Many years ago, Kona skipper George Parker made ­headlines around the world when he caught the first certified, world-record grander Pacific blue marlin. Since that 1,002-pound giant in November 1954, Hawaii’s lee eddies have churned up a stream of 1,000-pound blues that continues today. Kona waters usually average two or three granders per year, along with more Pacific blue marlin IGFA records than any other sport-fishing hot spot. That parade of records continues. In March 2013, Alex Nuttall boated a 958-pound blue marlin with Capt. Chip Van Mols on the Kona charter boat Monkey Biz II to claim the IGFA women’s 130-pound-class record.

Kona’s consistent billfish success sparked a worldwide revolution in big-game fishing because these big fish were caught on lures pioneered and developed in Hawaii waters. Meanwhile, big-game fishermen elsewhere had been saying you could catch billfish only with bait. Even those doubters caught the Kona wave and started catching marlin on Kona-style lures. Kona is also the perfect starting point for novices who have never caught a fish in their lives. It happens every day, 365 days a year. Newcomers are well served by a well-maintained fleet of top-of-the-line boats and expert captains.

Plus, Kona’s big fish hunt in deep, calm waters near shore. The 100-fathom line is a 10-minute run from Kona’s two main fishing fleets at Honokohau Harbor and Keauhou Bay. What’s more, the biggest fish of any week is usually a marlin in the 500- to 900-pound range caught by a complete newcomer on a four- or six-hour trip. On any day of the year, a visitor can find a suitable charter and hope to catch one or more of Hawaii’s mighty four: billfish, ahi (yellowfin tuna), mahimahi (dolphinfish) and ono (wahoo).

Billfish of Every Kind

Blue marlin, black marlin, striped marlin, sailfish, shortbill spearfish and broadbill swordfish — Kona’s waters are home to every billfish found in the Pacific. But each has a different story, and you should know those stories when you make plans.

Big blues are the billfish that pay the bills in Kona. Blues of all sizes are here year-round, but they are usually most common during the summer tournament season, from June through early September. Mid-Pacific currents can supply a fresh run at any time, however. For example, sometimes April surprises offshore trollers with fish heavier than 500 pounds on every day of the lunar cycle. Catches like these show that the lunar cycle has little, if any, influence on billfishing in Kona (unlike the effect different phases might have in other fishing areas).

Kona granders have also been landed in January, March and July. March, which might otherwise be considered the offseason elsewhere, has turned up more of Kona’s historic granders than any other month, and that includes the 1,649-pound Kona all-time record in 1984. The 1,376‑pound IGFA record for 130-pound class was caught in May 1982. Indeed, granders have been caught in Kona waters every month of the year. Licensed commercial fishermen are allowed to sell blue marlin in Hawaii, but professional skippers prefer tag-and-release for clients who want to let vital fish go. In any given week, more of Kona’s blues are tagged than kept. Visitors should make their wishes known when setting up a charter.

Hawaii’s Striped Marlin

Striped marlin cruise through Kona water’s year-round, but the big run extends from December through March. The Hawaii state record, 212 pounds, turned up here at the end of March 2011. That’s big for a north Pacific stripe, which is noteworthy because South Pacific stripers max out at more than double the weight of their northern cousins. Striped marlin are most attracted to Kona when winter waters cool down into the mid-70s. During those “chilly” times, the luckiest trollers might get up to a dozen striped marlin bites, and hook about a third of them.

Those same striped marlin ­conditions also attract shortbill spearfish of world-record size. Kona’s frisky shortbills ­presently hold 16 IGFA marks for tackle as light as 4-pound-class, and even on fly gear. Record-seekers troll hookless teasers to draw a spearfish within range, and then present a lure, fly or bait on the most sporting gear available. For most visitors, however, the spearfish is a surprise catch when trolling for blues and stripes.

For black marlin, Kona is outside the normal migration range. The entire Kona fleet sees only a handful each year, and these are much smaller than the giants of the Great Barrier Reef far to the south. Old-timers will remind you that the state record weighed 1,205 pounds, but that once-in-a-generation fish was caught in 1980.

Broadbills are the secret sensations for fishermen who know when, where and how to catch them. Most of Kona’s rod-and-reel swordies are caught at night during ika-shibi (traditional hand line) trips that target tuna. With its giant staring eyes, the broadbill is readily attracted to lights at night and to the squid schools that gather in the glow. The state record 503-pounder took the bait in June 2006 at the start of what are usually the three best swordfish months. Only a few boats cater to the night-fishing trade.

Hawaii Tuna Fuel Jet Revolution

More than fifty years ago, Hawaii troller Henry Nishikawa ignited the jet revolution when he caught a world-record ahi on a metal-headed lure drilled through and through with holes. His 269-pound yellowfin didn’t last long in the record books after anglers in the eastern Pacific discovered a tribe of bigger tuna off Mexico. Yet the IGFA record book is still overwhelmingly Kona on the ladies’ side: Kona catches made by women hold the 16-, 20-, 30- and 50-pound-class marks.

