November 15, 2012

Our new buddy TJ Conrads brought his family down from Boise, ID to take aim at some big game. TJ is an interesting adventurer who wrote the book on traditional longbow hunting (hunting with a wooden bow and arrows that he literally makes).

For 30 years he has published Tradtional Bowhunter Magazine which is the leading voice in the field.

Mr. Conrads is also the author of the “Traditional Bowhunter’s Handbook” (left). 

He has hunted with bow and arrow all over the world, in every different place you can imagine. An outdoorsman’s outdoorsman, TJ was also thrilled with the idea of offshore Costa Rican fishing.

Fortunately the Wanderer never leaves port without a full quiver and Captain William set his aim offshore at the blue water beasties.

Things got off to a fast start with this bright green Dorado finding its way to the ice chest in the first hour of the half day trip.

This respectable Dorado clocks in around 25lbs. and will certainly keep the family fed for the week.

Captain William guided the Wanderer a little further offshore into billfish territory and on cue a mean pair of Sailfish took off with baits just after 10am.

TJ and the posse reeled ’em in while the crew coordinated the daring and difficult Double Sailfish Release.

Great safe fish-handling like always by the incomparable First Mate Alex, and truly a fishing feat for the ages by TJ Conrads and his family.

We look forward to seeing Mr. Conrads again down the road…can’t say the same for these fellas:

November 14, 2012

Bruce Birkett ain’t scared of some hardcore fishing action, and he proved that by signing up Captain Carlos and the Adventurer for five straight day of action. On their first excursion Mr. Birkett slayed the some big Dorados. Check out the king of the crop:

We are excited for Bruce’s good action so far and are pumped up to see what he can make happen on the 23′ Panga this week. Stay tuned!

November 9, 2012

Bill Harris and the boys rejoined the Wanderer and followed up their Dorado haul from Wednesday with an equally fruitful Yellowfin Tuna harvest. Captain William guided the flagship about 6 miles offshore to the deep water break and started knocking out Yella Fellas on a high speed troll.

They ended up with six tasty Yellowfin Tunas in the box plus added a pair of Dorado for good measure.

This is our first big Yellowfin harvest of the season and you know that First Mate Alex was itching to get the sushi tray out. Fresh sushi on the boat is one of the FishingNosara traditions, and it always makes for some big smiles.

Bill and the boys are pumped up and have added one more fishing day on November 10. Let’s see if they have some luck with the billfish on their final day in Nosara. 

November 7, 2012

The legendary Bill Harris has returned to Nosara along with his buddies from west central Florida. Once again he has signed up the Wanderer for two full days of offshore marine harvesting, and we are happy to report that his first trip went splendidly.

The Dorado bite has been fully-on this season yet no one could predict that these fellas would haul in ten green monsters in the course of the 8 hour trip. The biggest tipped the scales at 45lbs. with several respectable fish also ending up in the box.

What an amazing performance from these Florida anglers. Now that dinner is taken care of for the week we expect Bill Harris to go billfish hunting tomorrow. Stay tuned for updates as they are available.

November 5, 2012

The unstoppable Explorer is back on the water and that spells trouble for all the fish on our inshore reefs. Captain David and Mate Carlos welcomed Scott’s group for a great day inshore with a wide variety of filets showing up in the fishbox.

They started with a few hard-fightin’ Jack Crevalles, then buried the hook into this tasty White Tuna:

There are few fish in this area that can rival the White Tuna when it comes to great sushi, but the Cierro Mackerel is one of those rare delicacies.

Scott’s group finished off the day with a fantastic Cierro, charmed aboard no doubt by Mate Carlos donning the newly-discovered lucky fishing wig. Great addition to the tackle arsenal, Scott!

November 5, 2012

It was a great honor for the FishingNosara crew to welcome Angela Garman and her family for a week of relaxation and fishing in Costa Rica.

In her time as head of the Nosara Paradise Rentals US Office, Mrs. Garman presided over the creation of FishingNosara.com, the Wanderer, and even this fishing report. 

Without her effort and spirit in those early days, none of our team’s success could be possible.

Check out Angela overseeing the Wanderer ‘s first paint job back in 2009:

Still, this is her first trip to Nosara and the first time she has set foot on the Wanderer since it left Florida in August 2009.

Captain William and First Mate Alex have delivered strong action on Dorados all week, and Angela’s trip was no exception.

Angela’s son Bailey got into the action, along with husband Tony. This is one fish-fightin’ family!

They ended up with four mammoth Dorados in the fishbox and lots of fresh filets in their future.

“It was crazy.” Angela commented on this last Dorado. “The fish kept changing colors as I was reeling it in. At first it was purple and red, then it was blue.. It changed to green just as Alex pulled him in.”

November 4, 2012

Another great trip for Scott and his group today on the Wanderer. They added to their tasty Dorado haul with two more monsters.

They also added the first big Yellowfin Tuna of the season with this excellent catch estimated at 25lbs.

Later in the day Scott released a nice Pacific Sailfish. Estimated to weigh around 115lbs., this is the first billfish release of the season for the flagship.

Nice wig…I guess the Halloween spirit stuck around a few extra days for this posse. As always this billfish was safely released and we look forward to catching him again.

November 2, 2012

We’re back baby!

 

After a grueling off-season of repairs and maintainance, the mighty Wanderer was back on the water for a fruitful half day trip with the Scott Pennty group.

Great conditions and clear water meant that the Dorados were on the feed; check out these tasty green monsters.

Captain William and First Mate Alex delivered another fun, safe, and productive fishing outing for their clients and this is surely a sign of things to come for the flagship.

Great start for the big blue beauty, but stay tuned because we have lots of trips booked this week…should only get better!

November 1, 2012 – Launch Day

Time to see if all the hard work pays off! The entire FishingNosara team was on hand to re-launch the refitted and repainted Wanderer.

As usual we waited for the high tide to peak at the western end of Garza, then David backed the mighty Wanderer into position on the shoreline.

Here is her last view of the shore without the water in the way for the next 9 months.

All hands were required to push her in, so we don’t have photos of that endevor, but you can always check out the Explorer Beach Launch Video to get the idea.

Our flagship vessel should now be ready for another 600+ great trips and she looks better than ever.

The refinished wood cabin, fighting chair, and teak covering boards are the eye-catchers, but those who have followed the Wanderer refit know how many essential non-cosmetic repairs went into the refit.

It was a grisly couple of months, but the sight of the blue beauty in the water and ready to fish makes it all worth the effort.