First of all, let us explain exactly what El Niño is.  El Niño, also known as El Niño-Southern Oscillation, refers to the periodic changing of atmospheric and ocean conditions in the tropical Pacific region of the world.  It is identified mainly by monitoring the changes in the atmosphere between Australia and South America as well as the changes in surface temperatures of the Pacific Ocean mainly in the tropical central and eastern regions.  El Niño refers to the warm temperature phase and La Niña refers to the cold water phase.  There is no exact science to it, but typically they occur every 3-8  years and usually start in December and can run all the way through April.  While the effects of El Niño are certainly felt much more directly in South American countries like Chile, Peru, and Ecuador, Central and North America can also be affected by it depending on the severity and strength of El Niño.  The Southern Hemisphere experiences it’s summer, or dry season months, from December through March and Costa Rica shares that same pattern.  During an El Niño year the weather can be warmer than usual and much wetter causing major flooding in central South America near Peru and Ecuador.

So how will all of this affect Costa Rica?  No one knows for sure, but in general the effects of an El Niño are not felt too strongly this far north.  Typically conditions are hotter and drier, which is not necessarily a bad thing.  Last year Costa Rica experienced major flooding on both coasts and we even saw a few of our fishing boats sink during a strong Pacific storm, so when the meteorologists tell us rain is down 75% from last year it isn’t necessarily bad news at all.  We are still getting our afternoon rain showers to keep things green and vibrant, however we are avoiding the hours upon hours of monsoon strength rain.  Weather aside, one of main concerns that serious anglers have is the effect El Niño would have on the ocean currents and temperatures.  El Niño has been known to reduce the upwelling of cold, nutrient rich water which starts the marine food chain from plankton to our game fish  - so it could be potentially harmful if not monitored.  Peru’s fishing industry had major problems during the El Niño years of 1972 and 1982, but keep in mind they are at ground zero for feeling the effects of El Niño while Costa Rica is over 22 degrees latitude and 1,600 miles north of Peru.

The simple fact is while you may certainly be able to pick your time and location to increase your chances for catching fish in Costa Rica, there is not and never has been a guarantee on catching fish and El Niño does not affect that.  As Nancy Lebo, owner & manager of the famous Spanish Fly, Super Fly, and The Bite at the Los Suenos Resort & Marina said, “We’ve had good fishing years when El Nino was around and not so good years when El Nino wasn’t a factor so it’s very hard to know exactly what will happen.  We could have a lousy fishing year and everyone will think it’s because of El Nino, but there could be other reasons also.  The situation that really affects the fishing is red tide and you never know when that will happen.”

The dreaded ‘red tide’ is of course a massive algae bloom that ends up eating up all the waters oxygen and therefore either kills or chases all the fish away.  The bad thing about red tides is they are unpredictable and no one knows when they will occur or how long they’ll last.  Scientists are studying to see if they are caused by the warming of the ocean’s temperature or even human’s affect on the ocean like pollution, but right now no one knows.  All we do know is that if there is a red tide there will be no fish around, and that is just a fact of life.  So all things considered with El Nino, if it does occur this year it most likely will have a noticeable effect on the weather throughout the tropical Pacific and it could possibly affect the fishing in South America, but it most likely will have no effect on Costa Rica.  If you read the words of that sentence more closely, you will see there is a lot of ambiguity and unknowns and that is nothing new the fishing world.  After all, we all know that is why they call it fishing and not catching…

With the help of The Billfish Foundation’s (TBF) chief scientist, Dr. Russell Nelson, and TBF Central American Conservation Director Herbert Nanne, the new regulation was finally passed after more than 1.5 years of pressure.  The new VMS will allow Costa Rican officials to monitor the exact positions of all fishing vessels and long line boats via satellite.  For a long time Costa Rica has not allowed FAD (fish aggregating devices) due to the high bycatch rate of sailfish, marlin, dorado, and wahoo - however it has been a belief that foreign vessels from Panama, Nicaragua, and even China had continued to use these irresponsible practices.  With the new VMS officials will be able to tell if boats are fishing within the 12-mile territorial waters and more specifically near the prestigious national park of Isla del Coco.