Though Kona waters attract ­resident schools of yellowfin year‑round, ahi are most abundant in late spring and throughout summer. As schools migrate west to east through the islands, the big runs reach Kauai first by Mother’s Day in May and Kona by Father’s Day in June. When the action is wide open, lucky boats can catch as many as 10 a day, all in the 100- to 220-pound range, by trolling or live-baiting with aku (skipjack tuna) or opelu (mackerel scad). During the rest of the year, ahi specialists target them with green-stick gear, and continue to catch a few each trip.

Hawaii’s state record ahi (a July catch) of 325 pounds is unusually large for central Pacific yellowfin tuna. Kona’s biggest ahi each year normally hits 250 pounds (258.5 in 2013). The state record bigeye (277 pounds in July 2013) and the biggest albacore (89.2 pounds in April 2011) both were caught on the Big Island’s windward (eastern) coast. The albacore weighed more than any on the IGFA record list but did not qualify for world-record status because it was caught on commercial-fishing gear. Kona ­fishermen regularly catch albies (tombo ahi) in the 60s and 70s on sport fishing tackle.

Mahimahi, Hawaii’s Gift to the World

Almost 70 years ago, Hawaii Big Game Fishing Club official George Perry set the 130-pound-class IGFA world record for dolphinfish with a 72.5‑pounder. That record didn’t last long, but the name “mahimahi” is Hawaii’s gift to the world, because it replaces the confusing name “dolphin” on restaurant menus. Though Hawaii has no current IGFA mahimahi records, the state-record 82-pounder confirms the potential. That record fish was a September Kona catch, but mahimahi are available any time the current drags a “floater” within trolling distance.

Mahimahi live up to their name (it means “very strong”), and the brightly colored, agile acrobats do their muscular tricks in Kona waters year-round. Occasionally huge schools gather around flotsam and jetsam for a wide-open bite that can go on for days. Then, skippers gear down to match the catch with sporting 20- and 30-pound-class rods. Unless a Kona skipper finds a floater, mahi are incidental catches on marlin and tuna trips.

By the way, the mahimahi record aside, Perry went on to catch the largest blue marlin in each of the first two Hawaiian International Billfish Tournaments (HIBT). The HIBT became an annual Kona fishing feature in 1959 and soon inspired dozens of other Kona tournaments. During the most popular tournament months of June, July and August, events compete with each other every week

Ono Blitzes, Summer Phenomenon

A Guide to Big Fish off the Big Island

Ninety years ago, a mysterious fellow known only as “J.B. Stickney” caught a 124.75-pound wahoo in Hawaii waters to set the world record. That was five years before the IGFA was founded, a time when records were compiled by Van Campen Heilner of Field & Stream and Francesca R. La Monte of the American Museum of Natural history. Ono — what wahoo are called in Hawaii — average 30 to 40 pounds, which makes J.B.’s catch even more extraordinary.

Big ones do show up now and then — state-record-holders Tom Brandt and Sky Mullins surprised their 133.2‑pound ono off the windward coast of the Big Island in December 2000. The major ono run reaches the Big Island in May of each year and hangs around into early September. Some ono are caught year-round, with early morning being your best chance. Kona skippers typically troll the 40-fathom line at the start of each trip to pick up any ono that might be harassing the nearshore bait schools.

To ward off the ono’s sharp teeth, skippers rig their special ono lures with single-strand stainless leaders. Ono slash at heavy-headed subsurface lures like weighted jets and lead-head feathers. On a typical trip specifically for ono, a successful boat might catch three or four fish. In years when ono blitz the summer currents, boats are known to hook as many as 40 on a single trip.

Other fishing areas might see the diversity of big-game fish that Kona has, but few have them in the sizes regularly seen here. In Kona, your next strike could come on any day of the year, in any phase of the moon, at any turn of the tide, on routinely comfortable seas, and be one of the Pacific’s biggest and most exciting game fish.

Shore Fishing off the Big Island

The post Kona Hawaii Offshore Fishing appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Sport-fishing enthusiasts will find few places in the world as unexplored as the mostly uninhabited, rugged coastal wilderness of Australia’s Kimberley. It’s a region so remote, it remains a mystery even to most Australians, few of whom have ever ventured to this distant northwestern corner of the continent.

The fishing remains unspoiled and untouched, and anglers who do manage to visit here marvel at the terrain, replete with dramatic gorges cut deeply into red sandstone cliffs, rugged ranges, waterfalls that tumble right into the Indian Ocean, and flats that daily become totally exposed and then hours later completely disappear when flooded by 25- to 30-foot tides that are part of this watery world.

The Kimberley includes many national parks, and ancient indigenous rock art can be found throughout the area on rock walls and in caves, estimated to date back as far as 40,000 years. The population of the Kimberley is roughly 50 percent aboriginal. Here’s a thumbnail look at four fishing destinations in the Kimberley.

Broome

Broome might be considered a gateway to the Kimberley. The largest city in the territory (about 15,000 population), it’s located at the southern end of the Kimberley. Typically visitors to the Kimberley jump off from Broome or, to the northeast, Darwin.

But Broome is a fishing destination in its own right. It offers excellent surf-fishing without having to travel far, starting at Roebuck Bay along Crab Creek Road. Fish rocky points for the iconic barramundi, as well as trevally, queenfish, threadfin and mangrove jacks (as the Indo Pacific version of gray snapper are called). Charter boats will fish reefs nearshore for a great variety of gamefish, including various snappers, groupers (cod and coral trout), narrowbarred Spanish mackerel, longtail tuna, trevallies and more. Serious anglers can book a multi-day trip to the famed Rowley Shoals (about 200 miles out) for amazing fishing.

