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Costa Rican verano, or summer, is almost here, and that means nice weather and good fishing throughout most of the country. November through April is usually the best time for sailfish and mahimahi along the Pacific coast. The big marlin and tuna are always out there and can pop up in the spread anytime. The weather on the Caribbean side calms down after January for some good tarpon fishing in February and March.
Good luck to all the captains, crews and anglers this upcoming season.
Northern Pacific
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Sad Farewell: Veteran fisherman Capt. Jesse Balleti will be deeply missed by friends and family. |
Photo courtesy of Jerry “Bubba” Hallstrom
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Capt. Lee Keidel on the Kingpin in Tamarindo reports a great mahimahi bite with some sailfish and marlin starting to show.
Petra Schoep of Tamarindo Sportfishing says the Talking Fish, Salsa and Outcast all have been catching lots of mahimahi and yellowfin tuna and some sailfish.
Capt. Gerald Ruiz of Capullo Sportfishing recently did a half-day trip on the Rainbow Runner and caught six mahimahi in the 30- to 50-pound range, some jack, mackerel and two big roosterfish.
Capt. Skeet Warren on the Bushwacker has been catching good numbers of mahimahi and tuna from 20 to 50 pounds, as well as a mix of sailfish, jack, mackerel, bonito and more.
The guys from Go Fish Costa Rica hosted a 17-boat fishing derby in Tamarindo. Lots of mahimahi, wahoo and yellowfin were caught, and most of the boats released either a sailfish or a marlin. They also report a good mahimahi bite recently, and free-jumping sailfish chasing bait just four miles offshore at the reef.
Ralph Solano of Costa Rica Wildfishing reports a good bite out of kayaks up in Guanacaste. They've been using light tackle and catching a variety of fish, including snook, jack, mackerel, needlefish and more.
Capt. Rick Ruhlow on the Kingfisher out of Carrillo says the inshore bite has been steady for mahimahi, small yellowfin, amberjack, snapper and wahoo. Offshore, they are catching some big mahimahi and yellowfin and the occasional sailfish and marlin.
Dean Paquette in Playa Naranjo and the guys on the Buena Vibra took a father-and-son group out for some offshore fishing and had a great trip. They caught eight nice mahimahi, all over 30 pounds, and still had time to hit a local floating restaurant for a seafood feast and a few cold beers.
Central Pacific
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Many Mahi: Jed Drinen from St. Louis, Missouri, with one of many nice mahimahi caught recently on the 60Megabite off the central Pacific coast. |
Photo courtesy of 60Megabite
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Congratulations to Capt. Christian Sáenz and the guys on the Clean Sweep for taking first place in last month's Los Sueños Marlin Invitational. Capt. James Smith and team on the Dragin Fly came in second, and Capt. Richard Fifer and crew on the Drum Roll took third place.
My friends and I have gone out several times on the Disco Pirate the past few weeks and have been averaging a handful of mahimahi, a couple of yellowfin and a few sailfish here and there.
The folks from Maverick Sportfishing at Los Sueños have been catching fish, while the Spanish Fly recently caught a marlin, eight sailfish, three mahimahi and a big tuna. And the guys on The Bite caught a marlin, five sailfish, seven mahimahi and three yellowfin.
Laura Thomas of Ocean Adventures had a family go out for a great day with Capt. Dana Thomas on the Hoo's Your Daddy. They caught a bunch of yellowfin tuna and grouper, and they saw three types of dolphin and two types of whales. A few days later, they went offshore and raised a dozen sailfish.
Capt. Smith and the guys on the Dragin Fly took the Derosier group out for a few days offshore to celebrate a 50th birthday. They had a great trip, with a bunch of mahimahi, some big tuna and a few sailfish every day.
A group from the U.S. city of St. Louis went out on the 60Megabite for a day offshore and ended the day with eight nice mahimahi and three sailfish.
Capt. Dave Mothershead on the Miss Behavin' took a group down to a local hot spot called the “26 rock” recently and caught a dozen mahimahi, a dozen jack and a nice snapper.
Capt. Tim Blair on the Tres Amigos took a group out about 30 miles and caught a dozen mahimahi, all over 25 pounds, and two sailfish.
Jerry Glover of Luna Tours reports that the Ojaran II and Ojaran III have been catching lots of mahimahi over 35 pounds and a few sailfish offshore.
The folks from Quepos Bluewater Sportfishing have been going offshore in the Bluewater II and Bluewater III, catching good numbers of mahimahi, some tuna and sailfish.
The fishing community's thoughts and prayers go out to the friends and family of longtime fisherman Capt. Jesse Balleti. He worked in Quepos and Flamingo and most recently ran the Wave Dancer. The veteran captain gave back to his community and will be missed.
Northern Region
Capt. Ron Saunders of Captain Ron's Lake Arenal Fishing Tours reports some red-hot fly-fishing up at the lake recently, with a dozen nice machaca and a handful of guapote all caught on the fly.
Caribbean
Capt. Eddie Brown of the Bullshark in Tortuguero reports hit-and-miss weather and seas. They've been catching good numbers of calba, or fat snook, and a few tarpon in the inlets. Some tarpon can be found outside the river mouth when the weather cooperates.
Diann Sánchez of Río Colorado Lodge just returned from a vacation on which she saw snow for the first time in many years – sounds cold compared to the warm Caribbean coast. The lodge had some great fall fishing with lots of tarpon being caught. The last group it hosted came from Japan and released several tarpon a day.
Jim DiBerardinis and the guys at Tarponville Lodge had a few good months of fly-fishing for tarpon. Groups from South Africa, England, Japan and the Netherlands all enjoyed calm seas and three or four tarpon bites per day on the fly.
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