Story and photos by Capt. Glen Mumford
If you are dreaming about catching large Pacific sailfish, a trip to Costa Rica must be on the top of your Bucket List. The Pacific coast of Costa Rica has, unquestionably, some of the finest and most diverse fishing experiences you’re likely to find anywhere on the planet. If you’re in search of marlin, then you’re also in the right place. The waters off Los Sueños are at the top of the list for blue, black, and striped marlin—pick your flavor.
On one of my first trips to Costa Rica I had the opportunity to check out and experience the adventure on one of the top charter boats located at Los Sueños Marina to see exactly how it was done. Upon arriving at the marina I found the mates carefully rigging baits taking great pride in their preparations, soon to be offerings to these acrobats of the sea.
There’s nothing quite like leaving the dock early in the morning with the sun peeking up over the majestic mountains and enjoying your morning coffee while making the very short run to the fishing grounds. One of the benefits of fishing the west coast is that the seas are typically calm. This area of Costa Rica is said to be one of the top big game destinations and I was soon about to find out why. Once the lines and baits were set, it didn’t take long to get our first strike. A large Pacific sail came up and grabbed the live bonita and began to give us a fantastic aerial display, true to form. Fighting this fish on light tackle was an angling challenge, but worth the hurting it put on me. Once the mate got hold of the leader and brought the feisty sail to the side of the boat, I got a good look and was amazed at the array of colors on this beautiful fish.
After a quick release it wasn’t a long wait until the next bite. Singles, doubles, even a triple. Mix in a couple nice size dorado and we were having a great day. We were about to call it quits and enjoy an ice cold Imperial on the ride home when…. snap… there he was on the left long. A nice size blue marlin had crushed our bait. When the circle hook found the corners of his mouth he took off like a freight train. After what seemed like an eternity the captain had maneuvered the boat perfectly to gain line and we got what looked to be a 700 to 800 pound marlin to the side of the boat. After pictures and a lot of high fives it was time to head in. What an amazing finish to an amazing day on the water.
Once we arrived back at the dock, the mates cleaned and fileted our dolphin. We were then ready to take it to one of the restaurants located in Marina Village. It was definitely a good way to end the day. We watched the sunset over the Pacific while our fresh catch was prepared. If you ever tire of fishing there are a lot of diversions to keep you busy. For the adventurous, there’s nothing more exhilarating than zip-lining thru the rainforest or white water rafting in Costa Rica’s many rivers. It is easy to find a variety of adventure tours from horseback riding on the beach, to ATV tours, to whale watching. Costa Rica also has many national parks where you can see many species of wildlife and a variety of flora.
Getting to Los Sueños is easy. Simply fly to San Jose’s International Airport. After a quick one hour drive you’ll arrive at the beautiful Los Sueños Resort and Marina. The resort is located in Herradura Bay, Costa Rica, and encompasses a private 600 acre rainforest reserve, a 201- room, five-star Marriott Hotel, over 500 luxury residences which include single-family homes, condos and lavish villas. The marina has 200 wet slips, 100 dry slips, fuel dock and full time staff. For those who enjoy playing golf there is an 18-hole championship golf course as well. Who could ask for more!
Captain Glen Mumford has been a professional sportfishing captain for over 30 years. He started tournament fishing in the early 1980s, fishing eight-nine tournaments a year from Mexico and Florida to Ocean City Maryland. His homeport is Stuart, Florida, but he now calls Costa Rica, where he lives with his wife Cindy, home.
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