But more than any gamefish species, sailfish are quintessentially Broome. It’s not unreasonable to consider this one of the best fisheries for sails in the world, with doubles and triples common. Renowned Australian fishing journalist John Ashley has experienced the fishery, and he says it’s common for Broome boats to tag-and-release a dozen or more sails in a day. Boats typically run 15 to 40 miles to find sails (which they generally do by finding schools of baitfish). These Indian Ocean sails run 45 to 55 pounds or so—similar to Western Atlantic sailfish. And, similar to Florida, anglers generally fish light spinning gear, often pitch-baiting ballyhoo (aka garfish).

Rather than walking down a dock to meet their boat, charter anglers in Broome wade out to a dingy just off the beach, which will run them out to deeper water where boats are moored. There are no docks here on the extensive sandy shallows where huge tides are a constant fact of life.

Broome also offers heli-fishing (kashelicopters.com.au) on an extended half-day tour to drop anglers into otherwise inaccessible spots. It’s a pricey but a unique fishing experience, with barramundi the primary target. Information on the biggest offshore tournament here can be found by searching online for the Broome Billfish Classic.

Kuri Bay

A bit over an hour north of Broome via floatplane, Kuri Bay sits deep in the Kimberley coast. For human purposes, it’s less a sport-fishing center than a base for the pearl industry. The Paspaley pearling center here was established in the 1950s, but only recently (in 2016) did the isolated spot become accessible to sport fishermen when well-known Kimberley guide and charter operator Peter Tucker worked out an arrangement with Paspaley to house small groups of anglers on-site at the working pearl farm, via his Kuri Bay Sportfishing Tours.

Often the Kimberley’s coastal waters are turbid, but at Kuri they’re generally clear. That makes it an appealing destination for fly-rodders, who have the chance to sight-cast to one of Australia’s most elusive inshore prizes, the blue bastard (actual name), a large (reaching at least 3 feet in length) species of sweetlips in the family of grunts, as spooky and unpredictable as any permit.

Fly- and light-tackle anglers alike fish for abundant trevallies (giant, golden, brassy and others), as well as barramundi, queenfish, mangrove jack, fingermark, cobia, longtail tuna, narrowbarred mackerel, various groupers and more.

As everywhere in the Kimberley, where and how one fishes always depends upon the massive tides. Some mornings, boats will remain briefly at the dock high and dry when low tide empties out Kuri Bay. The flip side means that when the tide floods the bay and the coast, it completely swallows shorter trees underwater. The guides at Kuri Bay, out of necessity, know how to play the tides and where to fish at any time.

Kimberley Coastal Camp

Other than this resort, there is simply nothing in this remote part of the Kimberley for many miles around. Visitors reach Kimberley Coastal Camp only by chopper or floatplane. The camp sits on the Admiralty Gulf north of the Mitchell Plateau and Lawley River National Park, northeast of Kuri Bay.

There’s abundant wildlife and ancient cave paintings (take a tour of indigenous rock-art sites), but fishing is the major draw. Barramundi are a primary target, but anglers catch the typical, wide variety of gamefish here including mulloway (aka black jewfish, a large croaker), threadfin salmon, mangrove jack, fingermark, giant trevally, narrowbarred Spanish mackerel, longfin tuna, queenies, coral trout, blue bone (blackchin tuskfish) and more. That diversity’s not too surprising with such a variety of habitats to fish at KCC: huge tidal rivers, mangrove-lined creeks, estuaries, flats and offshore reefs and islands. The resort claims that it’s “one of the few fishing tour operations that include tackle on an unconditional basis. No cost for loss or breakages.”

KCC owners Tub and Jules take pride in their cuisine, and in fact wrote a book about it — Cooking in Thongs, Recipes and Stories the Kimberley Coastal Way. The modest resort (16 guests maximum) is open year-round. For barramundi, in particular, the wet season is recommended, with February a peak month.

Kununurra

One needn’t venture far from this Kimberley community (population about 5,000) to find some outstanding barramundi fishing. Lake Kununurra, formed in 1963 with the construction of a dam across the mighty Ord River, has seen well more than a million barramundi fingerlings released over the past decade by the Lake Kununurra Barramundi Stocking Group. The result: a world-class fishery for Australia’s most iconic inshore gamefish.

The ragged coastline of the Cambridge Gulf and its estuaries just to the north of Kununurra also offer great barramundi fishing. The entire area along with the lake is included in the annual Apex Kununurra Barra Bash competition held each September. For information on that tournament, visit lakekununurrabarramundi.com.au.

Local fishing guides can be found at visitkununurra.com/tours/fishing-tours. For a very different sort of fishing experience, there’s barra fishing using hand lines with Pete’s Cultural Adventures. One spectacular site is famed Ivanhoe Crossing, a concrete causeway across the Ord River with water flowing over it—and plenty of big crocodiles (“salties”) hanging around.

Here too you’ll find heli-fishing opportunities. See helispirit.com.au. Kununurra’s airport is served by regular domestic flights, and the Great Northern Highway from Broome is paved for its length.

