Frenzy Sportfishing

Shades of Gray - Montocchio Video Released

2011-06-18T11:00:00.005-06:00

It is with great excitement that Frenzy Sportfishing announces that Marc Montocchio has released the video of his photoshoot "Shades of Gray." Back in April Frenzy Sportfishing hosted renowned underwater photographer Marc Montocchio and cutting edge filmmaker Luke Pearson for a week of shooting sailfish teased up behind the FRENZY. Some stunning images and video were the result of our team's efforts.

Shades of Gray is a stunning portrayal of sailfish behavior as they are teased into casting range right behind the transom of the boat. The video can also be seen on Frenzy's website at this LINK.

Come join us for some spectacular summertime fishing for huge yellowfin tuna and some really whopper dolphin!

Come on down and join us in July!

Find us on Facebook!

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie Walker

Pink prevails!

2011-04-14T20:50:00.000-06:00

Once again the Frenzy pink fly does it's trick on the Quepos sails. You can't imagine how many fish we saw today. I was frustrated early with the weak bite I was getting. My typical MO is to start with the blue fly and use it until 10:30 AM at which time I switch to this pink fly. When I couldn't get a bite on the blue fly I went and pulled out our tournament bag and started looking at my options. As usual I went with the pink streamer and rigged it with a pair of 7/0 hooks. The next fish came in quickly, Marc and Luke jumped in and timed it perfectly as the fish gave me a tremendous right to left bite. I jammed the 7/0's in hard. The sail headed for the horizon as we picked up the guys. After some fabulous jumps at the boat, all caught on film, we released the sail at boatside. There was much more action to the afternoon. Read about it on Marc Montocchio's blog when it's posted at www.occhioinc.com/blog

The Occhio Frenzy continues...

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Picking up the pieces...

2011-04-13T21:40:00.000-06:00

Marc Montocchio examines a piece of flotsam we picked up this afternoon on the way back to Quepos. There was a bunch of plastic floating on a "trash line". Think about this the next time you buy a bottle of water.

The Occhio Frenzy continues...

Jamie

www.frenzysportfishing.com

Day 3 of the Occhio Frenzy

2011-04-13T06:29:00.001-06:00

What a day!!! We raised a few, jumped in the water on some, but nothing panned out on the sails today. However in typical Frenzy Sportfishing fashion the day provided some treasure in the form of a huge log floating about 25 miles offshore of Quepos. We jumped in and filmed the remarkable array of life swimming around the log. There must have been hundreds of fish of all descriptions calling the log home. We even saw dorado (mahi) down about 25 feet. There were yellow fin tuna down about 50 feet. Simply spectacular! Watch the video for a mere sense of the frenzy that was available to us.

See it on You Tube at www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ7_YUVG7YY

The Occhio Frenzy continues...
www.frenzysportfishing.com
www.occhioinc.com/index.html

Jamie Walker

Occhio Adventure - Day 2 on the water

2011-04-11T21:11:00.000-06:00


Marc coming out of the water after getting the shot!

We left the marina this morning with high hopes. But I'll have to admit that I was more than a little concerned about the morning cloud cover we had. We blew past the Furuno as I watched 5 boats sitting on top of one of my favorite fishing holes. We ate pizza while waiting on the sails to show. Marco and I discussed knots, crimps, hooks, you name it. Suddenly a sail came crashing in on the long teaser and the guys quickly got their gear on and jumped in as the boat came to a stop. Fortunately the sail cooperated and Marc and Luke were able to spend 5 minutes in the water with this fish. Marco and Mako threw teasers and live bait at the sail as he went back and forth from teaser to livie, at times crushing the livie and going back to the teasers. What a fabulous opportunity we were presented today. Check Marc's shots at www.occhioinc.com/blog

Follow us this week as we continue to pursue what has never been done before. www.occhioinc.com/blog

And when you have a chance ask me about the marlin that would have gobbled up a fly today. The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

www.occhioinc.com/blog

www.frenzysportfishing.com

Bills and Pixels - Day 1 on the water

2011-04-10T17:55:00.001-06:00

Day 1 of the Occhio adventure found us about 30 miles offshore in the typical flat calm Pacific Ocean off Quepos. We started the day with a meeting in the cockpit discussing our tactics for teasing sails in close enough for Marc to get the shot he wants while Luke shoots video of the whole process. The first two fish we raised didn't show enough interest to warrant the guys jumping in but they gave us a chance to work on our timing. The next fish showed up right where I like them to appear, on the short right teaser. After chomping on that one he switched to the left teaser as Marc and Luke jumped in. The sail did a few turns all lit up but not close enough for good shots. We retrieved the guys and threw out the teasers again.

We ended up raising a few more, getting our timing down and getting Marc and Luke in the water. While we didn't get the shot that Marc is looking for we felt like our day was a success. We just need a bit more cooperation from the fish!

Upon our arrival in Quepos we were greeted by an afternoon rain shower. This gave Marc a chance to jump in the pool, rinse his cameras off and see if there were any sails in the pool.

We're back at it tomorrow as the Occhio Frenzy continues...

Jamie Walker

www.occhioinc.com/blog
www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Bills and Pixels - Arrival Day

2011-04-10T06:48:00.000-06:00

And Jose thinks I bring a lot of camera gear on the FRENZY!

Jenny and I have arrived at Casa Carolina with Marc Montocchio and Luke Pearson for a week of photographing free swimming sailfish as they attack a fly. Our plan is to tease them up as usual for flyfishing then Marc and Luke will jump in the water to film and photograph the sailfish as we pull the fly over Marc's head. With luck Marc won't get speared by a lit up sailfish as it comes barreling past him chasing the fly.

Follow us all week long as we attempt to do what has never been done with sailfish. Marc's blog link is www.occhioinc.com/blog

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie Walker

www.frenzysportfishing.com

Club Limited – Frenzy Sportfishing Trip is in the books!

2011-03-22T18:24:00.000-06:00

After the fine fishing we have had this past week it was appropriate to have a celebratory dinner at Casa Carolina. But first I had to get in the pool and enjoy a wee dram of Scotch! The slight heat of the pool washed away the long day. Lance jumped in and we toasted the remains of the day. It might have been more than a wee dram of Scotch we had, not sure. The evening’s feast began with crab dip appetizers that Willy purchased from our friend Marsha at El Gran Escape restaurant. That crab dip with a few jalapenos has always been a favorite of mine. For our main course Saul grilled to perfection some lobsters that Willy had rounded up. A generous helping of Malbec encouraged the sharing of stories and laughter about the various funny events that have happened during the week. With an early start in the morning we all turned in at a reasonable hour. Too much packing to do with all the gear we fly fishermen lug around.

I really enjoyed meeting these guys, catching some fish on fly with them and sharing stories and laughter around the dinner table. I am very appreciative to Lee for putting this together. Muchas gracias and buen trabajo mi amigo!

Join us in Quepos as the Frenzy continues…

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Day 3 of the Club Limited Trip

2011-03-20T16:53:00.000-06:00

A sail trails the fly line as he leaps away.

Sorry for the delay in posting this but here goes... On the heals of a day which saw the FRENZY release 28 and the FRENZY II release 16 on conventional, our day began with a substantial amount of discussion about which boat would release the most sails on fly. I was back on the 43 and felt pretty confident about our chances, except that I was planning on catching one on 4kg tippet. That’s 8.8 lbs and reasonably light for 100 lb fish. Nonetheless, I had Ber and Lance with me and I knew that those guys could fish. Heck I’ve seen Lance catch one while smoking a cigar. But I have learned through many years of fishing the GIFT Tournament not to bet against Rafa and Lee. Therefore I remained pretty quiet during the van ride to the marina.

After about an hour ride on a perfectly flat ocean, typical for Costa Rica this time of year, we set the teasers out and waited for the first fish to show. Pretty soon we found a current line with a lot of plastic trash in it and a humongous amount of bait. There were all kinds of little bait fish swimming around under the trash and pieces of wood. I would have jumped in and shot some video and photos but it was the one day that I left my underwater cameras at home. We even had a small shark try to eat one of the teasers. Cute little fellow.

Oddly enough we didn’t raise a sailfish amongst all that bait so we headed a few miles offshore. Lance was first up and whipped one in short order. Someone rang the beer bell and Lance had his first Imperial of the day. Next up was Ber who had a fish come screaming in only to have it bill the fly and come unhooked after a short run. That put me up and after a few minutes I cast my fly with the 4kg tippet to a sailfish only to have him do the same thing as Ber’s. Bummer.

So Lance was at it again with his cigar and landed another one without putting his stogie down. Very stylish Lance! Then Ber had another shot at one and this time really got a good hookset. Despite the leaping and reel blistering run of Ber’s fish Ber had him caught in about 7 minutes. Pretty work Ber!

Ber holds his fish at boatside while Mako prepares to grab the leader.

We were on a pretty good bite so it didn’t take long for me to get another crack at one on 4kg tippet. This time I got a good hookset in the sail’s mouth and the game was on! I wasn’t sure how much pressure I could put on the fish so I backed the drag way down to maybe a pound. Captain Jose did his usual fabulous job of handling the boat and within a few minutes I had the sail at boat side. I have caught hundreds of billfish on a fly rod but this was my first one on 4kg tippet. Rather than having one of my mates bill the sailfish to pull the fly out I let it run back out about 30 or 40 yards so I could see how much pressure I could put on that light tippet. I cranked down on the drag and put as much low side pressure on the fish as I could. Frankly I was amazed at how much pressure I could put on 4kg tippet. Now on to 2 kg tippet…

Mako shows off a sail for my camera!

As the hour was drawing towards our 4 o’clock quitting time we had a double header come screaming in. Lance made a perfect cast and quickly hooked his fish. I grabbed the other flyrod and promptly hooked the other. Now we had two leaping sailfish on the hook and thankfully they were headed in opposite directions. We were within a couple of hundred yards of the FRENZY II which also had a fish on. I had to cast a smile towards Lee on the FRENZY II as Lance caught his fish and mine was close at hand. Jose really knows how to handle the FRENZY in virtually any situation. I caught my fish a few moments later and with high fives all around we spooled up the turbos and headed back to Quepos, another fine day of fly fishing behind us.

There are a huge pile of fish here now so come join us as the Frenzy continues…

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

A note from Dan Ross

2011-03-20T05:48:00.000-06:00

Dan Ross is the owner of Dan Ross Sportfishing. He is kind enough to send us clients from time to time and recently sent me this via e-mail:

"Hello Jamie, I am off and running this morning, but wanted to take the time to send this quick note to you. Myself and my clients were amazingly impressed with your Frenzy crew yesterday. I have fished all my life, the last 12 years here in Costa Rica and the15 years before that in Guatemala, learning how to fly fish for sails and marlin. Your crew was leaps and bounds above every other crew I have ever fished with. Marco is a jewel of an individual and made us all tired just by watching him work! Mako is also awesome, and along with the captain Jose, they make a great team. I think I will give up on competing in the fly tournament, we don't have a chance against that team, haha. Anyway, what a great day, thanks so much and I will be working hard to book you guys some more.

Dan Ross - Owner
Dan Ross Sport Fishing"

It is always great to hear from clients and booking agents that they have had a great time fishing with us on the FRENZY. A successful day on the water takes a lot to put together and our team is always working hard for our clients.

There are a huge pile of fish hanging around Quepos so come on down! Contact Willy Jimenez for reservations.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie Walker

Joe vs Asplundh

2011-03-15T16:33:00.000-06:00

Day two of the Club Limited trip started off with a bit of unusual weather. To my surprise it was raining offshore. I rarely see rain offshore this time of year. Nonetheless, we dropped the teasers in the water at about 35 miles out in 3700 feet of water. I was on the 35 with Nat and Lance. We raised a few early but had difficult bites out of them. The fish were billing the fly rather than crashing it. Lance finally got a huge bite out of a sail that got him into the backing immediately. Lance has picked up this fly fishing thing pretty quickly and got the sail to the boat in just a few minutes.

Lance's sailfish takes to the air.

Nat was up next and didn't have to wait long for a fish to be raised. While Nat prepared himself for the cast, Johan teased the fish into casting range. The call "cast the fly" came and Nat slapped the fly down beside the teaser. Johan yanked the teaser out, the fish ate the fly going left to right and Nat gave a hard left sided hook set. Somehow, and I'm not sure how, the fly came right out of the fishes mouth. Go figure.

I'm up and it's quite raining. Nice! Then it starts again. Bad! A hungry sail shows up, eats the fly and after a short fight is released at boatside.

Lance catches another one. But this time with a little more style. Before the fish is raised Lance lights a stogie. The fish shows up on the left short teaser and Lance casually walks to the transom, tosses his fly in the water, casts the fly and hooks the fish. Simple, except that it was raining and a bit choppy. Lance caught the fish in about 7 minutes and throughout it all he never lost the fire in his stogie!

Nat's back at it again. After some discussion between us about hook setting strategies Nat gets a shot at a hot fish. I am not lying when I say that Nat set the hook with a wild look in his eye and makes quick work of the sailfish. Our mate Rudy announces that the fish has a very short bill. At boatside I lean over to stick a tag in the fish and see that Nat has sunk both hooks to the hilt. Now that's a tournament style hook set if I ever saw one. Pretty work Nat. And by the way we have this fly fishing tournament coming up next year if you're interested...

We ended the day with 4 sailfish released on the FRENZY II, two of which I tagged with Billfish Foundation tags which I am hoping will get reported back to us when the fish are re-captured.

On the 43' FRENZY they had a big day catching 6 on fly. Lee apparently caught two back to back in a total elapsed time of no more than 6 minutes. He mentioned something about the other guys not wanting to get out in the rain.

A beautiful sail shows its colors at the boat.

When they got back to the house all I heard about was some story about Joe that involved him running to the stern of the boat, pitching the fly in the water and putting the hooks to a feisty sailfish in short order. Then something about him and some guy named Asplundh building a sportfishing boat together. Hey Lee what's up with that...?

One more day at it as the Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Day 1 of the CLub Limited trip

2011-03-14T06:27:00.001-06:00

Yesterday was fishing day #1 of the Club Limited trip to Quepos. I took Joe and Nat on the 43 and Lee took Ber and Lance on the 35. We saw a fair number of fish with each boat having its shot on fly. In the end we came back even up with 3 fish each. More to come today as the Frenzy continues...

Jamie

My little friends...