In addition to helping with conservation of the national fishery, the new VMS will also help prevent ugly confrontations between commercial fishing boats and private sport fishing boats.  Last year there was a highly publicized incident in Costa Rica where several commercial fishing boats surrounded sport fishing boats trolling for billfish and tuna and then began making threats and even throwing dynamite near the sport fishing boats.  The VMS will not be required for Costa Rica sport fishing boats, but it will monitor every large commercial fishing boat that enters Costa Rican territory.

This good news comes just months after Costa Rica passed another law eliminating the exportation of sailfish meat and the use of live bait by commercial long liners.  You can read more about that law and the positive affects it had on the Costa Rica fishing industry in one our earlier reports - http://www.vacationscostarica.com/fishing/blog/?p=154.

On Saturday we headed out on the 32′ Maverick Yacht named the Sunny One amongst reports that there have been lots of wahoo around, but no sailfish.  After making an hour run to the continental shelf we put our lines in the water and wouldn’t you know it, within 15 minutes we had our first sailfish.  We were all excited that we were going to have a huge day out on the water due to all good signs we were seeing - calm seas, great weather, no other fishing boats in site, and our first sailfish by 8:30 AM.  That excitement and adrenaline quickly began to fade and eyes that were once eagerly watching our spread for the next bill or dorsal fin slicing through the water began to close as the drone of the engine and sound of the water on the hull began to coax people to sleep.  Next all of us began to think that those eerily calm seas, the lack of other fishing boats, and lack of any birds or garbage floating in currents meant that this was indeed the off-season and the billfish had all migrated north to Guanacaste.

The first mate came over at 12:30 PM and suggested we eat our roasted chicken, which was wrapped in aluminum foil and being kept warm on the Catepillar engine, and then pull in the lines to try some in-shore fishing before calling it a day.  During lunch I asked  him if it has really been this slow lately and he said yes, but that sometimes when the tide changes it can bring new currents and new fish.  I thought he was just trying to say something positive to keep us optimistic because I thought that at 40 miles out, how in the world could the changing of the tide affect our luck?  We polished off the chicken in no time and had five of the six lines out of the water when all of a sudden I spotted the unmistakable sight of a sailfish’s dorsal fin cutting through the water not 15 feet from our boat.  It was heading from bow to stern and right for our only ballyhoo left in the water, and then sure enough our Penn reel began to scream.  I had that sailfish to the boat in 15 minutes and we hauled in two more within the next 30 minutes bringing our total to four.  As a big Pacific storm was gaining strength, and gaining on our position, we decided that with four sailfish we had had a great day and headed back to the friendly confines of the Los Suenos Marina.

The next day saw us head out for a day of in-shore fishing on a beautiful 26′ Regulator.  This was one of the nicest center consoles I have ever been out on as it was equipped with two huge 350 hp Yahama engines, full electronics, comfortable seating, and full coaming all the way around the boat.  Our captains, Bill from New York and Eric who is local to the Jaco area, quickly showed us that their boat was not in the Los Suenos Marina to keep up with the Jones’s, they were there to fish.  We jigged for live bait and quickly filled the live well, then within 15  minutes I was fighting a large jack on the other end of my Shimano rod & reel.  He gave a good fight and did everything jacks do, the quick head twitches underwater trying to shake the hook and then once in my hands he made the ’snorting’ sound that I’ve only heard jacks do.  We then moved out of Playa Herradura south to Jaco Beach and were trolling around a big rock with five other boats.  There was not a lot of action so Eric took the wheel and said he wanted to try a spot that not many people knew about.  We continued south towards Playa Hermosa and then started trolling around another rock that Eric said he used to go lobster diving at as a kid - talk about local knowledge!  Right as we were having a half serious conversation about how bananas are bad luck on boats the Shimano reel screamed and my friend Richard was in a battle with his very first roosterfish.  For 20 minutes we didn’t see any sign of the fish, just Richard swearing as it took more line out.  We were all convinced it was a big rooster on the other end, and after about 30 minutes we finally saw the huge white body come to the surface.  It took both Eric and I to pull the roosterfish on board by the tail, and after snapping a few pictures we released him full of fight back into the ocean.

