Costa Rica Fishing Report from FishingNosara
Costa Rica Fishing Report Archive | FishingNosara
Eric Thorne brought his son along on the Wanderer for an inshore fishing trip and this Tallahassee, FL-based angling duo nabbed some nice fish for the dinner table.
The heavy fish was this 25lbs. Amberjack, which unlike their Atlantic Ocean brethren are in fact quite good to eat here on the Pacific coast. Another exciting highlight was this bite-sized Dorado caught by young Mr. Thorne.
Great day of family fishing on the mighty Wanderer for Eric Thorne.
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!
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it…the Wanderer returned to the near-shore reef system again with Chuck Elzer and guess what they found: more big White Tuna!
Clearly the Elzer’s are some hungry anglers because they must have filled their refrigerator by now after two excellent days of White Tuna harvesting.
Anyone who has been to Garza is impressed by the authentic, laid-back nature of this classic little fishing village. However this rustic feel has it’s drawbacks as municipal services are slow to react to the growth in popularity of fishing in Garza.
Trash accumulation is one of these services that are lacking, so we took the initiative to create this garbage collection station to help keep Garza clean and beautiful.
Nice work by Javier, Arturo, and the rest of the NPR staff to put this project together. If everyone pitches in then we can keep Garza clean without sacrificing her native authenticity.
After a great Sailfish release offshore, Chuck Elzer’s family stayed inshore to see what they could get for the dinner table. Captain William’s keen instincts led them to the near-shore reef system where they pulled in a whole mess of White Tuna.
White Tuna are incredible rich and tasty, however they usually never grow over 10lbs. around here. One look at these specimens and it is clear that these are at least 15lbs. or more!
These fish came in with great consistency and fervor…even Captain David on the Explorer came by to check out the feeding frenzy (see backround of photo, left side)
Great start to the week for Chuck Elzer and his ladies!
Great Sailfish action on the Wanderer! Dave Wenzel’s group took to the blue water and hooked up two nice Pacific Sailfish.
Conway Johnson was the angler for the first fish, backed up by young Alex Wenzel on the release. Nice FSU hat son!
What a perfect way to get acquainted with the local billfish population! The kid’s smile says it all:
The second Sailfish of the trip was bested by Dave Wenzel and it was just as much a monsters as the first.
Excellent fish handling by First Mate Alex to ensure the safety of the fish and the anglers, and great hunting as always by the master Captain William.
Dave Wenzel is the latest in a long parade of Jacksonville, FL anglers who have bested blue water billfish on the big blue beauty the Wanderer. On June 22 his posse got a show from a big-shouldered Pacific Sailfish.
Everyone had their cameras at the ready once the leader broke through the water, revealing this wonderful creature.
Great fish by Dave Wenzel as the Wanderer notches two more safe Sailfish releases. From Dave’s Facebook page: “Two nice sails on the first day…Captain estimates them at 80 and 90 lbs. All smiles and sore biceps”
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.
The action was just getting started for the Good Doctors as Captain David switched up tactics and dropped some deep rigs to the bottom. Look and what was lurking beneath:
This Cuberra Snapper is a full 50+lbs. and it was a monster to catch. If yesterday’s big Dorado wasn’t enough to keep these boys fed this Red Buick should fill up the rest of the refrigerator.
Sensing the need for appetizers, the Explorer put Yellowfin Tuna sushi on the menu with this very nice 25lbs. specimen. On a slower day this fish would be considered the highlight, but clearly the bite was on fire and Captain David kept the Explorer‘s presentation one step ahead of the fish.
The Explorer‘s fishboxes were so full that they smartly began to target catch and release species. This Rooster fish is a beautiful example of this species. What amazing markings!
Late in the day they hooked up an acrobatic Sailfish and got some great photos, however this one spit the hook after a short fight.
We’ll keep an eye out for these anglers as they take to the Wanderer for a few days offshore; perhaps this gal’s still out there waiting for them.
While half of Chuck Harris’ group were knocking out bottom fish with Captain David on the Explorer, the rest of them headed offshore with Captain William on the Wanderer to see what was biting in the blue water. The flagship found her way to Sailfish City and released this lovely pair of hunting buddies:
It wasn’t just about the trophy fish, as the boys got on a small school of Yellowfin Tuna later in the trip, highlighted by this 30lbs Yella fella:
