Tag Archives: blue marlin

Marlin, The Big Catch on Toau Passage

We like to fish while under passage.  On the 140nm passage from Tikehau to Toau we estimated it to take us 25-26 hours at an average speed of 5kts with 12kts of wind from the North of East.  Of course, that is if we didn’t spend a bunch of hours trying to catch a huge blue marlin

We decided to leave Tikehau between 0900-1000 so we would not arrive in the dark.  Everything started out as planned, we raised the main to full sail and had a reefed jib as we exited the pass.  Within the first hour we were hit with strong winds (20-25kt) from a squall.  Matt took a reef in the main thinking we could shake it out after the winds died down and after we made our left turn around the atoll.

Weather routing gave a direct path (as the image indicates below) but they did not take into account that we would be sailing over other islands.  So, we went around Tikehau and avoided Rangiroa and Kaukura.

Route to Toau

Route to Toau

It was a fantastic sail with 12-15kts of wind from the North, North East pushing us along at 8-9kts.  That is wicked fast for us when you consider we usually cruise at 5-6kts.  We figured it would not last and decided to enjoy it while we had it. 

The BIG catch

Matt had all three lines out and a teaser.  I did not think we could catch anything because we were going too fast.  However, around 1415 Matt noticed our teaser bungy bounce and pulled it in to find our lure missing.  Not a minute later the line next to it went “ZING!” We both looked up and saw a marlin dancing on the water.  And then off it went, unspooling thousands of feet of line and filament. And going, and going, and going. 

Since we were under sail, we had to depower the boat and bring in the other 2 lines before we could work on bringing the marlin in.  We reefed the jib and headed away from the wind slowing us down to 5/6 kts.  Matt started the slow process of reeling the beast in as I tried to slow us down even further without flogging the main or making an accidental jibe.  The pressure on the pole was constant between the power of the marlin and the forward motion of the boat making it challenging to reel the fish in.

Matt fighting with the Marlin

Matt fighting with the Marlin

He was a fighter!  Of course, I can’t blame him.  I must admit I felt horrible bringing him in and watching him suffer (what a bleeding heart).  But we will use all of his meat to feed the locals and other cruisers.  He will not go to waste and will not be a trophy hunt.

The Big Blue Marlin

The Big Blue Marlin

Once we got the fish close enough, we attempted to gaff him to help pull him onboard.  The trick is to get him close enough to use the gaff, but far enough away where his nose doesn’t put a hole in our boat.

Trying to gaf the marlin

Trying to gaf the marlin

It wasn’t pretty as the gaff kept coming out.  We had to stick him several times before we were able to finally bring him onboard.

The Big Catch

Marlin: The Big Catch

The Marlin

He is about 2.5 meters in length (7.5’) and 70-75 kilos (155-160lbs).  His nose came across our deck and his tail is off the last sugar scoop.  Who is tougher?

A picture of a full reel (top) and the unspooled reel (bottom)

We ended up filling (6) 5x large ziplock bags. I think each bag is 5gal.  Lucky for us the engle was empty so we had a place to put him.  We filled it up and still had to put two bags in the fridge!

Bagged and ready to go

Marlin bagged and ready to go

Are we sailing?

After several hours of going off course at 1.2-5kts we finally went back on track.  We headed back on course, reset the sails and we were off again at 8-9kts in 12-15kts of wind.  Sweet!  It took Matt another 1.5 hours to cut and clean the fish while I got us underway.

We finished up with the fish just as the sun was setting and as the SSB net was starting.  What great timing.  We both were too tired to make dinner, so we prepared the boat for the evening sail and set into our passage.

It was a totally smooth and fast sail.  We ended up depowering the sails again as we were scheduled to arrive at 0300-0330 in the morning (dark).  At dawn, we turned the motors on and made our way to the false pass of Toau.

Toau

Toau is known for its absolute beauty, remoteness, snorkeling, and serenity.  It is unique in that it has one pass that leads into the lagoon and one false pass.  The image below shows us (red arrow) at the false pass and it shows the regular pass on the right with the range markers and channel.

Tao

Toau

You may ask, “what is a false pass?”  A regular pass will allow yachts to enter into the atoll into the lagoon inside.  A false pass can either be from the inside of the lagoon to the outer reef or from the pacific to the inside reef.  The false pass at Toau allows yachts to enter from the Pacific to the inner reef (but does not allow us to go inside the lagoon).

Toau False Pass

Toau False Pass

We picked up a mooring ball provided by Gaston and Valentine (locals who also run a restaurant), took a quick nap and began our explorations.

Trip Details

  • Miles to Destination Total: 140nm
  • Total Miles Sailed: 142nm
  • Hours Sailed: 20:18
  • Moving Average: 7.1kt
  • Max Speed: 11.7kt

Events from this blog post occurred around the 3rd week of November, 2020.  Our blog posts run 8 weeks behind our adventures.

Blue Marlin Caught FAD Fishing

Yacht Delivery and FAD Fishing

Our friend Patrick, is the Captain of a beautiful 64′ fishing yacht.  He invited us on a short delivery from Quepos to Golfito for a little FAD fishing.  We met him at Manuel Antonio Estates and had the pleasure of hanging out with him while he was doing repairs on his boat.

64' Fishing Boat Delivery

64′ Fishing Boat Delivery

This trip would take Sugar Shack 2 full days to make, whereas Patrick’s boat would only take 3-4 hours.  But why rush when you can swing by the FADs?

FAD FISHING:

FAD stands for Fish Aggregating Device. They are man-made objects used to attract ocean going fish such as marlin, tuna and mahi-mahi (dolphin fish). They usually consist of buoys or floats tethered to the ocean floor with concrete blocks.

HOW FADS WORK:

FADs come in different sizes, and they will be strategically placed in various depths and spots in the ocean. Large predators, including Marlin, will congregate here due to the fact that small bait fish are naturally attracted to these structures. Thus, the larger fish come here to feed.

There is a lot of controversy around FAD fishing just as there is around hunting blinds.  I do not know enough to speak for or against FADs, so I will just tell you that people come from all over the world to do FAD fishing in Costa Rica.  Most charter boats are sport fisherman that do catch and release programs.

THE BOAT AND CREW:

Patrick the Captain; Tony the first mate, and Eliza the second mate joined us on this adventure.  As we are leaving the marina, at just above idle, moving 8 knots we realize his “idle speed” is close to our regular max speed 🙂  Love it.

Just outside the marina, Patrick showed us the benefits of a SeaKeeper.  A SeaKeeper is installed to minimize the movement of the boat.  Works particularly effective on monohulls and fishing boats as it keeps them from rocking side to side.  SeaKeeper video.  I am a huge fan – best 1/4 of a million dollars you could spend!

The crew rigged the boat and prepared the bait the day before.  I have never been on a sport fishing yacht and it was super cool and very fancy.  A really great experience for Matt and I.

Boat Rigged for Fishin

Boat Rigged for Fishin

Of course, this boat is beyond stocked.  They put out the outriggers with huge teasers and readied the poles with bait.  Below, you will see two black poles standing by for a nibble.  The bait is in the cylinders below the poles.  They wait to see the teaser move, then pull in the teaser as they toss out the bait on the poles.  An expert maneuver of bait and switch.  Its all about timing between the captain, first mate, and fisherman.

Outrigger and Fishing Gear

Outrigger and Fishing Gear

Once the throttle went down, we saw a max speed of 40.2 knots which burned 100 gallons per hour, per engine (2 engines).  The “cruising” speed was 32 knots at 1900 rpm and 70 gph.  And it all felt effortless.  A completely thrilling experience.

Dolphin Sighting

Dolphin Sighting

MAHI MAHI:

As we were headed out to the FADs, we passed by a huge fallen tree floating in the water.  Matt and I would normally tack to avoid such a collision, but Patrick actually headed toward it. Imagine my confusion.

Yellow Footed Boobies on a Floating Tree

Yellow Footed Boobies on a Floating Tree

Of course, he has a lot more horse power and could maneuver the boat a lot easier than our sailboat.  There were some yellow footed boobies hanging around the tree, taking a break from flying over the Pacific Ocean.  As we neared the trees, the crew tossed out a couple of lines and within a few minutes, we heard our first zing!  A beautiful Mahi-Mahi took the bait and jumped in one of the 4 freezers on deck.

Mahi Mahi Dinner

Mahi Mahi Dinner

BLUE MARLIN CATCH & RELEASE:

Hammer down, we made it 100 miles offshore to one of the FADs in just a few hours.  Matt was first in the “chair” and reeled in a beautiful blue Marlin.  We caught one on Sugar Shack – the same day we caught a sail fish.  But that experience was a lot more difficult than this one as we could not slow down our sail boat to reel in the fish like we did on Patrick’s boat.

Eliza reeled in the 2nd one which jumped on the line within 15 minutes of releasing the first one.  I was nervous about reeling in one as my arms are super weak.  Frankly, after “the cancer” I never went back to working out and the arms just never recovered.  But, Patrick was relentless and convinced me to hop in the chair.

After great instructions and a lot of help from the Captain, I was able to reel in my first blue marlin!  Word was he weighed about 350-400lbs.  Pretty freakin awesome!  Could not have happened without Patrick’s excellent boating skills, he continually reversed to help me reel in this beast.

Blue Marlin Catch and Release

Blue Marlin Catch and Releas

After catching the Mahi and 3 Blue Marlin, we decided to head to Golfito.  We released all of the marlin by the way.  Hammer down, a few hours later, we arrive at Fish Hook where Patrick effortlessly backs in this 64′ beauty into a slip – 1st try, no shouting, no problems, no worries.  Impressive!  That’s why he’s a paid captain of a multi-million dollar sport fishing yacht – as he says “its what I do.”

We enjoyed lots of fish for dinner, met a new friend Sheddy from Chuffed and celebrated our successful day.

The next day was a little “rough” for everyone, but Tony, Matt and I managed to hop in a taxi to Rio Claro to catch a 4-hour bus back to Quepos.

The Celebration and Bus Ride Home

The Celebration and Bus Ride Home

AMAZING DAY:

Patrick worked closely with the boat owners to design and create this beautiful boat.  It is truly a master piece.  Not only is it beautiful, but it makes incredible use of every nook and cranny.  Extremely efficient, useful, and elegant.  It was a special treat to be among such luxury.

We are truly blessed to have met such wonderful people!  It was a once in a lifetime experience and we will always be grateful to Patrick for this adventure!