All weekend we heard how there weren’t any sailfish around and that the red tide north of the marina had scared all the in-shore fish away, but our finally tally was 4 sailfish, one 20 lb jack, a big needle fish, and the prized 60 lb roosterfish.  I find it hard to believe that we had such great luck because we are living well and karma was paying us back, I simply believe that the Los Suenos fishing is truly some of the world’s best despite ‘low-seasons’, red tides, and bananas on boats.

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.

So if you combine a gorgeous country rich in natural resources with a friendly, happy local population you’ll get a tourist mecca.  Costa Rica offers the world’s second most active volcano, 800 species of birds, hundreds of reptiles, and up to 10% of the world’s biodiversity.  Nearly a quarter of the country is reserved in national parks or nature reserves, including the acclaimed Corcovado National Park and one of the new seven wonders of the world - Coco Island.  The people are friendly and well educated, English is spoken by many, and it doesn’t hurt that the Costa Rican women are some of the fairest in Latin America.  Last but not least, Costa Rica sport fishing is some of the very best in the world.  You can go tarpon fishing on the Caribbean Coast, bass or trout fishing on the fresh water lakes and rivers, or billfishing along Costa Rica’s long and beautiful Pacific Coast.  In a week’s vacation you can catch any or all of the following:  tarpon, snook, rainbow bass, machaca, trout, marlin, sailfish, yellow-fin tuna, mahi-mahi, grouper, snapper, wahoo, and the famous roosterfish.

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.

I’ve been to the Osa Peninsula before so I had some idea of what to expect as far as the rooms and decor, but I was pleasently surprised by what I found.  Our Deluxe Room came with two queen sized beds, hardwood floors, standard electrical outlets, cieling fan, and a big bathroom.  What makes the Aguila ‘eco-luxury’ as opposed to just ‘eco-friendly’ are the little touches a stocked mini-fridge, hot water showers, and my personal favorite - a big balcony overlooking the rain forest and Pacific Ocean that comes complete with a hammock and two rocking chairs.  This is not the place to come if you are looking for Egyptian cotton sheets, flat screen TVs, and 24-7 room service, but if you want comfortable, clean accommodations but don’t want to sleep under mosquito nets while experiencing everything the Osa has to offer then this hotel is for you.

The other pleasant surprise was the incredible food that was served there.  Typical for most hotels and lodges in the Osa Peninsula they served communal meals three times a day and used the freshest natural ingredients and fish.  What I did not expect was the quality, variety, and sheer amount of food that we were stuffed with all weekend.  I might have expected to have a typical Costa Rican meal of a casado (rice & beans) with fresh fish or chicken, but they offered so much more.  For dinner we were served soup or salad, fresh homemade bread, fresh cooked vegetables, stuffed chicken, salmon fillets, BBQ pork, steak & shrimp kabobs, and even a baked potato with chedar cheese & bacon bits!  I had met the chef, Dixon, once before knowing he was cooking all of our meals for us made me anxious everytime we headed down to the restaurant.

In addition to the luxurious accommodations and delicious food, the main reason for going there is the incredible wildlife and natural beauty.  The Osa Peninsula is of course Costa Rica’s most famous national park and the place National Geographic refers to as “the most biological intense place on Earth”.  For most three to four night stays guests will have a guided tour of the Corcovado National Park as well as a day of snorkeling out at Cano Island included in their package.  Other options include scuba diving, horseback riding, or of course experiencing the world class Costa Rica sport fishing.  On our day we did a hike into the national park near the San Pedrillo station and we saw countless small birds, tree frogs, crocodiles, white faced capuchin monkeys, howler monkeys, scarlett macaws, and even the world’s second most deadliest snake - the fer de lance.  On the second part of our hike we saw the San Pedrillo Waterfall and were able to go swimming a little bit farther down the river at a smaller set of falls.

