Costa Rica Fishing - News, Reviews, & Reports

Costa Rica Fishing Report - March 2010

Costa Rica’s peak fishing season powers on with reports of the usual suspects - sailfish, roosterfish, mahi-mahi, lots of wahoo, and even a 350 lb marlin.  Our marlin came from the Parigi party from Houston, TX.  Down for long weekend/bachelor party at the beautiful Villa Buena Onda, the boys went out fishing for a day and reeled in two sailfish and a 350 lb blue marlin.  Right now is typically not the best fishing season up in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica, but that just goes to show that any fish can be had any time of year down here.

A little further south in Manuel Antonio Bob Smouse and his son enjoyed an adventure filled father/son fishing trip.  In addition to two days of fishing they also tackled the ATV tour, white water rafting, and the canopy zip-line tour with reckless abandon.  On their fishing days on the Blue Pearl II they hauled in three sailfish and a 40 lb roosterfish.  The Robinson family went out for five straight days and totaled five sailfish, six dorados, and seven groupers.  Needless to say, they didn’t need to spend much on dinner all week.

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(2 votes, average: 4.5 out of 5)

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Crocodile Man Tour - Rio Tarcoles, Costa Rica

This weekend I got to do something of almost mythical Costa Rican quality - go on the Tarcoles River.  For those of you who aren’t aware, the Rio Tarcoles is famous for being home to Costa Rica’s largest crocodiles.  Most tourists, myself included, only experience the crocodiles of the Tarcoles River by viewing them from high above on the Tarcoles Bridge when driving down the Pacific Coast.  Although I knew there were boat cruises and had heard rumors of other offerings, I never was aware of how close you could get to these prehistoric beasts until last weekend.

Early last week I was browsing the internet for random things associated with Costa Rican vacations, and I saw this amazing picture of two guys  hand feeding fish to giant crocodiles in the Tarcoles River!  These weren’t tame animals and this was not a zoo, these guys were knee deep in the Rio Tarcoles feeding fish to live, hungry 15 foot crocodiles!  Needless to say, my interest was peaked and I wanted to find out more.  The next morning I was watching TV as I was eating breakfast, and as if by fate the National Geographic Channel had a one hour special on “Costa Rica’s Crocs of the Rio Tarcoles”.  Long story short, the hour long special featured US scientists who traveled to Costa Rica to see if they could figure out why so many of the crocodiles in the Tarcoles River had eye damage.  The obvious suspects were pollutants and chemicals, however what they discovered was that there were simply so many large male crocodiles in the area that they were constantly fighting for territory, mates, and food and were actually harming each other.  Knowing this, I had to go.

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(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Costa Rica Scuba Diving - Nov 2009

In four plus years of living in Costa Rica I’ve traveled to nearly every popular or well-known beach and I’ve gotten to know all the best fishing spots. I have admittedly been very fortunate in being able to travel so much inside of this beautiful country and fish along it’s stunning coasts that I can sometimes take for granted the natural beauty other people only see in travel magazines and TV shows. At times heading down to a tropical beach or national park for the weekend can seem routine and I lost count of how many Pacific sunsets I’ve seen long ago. As ridiculous as it may sound to someone stuck inside of a four month long Midwestern winter, I need to find new ways to keep myself entertained down here and I have just done it again - scuba diving.

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(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Costa Rica Fishing Report - Dorado Fever!

Costa Rica’s beautiful dry season weather is back and fishing bite is too.  Every year December marks the start of the Costa Rican summer and along with that the peak fishing season.  The bite starts to improve along the Central & Southern Pacific Coast when the waters clear up and become warmer in November, and this year is right on schedule.  So far the billfish have been a little late to the party, but the dorado (mahi-mahi) are here in a big way.

Blue Pearl Sport Fishing in Manuel Antonio had three different sets of clients out from Nov 11-21 and all brought home some fresh mahi-mahi for dinner.  The Rozek’s from Texas went out for a full day and landed two dorado and were hit by two others.  In three days of fishing the Fyfe’s total was 12 dorados and four bonitos.  Finally Jerry Fitzgerald from Chicago hauled in 13 dorados, two bonitos, and and one yellow-fin tuna.  So while none of our anglers were able to land a billfish, a few were raised and at the very least they had plenty of tasty dinners on their tropical vacation.

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(2 votes, average: 5 out of 5)

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Ocotal Beach Resort Review

A couple of weeks ago I was able to check off another hotel that I had been eager to visit for some time - the Ocotal Beach Resort.  Located in the northwest corner of Costa Rica on the beautiful Gulf of Papagayo, the Ocotal Beach Resort has been attracting those addicted to sport fishing and scuba diving for over a decade.   In addition to being

Views from the restaurant at the Ocotal Beach Resort.

just 30 minutes away from the Liberia International Airport (LIR), the hotel is also a short boat ride away from numerous dive spots, off-shore fishing, and in-shore fishing for giant roosterfish.  The resort itself features two restaurants, three pools,  two outdoor jacuzzis, tennis court, gym, and direct access to Playa Ocotal.  For those of you who love panoramic views and Pacific sunsets, you’ll love the 270 degree views from the main restaurant perched on the top of the hill.