2011-03-08T19:02:00.000-06:00

My morning began with a visit from my friends the spider monkeys! I love these little fellows but they sure are loud as they bounce across our metal roof at Casa Carolina. Today they gathered for about 30 minutes on the 2nd floor porch. I would like to think that they were waiting for an invitation to go fishing on the FRENZY but I think they were more interested in getting into some monkey business! There must have been 50 of them. Some were carrying babies on their backs. I just love their little faces, especially this guy with the mischievous twinkle in his eye!

At about the same time these guys appeared, the howler monkeys cranked up. The males declared their dominance as their howls resonated across through the rainforest. It is amazing how loud they can be at 6 am.

The day ended as usual with a beautiful sunset and drinks in the pool. Now it is time for some grilled chuletas (pork chops), a glass of wine and time with family and friends.

Tomorrow we're back on the water as the FRENZY continues...

Jamie

Scott Scott's Birthday

2011-03-07T21:03:00.000-06:00

Yes we call him Scott Scott and frankly I am not sure why. But the one thing I do know is Scott ain't afraid to try something new. So on his birthday we convinced him to try catching a sailfish on fly. I gave him my tournament rod rigged with one of our tournament flies, gave him a bit of instruction and turned him over to Marco. That's as good as it can get here in Costa Rica. Scott didn't have to wait more than ten minutes for a bite as the hungry sail came screaming in behind the teaser and chomped on the fly.

I know this is not the best bite photo I have but hey it's the one I got today! Anyway Scott did a really superb job on the bite and stuck the fish hard. The resulting fight lasted about 15 minutes, during which time Scott put quite a bend in the rod.

In the end Scott Scott prevailed and landed this beautiful Pacific Sail on fly. As we say, "Pretty work Scott"!

Oh yeah, Happy Birthday as the Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda?

2011-03-06T21:01:00.002-06:00

You know when you have those kind of days when you feel like you should have played it differently? Well that was my day today on the Frenzy II. I took my son James and his friend Scott. Rafa took us out about 35 miles and within 10 minutes of putting the baits in the water Scott caught his first sailfish. Scott's a pretty good angler so he made quick work of the sail.

Then comes the Coulda, Shoulda, Woulda part of the day. James wanted to fly fish so we changed up the teasers and began the wait for a sail to take a poke at them. Well we raised plenty but just couldn't get a bite out of them. We must have raised 10 without getting a bite on fly. James made some great casts. Well if we woulda been conventional fishing we coulda caught 12 today so I guess we shoulda.

Eventually we switched back to conventional tackle and caught 3 more to end the day with 4 on conventional tackle. We saw lots of birds and spinner dolphin today. There is always something to entertain us in the beautiful Pacific Ocean.

We're back at it tomorrow on the Frenzy 43 as the Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Estamos aqui!

2011-03-05T19:17:00.000-06:00

We have finally arrived at Casa Carolina!!! After a short hop from San Jose we arrived at Casa Carolina and were greeted by our wonderful staff and a special guest. The 3 toed sloth that we have been watching for months has had a baby and decided to show it off by hanging out by our pool. James and the sloths made friends instantly!

Tomorrow we're fishing with Rafa and Rudy on the Frenzy II. I'll file a report when we get back to the dock.

Pura Vida as the Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Frenzy II releases an 800 lb marlin

2011-03-04T19:47:00.003-06:00

Just got a report from Willy that Rafa released an 800 lb marlin. Willy says that he may have some photos. I'll post them and the story as soon as I receive it.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Headed South!!!

2011-03-03T16:44:00.000-06:00

Well after a month of being locked in a ferocious South Carolina winter we're headed south again. It has been painful sitting here and getting all the great daily catch reports from Willy as well as receiving e-mails from customers telling me what a wonderful time they have had. But now it's my turn to write home.

We're headed back down for a week of fishing on the Frenzy. I am taking my wife Jenny, seen above with a whopper of a fly caught yellowfin tuna. Our oldest son is bringing a college buddy and wants to do nothing but fish, and I'm guessing drink beer! No problem... They return to the US on the 12th but I am staying down and hosting a group of fly fishermen at Casa Carolina. I'll be teaching them the basics of fly fishing for billfish as well as some advanced tactics for sea monsters as I call the big ones.

The way the bite's been we could be in for a great two weeks of fishing. But fish have tails so we'll see. Check the blog, website and Facebook for regular updates.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

A letter from some happy customers!

2011-02-26T07:14:00.000-06:00

As I have written a number of times before it is always great to hear from folks who have either stayed in Casa Carolina or fished with us on one of the FRENZY boats. In this case we have both. Below you will see a nice note I received from some folks who stayed in our house and fished a couple of days with us.

"Jamie,
What a time we had in beautiful Quepos last week! Casa Carolina is an awesome place and we all enjoyed staying in this lovely, lovely home. Willy was always right on top of anything we wanted to do and also had great advice for activities and things to do in the area. We ate at some fabulous restaurants and loved our outings to the beach, Manuel Antonio, the National Park, etc. Ziplining was a favorite of everyone! We spent two days fishing, the first on the Frenzy (43) and the second day, on Frenzy II (35). These were such adventures for us. Both days we had perfect weather and the crews were incredible! The boys caught seven sailfish, four tunas, mahi---unbelievable!! The second day we got the girls to fish. We caught Spanish mackerel and the girls caught amberjack. Woody's already talking about "our next trip" on the The Frenzy. I'm enclosing some fishing pictures. Thank you! BETH"

Hey Beth thanks for the kind words. We're glad you and your family had such a good time in Costa Rica. Your pictures tell the story.

We have a few open dates remaining this year. Contact us to Catch the Frenzy!

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

Catch the Frenzy!

2011-02-15T19:08:00.000-06:00

Follow us on Twitter at "FrenzySportfish" and on Facebook at "Frenzy Sportfishing".

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie Walker
Frenzy Sportfishing

Catch Report for Feb 12, 2011

2011-02-12T18:32:00.000-06:00

Today's catch report:
Frenzy 43 - 9 sailfish
Frenzy 35 - 5 sailfish

The Frenzy continues ...

Sushi time!

2011-02-11T09:17:00.000-06:00


Nice work on the sushi folks!

Yesterday we had a party of 4 on the FRENZY for a day off offshore fishing. Looks like they had a pretty good day catching this nice fat yellowfin tuna! Can anyone say SUSHI? Oh yeah, they caught 5 sailfish also!

We have a few days open so come on down and enjoy a day on the water with our tournament winning crew. Contact Willy Jimenez to book a trip.

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie Walker
www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Hey Jamie where is Willy?

2011-02-08T09:32:00.000-06:00

Willy catches a sailfish on a 10 lb spinning rod!

That was the question I received this past Sunday from a fellow who was planning his trip for some billfishing in Costa Rica on the FRENZY and couldn't get in touch with Willy. So I started looking for Willy and couldn't find him either. Not by e-mail or by telephone. Sometimes the e-mail and phone service goes down and I can't get in touch with him for a day so I suspected that was the problem.

But then late that afternoon Willy called me from the dock. It appears that Willy had used his day off to go sailfishing on a boat we have taken under management, the 28' Bertram "Front Row". More on this boat in a later post but back to Willy. The boat owner, Rusty Cullum, was running the boat, Willy was fishing and our maintenance man from Casa Carolina, Saul, was the mate for the day.

They found pretty blue water about 20 miles from shore and began fishing. Willy, being the man that he is, decided that he would try to catch one on a spinning rod. Not just any spinning rod but one that we would normally use for fishing for bass in a pond or for jigging up bait. We're talking 10 pound test! Willy didn't have to wait long for a hungry sailfish to come screaming into the teasers Saul had set out. Willy pitched the ballyhoo to the sail who ate it immediately and commenced to doing the sailfish thing by jumping all over the ocean. After a 10 minute battle on the spinning rod, Willy and Saul had the fish boatside and gently pulled it in for a quick hero shot! I must say "Pretty Work Guys!"

Willy and Saul on their day off!

Obviously the FRENZY continues...

Jamie Walker
www.FrenzySportfishing.com

2011 GIFT Tournament Experiences Part I

2011-02-02T09:06:00.010-06:00

I have just returned from another wonderful time in Costa Rica and wanted to share part of my most recent Frenzy experience. Jamie has covered our tournament days in other posts. I wanted to add some of the other happenings during the 2011 GIFT.

During our first two practice days, I got to know more members of the Frenzy team. Dr. John Dean who is our scientific advisor, was joined be his lovely wife Robin. While Jamie, John and I spent hours in discussion of our upcoming sailfish tagging program, Robin and Jenny Walker enjoyed the on-shore activities in the area. I think the highlight for them was watching a family of three 3-toed sloths in a tree just out the front door of Casa Carolina. Also having the little Titi monkeys crawling all over Saule who works at the house was quite a thrill.

Dr. Dean is a remarkable person and a wealth of knowledge about the science of many species of fish. I had a great time talking with him especially since my undergraduate degree was in Biology and I actually participated in some research in my day. He caught me up with some of what has happened in the field since my minor involvement some 30 years ago.

The three of us are very excited about team Frenzy developing a tagging program for the Pacific Sailfish. Our plan is to place some satellite tags to gather information about the life cycle of this beautiful fish throughout the year. Then, working closely with colleagues of John both at home and at the University of Costa Rica in San Jose, we will collect biological data on age and reproduction characteristics of this fish. Our ultimate goal will be to add knowledge about the life cycle of this remarkable fish so that the population can be managed and maintained for years to come. I’m looking forward to participating in the scientific aspect of this project and John will be sending me some prior research papers on work so I can get myself up to speed on the hard science.

We also had some fun during our days together on the water. Jamie got to jump in and snorkel in water that was 7000 feet deep! It was a new record for him and he got some great underwater pictures of one of my sailfish. I look forward to when he shares the pictures on the blog. Here is a short film clip of him in the water and I particularly enjoy where he swam down to touch the tail of the fish as it swam off. I can’t wait for my turn to do the same.

We finished off our visit with the Deans when they treated us all to a gourmet dinner at Kapi Kapi, another of the great restaurants in the Manuel Antonio area. I want to thank the Deans for the wonderful time we spent together and for all the great things to come as we work together.

The Frenzy continues….

GIFT Tournament 2011 – Day 4 Team FRENZY wins again!!!

2011-01-29T07:17:00.001-06:00

New mate Mako's skills really made a difference this year.

It’s the final day of the tournament and we are all a bit beat up from yesterday. We have 1500 points, the Stalker is in 2^nd place with 800 points and everyone else is tied for 3^rd. We once again head towards the Furuno as everyone else takes off for The Corner. Today there is no north wind. We drop the teasers in at 8:00 with the anticipation of seeing another marlin and maybe catching a few sails to keep us in the lead. We are too far from anyone else to hear their catch call-ins so I spend the day worrying about what the Stalker is doing as those guys can catch fish.

Kerwin and I take two-hour shifts that prove uneventful. We go out to some really deep water but see nothing, no baits, no birds, no fish, no nothing. I feel that we have made the wrong decision. I worry that the Stalker is racking up points like no tomorrow. There is no tomorrow because this is the last day. Even Kerwin seems a bit uneasy. Despite Jose’s searching and the mates putting every teaser we had in the water, the day ends at 4:00 with a big goose egg. Totally out of character for our team. We head back to Quepos concerned about the results of the Stalker’s day as well as the other teams.

We arrive at Marina Pez Vela and learn that Harold has caught a sailfish. We congratulate him and then learn that Stanley on our other boat, FRENZY II (35) has caught a black marlin, which puts him solidly in 3^rd place. We wait around for the Stalker to call in and head to the house not knowing the out come of their day. Finally Willy calls with the news that they have caught only 1 sailfish.

Our team has won the GIFT Tournament for the third year in a row! All the preparation, all the practice, focus and teamwork have paid off again. Marsha and her staff at El Gran Escape (www.elgranescape.com) really did a great job organizing the tournament and keeping everyone well fed and watered! A special thanks goes to Team FRENZY operations manager Willy Jimenez for his work during the tournament.

There is no doubt that I have the finest fishing partner anyone could ask for. Kerwin is always well prepared, has all our tackle and flies sorted out every day and is one of the best fly anglers in the world. Well done my friend!

Jenny and I have guests coming to Casa Carolina tomorrow for a week of fishing and enjoying Costa Rica. Now for a couple of days of rest before the Frenzy continues…

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

GIFT Tournament 2011 – Day 3

2011-01-29T07:14:00.000-06:00


Kerwin puts the finishing touches on a billfish.

No more time spent at The Corner as we head towards the Furuno today. And we’re all alone. Nice! Today is uncharacteristically “rough” with a moderately strong wind from the north. I comment to Kerwin as we’re dropping the teasers in the water that I really like what I see in this chop because we usually get strong bites on days like this.

I was up first and had a crack at a sailfish that teased in but faded off at the third wave. I am surprised and Kerwin is as well because all our fish have teased in so well this tournament. It is now Kerwin’s time to be up and an hour or so later we’re on the board with our first sailfish of the day.

Now I am back up again and notice that the sea is starting to lay down a bit. It still has a good chop on it. With only a short time to go until I relinquish my position to Kerwin, there is a hole in the water behind the short teaser as a blue marlin tries to eat it. We all spring into action. Marco takes the short teaser line by hand and I prepare to cast. When Marco yells “cast the fly” with the experience of 17 years of casting flies at billfish I smack the side of the boat on my back cast but fortunately the wind does not totally prevent me from laying the fly down in the sweat spot of clear water I am aiming for. Marco pulls the teaser forward to bring the marlin to my fly and yanks it out of the water. All of this happens as in an instant as the boat is sliding forward in neutral. Instead of immediately eating the fly the marlin heads for the transom. He makes a turn literally at our feet, lights up electric blue from the tips of his pectoral fins to his tail and in a millisecond engulfs my fly. It was the most exciting billfish bite I have ever seen on fly.

Kerwin's practice day Black Marlin. Nuff said...

I barely have a moment to set the hook before the enraged marlin is screaming away from the boat taking line at a pace that I have rarely witnessed. My drag is backed off to nothing. On a fish like this I always let Jose see my reel so that he sees how fast I am loosing line. Teamwork catches fish. Jose puts the FRENZY in reverse and I begin to crank like a maniac. Mako has completely cleared all the other teasers and we’re ready to go after the marlin. Marco stands beside me to relay my requests of speed to Jose.

