Author: Jerry Ruhlow.
Publication: Costa Rica Outdoors Magazine

Darren McClave was waiting at the Puerto Jimenez airstrip the morning of July 25 when Joe Werner and I arrived for a couple of days fishing at Parrot Bay Village, the newest fishing operation on the Osa peninsula.   Darren and his wife Katie manage the lodge, which opened just over a year ago.   From New Jersey, he holds a captain's license for vessels up to 500 tons and previously operated a research vessel along the eastern seaboard of the U.S.   He lived in Costa Rica from 1991 to 1995, operating a panga out of northern Guanacaste.

Puerto Jimenez has grown tremendously since my last visit many years ago, and is now a small thriving community with stores, markets, cantinas and even a gas station.    We spent the day touring the area with Darren, visiting other lodges in the area, watching surfers work a point break off Matapalo and saw a bit of Corcovado National Park.   It is the largest in Costa Rica's world famous National Park System, and said to be home to the largest number of endangered species in all of Central America.

Parrots, macaws, toucans and other exotic birds abound, and there are three species of monkeys, sloth, crocodiles and many other critters.   There have been sightings of the rare jaguar, and smaller members of the cat family are frequently seen within a few yards of the lodges.   If there is a more beautiful spot on this earth, I haven't been there yet.

Todd Staley, an old friend who used to manage the Rio Colorado Lodge and other fishing operations here, is now in charge of fishing at Crocodile Bay, just down the road from Parrot Bay.   He showed us around the elegant facility, complete with an immense butterfly garden, swimming pool and the amenities of a 5-star resort.

But we came to fish, and we were at the pier right after breakfast the next morning where skipper Oliver Martinez and mate Luis Enrique Santamaria had the 30-foot center consoles rigged and ready.

The twin 115 h.p., four-stroke Suzukis pushed us at a brisk pace, but it was still a 90 minute run outside before we found blue water and the crew put out the teasers.   They were still working the flat lines when a marlin came in on the right rigger.   Joe dropped back immediately with live sardineta as the crew cranked in the teasers and was rewarded with an immediate strike!   A blue marlin that would have gone well over 300 pounds came out of the water, made a short run, then jumped once again before he threw the hook and I could get my camera pointed in the right direction.

No more marlin, but the sailfish cooperated and we went seven releases for nine in the air before we headed back.

Wind was blowing the next day and we couldn't raise a fish outside, so we went back to work the reefs inshore and did well on roosterfish and snapper, a small shark and others.

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