Lizard fish and black marlin
The snook have not been very kind to me recently. I saw a couple two days ago, taunting me. One was a little guy, just a couple of pounds, munching on shrimp in the surf, he was big enough to eat the rapala I was throwing. The other snook, crashing sardines, was the one I wanted. No bites.....other than a lizardfish. I didn't know that lizardfish existed in Costa Rica, surpised I didn't catch any pinfish.
On Monday Lucky Larry, Joe and Joey came into town and I road along with them. They've been fishing with us down here for many years and had been warned that things were a little slower than normal. Although we did have a double digit day of sailfish releases this week, these guys have come to expect a dozen sails/day as the norm.
The evening before the trip, Joey had been whining about never catching a black marlin and was considering heading to Panama or Australia in the next year to check that off his list. The morning started with a couple of quick dolphin and a sail, then a dry spell, another dolphin and another sail. After catching the second sail, at about 1 o'clock, we picked up and rain to a nearby school of tuna/spinner dolphins.
On the way to the tunas, we saw a couple of free jumping sailfish and something else that made a huge splash. Things worked out just right with the tuna, catching a couple on poppers and spinning rods and 3 on cedar plugs. With PLENTY of meat in the box, we're back on the troll to the free jumpers.
Just as Berto gets the fish cleaned up and the sushi iced down, the right long pops and Chela drops back and hooks a fish, handing the rod to Joey, it was his turn.
The fish never jumps, we get everything clear and get on top of him. Joey starts putting the heat to him, forcing the fish to make a move and that move was up. With the leader in the rod tip, the 400 pound black marlin skies airward. Fifteen minutes later, we've got him on the leader again for a really good look.
Congrats Joey, so should I cancel that Panama trip?
On Monday Lucky Larry, Joe and Joey came into town and I road along with them. They've been fishing with us down here for many years and had been warned that things were a little slower than normal. Although we did have a double digit day of sailfish releases this week, these guys have come to expect a dozen sails/day as the norm.
The evening before the trip, Joey had been whining about never catching a black marlin and was considering heading to Panama or Australia in the next year to check that off his list. The morning started with a couple of quick dolphin and a sail, then a dry spell, another dolphin and another sail. After catching the second sail, at about 1 o'clock, we picked up and rain to a nearby school of tuna/spinner dolphins.
On the way to the tunas, we saw a couple of free jumping sailfish and something else that made a huge splash. Things worked out just right with the tuna, catching a couple on poppers and spinning rods and 3 on cedar plugs. With PLENTY of meat in the box, we're back on the troll to the free jumpers.
Just as Berto gets the fish cleaned up and the sushi iced down, the right long pops and Chela drops back and hooks a fish, handing the rod to Joey, it was his turn.
The fish never jumps, we get everything clear and get on top of him. Joey starts putting the heat to him, forcing the fish to make a move and that move was up. With the leader in the rod tip, the 400 pound black marlin skies airward. Fifteen minutes later, we've got him on the leader again for a really good look.
Congrats Joey, so should I cancel that Panama trip?
posted by Capt. George Beckwith at
6:42 AM