Of course the marlin heads up seas which means we’re backing into it. As we get closer to the marlin and can see the fly line after cranking in seemingly hundreds of yards of 50 lb Spectra backing we begin to focus on the last part of the fight. This is when it is most important to make sure that everyone is in synch about catching the fish. It always requires intense concentration on the part of the angler, mates and captain. It’s never easy but particularly difficult today as we have 6 feet of water crashing down on Marco and me as Jose guns the boat after the fish. As we get closer to the marlin and get fly line back on the reel we have so much water in the cockpit that my Crocs are starting to float off my feet! The fish makes a left and is now off the left side of the boat with the leader barely 6 feet from the rod tip. I am screaming, “Go to the fish” but we can’t get there from our relative positions. Fortunately the fish kicks it a bit and gets back in behind the boat. With water crashing over us on the stern, the diesel turbos kicking in and me yelling to go to the fish we finally get the leader in the rod tip for a legal release. It was the most intense 5 minutes of fly fishing I have ever had. I look up at Jose and ask “How big?” Jose says “350”. As we high-five around the cockpit we start to realize how much water we had in the back of the boat. It went all the way back to the door to the cabin! It was definitely a “Frenzy”! I am soaked to the bone but excited for the team as we put another 500 points on the board.

The FRENZY continues…

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

GIFT Tournament 2011 – Day 2

2011-01-29T07:08:00.000-06:00

Marco enjoys the results of the watermelon slicer!

Day 2 finds us back at “The Corner” since that is where the action was yesterday. Everyone else is there as well. I have to say that today was pretty uneventful. We anticipated seeing and catching marlin but instead we caught the only two sailfish that rose to the teasers. We did eat well, as usual on the FRENZY. We also are making good use of the watermelon slicer that my wife Jenny brought down with her. It cuts the melon into slices and leaves a nice seedless core. Remarkable for such a simple instrument. The fact that it costs $20 chaps me a bit but hey it’s a boat part now and everything on the boat is more expensive. We are still in first place but things can change tomorrow.

The FRENZY continues…

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

GIFT Tournament 2011 – Day 1

2011-01-29T07:05:00.000-06:00

The first sail of the GIFT Tournament dances across the water

After almost a year of anticipation and preparation the 2011 GIFT Tournament has kicked off. Though there are only seven boats in this year’s tournament the competition for us is certainly stiff. It is good to see our fishing friends from previous tournaments and make some new ones. We have a new 2^nd mate this year, Maxwell, aka Mako. From what I have witnessed of him during the practice days I believe that Jose and Marco have chosen well. After two practice days we feel we are ready. I can say this because during those two practice days we caught two marlin on fly. Kerwin caught his first black marlin on fly and I caught my 2^nd blue on fly. We estimated the two marlin to be 250 and 300 lbs respectively. Kerwin caught his marlin in about 17 minutes and I caught mine in about 27 minutes. Even after catching literally hundreds of billfish on a fly I remain amazed that it is possible to catch such a strong fish on a fly rod. We even had a small striped marlin take a crack at eating the fly.

So it was with anticipation of another shot at a marlin that we put the teasers in the water at the 8:00 am start time. Kerwin was up first, which means that I will have some time to relax and take a read of the water before my turn comes. We see nothing until along about 10:30 when a black marlin of about 300 lbs takes a swipe at the left short teaser. Seeing this, Marco, Mako and Kerwin leap into action. After making the cast the marlin eats the fly and takes off for the horizon. While Kerwin prepares himself for a long battle with the marlin the mates clear the other teasers from the water and organize the cockpit. Everything happens in split seconds. Jose sees that we are all ready to chase the fish and begins backing down the FRENZY. At about 100 yards out the fish takes an abrupt left turn, clears the surface of the water with several amazing leaps then begins to greyhound across the surface with just his tail in the water. Spectacular, until the tippet breaks. Unfortunately we didn’t catch that marlin and earn the 500 points towards the tournament but the day was still young.

A short while later a hot sailfish comes screaming into the teasers, Marco works his magic by teasing the fish into position for me to make the cast. On Marco’s cue I cast the fly, the fish eats it like I eat ice cream and 3 minutes later we release our first fish of the tournament. High fives around the cockpit and thumbs up to Jose because we’re “on the board” with 100 points.

Kerwin’s back up now and we experience nothing in the teasers for a couple of hours. We decide to trade off and put me back up so that we always have a fresh angler on the ready. Marco and I are sitting on the drink boxes talking about things when we see a huge boil behind the left short teaser. In an instant Marco is teasing the marlin in by hand, when Marco calls for the cast I manage to lay the fly right down beside the teaser in perfect position for a bite. The lit up black marlin eats the fly and takes off. Knowing that it is a marlin I back off the drag to almost nothing. Fortunately for us all the marlin stays on top and allows us to get on him quickly. In less than 5 minutes we have him beside the boat. Seeing that I can get the leader in the rod tip for a legal release I yell to Jose to “go for him”. Jose puts the throttles down, I crank like mad while pushing the rod at the fish and at the instant that the leader enters the top guide Marco, Kerwin and I each yell “caught”. It’s a good thing that we caught him at that moment because the hooks pulled out of the fish immediately after that!

As if that was not enough excitement, less than two minutes later a sailfish is swatting his bill at the long right teaser. After another well executed cast and a short fight of 2 and a half minutes the team has another 100 points on the board.

Before lines out at 4:00 we hear that our good friend Marsha that owns El Gran Escape restaurant is hooked up to a marlin. Unfortunately she does not release the fish and earn the 500 points.

The FRENZY II has shots at 4 marlin, but no releases. What a day! I bet Rafa, Rudy and Rafita were speaking some rapid fire Spanish!

At sunset we arrive back at Marina Pez Vela and learn that we are in first place. With all the marlin swimming around out there tomorrow will truly be another day. Tonight we have all the anglers up to Casa Carolina for cheeseburgers and fishing stories.

The FRENZY continues…

Jamie Walker

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

A message from the Keillor's

2011-01-28T14:24:00.000-06:00

As I have said many times before there is nothing more meaningful in this business than hearing from folks who have come down to fish with us and take the time to write and say what a wonderful trip they have had. I just received the following from the Keillor's who were just here:

Jan 9-16 “The Keillor’s”

From January 9-16 the Keillor family stayed at the Costa Verde resort. There were 3 fishing days total, and other days to explore the lovely town Quepos. Let’s begin the experience!!

The first snag happened even before any of us got to the airport. One of our travelers (my sister) forgot her passport. Willie Jimenez was a blessing in this situation! Even though it was such a sad moment to leave half of our group at home, we knew they would join us in Costa Rica soon. Willie was great at providing travel arrangements for our whole family. I loved talking to Misael about things to do in Quepos.

We had one day of exploring before we started fishing on the Frenzy 2. We walked around the vendors at the beach and also went Zip lining, what a rush, we loved it! On the days we weren’t fishing we also took a Mangrove tour, horse back riding and waterfall rappelling. All were great and would recommend! But don’t forget how nice it is to just lay by the pool and watch the sun rise and set. There are things to do for the active vacationer and the more relaxed type.

Fishing was SUPERB! The water wasn’t rough or choppy at all, very calm and glassy. There were birds around us all the time. We saw some great wildlife like sea turtles and Devil Rays. The first day we landed 3 sailfish to the boat. There were others that were going after the teasers but didn’t get them in time, we also saw a Marlin go for the baits as well. The second day we also landed 3 sailfish, seems like that was par for the course for us. Captain Rafa was extra nice to our group and let us swim with the sailfish I caught. YES! We actually swam with a sailfish! It was such an experience; they are such docile creatures when they are in the water with people. We have some great pictures, that was a moment we never will forget! Finally when the rest of our group arrived we had one more day to fish with the whole family. We caught 1 Marlin and 5 Sailfish! My sister and I hooked up on a double; I can’t wait to see the video we took of it. It was very special because the 2 mates on the boat helping us were brothers too. It was just a family affair! The one marlin we landed was a striped marlin, very beautiful in coloration, and so different than a sailfish, both beautiful in their own ways. We also got to swim with one of the sailfish I caught again, so my sister could experience it. It was even better than the first time! We are very happy that the billfish that the Frenzy fleet catches are all released. Of course, if there were Dorado or Tuna on our rods we would have taken that home, but the billfish are too precious to sacrifice.

Captain Rafa was a great captain, very talkative and patient with the newer fisherman. He would back down on the fish for us to conserve our energy and the fish as well. His 2 sons who were our mates were very kind too. They both spoke good English and if ever we were curious about knots they tied to bait, or anything for that matter, the would answer our questions and let us practice. It was very easy to be a beginner fisherman on this boat with such experienced marineros.

We all hated to leave Quepos. It was such a great experience for everyone in our family. We have decided that we will most definitely return next year and fish with the Frenzy fleet. Let’s hope we all bring our passports next time!

It was really good to hear that the Keillor family had such a fine time fishing with us. And many thanks for the great photos!

Now I have to go write up my blog entry for the GIFT Tournament. You bet it was a FRENZY!!!

The FRENZY continues.

Jamie Walker
Frenzy Sportfishing

The 2011 GIFT Tournament

2011-01-21T07:56:00.005-06:00

It’s a travel day for me. I’m sitting in the airport in Houston waiting to make the second leg of my journey back to Costa Rica for the 2011 Gray Invitational Fly Tournament.

Jamie called me a couple of nights ago concerned about if we had the proper flies and just what we needed to do to be ready for this years contest. I guess I wasn’t exactly polite when I asked him “Are you just starting to think about this? I’ve been working on this for the past 360 days!!!.” Just joking!

I’ve been working for the past few months with several of our friends whose expertise in different aspects of fly-fishing that has proven to be invaluable to the past success of the FRENZY team.

I’ll be trying out a new reel from our friends at Waterworks-Lamson in Ketchum Idaho. We have been sold on the Waterworks reels for several years now. The new Vanquish is supposed to be even better so I’m excited to give it a good test.

Brian Thielke (our own personal world class fly tying master), knew the tournament would be coming up and he called us last month just to make sure we had what we needed. Since there have been so many marlin being caught this year, we have had Brian prepare some special marlin flies in addition to our usual sailfish fly order.

Garry Sandstrom, our equipment and tackle expert, has provided me with three new fly lines that he wants tested. One of the lines is experimental and Garry feels it will be a definite improvement over what we have used in the past. Garry is one of the best fly-casters I have ever seen. Because of his reputation, he is constantly testing new lines for the various manufacturers. Overall the lines coming out are stronger, and yet much thinner than what we have used previously and should cut down on the dreaded drag created by the weight and size of the line. This is important when a big fish takes out several hundred yards of line or when we intentionally let one fish run when we hook up a double and then have to work each fish individually.

Garry and I spent a good deal of time preparing equipment and lines at Puget Sound Fly Co. It’s owner, Anil Srivastava, is constantly on the phone to make sure that we get everything we need from the various companies in a timely manner and he is gracious enough to allow us to use his shop equipment as we load reels and build fly-lines. Anil also provided me with some flies that he developed over 10 years ago, the Shock and Awe. I hope to soon cast these to Mahi, sailfish, and tuna. It is a great fly that is used a lot in the Northwest for sea-run cutthroat and salmon although in a smaller size.

All these friends, Brian, Garry, and Anil, are world class fly-fisherman in their own right and we are grateful for the information and assistance that they provide as part of Team FRENZY.

Well it's time to catch that plane. The Tournament Starts Monday!!!

Steffen’s Christmas Break- Parrots and New Year’s Eve

2011-01-21T06:55:00.008-06:00

The last days of our trip come too soon for all of us. On Thursday Willy needed to pick up some bottom paint for the boat and located some in Jaco. Lisa and I decided to go with him and visit the resort at Los Suenos.

Willy drove and I got to enjoy the scenery on the way over. We passed the Tilapia farm that we visited with the kids on our last trip. Will definitely do that again one of these days.

Willy drops us as the Los Suenos shopping mall and heads off to get the paint. We wander through the shops and I check out the marina to see if I can find the boat we helped rescue yesterday. The marina seems small to me this time and I realize it is because I am already used to the much larger Marina Pez Vela.

Lisa gets some shopping done and we have a nice lunch and then head back to the quaint little town of Quepos and the tranquility of Manuel Antonio. The big resort life is just not for me. (Although I would like to play their golf course some time soon!)

The trip back is highlighted by a stop on the side of the road where we watch five wild MaCaw Parrots squawking at each other playfully high in a tree. My camera is in the condo and we can’t get a cell phone to take a decent photo so you have to take my word for it. We jump back in the car and less than a mile down the road we see an entire flock of these large and colorful parrots flying across the road. It is so strange to me to see them in the wild. Most parrots I’ve seen have been in a cage in the lobby of a hotel in Hawaii.

We concentrate on the fishing and sea life so much, I forget at times the biodiversity of this country and all it has to offer when you are not on the water. The Monteverde area is well known for it’s birding and the vast number of species that can be seen. One highlight I had was with Olivia when we were able to see a Firebill Toucan (sort of like the bird on the Fruit Loops box) in Manuel Antonio National Park on one of our private tours that Willy arranged.

We also love the butterflies that are everywhere and I was made aware of the fact that there are more species of butterflies in the small country of Costa Rica than on the entire continent of Africa. I learned all this on the tour of the butterfly farm and reptile garden located in Manuel Antonio (another great place to visit especially for kids).

Our last day at the condo is New Year’s Eve. There is a wonderful pool side party at the condo and the Hotel Parador next door sets off a great fireworks display at midnight for which we have the best seats in the house…….. on our deck.

The kids can't wait until next time!!!

The Frenzy continues....

Steffen’s 2010 Christmas Break Last Day of Fishing

2011-01-21T00:33:00.010-06:00

(I had some problems loading this entry so I will try again!)

It was a little easier getting up and going today. I guess catching two nice marlin was rejuvenating for every one. We are quickly to the boat and on our way for another exciting day aboard the Fabulous FRENZY!!!

We are soon fishing and the baits are in the water. Now it’s time for the fish to be lazy!!!!! The crew works hard but we just don’t see anything for a couple of hours. Suddenly the boys have pulled in the baits and we are high tailing it to a new place. We seem to be going faster than usual when Marco comes below and tells me a boat out of Los Suenos Marina is sinking and needs help. It seems that they were taking on water and their bilge pump was not working. We’ve now turned a fishing trip into a possible rescue mission. The boys get our spare pump ready to hand off and soon we are upon the vessel in distress. It is a friend of Jose’s and fortunately he managed to get his pump working. Another boat from Los Suenos threw them a line and began towing them back to their marina.

We were soon back to fishing and saw nothing until about noon when two sailfish come calling. The kids are napping and it’s Lisa that puts on the fighting belt and goes to work. The boys try frantically to get us hooked up for a double but the second fish won’t take the bait. Lisa makes quick work of a nice tournament size sailfish (she’ll kill me for this picture!) and the baits are quickly back in the water.

