PPS Destinations Report 

 Manzanillo, Costa Rica

Date:         September 2008

 Reported by Dr. Brian Griffith, New Jersey, USA

   “Tarpon will always find the weakest point of your tackle and exploit it fully.”  This was the warning that Mark Cowan gave me over the phone last winter when I booked a trip to southeast Costa Rica for this September.  I thought he might be gilding the lily a bit but it proved prophetic.

  My fishing partner was Pete Esposito (making this the Atlantic division of PPS) and we were joined by our wives, Tracy and Maureen.  We all met at the airport in San Jose and spent the night in a local B&B that was quite nice.  The next morning we left early for a 4 ½ hour ride to Manzanillo.  Manzanillo is quite literally at the end of the road on Costa Rica’s eastern coast.  We actually had to walk the last few hundred yards and cross a tidal stream to get to the Dolphin Lodge.

  The lodge is certainly nothing fancy but it was as clean as you can get expect in the middle of a rain forest.  The staff was friendly and the food was excellent local fare.  There was no air conditioning but there were fans in the rooms, which combined with being 100 yards from the ocean, made it quite pleasant.  The Espositos and us shared a house that sat forty feet above the ground and it felt like living in a tree-house. 

  After settling in to our rooms, Pete and I tried a few casts on the reef in front of the lodge without success.  The beach in front of the lodge was lovely.  Outside Magazine has called this beach one of the five most beautiful deserted beaches in the world and they were not exaggerating.  The reef is filled with an astounding variety of fish and coral and the water is quite clear making for spectacular snorkelling.

  The fishing day would begin with waking around 5 am to the howler monkeys roaring right behind the lodge.  They were as regular as an alarm clock and no one ever missed breakfast.  Because we were so close to the equator, the sun came up at 5:30 and set at 5:30 as it does all year.  It doesn’t sound very relaxing to wake up at that time but your internal clock resets to it quickly.  The boats (27 foot pangas) would pick us up on the beach around 6.  The 20-30 minute ride to the fishing grounds was incredible.  The coast is a mix of sandy beaches and rocky cliffs, and from the ocean, you can clearly see Chirripo, the highest mountain in Costa Rica.  The area we fished was where the Sixaola River emptied into the ocean.  This river forms the border with Panama and drains a large mountainous watershed.  It frequently runs muddy and as it empties into the sea it forms a halocline in which the fresh water floats on top of the saltwater.  The whole area appears murky but pushing the top few inches of brownish green water aside reveals clear ocean water.  This is the environment the tarpon love.  While we did cast to rolling fish most of the fishing was blind casting and stripping while drifting with the wind, river current, and tides.

  We used 12 weight rods with intermediate lines, 20 pound class tippet with 100 pound shock tippet.  The flies were all 4/0.  The boats were not exactly fly fishing friendly but did not have too many impediments to casting.  As you can see from the photo of Pete there were times the fishing was quite relaxing.  This was fortunate since casting a 12 weight in 85 degree heat can be exhausting.

  There were quite a few green (bar) jacks as well as a good number of jack crevalles.  The green jacks were small (1-2 pounds) but the jack crevalles got up to 18 pounds and were amazingly strong.  Other assorted species seen or caught were bull shark, sand shark, mackerel, catfish, barracuda, and schnicks - a barracuda like fish about 14 to 18 inches. Pete was the 'king of species catching' as he caught 8 different species that week.  These all provided some action but we all came for tarpon and were not disappointed.

  The first morning out, we literally saw hundreds of tarpon rolling and jumping.  Pete jumped a couple the first day only to find that tarpon gill plates are quite effective at cutting 100 pound shock tippets as cleanly as scissors.  I jumped one, had it break off my backing, and take my fly line.  As I said they are effective at finding a weak spot.

  We returned to the lodge for a wonderful meal and to repair equipment.  Then it was back out to fishing around 2.  The afternoon proved more successful for me as I landed my first tarpon.  Upon feeling the strike, I strip-set and hung on to what I initially thought was a big jack.  There was no jump, just a long fast run. After 10-15 minutes it finally broke the surface and it was clearly a tarpon.  It took almost 1 ¼ hours to land the 75 pound fish which left me exhausted.  The reason for the long fight on a medium sized fish was because it was foul hooked in the dorsal fin.  We have all foul hooked a trout and seen how difficult it is to land.  Try it on a 75 pound tarpon!

  Returning home about 6 pm we would wash and clean gear then sit down for a cocktail and some snacks while recounting the days fishing.  Our wives would tell us of their activities (walking, reading, snorkelling) and we would listen to the cooks prepare dinner while chattering in patois.  The evening meal was always good.  Rice and black beans are a Costa Rican staple and were accompanied by pork, chicken, or fish in the most delectable sauces.  One evening we even had freshly-caught spiny lobster.  I am pretty sure no one lost weight during the week.  We all retired around 8:30 and the pattern repeated itself daily.

  Over the course of the week we only had one day where no tarpon were jumped.  One of the highlights of the week was on the second morning where we came upon tarpon crashing bait as we approached the fishing area.  Within 2 to 3 casts, 3 out of 4 were hooked up (I was the odd man out) and 1 ½ hours later Pete had a 120+ pound tarpon next to the boat.  It kept circling the boat and although we actually touched the fish and the leader several times it finally ran the 20 pound tippet under the boat and broke off leaving Pete soaked in sweat and holding an empty line.  Pete would eventually land a 95-100 pound on the next to last day but for the first few days he was trying hard to proves Mark’s original comment.  During the week, between the four of us, we broke one rod, lost two fly lines, cut a half dozen shock tippets, broke several class tippets, and had several dozen flies shaken loose by jumping tarpon.  We landed 12 of 47 tarpon hooked.  I landed 2 (75 and 80 pounds) of 10 which Mark claims is the average.

  The great advantage of fishing here is that you actually hook up fairly often and it’s only through experience that you can land these fish.  They are amazingly powerful fish and it’s pretty awe inspiring to see a 100 pound fish leap 6-8 feet in the air.  You rarely see the take and so you are not tempted to set the hook too early.  The biggest problem is that after one fish, you are pretty much done for that morning or afternoon.  The first 30 minutes might be fun but after that, fighting these fish is just hard work.

  For the non-fisherman' the beaches are wonderful and the snorkelling is amazing.  Kayaking is also available.  The wildlife surrounds you as we often saw dolphins, monkeys, lizards, huge spiders, and even a sloth.  Both Tracy and Maureen enjoyed their stay although they did scope out a more luxurious hotel 1-2 miles up the beach.  Overall I would rate this one of the better tropical destinations I have fished.  The fishing could be a little tedious if the tarpon were not active but when they were on the feed, every strip felt like it could be the one.  For more information feel free to contact Mark Cowan at cowan@taosnet.com or me at traydog@enter.net.

Following are some thumbnails of trip photos.  Please click on them and then return to this page by hitting the ' back ' button on your browser.