All in all, last weekend’s adventure at Aguila de Osa reinforced my belief that the Osa Peninsula is my favorite part of Costa Rica and the Aguila de Osa is now my number one recommendation.

As nice as the house was, the highlight of our weekend was definitely the fishing.  On Saturday we headed down to the marina and boarded our boat, the much heralded Super Fly.  This is a custom built, 42′ Maverick Yacht and one of the nicest boats in the entire Los Suenos Marina.  Built in 2005 by Richard & Nancy Lebo, the Super Fly already has a reputation for being one of the best fishing charters in the entire country.  It took second place in the 2008 Los Suenos Signature Billfish Series and and eight place in this year’s tournament.  I’ve fished on several boats here in Costa Rica over the past four years and without a doubt this is one of the nicest boats I’ve ever been on.  That boats comes fully equiped with two sleeping quarters, fully galley & head, top of the line electronics, ice & water maker, twin 455 hp C-7 Cats with a cruising spee d of 28 knots, tuna tubes, live well, fighting chair, teak deck, and even an air-conditioned salon. The captain, David Mesen, was hand picked after earning a reputation as being one of the best captains in Quepos and has been at helm of the Super Fly since 2005.  He has two great mates, Simon Cambronero and Carlos Espinoza, who is younger brother to the well known David Espinoza who captains the Spanish Fly.

From the moment we started motoring out of the marina we all had a feeling it was going to be a special day.  Carlos and Simon were telling us that the day before was the worst weather and sea conditions they had all year - and they still caught two marlin and three sailfish!  After seeing the fishing reports that were coming in from these boats in the high season I had a feeling that if I was ever going to catch a marlin in Costa Rica, this was going to be the day.  We were flying as we made our run out to David’s favorite fishing spot, 32 miles away from the Los Suenos Resort.  We quickly found a trash flow and giant log floating in the current so we set out to catch bonito (small black tuna) to fill our tuna tubes to use as live bait for the marlin.  After about twenty minutes of trolling our tuna tubes were full and then we headed out to find our fish.  With six lines in the water we started trolling and by 9:30 AM we had what we were looking for.

David yelled from the fly-bridge that we had a bite, and then looking about 100 feet behind the end of the boat I caught my first glimpse of the lady in the blue dress.  I jumped into the fighting chair and got ready for the fight of a lifetime.  I had about three seconds to think before Simon handed me that beautiful gold Penn rod & reel, and all I could think about was that I was glad I had been going to the gym again because I had heard stories of people fighting marlin for two, three, or even six hours!  As soon as I had the rod in my hands I could feel the heavy pull on the other end.  Although I was trying to go slow and take it all in to enjoy the experience of my first marlin, my main concern was to get him to the boat so I could finally say I caught one.  He made some hard runs, but between me giving everything I had, my Penn reel, and David backing the boat down we had the marlin near the boat within 15 minutes.  Once he got close he caught his second wind and started jumping out of the water a bit more in an effort to throw the hook, but we had it set and I wasn’t about to let him get away now.  One thing I don’t think I will ever forget is the beautiful colors on the back of this blue marlin.  With the tropical Costa Rican sun showering light on us and the glistening blue water of the Pacific Ocean, the bright purple stripes and back of the fish was one of the most impressive things I have seen here.  After a few minutes of fighting and manuevering Simon had my marlin by the bill at the side of the boat as I held onto it’s dorsal fin and put my other hand around it’s body to feel the sheer power of this giant fish.  We tried to pull him on board for a picture, but he was stubborn and camera shy so instead of harming the fish - or endangering us - we unhooked him and released him unharmed to continue roaming the Pacific Ocean.