We have lunch of delicious meat-ball sandwiches from a new restaurant in town. Lisa is also working on getting another friend of ours to prepare some gourmet salads that will be available on the FRENZY menu.

It’s a quiet rest of the day and at 4pm we decide to head home. Lisa and I make our way to the bow, ready to kick back and enjoy the breeze on the way home. I never tire of this way to head back to shore watching the Quepos humps grow larger as we approach.

I hear some commotion up on the bridge and see that Marco and Jose are excited about something on the radar. We make a course correction and within minutes are upon a large school of dolphin and pilot whales. The boys are in gear and have tuna lures in the water in no time and we are quickly rewarded with a triple of football sized yellow-fin tuna.

We make quick work of the tuna and the baits are back in the water looking for more tuna. Instead, one of the reels starts screaming and I see a wake next to the boat that is definitely not tuna.

We give the rod to Olivia and she goes to work and lands a nice 150 pound Striped Marlin.

We head home a little later than usual and I get a report for the day. There were about 30 boats on the water today from two marinas. It was a slow day with a total of seven fish caught. The FRENZY had five of them. It’s always great to fish with the best crew in Costa Rica!!!

The Frenzy continues…….

It's not always about fishing!

2011-01-15T16:46:00.000-06:00

Girl's Day Out!

As you can see from the photo I received this week, these girls had a blast on the Frenzy. From the story I heard these ladies did a little shopping in downtown Quepos then went to Marina Pez Vela and hopped on the Frenzy for a little cruise down the coast. Apparently they brought along some floats, and if my guess is correct, some wine and snacks too! Rumor has it that they had a fabulous time cruising down the coast and stopping for a swim. I wonder what Jose and Marco thought of this? I bet they jumped in too...

Stay tuned as the Frenzy continues with my upcoming forecast for the 2011 GIFT Tournament...

Jamie

Frenzy Sportfishing

Steffen Family Christmas 2010 Day 7

2011-01-10T10:43:00.005-06:00

The Marlin Fisherman are lazy today!!! They got up late and were moving slow. I guess catching all those big fish wears them out. We stopped last night at Marsha’s for a quick meal and to tell fish stories. She wants pictures of the kids and their fish to put up on her new “Wall of Shame”.

Ian was funny last night as I put him to bed, with his newly won Leatherman’s tool on his nightstand, he asked me if it was more difficult to catch a Marlin on a fly. I told him that yes it was much more difficult to catch one on the fly. He looked me in the eye and said “Well, I’m ready to catch one on a fly because I need something more advanced!!!”

I guess I don’t have to worry about Ian wanting to fish. We laughed all day today about that one and Lisa said that it would not be long before Ian would want to be my partner in the Harry Gray Fly Tournament. I said at the rate he is going, Jamie Walker is going to request Ian as his partner and demote me to third mate!

This afternoon we went to beautiful Casa Carolina for Lisa to meet with Willy and Ingrid to go over some work matters. As is the custom here, we are treated with great hospitality as Willy and Saule surprised us with lunch of hamburgers on the grill.

We got every one to bed early as we are going after Marlin again tomorrow. The Frenzy was out today and released two more marlin, broke the hook on another, and landed three yellow-fin tuna. Another boat we know had a marlin in the spread estimated at 1000lbs. Fortunately it didn’t bite. I wouldn’t want it to have a sore mouth when we are out tomorrow. The Frenzy continues…..

Steffen Family Christmas 2010 First Fishing Day at last!!!

2011-01-08T17:21:00.007-06:00

As I said before we have been lazy this trip. It was a little tough this morning, especially getting the boy up and going. I got the coffee made and myself and the boy ready to go. Then it was wait for the 14 y.o. as she primped!!! My patience was really tested.

We hop in the car and it’s a quick trip to Café Milagro (now that the road to the condo is paved) so the Seattle girls can have their lattes to start the day. It’s an easy trip to Quepos and soon I slide into a paved parking space in the marina, purchase a license for Lisa, and step onto the Frenzy with ease!!! So different from the old days where it was an extreme adventure just to get down the gangway to the boat. We greet the crew and make a plan for the day. It’s decided to go offshore for marlin!!

I let the boy and mom snooze while we head to Jose’s chosen spot about 22 miles offshore. Olivia is on the bridge with Jose. We are soon in that beautiful cobalt blue water and the boat slows to trolling speed. The baits are dropped into the water and I begin talking to the family about who will be first up. I haven't finished getting out my first sentence when a marlin is crashing the left short teaser. Marco and second mate, Mako, work their magic and Olivia is soon fighting the first fish of the day. After about 30 minutes of excellent work and much coaching from Dad, she lands a nice Blue Marlin about 175 pounds.

Now it’s Ian’s turn. The crew works and works, with the boat zig and zagging, but not much action. We see porpoise playing, one sailfish on the surface, sea turtles, and flying fish which is fun for all of us but especially for the kids. It’s about noon and I’m watching the teasers when a Marlin does a suicide dive on the left short teaser. By the time the boys have done the marlin dance and finally hooked the same fish, I think it has attacked every teaser in our spread! Ian’s now in the chair.

I had found a small leatherman’s tool in my gear and that morning I told Ian he could have it if he would catch a big fish. A more determined face I’ve never seen as he did his best on this fish. After a good 30 minute fight Marco had touched the leader so it was a legal caught fish but we had no pictures. Suddenly we had an equipment failure as the rod snapped off about midway down. I learned something new as the boys went to work and before long we had spliced the line with the marlin on it onto a new rod and reel. Another 20 minutes and another nice Blue was along side estimated at about 300lbs. Ian says 325 and he is so smart I have to trust his judgment.

We all have a nice lunch of Arroz con Pollo and salad. The boy takes a well deserved rest with his new leatherman's tool, broken rod, and 150 leader nearly broken through. Now it’s Lisa’s turn. I threaten to call her Mr. Walker since her turn seems to take so long. It’s about 3PM and we get two more Laaaazy Marlin in the spread. The crew works hard but they just won’t bite.

We head home with a new family catch order. Lisa still in the lead with 400lbs. Now Ian is in second with 325lb (and a new leatherman tool in his pocket) and Oliva and Dad tied at 200lbs. The Frenzy Continues!!!!

The Steffen 2010 Christmas Trip

2011-01-08T14:55:00.009-06:00

Days 1-5

As Lisa says we have been Laaaaazy!!! We were all very busy before leaving for Costa Rica. It is especially tough on Lisa because of having to close all the books at year end. Santa visited our house in Gig Harbor on Sunday the 19^th. Good thing those elves have internet now. It seemed like I was checking the weather report hourly for several days as I was so hopeful we wouldn’t get snowed in. We were fortunate to have great weather and no delays on any flights.

We have just been kicking back so far. Actually resting up since our first day of fishing is tomorrow. Ian and Olivia are arguing as to who will get the first fish. Seeing old friends is one of the things we look forward to on each visit. I saw Enrique who was our van driver on one of my first trips to Costa Rica as a member of the Tacoma Five. We’ve had dinner at El Gran Escape (home of the Gray Invitational Fly Tournament) and visited with Marsha, the owner and a dear friend. I’ve also seen Rafa (Captain of the Frenzy II), Roger (Hollywood), and Beetlejuice who have both worked for us as mates in the past and many other friends.

I came across a picture of our mate Marco when he was about 12 years old and his Dad Rafa on one of my first trips to Costa Rica.

The kids love it here. Ian ( 7 now) is in heaven. The kid could eat chicken and tortillas every day, a little of Mom’s Guac as he calls it, and drink watermelon juice. He could live in the pool if I would let him. He has spent time with his novia, Monseratte, playing their video games.

Olivia….what can I say? A fourteen year old girl. Enough said!

The condo complex has really come a long way since our last visit. The new Suu hotel is open and filled to capacity for the holidays. The restaurant is open and busy. The new pool deck is complete and it’s great having pool-side service when you need a cool drink or snack. We have been rewarded with visits from Lisa’s relatives (the monkeys!!! LOL) every night between 4 and 5 PM.

We attended church services on Christmas Eve. It was all in Spanish so I had to ask Olivia for a translation since she is a star in her Spanish class back home. We didn’t understand the language but got the message any way. Back in the condo they were having a large fiesta in the restaurant. I have to admit it’s a bit weird hearing Christmas songs like “Let It Snow” and “Sleigh Ride” with a background of palm trees and 80 degree weather.

We have made a trip to the Marina and the facility has come a long way since ourlast trip. The marina store is open, there is paved parking and many boats I’ve never seen before. The Frenzy looks at home in it’s new berth and appears to be as anxious as we are to get fishin’! Well I’m off the bed to prepare for a day on the FRENZY!!!!

The marlin bite continues!!!

2010-12-23T16:26:00.001-06:00

The Frenzy into a school of Yellowfin tuna!

You would think that with this month's strong marlin bite I would have updated the blog sooner. I have always said that December should have at least 45 days in it! Oh well, better late than never so here goes:

You already know about my friend Bobby who fished one day and caught his first marlin. Jenny and I went down right afterwards and only had one day to fish with Rafa on the 35. We were trying to get Jenny a marlin on fly but unfortunately none showed up that day. Apparently the marlin were a few miles away as one boat saw 6 that day. We did catch some yellowfin up to about 40 pounds on fly! That was a blast. Photo and some rigging advice will follow in a separate blog.

The Kosloski family had 4 tremendous days of fishing with Jose and Marco on the 43.Their four days went like this:
     Day 1: 1 blue marlin, 1 striped marlin, 1 sailfish and 14 yellowfin tuna
     Day 2: 1 blue marlin, 3 dorado and 7 yellowfin tuna
     Day 3: 1 blue marlin, 1 sailfish, 1 dorado and 3 yellowfin tuna
     Day 4: 2 sailfish and 2 dorado (What, no marlin?)

All in all a fantastic trip for the Kosloski family and a prime example of why we believe that early December is a fantastic time to come fishing with Frenzy Sportfishing if you're trying to catch a marlin.

Our friend Harold Lovelady caught a nice blue on fly the same week! Pretty work there Harold. Practicing up for the upcoming GIFT tournament are you? I'll have to keep my eye on you.

The next couple of charter days saw some fair action on fly with our charter clients catching a nice striped marlin on fly and missing a blue on fly.

Then there was my buddy Chris who went down with 3 of his buddies to celebrate their 40th birthdays. Chris had planned 1, maybe 2 days of fishing but ended up fishing three days with Rafa on the Frenzy II. Their 3 day total of 2 blue marlin, a whopper of a striped marlin, 5 sailfish and a few dorado ensured that they had a great time coming to Costa Rica for their birthday celebration. I have been promised a bunch of photos, but so far this is what I have...

So as you can see the December marlin bite has once again proven that this is a great time of year to be fishing Costa Rica with Frenzy Sportfishing.

We have a few open days in January - April but they are filling fast! Contact Willy to make a reservation (www.frenzysportfishing.com/contact.html and come experience Frenzy Sportfishing!

The Frenzy continues as my partner Kerwin leaves today for a week of chasing billfish and having a great time with his family at Condo Del Mar.

Jamie

A marlin for my pal Bobby!

2010-12-01T17:23:00.003-06:00

My good friend Bobby from NYC is staying at Casa Carolina this week and decided that he would go fishing on the Frenzy 43. Before he left the dock Monday he told Willy that all he really wanted was a marlin, but that some other fish would be good too! Now most folks say that jokingly but I have know Bobby for 25 years and Bobby wanted a marlin. So Capt. Jose took Bobby out to the Furuno for some live bait fishing. After Marco caught and rigged some live bonito Jose slow trolled the baits out to some deeper water.

Not too much later a nice 250 pound blue marlin granted Bobby's wish by eating one of the bonito. Bobby is a pretty good angler so he managed to bring the marlin to the Frenzy in short order. A nice way to start the day. Pretty work Bobby!

After the release Marco tossed the baits from the tuna tubes back in the water and Jose started the slow trolling routine again. A little while later a sailfish comes calling and rewarded Bobby with a nice pacific sailfish. By this time Bobby is saying to Jose and Marco, "Hey what else you got swimming out here?" Jose finds a school of yellowfin tuna and Bobby proceeds to catch 6. Just enough for fresh sashimi by the Casa Carolina pool and a nice fillet for dinner. The rest was enjoyed by Jose and Marco and their families.

By now Bobby is thinking that he's hot stuff so Jose has Marco rig some bottom rigs and puts Bobby on a huge amberjack! They are not called "reef donkeys" for nothing! That slowed Bobby down a bit for sure! But Bobby manages a comeback and catches a nice pargo (snapper) to finish the day.

Back to the pool at Casa Carolina in time to enjoy another beautiful Costa Rica sunset. So Bobby are you going back to NYC or do you want to quit that nice stockbroker job you have and come work for Frenzy Sportfishing? We would love to have you anytime!

See you soon my good friend. And hey, thanks for the photo.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie
www.frenzysportfishing.com

35' Frenzy II Gets a new coat of paint

2010-10-25T06:05:00.000-06:00

Captain Rafa has been busy the last 6 weeks prepping the Frenzy II for the upcoming high season. She's been given a new coat of paint and really shines. We have to paint these boats every 3 to 4 years because we fish so hard and catch so many billfish that the paint literally wears off. Lots of bill marks from releasing fish. I consider this a good thing!

I am putting together a tackle order for Rafa as he needs some new teasers. We use mostly Moldcraft Wide-range lures for teasers. After a couple of seasons they start to fade and even though they probably work as well as new ones we don't leave anything to chance! I like to have to best tackle we can get on the 35 and the 43. We buy most of our tackle from Jeremy at Atlantic Game and Tackle in Charleston, SC as he seems to always have what we need or can get it easily.

Well the 35 will be back in the water in a week or so and ready for another year of catching and releasing marlin and sails at the hand of Captain Rafa Solano. I expect that Rafa will have his first marlin of the year by December 10th. Last year the first week in December saw a pretty good marlin bite and also a bunch of big dorado were caught, including the 50 lb dorado that I caught on the fly aboard the 43.

More to come as the Frenzy continues...

Jamie

The Steffen Spring Break- Day 4 of fishing

2010-04-14T16:56:00.010-06:00

I'm actually back home to write this as I spoke of my computer woes while in Costa Rica.

Day 4 on the Frenzy found us without Chris as he was not feeling well. So Amy had Marco to herself for the day. Since it was Sunday we brought some of our employees and family members to enjoy the day. The bite was a long way out again today but since I wanted to fly-fish, felt it was worth the run to have more shots at the fish.

