Costa Rica Fishing Forecast November 2015
The month of November usually starts off with a bang! The Dorado start to show up in masses all along the Pacific coast of Costa Rica. We’re not talking about the peanuts that they “bail” in the Keys here. We are talking about fish that average well into to the twenty pound range, with lots in the forty, fifty and sixty pound range. Needless to say, they’re all gaffers! You can catch these fish with about any method you like. They are normally found right on the first rip offshore, usually only a six to eight mile run offshore. If you want to catch anything else it is quite common to have to pick up and run away from these fish!
November also generally kicks off the black marlin bite. Most boats have been reporting a shot or two almost daily at marlin. We should start to see an increase in catches, as not only more fish are showing up, but there will be more boats out on a daily basis once the “high season” starts to kick in.
Inshore fishing, as always, has been super-hot! The snapper bite will really start to heat up here in November. Cubera snapper will be the primary target. Those working with live baits, such as look downs and bonitos, will not only be rewarded with the cuberas, but also the inshore king, the roosterfish!
Be sure to ask your charter operator about participation in the Gray FishTag program. We encourage tag and release in all of our wonderful species. Go ahead and keep that twenty inch fish for dinner, but let’s tag and release those snook, snapper, etc. over twenty inches. You can help to assure that future generations have access to these amazing sport fish and help provide valuable research that will benefit anglers for years to come. You can find out more about the Gray FishTag program here. Or visit their website at www.grayfishtagresearch.org
Co-Publisher Tom Hauer
tomh@coastalanglermagazine.com