Jungle Tarpon

The Tarpon fishing is primarily done from straightforward but efficient river pangas with 2 anglers to any boat, one person fishing from the bow at anyone time. For the most part an 11 or 12 wt with a floating line is used however having a second rod ready to go with a combination of sink tips is also important. Anglers spend their time casting to rolling fish, sighted fish basking on the surface as well as blind casting to likely holes and ambush points. Along the mouths of tributary creeks it is possible to see feeding Tarpon lining up, devouring the conveyor belt of food washed down towards them! As with any Tarpon fishing accuracy in casting is important. Whilst the fishing is different in style to fishing on saltwater flats casting to a rolling fish and delivering your fly into the water disturbance accurately and quickly will proportionately raise your chances of a strike.

Anglers stay in a simple yet comfortable local family-owned cabinas with a fruit-tree covered lawn leading directly to a dock from which each day’s adventure begins. The local town is little more than a small ranching settlement in the middle of the nature reserve. There are however several diverse eating options to be sampled over the course of the week, and anglers will have no shortage of interesting local dishes and cold beverages to enjoy after their days stalking tarpon.

This is a jungle Tarpon experience and the climate is as one might expect!! The area is a vast system of rivers, creeks, lagoons, and lowland tropical rainforest, one of the warmest regions in Costa Rica. The tarpon migrate into these immense landlocked flooded lagoons during the region’s “wet season”, (although the area has no real wet or dry season) Most mornings start sunny and beautiful but passing storm fronts and torrential downpours are to be expected, especially later in the day. While these periods of wet weather can be uncomfortable, they are usually brief and even refreshing although it definitely pays to have a waterproof jacket.