It wasn't long before Jose found the honey hole and we were into fish. I was first up to try my skills once again. Rafa was on the teaser rod for the first fish in the teasers. He soon had a fish to the ideal position for me to cast and the fish piled on my fly and the Frenzy team soon had the leader in the guides and we released our first sail on the fly this trip.

I wanted Amy to give it a shot but she was more in the mood to catch some rays on the bow with Lisa so I asked Willy if he wanted to give fly-fishing a try. Marco took him to the transom and gave him instructions in Spanish as I chimed in with pointers here and there. It wasn't long before the next fish popped up. Again Rafa teased the fish in, Willy made the cast. You can see the cast and the fish take the fly in the video I took but can't seem to get it to load on the blog. Willy worked up a good sweat bringing in the fish (note, it was done properly with a left hand retrieve fly reel). We are now two for two. A good start to the day.

The baits were back in the water and I was trying to change out Willy's fly when the next fish came screaming in. I had to grab the spare rod, peel the line off and fling the fly into the water just in time to cast to the fish. Another great bite and we quickly another released sailfish on the Frenzy. Now we're 3 for 3!

Soon after a double came in but the first fish did not come close enough to cast a fly. The second fish took the Bally-hoo that was on the Shotgun and we put Marilyn, our housekeeper, on the rod. The first Fish she ever caught in her life is a nice Pacific Sailfish. Pretty good bragging rights for a nice young lady and we are 4 for 4.

Now the fish went into that weird mid-day bite they will sometimes do and either not tease well to the boat or when they do they seem too be too lazy to bite. Finally after lunch, I convince Amy to give the fly-rod a try. A fish comes in, she makes a good cast, the fish takes and she promptly lifts the rod and jerks the fly out of it's mouth. Oops! I hadn't given her the proper instruction to let the fish take the fly and keep the rod low to the water. I console her and tell her she'll get it next time. Next time will have to wait for the next trip as we didn't see another fish. We had been 4 for 4 but ended up 4 for 12 on raised sailfish. (We always wonder how many of those we would have landed on conventional tackle) We also had another Marlin in the teasers that would have been the perfect size on a fly but it turned off quickly without teasing to the boat. We headed home after another great day of fishing with the crew of the Frenzy.

I'll finish my blog about our trip soon but I have to get some pictures from Chris and Amy's cameras.

The Frenzy continues.....

The Steffen Spring Break-Day Three of Fishing

2010-04-10T18:37:00.008-06:00

Amy was not feeling well today and decided to stay home. Thus, of course I knew we were in for an exciting day.

Lisa was up early to prepare coffee, put on her make-up, a pink dress and her secret weapon.

Today we headed a little South of where we first fished and only 27 miles out. We were told that fishing had slowed dramatically but of course we were on the Frenzy. It was over an hour before we had the first sailfish in the boat.

After about another hour without a sign of a fish, I sent secret weapon number one (Capitan Ian) to the bridge with orders to “put us on some fish”. In short time he had us on two more sailfish.

I told Lisa it was her turn so she made a pass to the stern of the boat and allowed the scent of her Coco Chanel Madamoiselle fish attractant to drift over the waters. This is secret weapon number two because next thing I saw was a large dorsal fin crashing the baits headed for the stern of the boat. I grabbed the pitch bait on the 30 and Marco politely asked me to get it out of the water. Suddenly there was a tremendous dorsal fin within 10 feet of the boat moving fast. Marco swings a lateral cast with the pitch bait on the 50 and the fish takes the bait 5 feet from the boat as it´s moving towards the bow. Marco slams the hook about three times and it´s game on. Seconds later the fish is dancing 150 yards behind the boat and headed out. Since Lisa had teased this fish in with her perfume (I swear it was trying to get in the boat with her), we put her in the chair. After the lines were cleared, Jose backed her down on her fish and within 15 minutes the amazing crew of the Frenzy had leadered a blue marlin estimated at 400 pounds!!! We didn´t get many good pictures of the fish and since it was still green, so we let Lisa continue the fight. She worked hard for another 30 minutes and she and the crew brought the fish in close once again. We got more pictures and I tried a little movie making. I´ve added one of them here and hope it works for you.

We continued fishing and had Ian caught another sailfish. This time he sat in the chair by himself and reeled the fish all the way in by himself. We saw a huge pod of spinner dolphin and more tuna but couldn’t hook up this time. We didn’t stay on them long as we wanted to try for a grand slam since we had a marlin and sailfish in the boat.

I continued to hook some fish and miss some as well, as I’m learning this new way to fish. I did land one myself when we had a double on. So the final count for the day was eight sailfish released (We had at least twice that many bites). And the first marlin released on the new Frenzy by a woman in a pink dress wearing Coco Chanel. Did I forget to mention she fixed her make-up after landing her fish?

The Frenzy continues…. Maybe fly-fishing on

Sunday!

Steffen Spring Break-Second Day of Fishing

2010-04-10T18:00:00.009-06:00

I am very fortunate to have a wife and kids who are not afraid to try new adventures. We loaded up the car and met some of Costa Rican friends and headed off to Rancho del Tilapia. It was about a 20 minute ride from Quepos at the foot of the mountains.

Ian was quick to get a cane pole and soon had his dinner caught. We let our friends and the kids catch all the fish.

Ian later wanted to know why they didn´t have nice rods like the Frenzy. He told me he preferred a nice custom rod over the cane pole. I forgot to include this picture of Ian landing his Yellow-fin Tuna from the first day of our fishing. You can see the difference in equipment. I set up a 6wt. fly-rod and after changing flies and lines finally landed a new specie of fish for me on a muddler minnow.

Lisa was in La Cocina learning the local cooking techniques. The owners prepared our food over a wood burning outdoor stove. The local fare was served on wooden plates covered with a fresh banana leaf. It was muy delicioso.

After lunch, the kids played in the pool, fed from a local stream

while Willy gave me a tour of the ranch and pointed out some of the local flora and fauna.

On the way back we saw turkey next to the road and I thought of our friends, the Walker´s in South Carolina, who love to hunt Turkey.

Next… our other secret weapon!!!!!

Steffen Spring Break- First Day of Fishing

2010-04-10T17:05:00.010-06:00

I´ve been having problems with my computer so I borrowed Willy´s and have to figure some stuff out in Spanish so forgive me.

It´s our first day of fishing on Spring break and we decide to go offshore. Our team includes myself, my beautiful wife Lisa, 6 y.o. son Ian, Lisa´s sister Amy and her Beau Chris (his first time blue-water fishing). We are soon underway and headed to the West about 40 miles out. At 24 knots, the new Frenzy gets us there in short order. Our crew consists of Captain Ian Steffen, assistant Captain Jose, First Mate Marco and Second Mate Rafa (Marco´s Dad and and expert Captain as well).

We have two secret weapons we soon discover. We put Ian in the captains seat and with him at the helm we are quickly into sailfish. On this trip I'm trying to learn to hook the fish on conventional tackle as opposed to on the fly as Jamie and I have talked about coming down to fish some of the conventional tournaments on the Frenzy. I adopt the watch one, do one, teach one method. Marco soon has a fish on and Chris lands his first Pacific sailfish with help from the mates and a lot of razzing from me.

The baits are back in the water and now I´m up. It´s minutes before the next fish strikes and I´m on the reel. I let a nice backlash develop a beautiful bird´s nest on the reel. Lucky for me we have such a great crew. They quickly are backing down on fish and Amy lands a nice 30lb. Mahi. We now have Ceviche in the boat. I go to work getting the bird´s nest out of the reel.

We barely have the teasers in the water when a sail pops up on the left short teaser. I expertly drop a pitch bait to the fish, he bites, turns, runs, I flip the drag and it´s fish on! Amy lands the fish in short order as she is getting quite good at fishing the Frenzy.

I miss the next couple of bites and when Jose hooks the next sail, Ian decides he´s watched enough and he´s off the bridge in a flash and on my lap in the chair. With a little help from me, he lands his first sailfish. His sister, Olivia who is in Japan on a school trip will be happy for her
brother but will now have to fight for who´s turn it is to catch a fish as Ian is hooked!

Ian returns to the helm and quickly puts us upon a pod of white-bellied dolphins chasing a school of tuna. Moments later the crew has changed the baits and lures for tuna and we're on them. We land six yellowfin tuna. It´s the first time for tuna for Ian, Lisa, Amy, and Chris. Amy and Lisa land one on a fly as well. Lisa has some choice words about acrylic nails and the handle design on the Waterwork's fly reel and I promise her I will talk to the manufacturer when I return.

We land one more sailfish and then Lisa prepares lunch for the all of us. The bite is pretty much off for the afternoon. The i-Pod is hooked up and we bump to tunes as we decide to head in a bit early. We finish off the day with a dinner prepared by Chris to compliment Ian´s favorite meal, Tuna Sashimi and lots of it!

Count for the day is four Sailfish, six Yellowfin Tuna and one nice Mahi.

More to come....especially our other secret weapon!!

Spring Break Frenzy - Last sunset of the trip ...

2010-04-02T19:01:00.000-06:00

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

Spring Break Frenzy - Fishing Day 3

2010-04-02T07:50:00.000-06:00

From Casa Carolina's vantage point up the hill I can look down on the boats anchored in the bay as well as see about 20 miles across to the town of Parrita. What a beautiful sight! I hear howler monkeys. I hear Fred and Ethel, our resident parrots. I can see the two Frenzy boats, the 35 that we started this whole gig with as well as the new 43, our platform for 3 days of great fishing this week.

The new Frenzy 43

Yesterday was no exception. We again went out about 30 miles to some beautiful cobalt blue water and started pulling teasers. Before long we started raising fish. We picked at them all day long and by the end of the day we had seen some incredible action, raising about 12 and catching 5 sailfish.

Benji with a beauty of a fish and Joseph on the leader.

On the way in we totaled our catch for the week at 15 sailfish, 5 yellowfin tuna, 2 wahoo and 1 dorado. Everyone agreed that the fishing has been awesome! After a wonderful dinner at El Gran Escape restaurant the tired anglers hit the hay early.

Captain Jose, mates Marco and Will and the band of tired anglers.

So that ends our fishing here in Quepos. We are headed back to Carolina tomorrow. We all have plenty to do back home for sure like prepare to graduate high school and me, I think I'll start packing again!

High flyer!

Next week my fishing partner, Kerwin, will be here staying in Condo Del Mar with his family. They will be fishing a few days and no doubt enjoying some of the great fishing we have experienced this past week and all year long. Kerwin I am passing the blog over to you for a week!

The Spring Break Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Spring Break Frenzy - Fishing Day 2 - Monster Wahoo!!!

2010-03-31T11:01:00.001-06:00

Late afternoon swim after another great day on the Frenzy!

Yesterday we took the 43 out for another go at the sails. We found beautiful blue water about 30 miles out and started pulling teasers. The guys that didn't catch a sailfish on Sunday were up first and didn't have to wait long. We started raising sails right away and never had to wait long for action. Schultzy caught his first sail right off. We pulled it in the boat for a quick photo before releasing it.

Schultzy's first sail. Mate Will Freeman from Charleston assisting!

A short while later Benji rewarded the boat with a monster 47 pound wahoo. So far that's the boat record! Nice work Benji. We will enjoy the wahoo later this afternoon when Lizbeth fries up some wahoo fingers.

Nice 'hoo Benji!

Not to be outdone by their fishing buddies, Thomas and Bosie showed their skills as well with a couple of nice sails.

Thomas puts the heat on a sail while Mate Marco Solano prepares to grab the leader.

Bosie gives "thumbs up" to another sail!

By the end of the day we had released 6 sailfish and boated a 47 pound wahoo and a nice dorado. When it was time to head back to Quepos the boys jumped in and swam for a few minutes in over 3,000 feet of water. So clear you could practically see the bottom. Well maybe not exactly...

The boys are all off for a canopy tour today up in the mountains near Quepos. Everyone should try the zipline because it really is a lot of fun. While they are gone, Lizbeth will be making dorado ceviche and frying up some wahoo fingers for our afternoon fiesta in the pool watching the sun set. With any luck we'll have another late afternoon visit from the squirrel monkeys.

Tomorrow we hit the blue water again for some more action. I am still looking for the first marlin on the new Frenzy 43. When we catch it we are all going swimming!

There are a few good dates left in April so come join Team Frenzy and be a part of the excitement!

The Spring Break Frenzy continues ...

Jamie
www.FrenzySportfishing.com
www.casacarolinaquepos.com
www.vrbo.com/232069 (Condo Del Mar)

Spring Break Frenzy - Day 1 - Quepos Grand Slam!!!

2010-03-29T19:03:00.000-06:00

This week is our annual Spring Break at Casa Carolina. We have a house full of high school senior boys who love to fish! That's good because we are fishing 3 days this week on the Frenzy 43. We sure got off to a good start with a Quepos Grand Slam yesterday of yellowfin tuna, a huge wahoo and 4 sailfish. Those boys got the chance to see what a real "Frenzy" is when the yellowfin tuna started crashing the baits. After making quick work of them we boated 5 nice sized tunas and started thinking about dinner. They ended up being sashimi and titake at El Gran Escape restaurant in Quepos. Belton also made short work of the famous Raptor Burger!

Later on in the morning the left short rigger went off and after a 15 minute fight, Thomas had us dinner for tonight in the form of a 40 pound wahoo. Nice work Thomas!

The sailfish started chomping after the tuna's had mangled much of our bait rigs. We released a total of 4 sails for the day with yours truly going 2 for 2 on the circle hook rigs. Not bad for a flyfisherman, eh? So the guys got to see a lot of sea life with spinner and white bellied dolphins doing there thing balling bait. What a sight to see for sure.

Tonight at Casa Carolina we are grilling the wahoo at our weekly Costa Rican "typical" dinner. The wahoo will be expertly grilled by our gardener Saul while our housekeeper Lizbeth cooks some fabulous beans and rice along with a vegetable medley beyond compare! Lizbeth made us a plate of hot wings this afternoon to enjoy by the pool while we watched the sun fall into the placid Pacific Ocean. Our manager Willy will orchestrate the whole evening and act as waiter and somellier all in one!

The Spring Break Frenzy continues ...
Jamie
www.frenzysportfishing.com

Fishing update

2010-03-27T13:11:00.001-06:00

Fishing remains good even with the warmer water that has moved in. Some days are better than others for sure but that's just fishing. Over the past two weeks the Frenzy 35 and 43 have seen their share of good days. A couple of days ago we went 2 for 6 on sails and caught a whopper dorado. Casa Carolina's housekeeper Lizbeth is making ceviche out of fresh dorado as I type this. There are still some open dates left in April but not many. April can be a great month for sailfish and particularly marlin so shoot Willy an e-mail (willy@frenzysportfishing.com) and come on down!

