THE weather finally improved along the Pacific coast after a few weeks of heavy rain and nasty weather, with boat operators at Flamingo, in the north, and Quepos, on the central coast, reporting sunshine and flat seas Monday, but very few boats out. No word from operators on the southern Pacific coast. Jeanette Pérez at J.P. Sportfishing in Quepos reports no more than two or three boats on the water in that area over the weekend. They were raising tuna and dorado but no billfish, she said.Blue skies, warm weather and occasional showers have not spoiled fishing on the Caribbean side of the country, where the Río Colorado Lodge reports spurts of explosive action.“The fish always feed like crazy when a hurricane passes and the barometer swings more than normal,” lodge owner Dan Wise said.He added that Steve Love from Nuevo Arenal, in north-central Costa Rica, boated a 25-pound tripletail, a few jacks and released several tarpon, while New Jersey fisherman Joe Tedesco jumped 12 tarpon Sunday, with four to the boat for release.Paul Whorton and Lester Wallace from Chicago found tarpon action good enough to extend their trip an extra day, and a lot of mojarra (sea bream) are being caught in the back lagoon, hitting top-water lures.We can look for the annual run of calba (fat snook) to get under way any day in that area, as the river level continues to rise from the heavy rains in the high country. The calba run traditionally peaks in October and November, but they still haven’t made a major appearance as this is written.TICO Times subscriber Bill Culbertson wrote to ask if the new lodge on the Sierpe River, on the Osa Peninsula in southwestern Costa Rica, is open as reported in this column some months ago, and how to contact them. The contact there is William Gray, phone 735-5002, email info@manglares.com.I still haven’t been there but have been waiting to hear more about it. I also heard from Tim Jansing of Louisville, Kentucky, who asked about last week’s column reporting marlin records taken on the Spirit of Pilar on two-, four and six-pound test line.“A black marlin on two-pound test line? How is that possible?” he wrote.I can appreciate Jansing’s awe, so I double- checked the information in the authoritative International Game Fish Association’s 2005 Record Book and confirmed that the record for black marlin on two-pound test was caught by Enrico Capozzi in Australian waters Feb. 3, 2002, weighing in at 159 pounds, 3 ounces. In March of the same year, he established the four-pound line test record with a 152 pound, 1 ounce goliath, and the six-pound line test world record with a 735-pound black marlin, all caught off Port Stephens, Australia.I can’t blame Jansing for being skeptical as that is a pretty formidable undertaking, and can only be accomplished by a very skilled angler, using top-quality tackle and a big International or similar reel packed with a lot of line.A lot of credit must also go to the boat skipper, who would have to maneuver very skillfully on the fish and move the boat to keep pace with it when it decides to run, jump or go deep. I note in the record book that Capozzi also holds the six-pound line test record for striped marlin, a fish weighing 169 pounds, 8 ounces, caught in Guanacaste April 4, 2001.If Mr. Capozzi should see this, I would appreciate more details on the battles with these big fish, as to how long they were on and how much territory was traveled during the fights, and I would be honored to meet him personally and see his boat when next in Costa Rica.For more info on fishing or assistance in planning a trip to Costa Rica, contact Jerry at jruhlow@costaricaoutdoors.com or visit www.costaricaoutdoors.com.
