That’s Fishin’ – January 2016

By Sara Munro

I think I gave away all my fish mojo to my friends. Seriously. I’ve been out fishing twice in the past week and the only bites I got were baitfish! They didn’t even bite; they nibbled at my bait until it was gone. Do you know how frustrating that is?! All of us say that any day on the water is a good day and that’s true. However, when you’re a very competitive person, and fishing runs in your veins, when you go out and get skunked, more than once in a row, well, you go a little crazy.

You start asking, “Who brought bananas on the boat? Which one of you screwed with the fish gods? Who touched my lucky hat? What do you mean that’s the last leader you have?” There are no explanations; there are no guilty parties (unless they bring bananas on the boat) there are only you and the fish. What’s important to remember, is that fishing is a sport, and usually the fish wins—because humans are humans.

When losing at fishing, I’ve always gone into ‘epic day of fishing’ storytelling mode. I’ll talk about the time I went out with my Tico friends, and hit pay-dirt at the reef all day long. I’ll drop my line down into the deep with a hunk of fresh squid and the head of a sardine for bait, slow it down before it hits bottom and give a few jerks, then let the weight ease to the bottom—eye on the line the whole time. Well, at first anyways. You get lost in the sway of the water, the intense heat of the sun, the storytelling. You’re so lost that you don’t feel the bite of the fish that just stole your line. You bring up your line to see if you’ve had any action on your bait, and to your deep dismay, you realize that only a big fish can take bait like that.

Realizing that it’s your own fault, the anger seeps in. You don’t dare open your mouth to the other anglers on the boat, so you internalize and try to focus on the fishing. But now that you’ve given away your fish mojo, nothing will work. You have to be relaxed and ready for fishing—anger never does well here. In the end, the other anglers on the boat realize what’s up with you simply by recognizing the symptoms. The jeers begin. You realize that the same thing has been happening to them and you point it out. The jeers escalate.

The smiles continue, the cold beer has never tasted so good and you’re stoked that you’re even able to be where you are. So many people only dream about the opportunity to fish where you are, they never get to realize it. This makes every turtle, flying fish, dolphin, whale, bird that you see that much more amazing and special. Fish? What fish? The view from the edge of the earth is spectacular, and it effects and affects me on a physical and spiritual level. You forget that the rest of the world is out there, and the very last thing on your mind is your cell phone. If only the rest of the world could be this way.

You know, being on that boat and getting skunked twice in a week is fine with me. How fun is it when you convince a girlfriend to go out because she’s never been offshore fishing? Priceless—because you get to experience your first time out all over again. This is the true joy of fishing—sharing an experience with people that you enjoy life with. Come back with a fish or not—either way it’ll have been a fantastic day. Whether you win or lose in anything in life, it is all about the experience in the end.

So go FISHING. Just because I got skunked doesn’t mean anything. There were plenty of other boats out the same days as us, and they caught fish. We sucked at fishing and rocked a couple of days on the water. Like I said earlier, it don’t get better than that.

Wanna go fishing? Call Sarah direct 8729 4000. Wanna cook your catch? The Hawg ’n’ Bill located beachfront Manuel Antonio. The only joint in town to cook your catch.