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

A big sailfish always puts a smile on the angler's face! Nice going Pat!

Rafa works his magic

2010-03-20T16:07:00.000-06:00

Once again Rafa Solano proves that he is one of the best captains in Costa Rica. Two lucky anglers got the benefit of Rafa's many years of experience today when Rafa and mate Johan took them fishing on an absolutely calm Pacific Ocean.

I have been at Casa Carolina all day working on boat and house stuff. Willy just talked to Rafa who reported that today they caught 3 dorado, one wahoo, 3 sailfish and a blue marlin. Pretty work Rafa! For many years I have fished with Rafa and even against him in tournaments and I have learned that you never bet against him! Almost as good as hearing of their catch is the news that Rafa has saved me a fillet of dorado and a fillet of wahoo! Now I can have some fresh ceviche and grilled wahoo!

Tomorrow I'll be out on the 43 in search of billfish on the fly and more ingredients for ceviche.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Fishing Report for the week ending Feb 12th

2010-02-14T17:35:00.014-06:00

Well another week of great sportfishing in Costa Rica is in the books! Jenny and I took 3 couples down last Sunday to stay at Casa Carolina and fish 3 days on the Frenzy, the new 43 just launched last month. The fishing continues to be great from last month's good start to the year.

We arrived at Casa Carolina in time to enjoy a beautiful sunset while in the pool and snacking on fresh guacamole and chips made by our housekeeper Lizbeth. We were all pretty tired so after a great dinner at El Gran Escape we all went to bed reasonably early.

Day 1 - Monday 8th
Our first day greeted us with some rain held over from the previous night's showers. The girls decided they would hang back at the house and hatch a plan that involved relaxing by the pool and enjoying massages after lunch. They were successful!

The boys were not deterred by the rain which ended about 8 am. By 9:30 the sun appeared and we were on the fish. We raised a dozen or so sailish and released 5 that day. Ken caught his first billfish and Steve, an accomplished angler on Atlantic sails, caught his first Pacific billfish. He remarked on how much bigger they are than their Atlantic cousins. Graham who had fished on the Frenzy II during his recent family trip continued his fish catching ways as well.

Day 2 - Wednesday 10th

After a relaxing day on Tuesday with lunch at Anaconda restaurant were all ready for a day on the water. The new Frenzy 43 easily accommodated all 8 of us and two mates in the cockpit. That's a good thing for sure as we were constantly bombarded by hungry sailfish. The action almost never slowed during the day. We must have raised at least 15 sailfish. We released 10 for the day with the highlight being a triple header of sails caught by Carrie, Ken and Julie. Nice work all around!!! Captain Jose did an excellent job of running the boat to position the anglers to work their fish. After releasing Julie's fish we were able to pull Carrie and Ken's sailfish in the boat for a "bookend" photo of sails. The action continued throughout the day until 4 pm when we decided to head for cold drinks and ceviche by the pool. Everyone had a ball on Wednesday catching sailfish, eating ceviche for an appetizer and enjoying the beautiful Costa Rica blue water. I have to hand it to our mates Marco and Will who really worked hard to make everyone's day a lot of fun. Pretty work guys!!!

Day 3 - Friday 12th
Today was another guys day on the water as the ladies decided they would work on their tans and hang out at the house. Graham "Surfer Dog" practiced his moves down at the beach in Manuel Antonio. So I decided we would fly fish and see if Steve and Ken could catch their first billfish on fly. The day started off slow with the first 2 sails coming in low and cold. No bite out of them. I threw to the next fish that we teased in and managed to get a bite but it was one of those up the bill bites that rarely manage to stay hooked up. I could feel that by the way he bit so I was not surprised when he came off about 50 yards out.
After a slow hour or so I noticed Steve had drifted off for a short siesta so when Marco (who was driving the boat while Jose came down to visit) yelled "right long" I ran over to the rod and threw the fly in the water while hollering for Steve to wake up. Just as I was about to hand the rod over to Steve the fish came screaming in towards the transom, Marco put the boat in neutral and I cast the fly to the lit up fish. I knew I was going to get a good hookup by the way he crashed the fly and I was not disappointed! The fish went right so I struck him left and handed Steve the rod. Steve watched as his fish peeled line off the reel while dancing wildly across the water. A short time later Steve landed his first billfish on the fly. Nice work Steve.
Later in the day a huge dorado crashed the left teaser but never ate the fly we tossed out there for him. I bet that dorado was as big as the 50 pounder I caught back in December, maybe bigger. All in all we raised about 8 on Friday, catching one on the fly. Another beautiful day on the water!

Well now we're all back home in SC having been greeted by the remnants of a huge snowstorm. The weather in no way suits my clothes! Jenny and I had a great time introducing our friends to Casa Carolina and Frenzy Sportfishing. Good times together will become good memories.

We're only just getting into the high season and fishing has been great. We still have some dates open on the new Frenzy 43 and a few dates open on the Frenzy II (35) so if you're contemplating a fishing trip to Costa Rica now is the time to get in touch with us.

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

For more information:
www.frenzysportfishing.com
www.casacarolinaquepos.com or, www.vrbo.com/222751

GIFT Tournament - Day 4 - Frenzy Wins!!!

2010-01-29T07:14:00.000-06:00

The Frenzy Team

For the second year in a row the Frenzy team wins the GIFT Tournament. The team's 4 day total of 19 releases put the team on top. After a challenging start with only 2 fish on day 1, we managed to catch 4 on day 2, 5 on day 3 and 8 on the last day.

Day 4 began with us plying some beautiful blue water about 40 miles off the coast of Quepos. We picked at the fish all day long, starting with a hungry small sail about 9 am. Shortly after that we hooked up a double header with Kerwin masterfully making quick work of his fish while mine headed for Nicaragua. We caught the double header thanks to Jose's boat handling skills and a lot of reeling on our part.

A hot sail tailwalks towards the Gamefisher II

Despite our lead going into the last day, Kerwin and I watched the clock and nervously listened to the radio for catch reports. As we released fish after fish we knew things were looking good for us. We missed a couple of bites that would have been good to catch but thankfully we didn't need them. In the end we caught 8 for the day and a total of 19 for the tournament. I won the Bill Barnes award for Outstanding Angler.

Marco watches while Kerwin grinds it out with the last fish of the tournament

Marsha and everyone at El Gran Escape really worked hard to put on a terrific tournament. All the anglers were commenting on what a good time they have had this week. As I have already said, it was so nice to be able to back into a slip and enjoy some post fishing dock time. Thanks again to he guys at Marina Pez Vela.

And a special thanks to the crew of the new Frenzy 43. Captain Jose did a superb job of finding the fish and positioning us each day as the body of fish moved with the moving water. Mates Marco and Glenn worked together to manage the cockpit and expertly tease fish to the boat. A "high five" to my fishing partner Kerwin who spent the week tying leaders and making sure all the technical aspects of our effort were in place. His last fish for the tournament was well over 100 pounds and took a lot of patience and skill to catch. There is no crew I would rather fish with. Pretty work guys!!!

Now it's time to head back to the US for a week before returning for another crack at those sails and to catch some of the whopper dorado we had to pass up all week.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

GIFT Tournament - Day 3 - Frenzy maintains the lead.

2010-01-27T21:44:00.000-06:00

Today was a good day for the Frenzy 43. We managed to pick at the fish all day and catch 5 out of 7 bites. We missed an opportunity on a double header but that's fishing. We have the lead going into the final day so we'll see where we are at 4 pm tomorrow. It's been a great week with a fair sailfish bite and some marlin seen and hooked. Tres Hermanos had a marlin on at 1 pm and still on at dark tonight. Not sure if they caught it or not. We will find out at the dock in the morning.

On the 35 Frenzy II, Lee and Stanley raised a small blue that failed to bite. Unfortunately not much other than that. They are still in second place.

Tonight we had appetizers at El Gran Escape that were provided by Marina Pez Vela. Though not open yet, the marina has allowed us to dock the boats there during the tournament. That has really added a lot to the fun of the tournament. Thanks Harold and Co.

Thank goodness tomorrow is the last day...

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

GIFT Tournament - Day 2 - Frenzy takes the lead

2010-01-27T05:38:00.000-06:00

After two days of fishing the Frenzy boats are in 1st and 2nd place. On day 2 Kerwin and I got some good bites and manged to catch 4 taking our total to 6 and putting us in first place on the Frenzy. On the 35, Stanley hooked a nice 200 lb blue marlin but pulled the hooks.

We'll see what Day 3 brings as we are at the halfway point in the tournament!

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

GIFT Tournament - Day 1 - Frenzy II takes early lead!!!

2010-01-25T18:37:00.001-06:00

The Frenzy II (35) jumped out to an early lead in the 2010 GIFT Tournament by releasing 4 sails. Captain Rafa Solano, anglers Lee and Stanley and mates Yohan and Will put on a clinic on how to catch sails on fly today. Pretty work boys! Now you guys got 12 other boats, including the new Frenzy, dubbed the "Super Frenzy" by Marsha (El Gran Escape Restaurant), chasing you. Stay on 'em guys!!! By the way Marsha the tira misu was wonderful.While the 35 was catching fish the rest of the fleet saw practically nothing. Kerwin and I managed to catch a couple putting us in a 2 way tie for third place we think. We'll see in the morning after all the reports have been tabulated. Buenas suerte to all the teams.

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

GIFT 2010 - Practice Day 1

2010-01-23T06:05:00.000-06:00

As the alarm rang at 5:30 am I awoke to the sound of a howler monkey outside my room and was quickly reminded that I am in Costa Rica and there is no need to get up and let the dogs out!

Kerwin and I are here to defend our title as winners of last year's GIFT Tournament. Last night we saw many of our old friends at dinner at El Gran Escape. Today is our first day of practice on the new FRENZY, the 43 Maverick express. In fact it's the first day fishing for this boat. Our good friends Lee and Stanley are fishing the Frenzy II and they are very capable of winning this tournament on my old boat.

An update will be posted after fishing today.

---
Update: So we went out and dragged teasers for a while. We raised 3, got 1 bite but pulled the hooks. Then about 1 we blew out a transmission seal and had to come home. They are working on it today so we should be good to go for the start of the tournament tomorrow. I am happy to report that the air conditioning works very well on the new 43!!!

Lee and Stanley caught a nice dorado so we ate good last night at El Gran Escape. Thanks guys!

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

Hunter's Roosterfish

2009-08-18T10:31:00.000-06:00

My friend Philip just return from Quepos and filed this report on his inshore day with his son Hunter who caught a nice roosterfish.

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"Thanks to Jamie and Willie for helping us put together a great family vacation to Costa Rica. Your recommendations allowed us to make the most of our time. Special Thanks to Marco and Beatle Juice for a short but sweet inshore fishing trip on July 30th. The day started out pretty choppy and after boating a couple of needle fish and watching a group of Humpback Whales, my wife and daughter were not feeling so well so we took them back to the dock and let them return to the comfort of the Si Como No Hotel. My son, Hunter and I were determined to catch a Rooster so we decided to tough it out. We were able to make it back out just as the tide was turning and as Marco predicted we were rewarded with a couple of nice Rooster Fish. The first one was small and we managed to get it to the boat in short order. The second fish started off without much of a fight so Hunter and I sat in the chair to bring him in. Things changed quickly and 20 minutes later the fish had gotten the best of Hunter and a thunderstorm had found us as well. Hunter decided to become the photographer and I fought the fish for another 25 minutes before he finally gave up."

Philip

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The high season of December through April is filling up so make your plans now to enjoy some of the best fishing that Costa Rica has to offer.

The Frenzy continues...

Jamie

Summertime Update ...

2009-08-03T12:53:00.000-06:00

Check out this sea monster that I am holding for my good friend David Wielicki (right) while Beatle Juice (left) cuts the leader with his teeth. Nice fish David!!! Now about that mallard hunt in Canada that you promised me...

This and some other nice roosters were caught last week during my short stay in Manuel Antonio (Quepos). Though the visit was short I got a chance to see Captain Jose and mate Marco, our Operations Manager Willy and a mate we picked up for the summer "Beatle Juice". I also got to visit with my friends Marsha and Christel who own the fabulous restaurant El Gran Escape on the waterfront in Quepos. As usual everyone enoyed their dinner, particularly the Pargo Entero.

Here's my buddy Bobby from NYC with his roosterfish.

And my friend Chris "It's all part of the experience" Angel with his.

Hi guys! Betcha been wondering just what's been going on with the Frenzy blogerators. Well there has been a lot going on for sure. I'll run through the list with ya:

Numero Uno: It's been summertime and I have been fishing on our boat in SC and enjoying some high quality family time, walking my lab "Boo" on the beach in the morning and sitting on the beach in the evening drinking wine with Jenny, my wife of 24 years! So, you'll just have to forgive my lack of blog posts.

2) In Costa Rica, Willy, Jose and Marco have been running a few charters with some of our regular customers and a few with some new folks, like Clayton Robertson who sent me these photos from his recent trip.

Pretty work guys and great to hear that you enjoyed staying in our house "Casa Carolina" (www.CasaCarolinaQuepos.com).

3) Meanwhile we have been working on some upgrades to our website www.FrenzySportfishing.com. Some of the exciting features that will be added soon are a calendar showing availability of the boat, a video section showing some exciting videos of marlin, sailfish, roosterfish and even some videos showing how mate Marco rigs baits for circle hooks and how Frenzy team member Brian Thielicke ties our tournament flies! Kerwin will shoot me for posting that one! Our web site gets about 1,000 unique visitors a week as it is so we expect that number to really shoot up as we add a lot of content over the next several months.

4) The new 43 Maverick Express is coming along nicely. I visited Bimi Lebo at Maverick Boat Works last week and checked on the boat's progress. She really looks good. We're having Bimi install a sound system that really rocks. It will have a plug for all of our iPod toting customers!!! Now Jenny will be able to play her AC/DC while catching sails on fly and our daughter Charlotte can watch me dance to "Apple bottom jeans, boots with the fur..." You gotta embarrass your daughters! We will soon be taking reservations for days on the 43 for 2010. "Hey Marco, turn up the air conditioning in the cabin as I am getting a bit chilly on the 20 mile ride back to Quepos!!!"

Ok, now that you're reasonably well caught up with what's been going on this summer in CR I gotta run and get some work done so I can get up to NC later in the week to chase those crazy white marlin on fly.