There weren’t a lot of spectacular leaps out of the water typical for a marlin fight, unfortunately for both me and the marlin it had swallowed our bonito as it was swimming directly towards the boat so by the time we had the hook set and knew it was on the marlin had already worked the fish down his throat a bit.  Costa Rican law states that every boat must use circle hooks as opposed to J hooks in an effort to protect the gamefish as circle hooks are harder to swallow, so even though we didn’t get it hooked in the hard tissue around the mouth we were still able to safely release it.  So why this fish tale may not include a fight to the death or a giant monster that was surely a world record, it was my first marlin and a day I will never forget.  Our final tally on the day was two wahoo, two big sailfish, and my 150 lb blue marlin.  The Los Suenos Resort & Marina, the Super Fly, and fishing in Costa Rica is truly an experience I wish everyone could have.

The destination the group decided on was the famous Los Suenos Resort & Marina located just north of Jaco along Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast.  Located at the calm Playa Herradura, the Los Suenos Resort has quickly gained a reputation as one of the premier fishing destinations in Central America.  The group of 12 headed out on two boats for four days of fishing and as if part of a 4th of July fireworks show, the billfish provided this group one heck of a grand finale to the 2009 peak season.  The first day saw one boat haul in seven sailfish and three yellowfin tuna while the other 42′ Maverick Yacht landed 14 sailfish!  The next day was just as good as one boat successfully released nine sailfish while the other boat was able to duplicate the previous day’s efforts with seven sailfish and three more yellowfin tuna.  After two back to back days they took a day off to rest their tired muscles, then they headed out on for one more back to back session.   One boat had already landed 21 sailfish in the first two days so they tried their hand at in-shore fishing to see something new.  Thankfully a pair of Costa Rica’s finest, the roosterfish, were there to show the guys how good the in-shore fishing is in Costa Rica.   Meanwhile the other boat headed off-shore again boated another 9 sailfish, another good sized yellowfin tuna, and they got their first mahi-mahi of the trip.  Finally on the fourth and final day the anglers and gamefish alike were tired of all fighting so the action slowed a bit compared to their first three days, but it did not disappoint by anyone’s standards.  The first boat finshed with three more sailfish and three mahi-mahi while the other boat was the big winner with three sailfish and the first and only marlin of the trip.  For those of you who don’t have a calculator handy, the final fishing tally between both boats in four days of fishing was:

52 sailfish, 7 yellow-fin tuna, 4 mahi-mahi, 2 roosterfish, and one black marlin

Needless to say, when you average 6 sailfish and one yellowfin tuna per boat/per day and then throw in the occasional rooster and dorado, and top it all off with a good sized marlin - you are going to have some happy vacationers.  The fishing reports have been excellent all year, but to end the peak season like this was truely a great example of just how amazing Costa Rica sportfishing can be.

As reported earlier, the fishing reports and sheer number of fish being taken out of the Pacific waters this year has been amazing.  While Costa Rica sportfishing is already known as some of the best in the world, this year impressed even those who have been here for years.  The fishing has been so good in fact that many captains are saying this is the best fishing they’ve seen in the past 10 years.  No one has been able to pinpoint exactly why it has been so good, but there are three possible explanations.  The first is the new, stricter laws imposed upon the commercial fishing boats which limits the number of billfish they can take.  Another is of course the wonderful economic woes the entire world is facing right now.  The number of visitors, and therefore fisherman, to Costa Rica has decreased a little bit from previous years so that means there are less fishermen out there and more fish for the ones who are able to travel.  Finally another reason may simply be that we are just enjoying a nice cycle, or it could be any combination of the three.  In any case, there have been a lot of people in 2009 who have returned extremely happy from their Costa Rica fishing vacation.

The pair of couples in the Miller party from New York had a vacation to die for.  In just two days they landed 14 sailfish and 300 lb blue marlin.  The Kecy party from California landed six sailfish, five mahi-mahis, twenty mackerals, and over 40 jacks in their three days of fishing out of Quepos.  Besides world class fishing, they also loved their private luxury casas at the Buena Vista Villas.  Finally Brian B. from Florda landed 10 sailfish and one marlin on his three days of fishing between Jaco and Manuel Antonio.

