That’s Fishin’ – July/August 2021

August 17, 2021

By Benn Gilmour

Simply blessed! What an incredible year it has been so far. After the turbulence of last year, it has been great to see some kind of normalcy return to the tourism scene here in Quepos/Manuel Antonio and our Charter Boats have thankfully had a busy season with lots of visitors from the states just crying out for some time on the water. Thank you to each and every one of you that have fished with one of our Quepos boats and helped us continue to do what we love. The fishing has not disappointed and our lucky Anglers have enjoyed some simply world class Fishing over these past few months.

OFFSHORE FISHING

June produced some exceptional Offshore fishing with a wide-open Sailfish bite 30 miles Offshore and many of the Quepos boats catching some staggering numbers of Sailfish. Many boats enjoyed double digit Sailfish days, with the 42-foot Pacific Fly releasing 20 Sailfish during 1 day, which is just great numbers for a charter boat. Out in the deep water, there have been Blue Marlin showing as well as some big schools of Yellow Fin Tuna which can be found alongside megapods of Spinner or Spotted Dolphins. Lots of Tuna in the 30lb category and if you can find some live bait then this should give you a great chance of catching fish in the 50-100lb+ class. These next couple of months are the peak time for Wahoo over the Offshore reefs and there have been some great sized Wahoo landed recently. Wahoo are one of the best eating fish in the ocean and the chefs at our Marina Restaurants—The Runaway Grill, Gabriellas, and Cubra Libre—will be delighted to cook up your catch for you after you return to the dock.

There have been plenty of small Dorado showing at the debris lines around 10 miles Offshore, these will continue to grow over the coming months before the Dorado bite peaks in November where there are usually lots of fish around the 20lb mark with some much bigger fish (30-50lb+) in the mix also.

July & August provide some of the best bottom fishing of the year Offshore for Snowy Grouper, Silky Snapper plus some other bottom species. Doing a little bottom fishing during your Offshore charter is a great way to try and secure some dinner and can be the perfect compliment to your trip if you have already caught your bucket-list Billfish. We have had some great success with bottom fishing on recent trips, just check out the snapper and grouper photos in this article!

Right now is the peak time for our Marlin/FAD Seamount season where 60-100+ miles Offshore from Quepos lies the best Blue Marlin fishing on the planet. Trips take place aboard large comfortable Sport fishers over 2-4 days and if catching a Marlin is high on your list, these trips will give you the best opportunity. Our Marina Pez Vela Boats: Hog Wild, Caribsea, Pelagic, and The Hooker all specialize in these multi-day trips, drop me a line if you would like any info.

INSHORE FISHING

The Inshore bite was a little slow during the early part of June but this is normal for a short while during the transition from dry to wet season as the rivers start to flood and the Inshore waters become murky which causes Inshore live bait species such as sardines to start to move out. June, July and August are some of the best months of the year to catch a “Grande”, a Trophy sized Roosterfish in excess of 40lbs. Our charter fleet provide half day or full day inshore charters and there are boats to suit every size and budget in the Marina. Check out Chloe Frijole, Good Day, IDRA 2, Zapata Fishing, Pacific Dream Fishing, Mucho Fisho, or Mirse Azul if you would like to go Inshore fishing.

Trae & Denise Sorenson had a blast during an Inshore Charter aboard GOOD DAY during May when in just a short half day inshore trip they landed an Inshore Grand Slam of a Roosterfish, Snook, & Pacific Red Snapper. Congrats guys! Also, huge congrats to Captain Rudy & Riccardo of IDRA 2 who caught a huge 91lb Goliath Grouper in May. The huge fish was caught on just 20lb line with a 30lb leader, just an incredible fish on such light tackle, congrats to Anglers and crew!

TOURNAMENT DATES NOW RELEASED!

Mark your calendar with the tournament dates for next season which looks set to be the BIGGEST & BEST tournament season ever here at the Marina Pez Vela. With some great new family friendly, one day fun tournaments added to the calendar as well as some of the popular high roller events, this next tournament season literally has something for everyone—its time to start reserving your boats now before they sell out! marinapezvela.com/tournaments/

November 13, 2021 Dorado Derby
November 20, 2021 Dorado Derby Dos
January 15-16, 2022 Pelagic Rockstar
February 5, 2022 Roosterfish Rodeo
February 17-19, 2022 Pescadora Billfish Championship (Ladies Only)
March 5, 2022 Sailfish Slam
April 22-23, 2022 Marina Pez Vela Open
April 25-29, 2022 Offshore World Championship
June 18, 2022 Summer Solstice Shootout