Remember that high season in Costa Rica starts December 1st and it was on that day last year that the Frenzy caught her first marlin of the season. If you're thinking about booking a Costa Rica vacation and want to fish with the Frenzy team you better get in touch with Willy and get things rolling. Willy can be reached by phone at 011-506-8851-0935 or by e-mail at Willy@FrenzySportfishing.com.

The Frenzy continues ...

Jamie Walker
El Jefe
Frenzy Sportfishing
www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Hey Kerwin cut me some slack when I post the fly tying video. Remember that it's all in the "wiggle"!

The Smith Family

2009-05-22T12:25:00.000-06:00

Regular readers of the Frenzy blog will know that I like to post e-mails that I get from folks who have come down and fished with us in Quepos. Here is an e-mail that I received from the Smith family:

Hey Willy,

We want to thank the whole Frenzy team for making our vacation such a pleasure. From the arrival to the airport in San Jose to the departure in Quepos, everything was first class all the way!! Jose, Marco and Rudy were fun to hang out with and put in 100% effort to put us on the fish. Even though the bite was a little slow, we still caught 3 sails, several roosters, mahi, and some snook. The scenery was awesome and we got to see a large school of spinner dolphin. Rudy and Marco showed us some "pirate ships" - commercial boats. Jose, "Captain Jack Sparrow" , was always working extra hard to put us on the fish and is a very experienced captain!!

I'm sending a picture of one of the sails that 16yr old Josh caught along with roosters that both Josh and Jessica 13yrs. caught.

Willy is the absolute best at making all the arrangements. No worries!!!

Thanks again for everything, you all are awesome and we will definitely reccommend the Frenzy Sportfishing Team to others!!

The Smith Family
Charlotte, NC

Well it was great to hear from these folks and to see Jessica and Josh with some great catches. Stay tuned for some exciting news on the new FRENZY 43!!!

The Frenzy continues ...!

Jamie

The Johnston's Frenzy Experience

2009-04-22T08:32:00.000-06:00

Remember back in March when the Johnston's had the best two days of the year? Well Pat sent me this e-mail about her trip and some photos. I thought I would share them with you.

From Pat:

Many thanks for helping us plan our most exciting vacation ever!! Willie made our life a breeze going through customs and taking care of us throughout the week.

Our three days on the boat were fantastic. Jose and Marco take such great pride in keeping the boat CLEAN and ready for ACTION. What a great team! Catching that many sailfish in two days is still amazing for us- as you well know- we aren't really good anglers! 44 in two days!!! John and Jane Chapman were with us and they loved every minute being on the boat and pulling in so many fish. We decided that the "REEL FRENZY" was when we had 4 sailfish on the lines at one time!!! Talk about crazy!!! That was sooo much fun! Marco and Jose were able to help us bring all 4 in without loosing any fish....plus within an hour of our first REEL FRENZY-- it happened again!! 4 more sails on the lines at the same time... we even made up a dance called the Reel Frenzy!! (That was actually after a few cocktails....)

Anyway- I have some great pix that I will send to you....what a blast! All and all, we caught 44 sails, one rooster, one snook, one dorato and a bird!!! (The bird got caught in the hook trying to steal our bait- Marco was able to free it...)

You are running a first class operation down there and it shows. Looking forward to next time. Pat and Clay Johnston

p.s. You home is absolutely breathtaking!!! We were walking around it unable to talk...what a fabulous place to stay...you have thought of everything!

Pat and her crew sure had a great time with our Frenzy team. As we look towards the summer months some dates are open in June and July. I love fishing those months because there are less boats on the water and the fishing can be really good. Plenty of sails, marlin, tuna and dorado around plus some wahoo start hanging out with us. Wahoo may be my favorite fish to eat!

Make your plans to come down this summer as the Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

Spring Break (the Steffen's) We're Home!

2009-04-13T13:45:00.000-06:00

Yesterday we said good-bye to Donielle and Casa Carolina. Misael and Willy transported us to the airport for our return trip. We caught an earlier flight to Houston than scheduled but couldn't get an earlier flight home from there. As you can see from the pictures, the girls returned to civilization by plugging in their technology gadgets. Jeff and I managed to stay on vacation a few more hours. We arrived home early this morning to a balmy temperature of 43 degrees. This morning I thought about putting on my thermal underwear, rain gear, and going fishing. Then I realized it was a nightmare, rolled over and went back to sleep.

I did get an update on the fishing report. The crew went out Easter Sunday and fished a half day. They landed 3 Roosters. They then took the clients on a snorkeling tour somewhere around the park.

I did make a mistake on the previous report. It was 7 sailfish and 2 Mahi. I guess the Mahi both weighed 60-65 pounds!! I'll be interested to hear the reports from the boat as the clients from Wyoming finish their last two days of fishing.

The Frenzy Continues!!

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 8 and 9

2009-04-12T07:01:00.000-06:00

Happy Easter to all my Frenzy Friends and "Family"!!!!!

Today I'll start with the fishing report from yesterday as I didn't get a chance to post last night. One of the reasons we enjoy having our crew is how hard they work to please the customer. As I reported earlier, the off shore fishing near Quepos has been very slow. Jose has been talking to many of his connections and there was a report of blue water about 40 miles off-shore that seemed to be holding some fish. Jose consulted with the clients and they were willing to take the chance and make the long run knowing it could be "hero or zero". Well, it was the former in this case. They had something like 18 bites. They landed 7 sailfish and one Mahi. They had a triple on with two sailfish and the Mahi and landed all three. Today they will switch and try the in-shore fishing.

Our day yesterday, began with some of Lisa's relatives coming to say good-bye. We had a small troop of the spider monkeys come right to the deck to entertain us. The iguanas were posing for pictures and of course the birds are constantly telling us what they think of us. I found out Jenny was trying to find a sloth on her last trip here and we had the good fortune of having one in the tree right next to the pool all day. We have had the most wonderful vacation at Casa Carolina thanks to the Southern hospitality of my dear friends, Jenny and Jamie Walker.

We finished our last evening in Costa Rica with dinner at El Avion. Jose brought us some of the Mahi they caught today we had it for appetizer. We were joined with the entire Crew of the Frenzy with wives, girl friends, and kids for our end of the season Fiesta. Olivia was in heaven getting to see Marco and Rudy once again. She, of course, is now more than ever determined to move here. Ian has two Costa Rican girlfriends. Rachel, Jose's daughter, and Monserat, Willy's daughter. I asked him who he liked better and he told me "I like em' both Dad". Jeff calls Ian the "Lady Killer" and I guess now I know why. Jose and his wife Jenny, brought the new baby Joseph as Lisa has not seen him yet and everyone teased her and called her grandma in Spanish. Willy kept us in tears with his jokes and cut-ups. Such an evening with "family" makes it all the harder to leave.

Today we will head home to the Great NorthWet as I call it. As we work through the summer, I'll keep you up to date on happenings with the Steffen part of the Frenzy family. I'm still working on Lisa to bring the kids back in June since the weather in Washington doesn't get nice until mid July. We are all excited for the new boat and can't wait to once again see all our many Frenzy Friends and "Family" from South Carolina and Costa Rica.

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 7

2009-04-10T22:44:00.000-06:00

Time flies so fast and it seems that here, it goes at light speed. We spent a wonderful day at Casa Carolina. Lounging in the pool, checking out the sloth in the tree and feeding the Iguanas. Lizbeth made us her famous guacamole for lunch (I watched so hopefully I can make an attempt of it at home). Lizbeth has promised us her gallo pinto (a traditional Costa Rican dish) for breakfast. Please excuse my spelling because me Espanol es muy malo.

We made a return trip to El Gran Escape' for dinner. I got some pictures of Olivia and her fly that she caught her first sailfish with. Marsha and Christal have mounted it in their wall of fame. That's correct, I don't have a fly on that wall either. I just don't rate the way Olivia does. It was a sad time as I said good bye to Marsha and my many friends that work at the restaurant as I probably won't return until Christmas time. (Thanks Marsha for telling me that some one is reading my posts!)

I failed to include a picture of the beach at Playa Arco yesterday but found one on Amy's camera today. Tomorrow is our last day and it feels like we got here yesterday. If you need any information from me about Costa Rica or the Northwest U.S., feel free to contact me at Kerwin@Frenzysportfishing.com

The Frenzy report from today was 3 sailfish and everyone had another wonderful day on the boat. Tomorrow they are planning another trip off-shore and then will change to in-shore on Sunday.

Willy called me from the airport and I spoke again with Danny Smith from Charleston. Danny told me how much he and his family had enjoyed their trip and that they are looking forward to returning to Costa Rica and fishing on the Frenzy!

My final fishing report will be tomorrow as we leave on Sunday morning. Does anybody know what the temperature is in Gig Harbor or if it's snowing?

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 7

2009-04-09T21:49:00.000-06:00

Last night we moved to the incredible home of Jamie and Jenny Walker, Casa Carolina, to spend our last few days of Spring Break. We were up early this morning and headed South of Dominical to spend a day at Playa Arco. We parked the car by the highway and trekked through the jungle to the beach. After exploring the cave or Arch that defines this beach area, everyone hit the surf. Everyone but me, that is. I took off and was determined to find another path back to the road. Once I had located it and made my way to the top of the hill, I started back down and was greeted by a couple from Germany. They were staying at a small Hotel near-by and we had a pleasant chat about the wonders of Costa Rica.

I wound my way back down the path and took note of several different species of butterflies that were active, some lizards, birds and one little snake. I have been told there are more species of butterflies in this small country than on the entire Continent of Africa. Luckily I found the beach again by going downhill and listening for the surf. I knew where the natural spring that has a built in "shower" is located and made a bee-line for it to cool off after my hike.

We played in the surf and figured out how to send Ian flying towards shore on the boogie board we had brought with us. We all "showered" the salt water off and then hiked up the hill to see the huge stands of Bamboo that mark the entrance to the trail. Again we saw many butterflies as we worked our way back to the car. We stopped at a small Hotel, Cuna del Angel, (Crib of the Angel) and had the most delicious lunch. I would drive there again just for the food.

The group from Wyoming went off-shore. The report was one sailfish and two Mahi-Mahi. Willy said they told him that they were very impressed with the boat and the crew and were looking forward to tomorrow. I'll try to give the updates as they come in.

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 6

2009-04-09T21:10:00.000-06:00

We were up early and packed our bags. It's off to the Frenzy for a day of in-shore fishing. The crew had been out early and caught sardines for us to use as live bait. We started fishing for Snook at the mouth of the river. I was the only one with a bite but no hook-up.

Then we were off to the rocks around Dominical for Rooster fish. Today we were joined by Jose's daughter, the beautiful Rachel. Ian and Rachel spent the entire day on the bridge. Jose let Ian and Olivia man the helm for much of the day. Both kids will have their Captain's license before long. The trees around Dominical were in bloom and I've never seen the area like it was this day. As usual, the crew of the Frenzy worked and worked but we just couldn't seem to get a fish to take the bait. The tides were good, the bait lively but only a couple of light bites with no hook-ups. We even trolled Rapalas around an anchored shrimp boat in hopes of a fish.

We decided to run back to the Quepos Rocks, have a delicious lunch of Arroz Con Pollo, and try our luck. Just like the day before on Olivia's tuna, the bait wasn't in the water but a minute and it was "Fish On!". Jeff landed a nice Rooster, his first, and it made my day as he has talked about wanting to catch a Rooster and a Marlin since we first discussed fishing in Costa Rica. I told him how happy I was that he caught a Rooster but I'd like him to put in a little more rod time to catch the Marlin, since it took me more than 10 years to finally land one.

Amy was next to land one and you can tell by the picture that she is the inquisitive type. It wasn't enough just to catch one, but she had a million questions for Marco and Rudy about the fish. I finally had to call a halt to it and make them put it back in the water.

We finished off the day with a double hook-up. Jeff on one rod and Olivia on the other. It looked like Jeff had a monster. Unfortunately for "Little Pea", hers came unbuttoned. She was polite enough to let Jeff finish bringing in his fish. It wasn't a monster, but a fun way to end the day. I guess I'll just have to let Olivia make another trip on the Frenzy to try and catch her first Rooster.

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 5

2009-04-07T23:04:00.000-06:00

Tuesday at last. We got a bit of a late start for me. Lots of primping and then a stop for coffee. Remember the Seattle connection. Even though we had heard it was slow off-shore, we thought we would give it a shot. We had fished about 2 hours when we came across a pod of spinner dolphin that had to be in the thousands. I have seen large pods before but nothing like this. We had some live bait and within a couple of minutes we were hooked up. Guess who took the first turn? Yep, Olivia. Marco calls her "Little Pea" as does her mother. After a prolonged battle during which time we were joined by 4 other boats, she landed a yellow-fin tuna that was estimated at 70 lbs. A new species for Olivia and of course a bigger yellow-fin than I've ever caught. All the boats worked this pod for quite awhile with the Frenzy boating the only fish.

Lisa decided she wanted to go swimming with the dolphins so She, Amy and Marco and later Olivia all jumped in and swam with the dolphins. I asked Amy if she could touch the bottom and she said that she thought it was a little deep. I told she was right and that she was snorkeling in 3000 feet of water. Jeff tried to direct them to a sea turtle that was swimming close by but they couldn't see it and it moved off too quickly. We moved off the pod and fished and over the next several hours but as we came upon this same huge pod, we would work it again. This pod would sometimes split into two pods and some would go racing off in another direction and then after some time they would join up again. It was spectacular!

Next, it was Jeff's turn. As I said it was a little slow. One fish came in and gave the teasers a look but no bites. After some time, I asked who's turn it was and we laughed when they said it was still Jeff's. We decided to give some one else a turn so we put Ian (the 5 y.o.) in the fighting chair. It wasn't more than 5 minutes and a sailfish took the bait. We were going to let Ian sit in Uncle Jeff's lap and land the fish but alas, he spit the hook. Ian had just as much fun, reeling in the bait. It was time to head for home and Sashimi. Lots of Sashimi!!

Tomorrow it's Rooster time!!!!

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 4

2009-04-07T22:57:00.000-06:00

I'll try to catch up and get two posts in for the last two days.

On Monday, Olivia, her aunt Amy and Uncle Jeff braved the Canopy tour (zip lines). Had a great time. All the pictures that seem to come back had Olivia and one of the "cute" guides and she's only twelve (God help me!). Amy and Jeff have done the zip lines in Mexico and said the ones here were outstanding. Jeff wants a bigger thrill however and the guides told him there are some really big ones near San Jose. Sounded like it is worth checking out.

The Smith Family went in-shore fishing and the report was they landed 3 roosters on six bites. Also got 4 snook and some snapper. Overall, it sounded like they had a great time and the crew of the Frenzy enjoyed them as well. Tuesday will be our turn.

