I have been fly fishing the waters of Costa Rica for over 10 years.  In that time, I have had opportunities to visit many areas of the country with fly rod in hand.  I get to speak to the locals and inquire on the fishing ("hay pez?").  The local fishermen are eager to share their knowledge of the local waters, and I in turn, can share with you; there are many exotic species in our country that beckon an adventurous spirit with a fly rod.

Fly fishing in Costa Rica is relatively unknown. There are no fly shops and no "Orvis authorized” anything. Don’t get me wrong, I am not the first to throw a fly out down here, but I have blazed some new trails. I have learned and fished with some of the best fly fishermen in the country, and in doing so, have learned much. From the northern waters of giant tarpon country to the mountain trout streams, Costa Rica offers a fly fishing experience unique to this part of the world.

We offer unique adventures into the northern most areas of Costa Rica to fish for giant tarpon, guapote, and machaca. The tarpon in the Rio Frio/Cano Negro drainage are known to grow over 100 kilos.  Cano Negro is part of a national park, and is a mini Florida Everglades.  It has been scientifically proven that close to 15% of these tarpon never return to the sea; an anomaly for tarpon. These giants hang out in the rivers and lagoons and grow large.  We will be fishing 10-12 wt. rods with 100lb shock tippet. We will be traveling by car or plane to the far north country of Costa Rica next to the Nicaraguan border on the Rio Frio River and Cano Negro lagoons located in the Cano Negro National Wildlife Refuge. There you will see much of Costa Rica's wildlife, including monkey’s, birds, and other critters. There we will be spending long days fishing for the magnificent tarpon. We can also travel to the Rio Dulce River for the machaca. This is a very adventurous trip as we will be staying in local hotels, eating local food and living the culture of the locals.

We also offer trout fishing. "Tico trout" (Tico being a colloquial term for a native Costa Ricans) are found high in the central mountains of the country, and offer an opportunity to catch trout in a unique and different atmosphere. The area we will fish is also the nesting area of the splendid quetzal, a rare colorful bird, sought after by birders the world over.  You will undoubtedly run into birders with binoculars, as you wade through the pristine trout stream waters of the Rio Savegre. Here we drop the 12 wt. clubs and fish 2 to 4wt lines. Small number 16 and 18 royal wulfs and mosquitos as well as nymphing patterns work well. The trout streams are just less than 3 hours from San Jose.

 Equipment to bring:

 Wide brim hats, good polarized sun glasses, shorts, rain gear, sun screen

 Tarpon fishing:

10-12 wt. rods with floating weight forward line, 80-100lb Tarpon leaders, streamers, closures.

Machaca fishing:

5-6wt. rod's weight forward lines, 9'by 1x leaders, 1 roll tyger wire (10lb test), Frog patterns, bass poppers (dark green colors) size 1/0.

Trout fishing:

2-5wt. rods, weight forward floating lines, dry flies, size 16-18 royal wulf.

The majority of the freshwater fishing is done in the Northern Highlands of Costa Rica, Lake Arenal, Cano Negro, Rio Colorado, the canals of Tortuguero, and the surrounding river systems.  The following is a list and description of the freshwater species found here:

MACHACHA: A silvery and quick fish, the machacha is primarily a vegetarian, but can also but caught on lures as well as small flies.  These fish are leapers, and can grow up to 20 pounds.  These fish are referred to as "little tarpon" because of their jumping abilities, and have been known to be caught on bananas.  Most of them are found in the river systems, but can also be found in Cano Negro as well as Arenal.  They are a bony fish, but offer very tastey meat.  These fish are hard fighters, and is one of the more exotic fish found in Costa Rica.

TROUT: A lot of trout fishing is available, especially fly fishing, in the rivers found throughout Costa Rica's highlands.  One of the the most prolific rivers to fish is the Rio Savegre, which is host to some great fly fishing.  Fish here can grow up to 4 pounds, with many caught in the 2-3 pound range.  Many locals have their own ponds where they farm raise their trout for consumption, mostly rainbows.  The trout originally brought to Costa Rica were descendants of rainbow and cutthroat trout, and they have survived and populated most of Costa Rica's rivers.

RAINBOW BASS/GUAPOTE: A member of the cichlid family, rainbows are found in Cano Negro, Fortuna, Lake Hule, as well as in some smaller streams and ponds.  These bass have a number of cousins here, many of which similar to the "crappie" back in the states.  The rainbow bass itself has bright yellow and orange colors.  These fish average 3 to 5 pounds, and have been caught up to 13 pounds in Arenal.

ALLIGATOR GAR: These gar are found primarily in Cano Negro all year round, as well as near Tortuguero.  You will most likely catch these gar, which are similar to northern pike, on crank baits or plugs, making sure you are using steel liders for their sharp teeth.  Many of these gar are around 100 pounds, with the biggest getting up to 350.  They are often found in brackish waters and can be very aggressive predators. 

TILAPIA: Tilapia were originally brought from Africa for farming purposes, and are now found throughout Arenal, Cano Negro, and many other parts of Costa Rica.  Also a member of the cichlid family, tilapia can be found in fresh or salt water.  Farm raised tilapia has become very popular world wide, and is the 3rd most common farm raised fish in the world because of its quick growth rate and consistent meat.  Similar to perch, the world record tilapia is around 8 pounds and will hit both surface lures and deep divers and jigs.

Tarpon information can be found in the salt water section.  Other fish found throughout Costa Rica include bobo (a type of mullet) , roncador (a type of drum), along with 50+ species of chiclids.