Helpful Links

For more information about fishing Western Australia, visit Tourism Western Australia (westernaustralia.com) and Great Fishing Adventures of Australia (part of australia.com). For general info about visiting Australia, see Tourism Australia. My thanks to these agencies, whose assistance made visiting the Kimberley possible. Also, be sure to check out the free digital magazine Allure for more Australian fishing adventures.

The post Fishing the Kimberley—Australia’s Most Remote Region appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

Pick a popular game fish and you’ll find multiple places designating themselves as “capital of the world” for that species. But it’s hard to imagine any spot on the globe more justified in claiming the title of “sailfish capital of the world” than the Pacific coast of Guatemala, south of Guatemala City. The stats don’t lie. Guatemala is among few places that boast good sailfishing year-round, with an annual release average of 12 sails a day per boat, and 20 to 40 shots per day not unusual. 

Or how about 124 sailfish released by a single boat in a day? That’s the highest one-boat total — so far — claimed at Casa Vieja (casaviejalodge.com), the largest sailfish lodge on this coast. Other landmarks for the lodge’s fleet include 300 billfish (sails and marlin) released by one boat over three days, and 57 sails released on fly-fishing gear in a day.

Anglers who visit here regularly have their favorite months or seasons, says David Salazar at Casa Vieja. “But they’re always out there, all year. And it seems like in every month of every year, we’ll usually have at least one exceptional week.”

Casa Vieja boats are pretty single-minded in their approach to finding sails, which they do by trolling ballyhoo (on circle hooks). If sails are around, they seldom resist. But with so many sailfish, fly-casting to them has become a prime sport for many of the lodge regulars.

Most anglers find the resort’s standard Alutecnos reels filled with 30-pound line to be ideal for Pacific sails. Compared to Atlantic sailfish, Pacific sails run on the large side, with 60- to 80-pounders very common, and some growing considerably larger.  

While sails dominate the fishery, they’re not alone, often accompanied by the man in the blue suit, as anglers often label blue marlin. Typically, at least one blue will be hooked every few days, on average. Like sails, they’re around all year, though Salazar says the April through August period offers higher chances. Black marlin also figure in the mix, but considerably less often than their blue cousins. Casa Vieja boats keep a 50-pound outfit rigged for a pitch bait to put out when a marlin is spotted.

Like sails, yellowfin tuna and mahi are caught throughout the year, but April to August is prime time to encounter large schools of these tasty game fish. Nonstop action for 40- to 80-pound tuna can test an angler’s arms.

Fishing along the shore offers action of a different sort, and it’s not unusual for anglers on the water for several days to spend one day fishing for roosterfish, as well as skipjack, Sierra mackerel, rainbow runner, and crevalle and horse-eye jacks. So far, slow-pitch and speed jigging hasn’t taken off here, but Salazar mentions that one of the resort’s skippers enjoys doing this on his own time with great success.

Planning a Trip

When to Go: The billfish grounds are a trek offshore, with an average run from the lodge of 25 miles. But again, Salazar points to the variability: “Some days it may be a five-mile run, and others 50 miles.” Fortunately, the seas here are known to be tranquilo mostly, only occasionally becoming uncomfortably choppy. Salazar acknowledges that the area gets more rain from about mid-June through mid-October, but unlike many Central American regions on the Pacific, heavy, monsoon-type rainfall is rare.

Where to Go and How to Get There: Getting to Casa Vieja means flying into Guatemala City. A flight is two hours in the air from Miami and 3 ½ hours from either Dallas or Atlanta. From there, a Casa Vieja Lodge van takes anglers the two hours south to the coast, Puerto San Jose and the lodge.

What to Expect: There is more to see and do here in addition to the fishing. Salazar notes increasing numbers of families in recent years.  Guatemala City offers a variety of art galleries and museums, including collections of pre-Columbian art.

Also in the area: Lake Atitlan, one of the most beautiful lakes in the world; the Pacaya Volcano (try a guided hike or trail ride); and Tikal National Park, in the northern Guatemala rainforest.

The post Guatemala’s Pacific Coast is Billfish Central appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

George Poveromo took up residence on the Salt Water Sportsman masthead way back in 1983, at only 23 years old. He is renowned for his flats, inshore and offshore fishing prowess, leading the Salt Water Sportsman National Seminar Series for 35 years now. One of his specialties is sailfish, landing more in a season than most will in a lifetime. Want to catch like George? Add some of his sailfish must-haves to your boat. 

Good Sonar and Great Charts 

“Both are a must for ­locating reef bottom jutting out into current, wrecks, bait ­concentrations and surface-­temperature readings. Learn to look for places where north-­flowing blue current washes over structure like this.”

A High-Powered ­Livewell

“My twin 34-gallon livewells are fed by a Hooker sea chest. Two 4,500 gph pumps circulate the water inside the chest itself, eliminating air infusion, dry pumps, and pump failures at all boatspeeds. The volume and velocity of water feeding each well, important for certain bait types, is controlled by a dial on my console. Another huge plus: The pumps are external and easily replaced.”

