Costa Rica Fishing Report,
February 26, 2010
Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Wade Boggs Poses With a Nice Wahoo on His Third Visit to Crocodile Bay Resort!
Baseball legend Wade Boggs with a nice wahoo
February has been one of those month’s that drive fishing directors crazy. One day the fishing is red hot and the next it’s not. On the good moon the fishing slowed and on the normally not so good moon it picked up.
Tuna have passed through occasionally, cruising with the porpoises. Lots of 60 to 100 pound fish were caught that some made it to sushi plates. Greg Thompson and David Horn teamed up to tackle one that went around 180 lbs. They opted for sails after that battle.
Greg Thompson and David Horn teamed up to tackle this 180 lb tuna
Sailfish is what is driving us crazy. One day we see as many as 15 per boat and the next only a half dozen. We have had more rain than any February I remember and more cloudy days and the bite always seems better on a sunny day.
The Annual Vergith Contracting Fishing Tournament was held earlier this month. Royce Cook finished first in points and Joe Vincent and Mark Bass tied for second only a half point behind Cook. The 10 anglers went 28 for 75 on sails and landed 17 dorado and 2 tuna. Eight of the ten anglers took their first sailfish during the tournament.
Dan Vergith congratulates tournament winner Royce Cook
Participants in the Vergith Contracting Annual Fishing tournament
Ludwing Diaz, general manager of the Hotel Balmoral in San Jose and a big supporter of fishing tourism and sustainable fishing practices was down with wife Katherine and 11 year old daughter Juliana. They spent a day fishing and snorkeling taking several nice African pompano and roosterfish.
The Diaz family Katherine, Ludwing, and Juliana
Ken Patterson had his group from Florida here again this year. Traveling with them for his third trip was baseball Hall of Fame member Wade Boggs. Fishing was tough for the group but Boggs managed to fool sails on a fly and take his first wahoo (pictured top of page.)
Inshore has also had it’s ups and downs but yesterday the roosters were crowing in full force. A couple of fish between 40 and 60 lbs were caught along with many in the 20 pound class.
Enough snapper hit the dock these days for the chef to prepare in several different fashions. One cubera snapper estimated at 50 lbs was released. The bigger fish are almost always female of breeding stock.
Just waiting for a little more sunshine and the bite to return to normal
Todd Staley
Fishing Director
Crocodile Bay Resort, Costa Rica
Costa Rica Fishing Report,
February 1, 2010
Fun for all Ages
It didn't matter your age lately, you were having fun catching fish here. Five year old Matthew Norguero got his first snapper off our pier, eleven year old Eddy Robles took a nice African Pompano reef fishing and Pat Morgan celebrated her 79th birthday by catching her first, second , and third sailfish! Her husband Henry took two sails and a nice dorado.
Texans Mike and Catherine Shellman were so pleased with their results that they left a caricature in the bar. Mike took a sailfish on the fly and Catherine hauled in a super 50# roosterfish.
Scott "the kid" Barbeau and his wife Stephanie were down from Massachusetts. Scott is one of those guys who fishing runs through their veins. He chases tuna in the rough Atlantic and wanted to do the same in the calm Pacific. After I told him we haven't seen a big tuna in a while he proceeded to bring me a 100 plus pounder back to the dock. No matter what he targeted he did well. I don't know how many different varieties of fish he caught but I'm sure he is someplace ice fishing about now.
The dorado are starting to thin and the sailfish numbers are starting to pick up. All this is normal although it is happening a little late this year. A few marlin to 400 pounds are surprising anglers and the tuna are running when the porpoise come through. The sails have been hungry and ready charge a pitch bait or a fly.
Inshore has been unpredictable with the roosters biting like crazy one day and going into hiding the next. Several from 45 to 60 pounds have been the highlights. Bottom fishing has been good but should even get better between the moons.
Cpt Todd Staley- Crocodile Bay Lodge, Costa Rica
Jeff Vannoy fishing out of Crocodile Bay went looking for roosterfish near Matapalo Rock and although he didn't get his roosterfish he certainly caught something to crow about. The crew and Jeff were surprised to see a 120 plus pound tarpon take to the air when Vannoy set the hook. After over an hour on 20lb spin tackle they lifted the fish for a quick photo and set it free.