The Ocotal Beach Resort is one of the few hotels in Costa Rica that is able to offer it’s guests both beachfront accommodations and panoramic views.  They have a row of Standard Rooms located mere steps away from the soft black sand of Playa Ocotal in addition to more Standard Rooms, Private Bungalows, and  Suites located along the hillside which offer incredible views of the Gulf of Papagayo.  All of the rooms at this four star hotel feature AC, private bathrooms, flat screen TVs with international cable, and a small terrace to enjoy the views.

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(3 votes, average: 4 out of 5)

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El Niño and Costa Rica Sport Fishing

Over the past couple months many people have asked us what effects the potential El Niño will have on the peak sport fishing months in Costa Rica this year.  Others have taken it to another extreme and have decided they are flat out not coming down to fish in 2010 and are going to come in 2011.  So the question remains - what, if any, effect will an El Niño year have on the Costa Rica sport fishing industry?  The answer varies a bit, but in general no one here is too worried about it.

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(5 votes, average: 4.8 out of 5)

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INCOPESCA Takes Another Step Forward in Conservation

Last month INCOPESCA (Instituto Costarricense de Pesca y Agricultura) took another step forward in the conservation efforts of their own fisheries.  A new law will require a vessel monitoring systems (VMSs) on all commercial vessels in Costa Rican waters that are 56 ft or longer.  The new law was enacted on August 5th, 2009 and all boats must have working VMS within six months of that date.

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(4 votes, average: 4.5 out of 5)

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Los Suenos Fishing Report - July 09

This past weekend I had the luxury of heading down to the gorgeous Los Suenos Resort & Marina again for a weekend of fishing.  We knew we were going up against two formidable foes - a red tide and the fact that we were fishing in the so called ‘off-season’, but we weren’t too worried about our chances because we knew that we had a few good things going for us too - the fact that we were fishing during the “summer of San Juan” and the knowledge that we were heading out on some of the best charter boats at Los Suenos.  For those of you who don’t know, Costa Rica’s green season runs from early May to late November, and that also coincides with the slower fishing months around the Los Suenos Resort.  The “Summer of San Juan” is simply a one or two week period in July where the Central Valley experiences dry season weather.  All weather factors and superstitions aside, the fishing at Los Suenos once again lived up to it’s lofty reputation.

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(5 votes, average: 4.2 out of 5)

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Just Another Reason to Visit Costa Rica

The list of reasons to visit Costa Rica is neither short nor new, however last week another very unique and prestigious honor was bestowed upon this tiny Central American country.  According to The New Economics Foundation, an independent think tank in the UK, Costa Rica ranked first as the happiest place on Earth.  The survey was conducted throughout 143 countries which 99% of the world’s population calls home, and Costa Rica came out on top.  The formula for the rankings was a based on life expectancy, environmental impact, and individual’s happiness.  According to the survey, 85% of ‘Ticos’ interviewed consider themselves happy.

Long considered “the gem of Central America”, it is not too hard to see why Costa Ricans are so happy.  They have a life expectancy of 78.5 years and a small group of locals living in the Nicoya Peninsula were said to have one of the longest life expectancies on Earth.  The weather here is great,it is rarely cold enough to warrent heating buildings and is rarely hot enough for long periods of time where air-conditioning is necesssary.  The food here is delicious and fresh, and that includes everything from fresh fish to pineapples.  On top of all that Costa Ricans have a very strong sense of national pride, both for their country and their beloved national soccer team, so you won’t find many Ticos who want to leave their little country.

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(3 votes, average: 4 out of 5)

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Aguila de Osa Inn - Jungle Luxury

Over the years I have been fortunate enough to travel to nearly every corner of Costa Rica and I’ve seen a lot of very nice hotels.  I’ve even been to the Osa Peninsula twice before, but last week this ’seen it all before’ old dog learned something new.  I had the pleasure of spending a weekend at the beautiful Aguila de Osa Inn, which more than lived up to it’s expectations.  Long regarded as one of the most luxurious hotels in what is Costa Rica’s most exotic and remote areas, the Aguila de Osa features 13 rooms, a can’t beat waterfront location, and some of the best food you can find.

After just a quick 40 minute flight to Drake Bay, we were met at the airstrip by an air-conditioned van and taken 15 minutes to the beach where we were passed off to a waiting motorboat who then took us the remaining five  minutes to the hotel.  I’m still amazed that in this “developing” nation you can go from a busy capital city to one of the world’s most exotic rain forests in under an hour.  Upon arriving at the hotel we were met by Carlos, the bilingual and extremely outgoing host, who quickly got us a fresh passion fruit smoothy (with rum, of course) to set the tone for the weekend.

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(3 votes, average: 4.67 out of 5)

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