A Whole Lot of Rod ­Holders 

“A total of 26 gunwale-based Lee rod holders enables us to slow-troll live baits or drift a full spread complete with dual kites and flat lines. For trolling, I’ve got two 30-degree Lee swivel rod holders and one 15-degree Lee flush-mounted holder per side and within the aft gunwales. From there, eight more Lee holders are positioned along each gunwale and aimed seaward for drifting baits. A pair of Lee swivel rod holders occupy the bow, giving me the freedom to pivot as needed. Four ­zero-degree Lee holders are within the transom cap.”

A Way to Spread Baits 

“Outriggers are ideal for spreading live baits and kites when slow-trolling. They’re excellent for placing additional baits. For example, my Lee 20-foot carbon-fiber poles and 15-foot carbon-fiber ­center rigger are each rigged to accommodate two baits per pole. When you use all three riggers, you can spread out six live baits behind the boat. Add in a pair of weighted flat lines, and you’re up to eight baits (with more if you add a fishing kite).”

Tridents for Kite Rigs 

“Trident rod holders are excellent for keeping outfits close to a fishing kite for easy station management. Strategically positioned gunwale rod holders can accomplish the same. To power electric kite reels, four 12-volt Hubble electrical outlets are positioned under the gunwales—two in the bow and a pair in the cockpit. That lets us drift or slow-troll a single kite off the stern, or drift a pair of kites utilizing both the bow and cockpit stations.”

Slow Your Drift

“To counter a fast drift and give baits more soak time within a zone, deploy a ­parachute anchor sized to your vessel. For example, I keep a 15-foot, 20-pound ­Para-Tech Sea Anchor Parachute within the console of my 33-foot Mako.”

The post Set Sail appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

With a wealth of well-established marinas, resorts and fishing charters all along Costa Rica’s 630-mile Pacific coastline, visiting anglers will find no shortage of options in this small heavily jungled Central American Mecca for tourists. Besides its pristine beaches, Costa Rica offers visitors tropical rainforests, mostly protected and teeming with wildlife, as well as mountains (as high as 12,500 feet) and volcanoes to explore. The country has become known internationally as an eco-tourism center.

But of course, it’s also well known for its great sportfishing, with many options and well-established infrastructure for enthusiasts. Those options include entirely different fisheries on Pacific and Atlantic coasts. The Pacific side is larger and receives the lion’s share of sport-fishing effort in three major areas: Guanacaste in the far north (Tamarindo, Flamingo, Papagayo); the central coast (Los Sueños, Quepos) and the southernmost coast (Osa Peninsula, Golfito). 

These are the major game fish that anglers come to Costa Rica to catch:

Marlin – It’s possible here to catch all three marlin species in a day: blue, black and striped. Blues are particularly prevalent and the advent of anchoring FADs — fish-attracting devices — to offshore seamounts has led to some amazingly productive blue marlin fishing, mid spring through mid fall on the central coast. Since the FADs are 60 to 130 miles out, most FAD operations book trips for two, three or four nights out. Dorado (mahi) are a likely bonus on FAD trips.

Sailfish – They can be numerous enough that double-digit days are not at all uncommon. These are big fish — bigger than western Atlantic sails, running 75 to 100 pounds on average and sometimes much larger. The majority are caught on trolled rigged ballyhoo, but there are good opportunities for fly-fishermen as well (it’s worth noting that 10 of 15 tippet-class fly-rod records for Pacific sailfish came from Costa Rica).

Roosterfish – Central America’s high-finned, high-status inshore game fish, roosters are abundant all along the country’s rocky/sandy Pacific coastline, making it an iconic species for the country. Slow-trolling live blue runners or small tunas provides most of the roosterfish hookups though the powerful fish will hit poppers and stickbaits and at times, flies as well.

Yellowfin Tuna – The Pacific off the coast of Costa Rica is definitely tuna country, where anglers look for big pods of spinner dolphins, knowing well the symbiotic association between the mammals and yellowfin. Often where you find one, you find the other. Add in diving birds and get ready. And tuna action for anglers has gotten even better in recent years, thanks to a 2014 Tuna Decree that prohibited big purse seiners from operating within 45 miles of the nation’s coast.

Planning a Trip

When to Go: Like most great fishing destinations, plenty of opportunities await year-around, but peak times vary in part by area. So, on the central and north coast, late spring/summer offer the best chances of blue marlin while winter might be a better bet in the country’s southern reaches. For sailfish, hit the north coast in summer and winter/spring along the central and south coast. Yellowfin all year for the most part, though the far north is generally best in the summer. For roosterfish and Pacific cubera: any time, any place. The Atlantic-side tarpon fishery is all year, though October-November often prove to be peak months.

Where to Go and How to Get There: Most visitors fly into the country’s capital city, San Jose. The other alternative for international flights is the newer Guanacaste airport in Liberia. The San Jose airport requires a 30- to 45-minute ride to most of the city’s hotels. A variety of small airlines offer in-country service to both coasts. Winter into early spring on the Pacific is a bit drier and a bit windier in general, while summer through mid-fall days are usually calm but often with heavy interior showers spreading out toward evening. Whenever you plan to go, booking far in advance is advisable.

