CIRCLE HOOKS: We use circle hooks at Crocodile Bay because of the proven conservation benefits in safely catching and releasing fish with less damage than with conventional “J” Hooks. There is much less chance of gut hooking your catch with circle hooks. Plus, they work so well catching the big fish we have in Costa Rica! Circle hooks may take a little time for some anglers to get used to… because you never set a circle hook. The circle hook does all the work for you and ends up in the corner of the fishes’ mouth after taking your bait – if you wait (count to 5). Trying to set the hook will just pull the bait out of the fish’s mouth.

Please enjoy Captain Anthony’s video on the use of circle hooks below:

Circle Hooks are ideal for one of our favorite fishing techniques at Crocodile Bay: using live bait.

LIVE BAIT: Our fishery is lucky to be loaded with bait, giving our fishing guests the opportunity to catch and use more live bait species than they might be used to at home. More bait = more gamefish. Especially inshore fishing where we are fishing structure, not moving at trolling speeds. At Crocodile Bay we like to fish with live google eyes, and sardines. For offshore fishing we like to use a live bonito for bait and switch techniques.

Captain Anthony explains the use of live bait in the video below: