Nuquí, Chocó Fishing Guide

This remote, roadless stretch of the Chocó coast has deep water close to shore and is known for sailfish, yellowfin tuna, marlin, roosterfish and cubera snapper. Lodges and small boats fish from Bahía Solano, Nuquí and nearby villages, often running to bird activity and baitfish blitzes. Colombia's sport fishing law changed recently, so confirm with your lodge that it has the current AUNAP tourism-fishing permit.

📍 Bahía Solano and Nuquí, Chocó department, on Colombia's Pacific coast. There is no road between the two towns (about 120 km apart by sea); small planes fly in from Medellín. Utría National Park lies between them. Some lodges, such as at Punta Ardita, are north of Bahía Solano toward the Panama border.

Map: spots, ramps and marinas

★ Fishing hot spot · ● Boat ramp · ● Marina · ▭ Protected area (solid red = no fishing, dashed = fishing with rules)

Open the full Pacific Colombia & Ecuador map →

Quick facts

There is no road between Bahía Solano and Nuquí; they are about 120 km apart by sea, and most visitors fly in on small planes from Medellín.
About a 20-mile run from Bahía Solano puts you over water deeper than 10,000 feet.
Utría National Park, created in 1987, covers about 54,300 hectares of land and sea in parts of Bahía Solano and Nuquí.
Humpback whales visit from June to November and give birth in Utría Cove from August to October.
Colombia's Constitutional Court struck down 'sport fishing' (ruling C-148 of 2022, in effect from April 2023); Law 2501 of July 2025 created a new 'tourism fishing' category instead.

What you can catch

Sailfish
Free-swimming fish found in good numbers off Bahía Solano; mornings are productive.
Yellowfin tuna
Caught in blitzes on baitfish schools; also fished from Nuquí.
Roosterfish
Targeted inshore, including on fly tackle; a Nuquí-area favorite.
Blue and black marlin
Offshore targets from Bahía Solano.
Cubera snapper
Comes in with the spring sardine migration.
Dorado (mahi-mahi)
Offshore catch; listed in past local tournaments.
Wahoo
Offshore catch.
Amberjack and green jack
Bottom and structure fishing near Bahía Solano.

Month by month

January	Fishing year-round; ask your lodge about conditions.
February	Fishing year-round; ask your lodge about conditions.
March	Spring sardine migration begins drawing cubera snapper and yellowfin.
April	Spring sardine runs; cubera and yellowfin blitzes.
May	Popular month for a mixed catch of tuna, sailfish and roosterfish.
June	Humpback whales start arriving (Jun-Nov).
July	Whale season; offshore and inshore fishing.
August	Humpbacks calving in Utría Cove (Aug-Oct).
September	Whale calving season continues.
October	Last of the calving season; past Bahía Solano tournaments were held in October.
November	Last whales of the season.
December	Fishing year-round; ask your lodge about conditions.

Tips

Book with a lodge or operator that holds an AUNAP 'permiso de pesca de turismo' under Law 2501 of 2025.
Build extra days into your trip; flights from Medellín are often delayed or cancelled by weather.
Ask the park staff before fishing anywhere inside Utría National Park.
Watch for diving birds; boats here often find fish by running to baitfish blitzes.
Release fish you do not need; the new tourism-fishing law is meant to protect local stocks.

Rules and license

Autoridad Nacional de Acuicultura y Pesca (AUNAP); Ministerio de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural; Parques Nacionales Naturales de Colombia (Utría) · Official rules page ↗

'Pesca deportiva' was removed from Colombian law by Constitutional Court ruling C-148 of 2022, in effect from April 27, 2023.
Law 2501 of 2025 (in force July 28, 2025) created 'pesca de turismo'. People and operators offering it as a business need an AUNAP tourism-fishing permit (Art. 11).
AUNAP and the Agriculture Ministry were given one year to set gear, quantities, minimum sizes, zones and seasons. Whether those rules are out yet was not confirmed: check current rules.
Tourism fishing is not allowed in zones the authority excludes, and only species that are not threatened may be targeted.
AUNAP Resolution 2668 of 2024 expanded the Zona Exclusiva de Pesca Artesanal (ZEPA) off Juradó and Bahía Solano by 40% to 1,776 km², to protect artisanal fishers.
Utría National Park is a protected area with an entry fee; fishing rules inside the park were not confirmed: ask park staff.
License fees and bag limits for visiting anglers: not confirmed, check current rules.

Rules change. Always check the official page before you fish.

Boat ramps and marinas

The map above shows 0 boat ramps and 0 marinas from OpenStreetMap. Tap any dot for directions.

Sources

Checked October 2026. BigJoe does not invent facts: every number on this page comes from the sources listed above.