What to Expect: Costa Rica offers fishing resorts, marinas and charters all along its Pacific coast and several in the Rio Colorado and Parismina area on the Caribbean. Boats available for charter can range from small pangas for inshore/nearshore fishing (always check for basic safety equipment including VHF radio) to convertible sport-fishers more than 60 feet long for offshore/FAD trips. While Spanish is the official language of Costa Rica, it’s common to find locals who know at least some English. You’ll need a valid passport to enter the country — and a return flight ticket, proof of which you’ll have to provide to immigration at your time of arrival. Exchange rates for Costa Rica colóns are usually better at the airport, though U.S. dollars are generally accepted and desirable, so bring some U.S. currency. Pay the $29 departure tax before your departure day if it isn’t included in the return flight cost, as lines to pay can get long at the airport.

Helpful Links

There is so much more to do in the country in addition to fishing — ziplining, whitewater kayaking, mountain hiking, horseback riding and more.

• Essential Costa Rica
• U.S. News & World Report Costa Rica Travel Guide
• Crocodile Bay Resort
• Zancudo Lodge
• Los Suenos Resort and Marina
• Marina Pez Vela

The post Costa Rica’s World-Class Sport Fishing appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

On kites, color changes, drop-back baits trolled and pitch baits over the reef, sailfish present some highly technical catch scenarios. Those fish beguile us, dazzle us, and make us feel fortunate to catch them on their swift migrations. Drape a sailfish across an angler’s lap for a picture though, and that fish loses a lot of its magic. Turns out that removing a sailfish from the water for a pic, or for any reason other than to keep the fish, is not only awkward looking, but also prohibited by federal regulations.

Don’t Remove Sailfish from Federal Waters

That’s right. While it’s legal to keep a sailfish if it measures 63 inches (lower jaw fork length) and the angler has all the necessary licenses and permits, it’s not legal in federal waters to remove a sailfish from the water if it’s meant to be released. It’s a violation of the Highly Migratory Species (HMS) regulations. The specific HMS regulation (50 CFR 635.21 (a) (2)) states: “If a billfish is caught by a hook and not retained, the fish must be released by cutting the line near the hook or by using a dehooking device, in either case without removing the fish from the water.”

Those regulations apply to anglers aboard vessels with an HMS Angling Permit, whether they fish in federal or state waters, and to fish for sailfish and other HMS species in federal waters, that permit is required. For anglers in state waters without an HMS permit, it’s up to the state whether they want to enforce the same regulations.

Can Anglers in Florida Bring a Sailfish into the Boat?

In the case of Florida, where many sailfish are caught in state waters, even from piers, Emily Abellera of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) says, “Specifically for sailfish, temporary removal of sailfish from state waters would be allowed unless fishing aboard a vessel that has an HMS Angling Permit. In short, the restriction for temporary removal only applies in federal waters or anywhere if the vessel carries a federal HMS angling permit.”

“If you are an HMS permit holder,” affirms Cliff Hutt, a Fisheries Specialist with Atlantic HMS at NOAA Fisheries, “removing Highly Migratory Species from the water before release can result in a fine, but as with many violations first time offenders may also just get a warning or ‘compliance assistance’ as we like to call it.” On the books, the fine for the first infraction of the regulation is $500 and it increases with each infraction.

What Studies Show About Billfish Survival

These regulations intend to ensure the healthiest releases and the best survival chances for all the HMS species they cover. There is good research and evidence to back them up. A landmark study by Dr. John Graves of the Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences in 2016 showed the crucial nature of the release to billfish survivability. Hutt, of NOAA, says, “This study involved white marlin, which are very similar to sailfish. He [Graves] found post-release mortality (PRM) increased substantially for fish that were removed from the water for as little as 3 to 5 minutes. PRM was less than 2% for white marlin that were left in the water before release, while a full third of fish removed from the water died within 30 days.”

Listen to Experienced Captains

Charter captains in Florida know the value of following the regulations, despite a desire among some anglers to hoist that sailfish onto their laps for a picture.

“We obviously always have people who want to pull the fish out of the water for a photo,” says Capt. Scott Fawcett, of Off the Chain Fishing Charters, in Stuart, Florida. “I never allow it. It kills me when I see everybody else doing it. First, because it’s so bad for the fish and secondly, because my charter will want that same photo as well. Thirdly, when you catch a couple hundred or more sails a year, it’s only a matter of time before somebody gets hurt while trying to do that anyway. I’m a huge advocate of no trophy pictures.”

Capt. Ryan Wenzel, of 4Reel Charters in Islamorada, Florida Keys, another sailfish hotspot, agrees with those sentiments. “I’ve started to let my clients know that taking them out of the water increases the chances that the fish won’t survive afterwards,” Wenzel says. “Grabbing the bill or leader and leaning over the side makes for a great picture as well and doesn’t hurt the fish as much. Another good alternative would be tagging a fish instead, as it helps with research and adds another challenge when you’re fighting the sail and makes it feel a bit more rewarding than getting the picture.”

Sailfish Release Tips

For the release, here are a few tips to keep in mind:

• Beware of the bill every moment.
• Wear gloves and from above, hold the bill securely near the sailfish’s mouth, letting the mouth open as the fish swims upright in the water at the boat’s side.
• Slowly move the boat forward to let the sailfish regain strength.
• When the fish moves strongly under its own power, direct it away from the boat and let it go. If you want, raise a flag or a high-five.

