Tag: Black Marlin

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.ย  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 afterย  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!


December 13, 2011

Frank Keres returned to shore with a big smile today. He booked the Wanderer for a offshore billfish hunt and his persistence was rewarded with not one but two fish of a lifetime.


Around 1:30pm the first big fish came calling and it was a gigantic Sailfish. A great short fight and perfect release ensued; little did Frank and his group know that this monster was just the tip of the proverbial iceberg.


Not 15 minutes after releasing the sailfish, ‘El Cachudo Grande’ (Big Marlin in gringo) came barreling through the spread. The fight was intense but Mr. Keres managed to keep the fish calm and motivated toward the Wanderer.


Captain William expertly kept the angler in a position of strength while in the cockpit First Mate Alex billed and released the fish with his trademark fearlessness.

Excellent work by the Keres group and the mighty Wanderer!

November 26, 2011

Craig is back in the billfishing swing of things, with report of two more Black marlin today on the Wanderer. The first big Black broke the hook just alongside the boat, but the second Marlin was a clean leader release.

No release shot this time…we will trade a safe release for a photograph any day, and this Marlin was too big to be messing around with.


Also our great friend Jeff Grosshandler made swift work of this nice 25lbs. Dorado for the dinner table. Great offshore action from the FishingNosara flagship Wanderer!

November 23, 2011

Craig Sutton has notched the scorecard with the season’s first Marlin release, a 300lbs. Black beauty. This ends a 15 month dry spell for the US Representative for FishingNosara and also represents the largest fish caught to date on the 26′ Explorer.


The water was deep green and Craig was up on the forward platform when he spotted four jumping dolphin dead ahead. “It was like it was telekinetic,” Craig later recalled. “I could feel that there was something big down there.”

That same moment the 300lbs. Black Marlin swooped in and annihilated the port side teaser. Alertly mate Pipio let spool the outrigger line, creating an irresistible target for the monster.


Once hooked an efficient 20 minute fight was all Mr. Sutton needed to bring her along side for a nice safe release. Great work by Captain David, Mate Pipio, and angler Craig Sutton on the unstoppable Super Panga.

June 19, 2011

Another incredible Marlin release for the Wanderer! Client Steve Terny and his group were on the big blue billfish bruiser yesterday evening and caught the true fish of a lifetime. This Black Marlin release was the result of an intense but economical fight; only 35 minutes from hook-up to release.


As usual Captain William and First Mate Alex coordinated the operation with fluid efficiency and Mr. Terny was up to the ultimate angler’s challenge.


What a great catch, and as always a safe release. Great work by Steve Terny and the crew of the Wanderer!