Over the years tarpon have passed through the Panama Canal into Pacific waters. We hook three or four a year and land one now and then. "I thought I was losing my mind the first time I saw one roll in the Golfo Dulce back in 1995," commented Todd Staley Fishing Director at Crocodile Bay. Having run Archie Fields Lodge in the early 90's Staley has a soft spot for tarpon. "It's great to see tarpon on this side now and then but I don't think their ready to be featured in our brochure."
Todd Staley
Fishing Director
Crocodile Bay Resort, Costa Rica
Lucía Romero Shows Off a Beautiful Dorado in January at Crocodile Bay
Crocodile Bay, Costa Rica
Fishing Update - January 2009
By Todd Staley
December was a great month for fishing at Crocodile Bay, Costa Rica. Since our first guests of the season, Tom and Anne Bobotas walked in on the first of December, chatter around the bar at happy hour has been fish, fish, fish.
The fishing season started out with lots of dorado and Tom was happy he out fished all the guys on the big boats, topping it off with a monster dorado (see below). The last two weeks of the month the sails made a sporadic appearance and some boats raised as many as nine but the big wave of sails are due to arrive any day.
My bratwurst connection from the midwest, John and CJ Mork fishing with first time friends Joe and Peggy Schierl tangled with a nice blue marlin as well as sails and dorado. John has taken a marlin each visit here. The marlin finally showed the third week of the month and there are stories of battles lost and battles won almost every afternoon. Inshore has picked up considerably lately with rooster up to 60 lbs making people crow.
Dennis Cook was down with his triplets, Mackenzie, Dawson, and Asher and had a ball inshore with roosters and jacks. Long time guests Andrew Ociepka and Al Charles also had big days on roosterfish. As we come off the big moon of New Years eve, the sail numbers should increase greatly in January and the snapper bite will turn on with the slower tides.
Todd Staley
Fishing Director
Crocodile Bay Resort
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica
The Rainbow Ends in Puerto Jimenez
By Todd Staley,
Fishing Director
If there is gold at the end of a rainbow, then it ends here. Dorado (dolphinfish) are everywhere. Most are going above 25 lbs and anglers are averaging 10 to 15 a day. They are being got using several methods. They are hitting trolled lures with hooks, teased up and doing a bait and switch a few lucky anglers are finding floating logs loaded with dorado and triple tail.
Regular visitor Mike ( break another rod ) Pizzi found such a log and fooled them with a fly rod. The biggest one going around 30 lbs broke his brand new fly rod, but he still managed to land the fish with half a rod. While the dorado are stretching lots of string, the sails have been playing hide and seek, but had a good showing two days ago. Seventy-seven year old Boyd Hardesty landed three in one day. He wanted to sign on for a couple of more days fishing, but son Brian had to get home for a wedding, his own. Why would anyone pass up good fishing for a wedding?
The roosters came alive yesterday and three were released over 50 lbs and two in the 40's. It had been mostly gallitos (smaller rooster) up until then, but someone finally let the big ones know we were open. Deep jiggers have been taking a variety of snapper and smaller grouper. Ken Franz fishing with his wife Phyllis reported he got a yellow snapper, a cubera snapper, a black snapper and a "line" snapper. In fact, he hooked line snappers four different times and each time his line snapped.
4 Year Old Christopher Sprague proves it's never to early to start your professional angling career!
December Fishing Testimonials
"Thanks to all of you at Crocodile Bay, We had the best time, Everything could not have been more perfect!! The Tours, The Fishing, The Food, The Tranfers, The People, The Service Etc. Everything was PERFECT!!"
Thanks, We look forward to returning - untill then we will highly recommend
Steve, Tammie And Christopher Sprague
Read more testimonials here
Crocodile Bay, Costa Rica Fishing Update - November 2009
Looks by the way local anglers are scoring that the season will have a great kick-off Dec 1st when we host the first anglers for our 11th season. Lots of dorado and marlin in the 300 lb range are offshore chasing large schools of bait. A few sails are popping up but it is a little early for them and the water temp is still a couple of degrees colder than sails prefer. One large school of sailfish were working bait balls 18 miles west of Matapalo.