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“There have been a lot of sailfish around Fowey Lighthouse,” reports Capt. Christian Sanchez, of Miami Sailfish Charters. In addition to sailfish, he’s been catching king mackerel, dolphin and blackfin tuna. That’s the exact type of action to expect during winter in South Florida and the Florida Keys.

“We had a great trip two days ago,” Sanchez says. The day’s weather featured a brisk wind that started out of the north and then switched east. “The sailfish were swimming on the surface,” he says. Using heavy spinning gear, the crew cast live baits to breezing sails. Sanchez scored seven sails out of 12 bites and he said the top boat of the day released 13 out of 16. “We were back by noon!” Earlier in the week, he scored a 50-pound mahi.

A Miami Fishing Hotspot

Sanchez has been fishing in 160 to 200 feet of water a few miles north to a few miles south of the famous Fowey Rocks Lighthouse. He is slow-trolling live bait and looking for signs of feeding fish. “Flying fish and feeding birds are a good indicator,” he says. 

Sanchez starts the day catching live bait with sabiki rigs. “There has been a lot of bait at the turning basin in Government Cut, the range marker and farther south at Marker 21.”

Once Sanchez has a livewell full of herring, pilchards and goggle eyes, he heads for the sailfishing grounds. He flies two kites and pulls seven baits. Sanchez runs three live baits off each kite: goggle eye are farthest out, then herring, and finally a pilchard close to the boat. Sanchez says, “The larger bait is easier to keep in the water, so we put it on the longest line.”

Down the center of the spread, he swims a deep bait behind a 2- to 4-ounce inline sinker.

He uses PENN Carnage II 30- to 50-pound boat rods and a PENN Fathom II 40 reel. The reel is filled with 20-pound test monofilament fishing line. “Anything heavier than 20 pound and the wind puts a bow in the line making it hard to run the baits and set the hook.”

The monofilament mainline is attached to 15 feet of 40-pound fluorocarbon line with a Bimini to no-name knot. Sanchez’s live-bait rig consists of 15 inches of No. 4 wire and a 5/0 Mustad inline circle hook.

Sailfish Double Hookups

One of the toughest challenges in sport fishing is taming a multiple hook up of two or more sailfish. According to Sanchez, the secret is predicting the direction the fish will run. “Most of the time they go south into the current,” he says.

However, when the fish run different directions, “I chase the one that went the wrong direction first.” Sanchez explains the fish swimming north or east will eventually turn south and he can intercept it. Then, with one fish released, he can chase the second fish.  

After releasing multiple fish, Sanchez turns the boat and runs south. “If you get a double or triple, I know there are 20 more down there.” He runs past where he scored the bite and sets out the baits for another shot at the school.

Sanchez expects sailfishing to continue throughout the winter. At the end of February he looks forward to smoker king mackerel mixed in with wahoo and dolphin. He anticipates the arrival of big blackfin tuna with the peak season in April.

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Katherine Perkins of Arnold, Maryland was hurt after an estimated 100-pound sailfish leaped into the boat she was standing in, while anglers in the boat battled the high-jumping fish.

TCPalm.com reported the Martin County Sheriff’s Office stated the sailfish bill struck her in the groin and Perkins’ companions, Louis Toth, 75, and Dominic Bellezza, 77, applied pressure to her wound. Perkins was taken to a hospital for treatment, but her condition is unknown.

The incident occurred while the anglers were fishing two miles offshore Stuart, Florida, on the Atlantic Coast, north of Palm Beach and Miami.

“The sailfish jumped out of the water and stabbed Katherine in the groin area while she was standing next to the center console” of the fishing boat, the sheriff’s office said.

Some social media reports claim Perkins was “attacked” by the sailfish, which is untrue. Such embellishment may be connected to the many shark attacks and sightings along America’s coasts now, and also that Discovery TV’s always-popular “Shark Week” is on tap.

Sailfish are among the world’s most prized gamefish, admired for their lighting speed and high-leaping fight when hooked by anglers. Sails commonly jump far above the surface and the fish that speared Perkins undoubtedly jumped as it was near the boat or trying to be landed by someone on board.

The fish unfortunately launched out of the water, into the boat, and injured Perkins. The Martin County Sheriff’s Office said the anglers were trying to take a photo of the sailfish when it leaped into their boat.

Many similar billfish incidents have occurred over the years, including sailfish. Sails are regularly brought boatside, where a crew member grabs the fish’s bill, lifting it for a photo or two, and unhooking the very-much-alive fish for quick release so it is not injured.

Sailfish anglers have been “speared” often over the years, usually to the arms or shoulders when a fresh-caught sailfish is handled at the boat during releasing procedures.

Far larger marlin and swordfish have injured and even killed fishing crews during an angling bout.

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Islamorada proudly bills itself as the Sport Fishing Capital of the World, and for good reason. From here, an angler can catch creek-mouth snook in Everglades National Park, tempt a bonefish on the shallow flats around the village’s six islands and head offshore to battle a sailfish—all in the same day.

No matter the length of your angling bucket list, you can check off a whole bunch of species in Islamorada.

The ocean and backcountry flats host bonefish, permit and tarpon, the most sought-after triumvirate in the shallow-water game. Over grass flats and around the mangrove islands in Florida Bay and the national park, anglers can target snook, redfish and sea trout, as well as a variety of shark species, mangrove snapper, tripletail and cobia.

