Black Marlin | Costa Rica Fishing Report from FishingNosara

June 26, 2013

Chuck Elzer, Vicki, Elizabeth and Chuck IV returned to the Wanderer for a final pass at the blue water behemoths, and the amazing flagship delivered a dream trip for these Florida anglers. How about TWO Marlin releases backed-up by two mammoth Bull Dorados.

If this were their scorecard for the whole week it would be impressive; to do it in just 5 hours is truly FishingNosara Hall of Fame worthy!

The first Marlin came in at 2:15pm and was a mammoth fish. Looks at the shoulders on this monster; it looks like it’s been bench-pressing since elementary school.

Here’s what Chuck wrote in his email:

“This day of fishing was beyond my wildest expectations! I was hoping for a sail but didn’t really expect an opportunity for marlin. The marlin has always been one of those “must” experiences for me.”

“Not only did I get to experience it, my family did too! No photo or video can come close to the experience of seeing and feeling the power and majesty of that fish. I look forward to recommending Nosara to everyone I know.”

After a safe release by First Mate Alex, the Wanderer continued to troll for about 30 minutes when the outrigger line reported a strong strike. Once this big Bull Dorado reared it’s head, the word ‘strong’ seems like an understatement…this greenie looks like the Incredible Hulk!

With all these filets it’s clear that the Elzers are either A.) Going to have a huge dinner tonight, B.) Make lots of friends around town by giving away filets, or C.) Need to buy several FishingNosara soft coolers to bring these filets back to Florida.

Time was running out on the Elzer’s fishing adventure when the ‘Never Surrender’ attitude of Captain William and the Wanderer shone brightly. At 4:20pm a second massive Marlin took the hook and the posse strapped in for the final battle of the week.

What a perfect send-off for the Elzer’s…their four day adventure on the Wanderer is over for now, but the memories (and photos) will last a lifetime!

June 18, 2013

Chuck and the Good Doctors topped all of their great performances to-date with a fanstastic pair of Marlin releases backed up by a big Sailfish release. Most anglers spend their whole lives trying to best a big Pacific Marlin, so to see these fellas capture two on a single trip is truly and accomplishment.

The first Marlin came in just before noon and was a deep-water brawler; not a lot of jumps and surface action but a lot of brute strength about 40 feet under the water.

Great capture and release by the fearless First Mate Alex!

The second Marlin wasn’t far behind, with a safe release reported just after 1pm. Another amazing fish!

For the victory lap the fellas hooked up a wonderful Sailfish and before too long the third trophy fish of the day was released.

February 25, 2013

David Lukof locked into a battle with a super 300+lbs. Marlin on the unbeatable Explorer. Take a look at this monster:

According to our buddy Jeff (who was filming): “Dude had heat stroke after this. He’s been chasing a marlin for 30 years. He said ‘I’d fight it till I died’ he might have actually been close!”

Amazing catch and release by the superstar Captain David and Mate Carlos!

November 30, 2012

Duncan Evans hails from merry old England and brought his group to Nosara for a full day fishing excursion on the Wanderer. The mighty flagship build upon her wonderful performance earlier in the week by adding another massive Marlin release to the scorecard.

We’ve always said that if you want the fish of a lifetime, you have to put in the time. Duncan made a wise decision by opting for the full day trip rather than a half or 3/4 day trip. Big game offshore fishing is like any other investment: the more your put in the more you get back.

The illuminated tiger stripes means that this fish was reeled in posthaste and has lots of energy left in her tank. First Mate Alex showed extreme care in the handling of this “still-green” Marlin to ensure the safety of the boat, crew, anglers and of course the fish.

This fish swam away clean and we look forward to battling her again really soon. Excellent catch by Duncan Evans and truly the fish of a lifetime!

November 29, 2012

Hall of Famer Chuck Darner was sitting in church between his two grown sons a few weeks ago and had a vision. He wrote the vision down on the corner of the weekly bulletin and handed it to his sons. It read, “Let’s go fishing in Costa.”

While Chuck has visited us several times, his sons had not yet taken the adventure. Tickets bought and trips booked, but then a change of plans! One of the boys is a freelance insurance adjuster and his special skills were placed in high demand in the aftermath of Superstorm Sandy.

He couldn’t get away for this trip, but the Darner posse found a worthy pinch hitter in the form of Chuck’s 14 year-old grandson.

Chuck told me that he was hoping to get the youngster on a nice Sailfish, but unfortunately the mighty Wanderer could not find a sail on this trip.