Inshore the snapper and other bottom species have been active and it´s been awhile since anyone has molested the roosterfish. Local fisherman have taken nice roosters right around the corner from the resort.
Down here we are giving thanks that the shrimp trawlers no longer work the Golfo Dulce which will be a big boost for the gulf´s health. Hope you Enjoyed your turkey and see you soon
Todd
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Crocodile Bay, Costa Rica Fishing Update
October, 2009
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The water temp is around 80 degrees and the dorado (dolphin fish) have moved in just outside the rock at Matapalo and along trash lines offshore. A few marlin have popped up but should increase as we get further into the dorado season. The water needs to warm up a couple degrees before the sails show up in large numbers but small groups are roaming the blue water. By the time we open December 1st the water should be warmer as we start "our summer months." Locals have been taking roosterfish and jacks inshore and the recent rain flushed shrimp and baitfish out of the rivers and some 5 to 20 pound snook were hitting on bucktail jigs. With the shrimp trawlers no longer working in the Golfo Dulce inshore activity can only get better.
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Crocodile Bay, Costa Rica Fishing Report
September 2009
It is always exciting to discover something new. Bill Gibney made Puerto Jimenez his home and could be seen at the public pier almost daily wetting a line. Eventually he bought a panga type boat and Christened it the “Old Weakness” and started exploring the local waters. Smartly he befriended many local fisherman and often invited them along, and they were happy to share their knowledge.
Often several of Crocodile Bay’s captains would accompany him on their day off. What do you do when you are not fishing with clients. You go fishing. I am fortunate that most of my captains eat, sleep, and breathe fishing. I swear some have saltwater running through their veins.
Gibney used his own knowledge of fishing combined with what was acquired from local folks to become a successful angler in this area. It was a smart move on his part. Often when I fish a new place or a new area I have a little trick that helps me immensely. Once we get to the fishing ground I let everyone else start fishing. I start to fiddle with my tackle. I sharpen hooks, check lures, ect.
Most people think I’m kind of disorganized and not ready to fish. What I am really doing is observing and learning. I watch what techniques are being used such as speed of lure retrieval or action used. Once I see how the locals do it I mimic them and try some of my own techniques.
I have often said that this time of year one has two options. Go hunting for fish or go fishing. There are fish in the blue water and sails, marlin, dorado and tuna can be taken. There are fewer boats to stay on top of them and since they are always on the move you might have to hunt to find them.
On the other hand, inshore fishing is a constant. The reefs don’t move around so there are always fish there. They might not always want to bite, but they are always there.
It was on one of these expeditions that Gibney caught his first “what the heck is it.” He brought it back to the dock and none of the locals had ever seen one. Over the next month or so Gibney, Crocodile Bay captains and locals caught at least 15 of these that weighed between 15 and 35 lbs.
All were caught bottom fishing and deep jigging in 225 to 300 feet of water. They also discovered that the fish’s firm white flesh was excellent eating.
I sent some pictures of the strange fish to Doug Olander who is the jefe of Sport Fishing Magazine. He quickly identified it as a barrelfish and passed it on to the magazine’s species specialist Milton Love. Most barrelfish are caught in extremely deep water, up to 1000 feet or more. Milton recently sent me this note:
I am continuing to work on your barrelfish-like catch of a while back.
Ross Robertson, of the Smithsonian Research lab in Panama, and I agree it is a fish in the family Centrolophidae, in the genus Schedophilus, and perhaps the species haedrichi, the mocosa ruff.
However, these are very poorly known fish, they have only been reported from Peru, Ecuador, and the Revillagigedos.
Ross wonders if you by some chance I kept the fish or if you could keep the next one you catch. He would like to study it.
Now all the fisherman in Puerto Jimenez are excited about being part of a scientific discovery. Maybe it will be a “one small fish for man, one giant fish for mankind” type of deal.
A lot of people are now trying to catch one to send to the Smithsonian Research lab in Panama. Now that it has become scenitifcally important the odds of catching one soon have just gone down.
Conservationally speaking, The shrimp boats have officially stopped working inside the Golfo Dulce and negotiations continue with the gill-netters to get them out as soon as possible. By declaring the Golfo Dulce an area of responsible fishing, no more licenses to gillnet will be issued or renewed meaning by 2012 the gulf will be free of nets. Fecopt, the National sport fishing group is negotiating a severance pay for the netters to abandon this destructive type of fishery now. I will keep you updated.
Todd Staley,
Crocodile Bay Resort
Puerto Jimenez, Costa Rica
August 2009 - by Todd Staley
Costa Rica Fishing Numbers Soar as New Laws go into Effect
- A New ban on exportation of sailfish
- Use of live bait prohibited on longlines
- Commercial fisherman agreed to work further off the coast during peak months
- Shrimp Trawling discontinued inside Costa Rica's Golfo Dulce
Last years stock market crash meant less people traveled to Costa Rica to test the waters reputed as some of the world’s best. That was really unfortunate because Costa Rica saw some of the best offshore fishing it had seen in several years. A large part of that was do to a change in law that kept all sailfish in the country.
Similar to the “blackened redfish” craze of the 80’s when a famous New Orleans chef’s recipe for a fish that before had little food value nearly depleted the entire stock in the Gulf of Mexico and Atlantic seaboard, someone came up with a market for sailfish.
After two disappointing years of low sailfish numbers in 2007 and 2008 a group of local anglers became suspicious. 2007 was an “El Nino” period and numbers fall naturally during that period. When the numbers of fish remained low in 2008 the alarms went off and a group of local anglers began to investigate.
Most of you have seen sailfish on the menu at your favorite seafood restaurant as “smoked fish appetizer”. Smoked sailfish chunks were mixed with a little chopped onion and cream cheese and served with saltine crackers. No one knew they were eating sailfish.
The majority of this was consumed in the United States to the tune of several hundred tons a year. Even though sailfish are protected by law in Costa Rica, a market was created and commercial fisherman began targeting them by using live bait on their lines.
Even though Costa Rica sport fishing is a multi million dollar industry to the benefit of many local residents it has long been overlooked and misunderstood by the Costa Rican government. The reason is that thousands of people that participate in the activity are tourists and are here a few days and gone. Regional groups have been in existence for some time addressing local issues but very few could successfully speak out on a national level. For many years many dedicated people have lobbied for causes but lacked National support.
That all changed when last year the regional groups from Guanacaste, Quepos and the Southern Zone along with the Amateur Fishing Club based in San Jose joined forces to form FECOPT. When this acronym is translated into English it means “The Costa Rican Federation of Tourist Fishing”.
Armed with the scientific proof of Dr. Nelson Ehrhardt from the University of Miami, who studied billfish in Central America for several years FECOPT went into action. After countless meetings with government agencies and more importantly commercial fisherman an agreement was reached in December of 2008 which included the following:
First things first. Sometimes I forget things. A little more often than I’d like to admit as time passes. Long time customer Allen Ryals sent me a little note reminding me that I didn’t include him in my last report. I won’t include that note but the short one I forgot was:
On to a more current fishing report. I was feeling invincible. Every day I was meeting happy clients at the dock having day after day of double digit sailfish. Then the earthquake hit. THREE TIMES. The hardest jolt was a 6.3 on the Richter scale with an epicenter only a few mile from the resort in the center of the Golfo Dulce. It shook my friends house on the other side of the country enough for him to run outside and he soon called when he heard where the epicenter was to see if all was OK. I wondered if it rattled houses that far away, what would it do to fish just 20 miles away. After I changed my britches some weird things began to happen. 
For example marlin began to show in big numbers six weeks early while the sails remained elusive. The sails finally showed a week later again and the marlin bite has remained strong. One day 6 boats had 19 marlin up in the spread. The number of marlin catches have been too many to list and the fish have run between 200 and 500 pounds. Regular groups like Lee Klein, Bob Perimiam, and Walter Oster’s groups all had marlin. The sails are averaging six to 10 per boat with some days boats raising nearly 20.
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