Weather from March through June and from September through November delivers preferred water temperatures for inshore fishing. During summer, visitors depart early in the morning, before the shallows heat up, or fish late in the afternoon, when temperatures cool and a spectacular sunset is almost guaranteed. 

Offshore, yellowtail and mutton snapper as well as grouper, king and cero mackerel swarm structure and coral reefs out to more than 100 feet deep. The same spectacular marine and fish life attracts scuba divers from all over the country.

Just outside the reef line, sailfish swim through the Keys. Plan to visit from November through April for the best opportunity to hook one of these acrobatic, hard-fighting billfish.

The offshore humps, where the ocean floor rises to within 400 feet of the surface, attract baitfish and opportunistic predators such as blackfin tuna, amberjacks and sharks. The humps produce year-round, but spring typically marks the peak of the bite, when the most and biggest fish are landed.

Dolphinfish, also known as mahi-mahi, usually top the list of popular offshore species for anglers hoping to catch dinner. Sharp-eyed captains look for weedlines, floating debris and diving birds to locate schools of the colorful fish, which show up in the spring, but in recent years have proved most abundant from August through early December.

Anglers often stop to catch dolphin on their way out to the swordfish grounds, which lie 25 to 30 miles offshore. Daytime swordfishing, where captains drop baits to the bottom in depths of 1,500 feet or more, was pioneered in 2003 by several innovative Islamorada fishing fanatics.

All Islamorada restaurants, from fancy to family style, offer fresh, local seafood. Lodging options range from high-end resorts to Old Florida motels to floating houseboats, where visitors can rest up and spend the following day on land viewing the works of painters and sculptors at the Morada Way Arts & Cultural District.

Non-anglers can find a different type of fish thrill by hand-feeding the 100-pound tarpon that gather at Robbie’s Marina and taking in a marine mammal show at Theater of the Sea, all of which make a visit to Islamorada a capital idea.

The post From Inches to Leagues — Explore All the Depths of Islamorada Fishing appeared first on Sport Fishing Mag.

If you’ve never taken the time to discover the 36-mile stretch of the Florida Keys between the Seven Mile Bridge and Key West, you’re missing a tucked-away treasure teeming with opportunities for below- and above-water exploration.

Known as Big Pine Key & Florida’s Lower Keys, this collection of islands offers a taste of Old Florida with its laid-back resorts and lack of high-rise condos and fast-food franchises. Outdoor activities include great fishing, snorkeling, diving, kayaking, birding, and bicycling and hiking through the National Key Deer Wildlife Refuge.

Offshore fishing out of The Lower Keys delivers dolphin, sailfish, swordfish, blue marlin, wahoo, sharks, kingfish and tuna primarily because of the region’s unique bottom structure as well as The Wall, a drop-off 30 miles into the Atlantic Ocean where the sea floor plunges from 900 to 2,000 feet.

Fishing along The Wall for 400-plus-pound blue marlin peaks from September through November. Anglers targeting those fish use 130-pound tackle and troll big artificial lures or whole kingfish. Troll skirted or plain ballyhoo or lures with ballyhoo for dolphin around scattered weeds and diving birds, and you might also connect with marlin from spring through fall.

Bottom fishermen head to shipwrecks in 30 to 50 feet of water in the Gulf of Mexico, where they not only catch grouper and snapper, but also cobia, permit and sharks. The shallow Gulf banks, where raised ledges deflect the current and concentrate baitfish, attract vast schools of Spanish mackerel. Catch them on live bait, lures and flies during the winter months. In spring, those banks produce legendary catches of tarpon topping 100 pounds on fly rods and spinning outfits.

Another tarpon hotspot lies along the old Bahia Honda Rail Bridge. From March through June, anglers aboard a flotilla of boats anchor between the bridge pilings trying to tempt a silver king into eating their baits.

Target a flats grand slam of tarpon, bonefish and permit from spring through fall in the protected shallows around Florida’s Lower Keys islands. Those calm waters also attract kayakers, who can tour with an outfitter or launch their own paddlecraft.

Diving and snorkeling charters on Big Pine Key feature excursions to the Adolphus Busch Sr. artificial reef, a 210-foot freighter in 100 feet of water. The pristine Looe Key Reef in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, about six miles south of Big Pine, is one of the most popular spots in the Keys.

Land-based adventurers can bike and hike the excellent trails on No Name Key. On the trails around the Blue Hole, a water-filled abandoned quarry at the Key Deer refuge on Big Pine Key, look for the tiny whitetail deer indigenous to this extreme-south habitat.

At the western end of The Lower Keys lies Stock Island. Its marinas are home to the Florida Keys’ prolific commercial shrimping industry. Many of those marinas feature standout charter-fishing fleets as well as highly regarded waterfront bars and restaurants. Stock Island also has a thriving arts community with numerous galleries that are highlighted during the annual “I Love Stock Island Festival” in mid-June.

Restaurants throughout The Lower Keys specialize in serving locally caught fish and lobster. And if you want to sample all of the area’s activities, stay for several nights at any of the full-service resorts, inns, motels, and waterfront RV parks or at Bahia Honda State Park, which rents campsites for RVs and tents, and also boasts one of the top-rated beaches in America.

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