The season’s first Black Marlin release will have to suffice!

This magnificent fish is the culmination of Captain William and the Wanderer‘s prowess and Chuck Darner’s indomitable fishing spirit.

For the dinner table they whacked this 50lbs. Wahoo which is reminiscent of the monsters Chuck catches off the ledge in Jacksonville in his Powercat High Roller.

The Darner Boys have several more trips on the books and we anticipate some more inspired from these North Florida anglers.

July 25, 2012

Guess who’s back???

This long cool woman in a black dress danced with the Wanderer and client John grabbed the reel and changed up the tune.

While she isn’t the biggest Black Marlin we’ve seen by a long shot, this 200+lbs. lady is a welcome sight for our eyes; the Marlin have been scarce since May and we weren’t sure how long until we’d dance again.

Great release by First Mate Alex and the unbeatable Captain William fresh off his injured foot; let’s hope this is a sign of Marlin resurgence as we approach the end of the season.

February 21, 2012

Captain David and Mate Carlos of the magnificent Explorer took another huge stride to cementing this Super panga’s reputation as the best pound-for-poung boat in Garza with client Greg Raab on February 21. The blue water break was a quick 5 mile ride off of the beach and Captain David put out the billfish spread.

This behemoth took hold around 2pm and screamed off about a hundred yards of line in a flash. Mate Carlos saw her a split-second before the strike, thus giving Captain David the advantage when it came to backtracking towards the torpedoing Marlin.

Upon release this fish was estimated to weigh a bit upwards of 300lbs. Most importantly she was released unharmed and unstressed, ready to do battle again.

Greg Raab also added a nice Red Grouper for the dinner table, but we know the fishing story he’ll be telling the boys back on Long Island Sound. Great work besting a real sea monster and true fish of a lifetime!

January 17, 2012

How would John Harbord, Jon Ronloff, and Bruce Sabine fare after a seven billfish day yesterday? Would they have anything left in the tank after three excellent days of fishing both offshore and the inshore reefs? Would the billfish finally evade their crafty capture?

Striped Marlin, Black Marlin, and Sailfish released!

This is the classic Grand Slam and is by far the rarest feat in billfishing. Less than a dozen Grand Slams are reported worldwide in a given year and this performance will serve as the high water mark for years to come for Costa Rican sportfishing.

The Stripey was the first one to get snared by the mighty Wanderer‘s spread and John did great work to make this fight quick and efficient. Captain William kept the boat in perfect position for the contest and the angler kept tension like a pro.

Fantastic work by First Mate Alex who is always pumped up when big billfish come calling.

Next up was a very nice Pacific Sailfish which would be a highlight on any other day with any other anglers; for these hombres this Sailfish release was as routine as a free throw.

The final piece of the Grand Slam came in the form of this MASSIVE Black Marlin that came calling later in the day. This monster was huge and the look on Alex’s face tells the tale.

What a fantastic release photo…magazine cover anyone?

Once back in Garza Bay the Tampa-based fishing team was elated, and added this 145lbs. Brown Marlin release:

Legendary fishing by these FishingNosara Hall of Famers!

December 21, 2011

Client Dave Eisner and his posse had a magnificent Marlin release on the Wanderer today! This 200lbs. behemoth nailed the starboard side outrigger bait and the fight was on for the Philadelphia-based angler.

Captain William kept the big blue beauty perfectly angled for the fight and First Mate Alex backed it up with a textbook billfish release.

December 15, 2011

Mark Shaw enlisted Captian David and the Explorer for a fishing trip today that took them all around the Garza area and brought great fish for the table and the trophy room. In the morning they stayed inshore and around 9:30 bent the rod with this nice White Tuna.

With dinner in the box, Captain David headed offshore to blue water where Mr. Shaw had chances at lots of fish. Around noon they lost a big Dorado and soon after a sailfish. A hour of near-misses passed, then the fish of a lifetime came barrel-rolling through the spread.

Mate Pipio saw him first and alertly pitched a rigged ballyhoo down the exhaust alley. The Black Marlin showed his bill as he snatched the bait, and Mark buckled in for a wild ride.

After 20 minutes of combat this 200lbs. Black Marlin gave up the fight; Perfect bill and release by Pipio to ensure the safety of the fish and angler.

The Explorer proves once again that big billfish don’t care how big the boat is, so long as the right Captain, angler, and tackle are on the scene to take care of the job. Great fish, great release, great trip for Mark Shaw!