The sailfish and marlin numbers have also been extremely strong in the south part of the country around the Osa Peninsula.  Our friends at Crocodile Bay report that customers are regularly coming back with double digit sailfish numbers.  Last month they also had a group of six boats report 19 marlin sightings, and all that were landed were in the 300-500 lb range.

Finally last but not least, even the tarpon fishing in Costa Rica has been amazing.  On one day in March we headed out with a local guide, Primo, on his 23′ boat named the “White Dove”.  In just five hours of fishing we hooked up seven tarpon and landed three of them.  The Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica is known for having some of the world’s best tarpon fishing, and we certainly weren’t disappointed.

The scoring of the tournament was based on 100 points rewarded for each sailfish successfully released and 500 points for any species of marlin.  There was a maximum of four anglers per boat, a maximum of six rods and four teasers in the water at anytime, and finally all line used was to be at 50 lbs test or less.  For the conservationists out there, take heart that another one of the rules stipulated that only the more fish friendly tournament-legal circle hooks were allowed.  The first day of the tournament saw a total of 215 sailfish and 14 marlin released by various boats in the tournament.   The top three boats for that day were the Clean Sweep, Da Bait, and the Dealer’s Choice.  The second day of the tournament proved to be the best as the participants released a grand total of 267 sailfish and 12 marlin.  The third and final day still showcased plenty of tight lines and long fights as the anglers reeled in another 259 sailfish and 14 more marlin.

The final results of the three day tournament saw a clear winner in the boat Clean Sweep with a total of 5,500 points and a final tally of 35 sailfish and four marlin released.  Tied for second place were the Da Bait and Super Fly with 4,100 points each.  Both boats actually had the same fish count of 26 sailfish and three marlin.  The prize money was distributed by 50% of the entry fee going to first place, 30% going to second place, and 20% going to third place.  With an entree fee of $7,000 per boat (or $10,000 for both legs) it is easy to do the math and see that these lucky anglers made enough to survive the 2009 recession!

In general the sport fishing in Costa Rica has been stellar this year, and the numbers of the Los Suenos Tournament prove that even more so.  For those of you who are short a calculator, in just three days the 43 boats hauled in a total of 741 sailfish and 40 marlin for a total of 781 billfish successfully released.  That means that each boat averaged just over six billfish per day - not bad by anyone’s standards!

The legendary Todd Staley at Crocodile Bay reported that in the last week of January they had an eight day stretch as good as any other he as seen in their ten year history.  His top boat raised 32 sailfish, successfully releasing 11 of them, in just one day!  While that boat blew away the competition, he says their entire fleet has been averaging 10-15 sailfish.  He also reported releasing a few marlin in the 200 - 300 lb range as well as a prize 150 lb yellowfin tuna.  The in-shore fishing is still streaky, but there are still some roosters and jacks to be had.

A little farther north in Quepos the fishing reports were just as good if not better.  Shawn from Atlanta came down for a week and went out for four days of fishing.  On his first day he went off-shore for a full day and released three sailfish, one dorado, and one nice barracuda.  His next day he did a half day of in-shore fishing and got to fight one of Costa Rica’s famous roosterfish and a decent sized mackeral.  In his final two days of off-shore fishing he reeled in seven more sailfish and two more dorados.  His four day total was 10 sailfish, 3 dorados, a barracuda, one mackeral, and one rooster that got away.

No one is entirely sure why the sport fishing in Costa Rica has been so good this year - it could be just a fortunate cycle or perhaps the new, stricter commercial fishing laws are already having a positive effect on the fishing population.  For better or worse there seem to be less people traveling this year due to world wide recession woes, so that means those who can’t come are sadly missing out on one of the best years in recent memory.  On the positive side, those that were able to make it down are enjoying less crowds and more fish - now who wouldn’t like that?!