That’s Fishin’ – February 2023
PELAGIC ROCKSTAR……WHAT A WEEKEND!
At time of going to press we had literally just reeled in the last lines for this year’s 2023 PELAGIC ROCKSTAR TOURNAMENT, which took place January 14-16. 95 boats with some of the world’s Top Teams and Crews descended on MARINA PEZ VELA to kick off our 2023 tournaments with A BANG! There is too much to mention right here but let’s just say more than US$1.3 MILLION in prize money was paid out and the fishing was nothing short of epic! 1048 Sailfish, 78 Blue Marlin, 3 Black Marlin, & 2 Striped Marlin were released over the two tournament days. 114 Dorado and 35 Tuna were brought to the scales and a huge crowd gathered to enjoy the weigh in and daily tournament festivities.
2023 PELAGIC ROCKSTAR CHAMPIONS BILLFISH DIVISION
1st TEAM GALATI/FISH TANK 42 Sailfish
2nd VAQUERO 33 Sailfish, 2 Blue Marlin
3rd GAME PLAN 32 Sailfish, 2 Blue Marlin
Heaviest Tuna 149lbs TEAM WINE TIME
Heaviest Dorado 48lbs TEAM PURA VIDA
Top Angler & Top Lady Angler Adriana Finkelstein
aboard MISS BEHAVIN
Top Junior Angler Jonah Smith aboard SOUTHERN PRIDE
Special mentions to Quepos teams, TEAM BUCHANEERS aboard GAUEX FLY & TEAM FULL NELSON who brought home the Daily wins in the non-sonar Billfish divisions with some great catches of Sailfish & Marlin.
OFFSHORE FISHING REPORT
Just wow!! The Offshore bite was electrifying for most of December and January, let’s hope it continues throughout February. December saw non-stop action from Dorado and Yellow Fin Tuna with some excellent Marlin fishing and a few Sailfish mixed in also. January brought in the Sailfish, there were still plenty of Dorado but expect Dorado numbers to reduce this month as water temperatures rise with our dry season now in full swing, which is very typical for this time of year. The Marlin fishing has been excellent and should remain so throughout February. The Big Tuna arrived and there have been some huge fish caught with several reports of fish landed in the 150-170lb category and some much larger fish lost. If you have never experienced it before, fishing alongside a mega pod of Central America Spinner Dolphins is a sight to be behold and one that could stay with you for life. Don’t take our word for it, be sure to book yourself on an Offshore charter and get out there and experience it for yourself. We are now in the midst of the best Sailfishing of the year, reports have come in of some boats releasing upwards of 20 Sailfish in a day when the bite is on and many boats have been catching 5-10 Sailfish a day plus Dorado, Tuna, and seeing Marlin on most trips also.
INSHORE FISHING
Roosterfish, Snook, Snappers, Jacks, Mackerel & more dominated the Inshore catches during January. The Snook fishing was literally world class with some fine Fishing taking place at local hotspots Parrita, Naranjo, Savegre, and Baru. Capt. Luis Carlos aboard MIRSE AZUL & Capt. Roy Zapata aboard SKY II enjoyed some excellent Snook fishing throughout the month. Capt. Ricardo aboard IDRA always does a fantastic job providing a great experience to his guests during his affordable half day inshore trips. IDRA was into the Snook action also, in addition to catching some big Roosterfish and even a couple of Marlin during January. Capt. Jeffrey aboard CHLOE FRIJOLE caught one of the biggest Snook of the year so far which I heard was in the 50lb range—what a fish! The world record Snook, just shy of 60lbs came from the Quepos area—will this be the year that the record falls again?
Aboard my boat GOOD DAY we caught some fine Roosterfish with Rick Collins from Texas & Bill Bona from Tennessee both catching 45lb Trophy Roosterfish. The Greene family from New Jersey caught 3 stunning Roosters, all of which were tagged & released for the 2023 ROOSTERFISH STUDY that we are running in conjunction with the MARINA PEZ VELA and GRAY FISHTAG RESEARCH from Florida. We are working hard to make sure 2023 is our best year yet for ROOSTERFISH RESEARCH and we plan to deploy a series of Satellite tags this year on Roosterfish to help us continue to understand migratory patterns.
The Inshore fishing should remain strong through April so now is an excellent time to get your family on the water to experience it for yourself.
TOURNAMENT DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Our 2023 tournament season is in full swing, we had a total blast during the Dorado Derby’s in November and the ever-awesome PELAGIC ROCKSTAR in January. Next up in February is the super fun ROOSTERFISH RODEO which has an ultra-low entry cost of $300 per team. TEAM GRAYFISHTAG RESEARCH aboard GOOD DAY will be looking to retain their crown from last year’s Rooster Rodeo. Then we have the amazing LADIES ONLY PESCADORA BILLFISH TOURNAMENT on Feb 17-18 which sets out not only to crown the world’s top female Anglers but also to inspire more ladies into the Sport of Fishing, and raise money for an amazing children’s charitable project at the same time.
If you would like to find out more about any of our Tournaments, simply get in touch with myself or the team at the Marina Pez Vela Guest Centre. Full details & upcoming schedule at marinapezvela.com/tournaments.
February 4 Roosterfish Rodeo
February 17-18 Pescadora Billfish Championship (Ladies Only)
March 4 Sailfish Slam
April 15 Marina Pez Vela Open
April 16-21 Offshore World Championships
July 1 Summer Solstice Shootout
November 11 Dorado Derby
November 18 Dorado Derby Dos
Tight lines! See you on the water!
Benn Gilmour
Jackpot Sport Fishing, Marina Pez Vela, Quepos