That’s Fishin’- January 2019
By Benn Gilmour
A huge happy new year to you all, may all your fishing dreams come true in 2019! After some epic fishing during December, Quepos captains are hopeful for an even better January which is typically the start of our peak Sailfish season. Large numbers of big Pacific Sailfish averaging 70-80lbs gather just a short run from our coastline and Anglers flock from all around the world to experience our incredible fishing for themselves. Double digit Sailfish release days are not uncommon during full day Offshore charters out of Quepos when the bite is on. Blue, Black and Striped Marlin are all possible during January also and Anglers can expect some Dorado and Yellow Fin Tuna to be in the mix also. We enjoyed some spectacular Dorado fishing during November and December, numbers will likely reduce during January as water temperatures rise during the dry season but you should still expect to see a Dorado or two on most Offshore trips. Yellow Fin Tuna will be found with the Spinner Dolphin schools, we get lots of Tuna in the 30-40lb range with plenty over 80lbs and some real 100-200lb plus monsters also. There was a 245lb Tuna caught out of Zancudo lodge in southern Costa Rica during December, an amazing fish demonstrating the potential we have here.
DORADO DERBY!
What a blast we all had in the first ever Marina Pez Vela Dorado Derby which took place on November 17th! An amazing 42 boats took place in this fun & family friendly event and the marina was a hive of activity with live music, dockside party, fish fry & a great time was had by all! No other fishing tournament in Costa Rica has seen so many novice/first-time tournament Anglers and we loved the fact that so many new faces got to experience the buzz & excitement of taking part in one of our great tournaments. The competing boats saw everything from 60+ foot luxury Sportfishers right down to a 19 foot Boston Whaler. The teams saw a real mixture of personalities also, the Ballena Banditos are a group of retired Gringos that live in the Dominical area and the Mujeres of MPV was an all ladies team representing the Marina Pez Vela. Z Restaurant had their own team, as did Promerica Bank, and everyone’s favourite Gelato store, Amorosi. Thankfully the fishing was GREAT too and most of the boats caught lots of Dorado in the 20 to 25lb range with most of the smaller fish being released and only the largest fish being brought to the scales. Congrats to Super Fly for taking top honours, great job guys!
The winning boats capturing the heaviest Dorado were:
Super Fly 52lb
Pelagic Magic 51lb
Spanish Fly 49lb
Good Day 49lb
Pacific Fly 47lb
Offshore Lifestyle 34lb
INSHORE FISHING
January is an excellent month for almost all of our Inshore species. The water visibility Inshore is great and there is lots of bait in the area. Inshore captains typically spend some time at the start of each Inshore trip gathering Sardines, Blue Runners, Goggle Eyes or Lookdowns for live bait before taking you to the fishing grounds alongside our river mouth’s or rock locations. December saw an excellent Roosterfish bite with some real quality fish caught. Tim Hoare visiting from the UK released a 50lb Roosterfish while Kevin Range from Jacksonville ticked a huge item off his bucket list also breaking the 50lb Roosterfish barrier, with a stunning fish caught aboard GOOD DAY. I expect some excellent Roosterfish fishing throughout January also. All Roosterfish are catch & release here in Costa Rica and many of the fish that we catch are tagged as part of a science & research program.
Snook, Jacks, Mackerel, Snappers, Corvina and more can all be expected during Inshore trips during the next few months.
PELAGIC ROCKSTAR – THE WAIT IS OVER!
After a long 12 months of waiting since the last instalment, Costa Rica’s funnest Sport Fishing tournament, the Pelagic Rockstar is back here at the Marina Pez Vela on January 12-13th. If previous years are anything to go by, this event promises to be a blast! It’s still not too late to sign up if you would like to fish the event and even non-anglers are welcome to come down to the Marina and join in all the fun of the weigh-ins, dockside parties, rock’n’roll bands and some great shopping in the tournament village. Bring your dancing shoes & hope to see you there!
There really is no better time to fish here in Quepos than the next couple of months. The weather is great, the fish are biting, our boats are ready The only thing missing, is you!
TOURNAMENT DATES
January 12-13, 2019 Pelagic Rockstar!
February 22-23, 2019 The Pescadora Billfish Championship (Ladies only!)
March 15-16, 2019 Quepos Billfish Cup
April 26-27, 2019 Marina Pez Vela Open
April 28-May 3, 2019 Offshore World Championships
See marinapezvelatournaments.com for details!
Tight Lines & I would love to hear from you if you would like to go fishing! Benn Gilmour, Jackpot Sport Fishing Marina Pez Vela, Quepos Cell: 8458 4997 [email protected] jackpotsportfishing.com
Tight Lines Amigos!