Kerwin

spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 3

2009-04-06T16:19:00.000-06:00

As you can see from my posts, I'm about a day behind. Day 3 was another day relaxing by pool and soaking up some sun. We got time to visit with Willy and his wife Jamie. Ian has learned to swim all the way across the pool without his life jacket. My pictures are going to be tougher since Ian dropped my camera and it's toast. I will see if I can get some from other cameras.

We have been seeing Monkeys every day and have seen all three species. I think the Howlers were sleeping in the trees by the condo since they sounded very close. Lisa has found a dog. It is a Chihuahua and now she wants to adopt it. It's name is Paco. She is driving me loco about this dog. Just ask Willy.

Fishing report from yesterday. A lot of fish in the teasers but not many biters. I went to the dock to meet the boat and I ended up giving Danny Smith and his son a ride back to their hotel. His son is catching all the fish and Dad says he is having a great time watching him do that. They plan on going rooster fishing tomorrow. We will make our decision based on their reports. I can't wait!!

Olivia and I then gave a ride to two British girls back to Quepos. They had just completed high school and were taking time before college. They are spending 6 months traveling Central and South America and doing volunteer work. Olivia had fun talking with them. Their favorite place so far......Manuel Antonio!

Off to Rico Tico for Chicken Nachos!!!!!!

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 2

2009-04-04T16:52:00.000-06:00

I've sent a picture of the weather we just left (please note the coats and long pants) and what it is like here. The trees are in bloom outside our place and it's spectacular. We had a lazy day today. I went for a jog down to the Manuel Antonio Beach early and saw some Howler monkeys on the way. Lisa, Jeff, and Amy went to their favorite coffee place for breakfast, Cafe Milagro. We hung out at the pool with a visit by the white faced monkeys and we are off to El Gran Escape for dinner tonight.

I'm cooking up a little gift for my fishing partner, Jamie Walker since he turns 50 today. Yes, fifty. One half of a century. So if you want to send him a little note of congratulations, feel free to send it to Jamie@Frenzysportfishing.com. I wish we were there to celebrate with him and Jenny but will make up for it later.

The Smith family from Charlotte were on the boat today. The unofficial report was two sails and one Mahi. I will try to hook up with them before they leave and see how their trip has been.

Kerwin

Spring Break (the Steffen's) Day 1

2009-04-04T12:42:00.000-06:00

Since this is a fishing blog site, my posts will not be near as exciting as the Walker's posts from their Spring Break. Unfortunately we do not have 12 teenageers in tow and only have two days scheduled fishing on the Frenzy. I will try to report the fishing as I hear from Willy.

We arrived today without any major problems. Our flight was delayed by an hour leaving Seattle but we still had plenty of time to make our connection is Houston. There are six of us. Lisa, me, Olivia (the 12 y.o. fishing phenom), Ian (the 5 y.0. water rat), Amy (Lisa's sister who caught the first fish of her life on our last trip and has been watching ESPN fishing shows for tips ever since) and Amy's husband, Jeff who would like to land a marlin or rooster fish this trip.

We had a great trip across the mountains in the King Air. Eleven minute flight from San Jose to Quepos. It is my favorite airplane of all time !!!! Amy got to ride shot-gun and loved it.

Just took easy this afternoon. Our concierge manager, Donielle, treated us to a tour of the improvements made to our accommodations at Casa El Mar. It is such a treat to return here for another idyllic week in Costa Rica.

After settling in, the water rat (Ian) had us head for the pool. As always, I learn what a small world we live in. The family staying in the unit below us is from Colorado where I grew up. The husband is friends with a doctor who I was on student council with in junior high. I spoke with them about fishing and although the Frenzy is booked the whole time they are here, Willy may try to find them another boat. They are here with their three children and we gave them lots of tips on what to do and where to go.

Following the pool, we slipped next door to Issimo Suites for a relaxing dinner with one of my favorite waiters in Manuel Antonio, Dixon. Dixon saw to our every need and I enjoyed my New York Steak prepared Tamarindo style. Tamarindo is a type of fruit found in the mountains and it's flavor is indecribable. You just can't get this at home. Jeff had filet with a mushroom reduction sauce; Amy hade Caribbean style shrimp with a sweet and sour zing; Lisa and Olivia had fresh tuna prepared in different styles and Ian........fell asleep on my lap. I put him down on an adjoining sofa as we finished our meal with a banana split we all shared. Tomorrow we are all sleeping in!

I have a special report for Saturday!!

Kerwin

Report from Bret Bettison

2009-03-31T12:38:00.000-06:00

As regular followers know, I frequently receive e-mails from folks who have come down to fish on the FRENZY. I received this e-mail from Bret Bettison who fished a couple of days with us mid March. I think it, and the accompanying photos speak for themselves!

"Jamie,

For the past 10 years my boys have watched me pack up and head to Quepos usually the week after the GIFT tournament. I would return with stories and pictures of the sportfishing action available there. Over the years my boys have become pretty decent fisherman along the Gulf Coast and began asking me when could they go to Costa Rica. My oldest son, Colton 17, is graduating from High School this year and as a graduation gift to him I thought they would really enjoy a trip to Quepos. My wife had never been herself so we planned to fill the time with some other activities as well. My youngest son, Carson 10, is ready for anything anytime.

Our flight out of Houston was great, No Delays !! I had decided to have a driver pick us up in San Jose and drive us to Quepos, Really is a nice drive and my wife and boys were able to see some of Costa Rica by car. We stayed at Si Como No, as you know this is a fine hotel and is hard to beat.

We were to fish on the Frenzy March 17 and 19, The first day the bite was a little slow but Jose and Marco managed to raise 4 sailfish, 3 were landed, Both boys got their 1st sailfish that day with Colton landing 2 and Carson landing one, refusing any help from his dad. The Frenzy is a fine boat, I had seen the boat last year for the 1st time and wanted to fish the boat the next time I was down.

March 18th we did the canopy tour in the morning, everyone should make plans on a canopy tour at least once. Late that afternoon we had a message that the Frenzy had an issue and would not be able to go out on the 19th, so we were rerouted to one of Jeanette's boats.

March 19th the boys had 6 more sailfish, with both of them releasing 3 each. I had decided before the trip that I was going along for the fun and to watch the boys and help them experience their 1st trip to Costa Rica, so I never touched a rod. I prefer light tackle and fly, now the boys are already trying to figure out how they can make another trip and land those Pacific sailfish on light tackle, I am sure I can make that happen again, as my wife fully enjoyed the trip and has already mentioned she is ready to go again !! Sounds like we will all be going again.

The food is always excellent, you have to at least make the El Gran Escape and El Avion, although I have not had a bad meal ever in Quepos.

Our return to San Jose was great and our flight back to Houston was On Time!!

We certianly look forward to fishing the Frenzy again.

What a great Spring Break the boys along with Mom and Dad had!!!!!

Thanks,
Bret"

Hey Bret thanks for the report and congrats to Colton and Carson on their fish. Nice photos too!

As we head towards the end of the school year and folks start to make their plans for the summer I always encourage people to come to Quepos. There is plenty to do and the fishing is still good through about the end of July when it starts to rain too much. Contact Willy for your reservations and come on down in the summertime as the FRENZY continues ...

Jamie

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Eight

2009-03-29T13:08:00.001-06:00

Well it has been a fun week with the kids. As we expected they all had a great time in Costa Rica. As the blog posts reported, they got to do the canopy tour, catch sailfish and roosterfish on the FRENZY, ride jetskis, eat Lizbeth's fabulous guacamole, see boas, monkeys and parrots at the house and, most importantly, hang out in the pool and just chill! This week shows what Costa Rica is all about, having fun enjoying the beautiful country. Sure I go to pursue my favorite sport, fishing, but it sure is fun to spend a day doing a canopy tour with my family and friends. There are just so many fun things to do that you just can't do them all in a week.

The best thing about the week is that Jenny and I survived a week with 12 teenagers!

The fishing continues to be good in Quepos. We have a few open days in April so give Willy a call 'cause the FRENZY continues ...

Jamie
www.FrenzySportfishing.com

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Seven

2009-03-27T18:47:00.000-06:00

I was greeted on the dock today by a fellow that heard we had a dozen teenagers at the house this week. He asked me if my hair had turned gray so I took off my hat! He said "Hmm!, Looks like they have turned a few hairs gray." I said "yes but not loose yet!"

Well it was back to the deep water, like 1500 feet deep, off the edge of the Furuno Bank chasing billfish today with Joseph and Bosie. Starting shallow we immediately picked up a pair of sails. Then we followed some rips out to 1500 feet where we saw a couple of free jumping sails but had not bites. There is still plenty of bait up on the Furuno so we headed back into shallower water (250 ft), caught some live bonito and slow trolled them for awhile. We caught another sail on the bonita then headed back in after another wonderful day offshore.

Now we're headed to Kapi Kapi for our last dinner together in Costa Rica!

Tomorrow we load up and head back to San Jose as our Spring Break FRENZY starts to wind down...

Jamie

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Six

2009-03-26T18:58:00.000-06:00

It was a day of roosterfish again. This time I was out with Joseph and his crew of Bosie, Emily and Mary. The first hour we caught sardines for live bait then headed down to my favorite roosterfishing hole in Dominical. The tide was low, which I like for roosterfishing, and we were rewarded with 3 nice roosterfish by 10:30 am. Emily and Bosie caught their first roosters and Joseph caught one as well.

By 11 the girls were thinking about lunch by the pool so we took them back to Quepos and headed back out for a few hours around the rocks near Manuel Antonio. Bosie and I both caught nice roosters in the afternoon. For the day we released 6 and missed a few bites as well.

Tomorrow I am taking Joseph and Bosie back to the deep water to chase billfish while the girls go to the park to jet ski. All this as the Spring Break FRENZY continues ...!

Jamie

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Five

2009-03-25T18:54:00.001-06:00

While I was down in Dominical today, a group of the girls went out for roosterfish. They caught and released 4 with the biggest one going an estimated 60, 70, 80 or 90 pounds, depending on who was doing the estimating! Regardless of the weight, it took the angler, Margaret Deans, 45 minutes to bring the fish to the boat. What a great fight she had.

Then there is the story of the 8 foot boa constrictor trying to eat our sorta pet iguana. Walter, our maintenance guy, came to the rescue and released the iguana from the boa's death grip. Jenny provided this photo.

And lastly we have all enjoyed our nights of eating out on the veranda! Lizbeth cooked a fabulous dinner for us which included chicken, black beans and rice, typical Costa Rican food and wonderfull!

Tomorrow Joseph's group is out again, this time for roosterfish as the Spring Break FRENZY continues ...

Jamie Walker

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Four

2009-03-24T20:54:00.000-06:00

Joseph and his crew of three were rewarded for their early rising today with 5 sails. For Emily, Mary and Bosie they had a particularly fun day by catching their first sails. Joseph, an old hand now at catching billfish had a turn at the rod as well. For the rest of us who stayed at home today, we enjoyed another beautiful March day in Costa Rica. I had the opportunity to check out some solar panel / battery systems and rain water catchment systems. Here are some photos today from Mary's camera. Hope you enjoy them. With all that we're doing we find ourselves turning in early for the evening.

More tomorrow as the Spring Break FRENZY continues ...

Jamie

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Three

2009-03-24T08:11:00.001-06:00

Yesterday I took Charlotte and three of her friends out on the Frenzy looking for billfish and some dorado for dinner. The dorado never showed but the girls caught 3 sails. Should have been more cause we raised about 10 and got 6 bites! Go figure. Although Charlotte has been fishing with me all her life, yesterday was the first day offshore for the other girls. They all enjoyed the thrill of catching their first billfish and are looking forward to their next day offshore.

Last night we all went to dinner at our favorite restaurant, El Gran Escape in downtown Quepos. We started off with calamari and sushi and went on from there. The food is always fabulous, the frozen margaritas always refreshing and the service couldn't be better. My pargo entero was "off the hook". We took some of Marsha's famous deserts back to the house where they were quickly consumed.

Today my son Jose and three of his friends are out there so we'll see what their report is when they return this afternoon. And now if I can get the girls up I'll see what they want to do today! Probably back down to the park for more trinkets and lunch. Whatever they decide I'm game 'cause everyday there is something to do here.

Stay tuned as the Spring Break FRENZY continues ...

Jamie

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day Two

2009-03-22T20:02:00.000-06:00

Well after a long day yesterday that ended with our arrival at Casa Carolina (www.casacarolinaquepos.com) at 1 AM, we turned in quickly in anticipation of our canopy tour today. This is a great activity for a day off from fishing. Anyone from 5 to 95 should do the canopy tour sometime.

Here are some photos from the day.

Tomorrow we are back on the FRENZY for another crack at the billfish as the Spring Break Frenzy continues ...

Jamie

Spring Break FRENZY 2009 - Day One

2009-03-21T14:45:00.000-06:00

Our regular followers will remember that on the way down to Costa Rica for the GIFT Tournament I spent the day in Delta's Crown Room in Atlanta thanks to Delta's delay in Columbia causing us to miss our flight from Atlanta to Costa Rica. Well once again thanks to Delta I have spent the day in the Crown Room in Atlanta. This time the cause was the failure of the Back Up batteries in the GPS in the nav system in the plane in Columbia. I mean give me a break, don't you know where Atlanta is? We finally arrived in Atlanta about 15 minutes after our flight left for Costa Rica.

The really bad thing about this misadventure is that Jenny and I have 12 teenagers in tow for Spring Break in Manuel Antonio. So instead of hanging out at the pool this afternoon sipping on cold beer and watching the boats return from fishing I get to sit in the pretty damn uncomfortable Crown Room. We almost didn't even get to enjoy this "luxury" but the wonderfully kind lady let me slip an extra 2 people in. I won't even relay my conversation with the Delta lady about re-booking us onto the 6:48 pm flight. Thanks a lot Delta. Hope I didn't put you out with the extra two people occupying the lousy room while you're busy going bankrupt. Glad I used the rest of my skymiles to get 4 business class seats on your sorry plane before you go completely out of business. I tried to take a cat nap a little while ago and ended up crawling under the desk in this cubicle to get out of the glaring light. ENOUGH ALREADY!

There are no photos to go with this day as it is just too ugly to document; but, with any luck you'll be seeing some photos of huge sails, tuna and dorado posted this week as we have 5 days of fishing scheduled.

But you say "there is a photo posted, and it's a huge tuna!" Yes indeed, I found this 5 year old photo of my youngest son Joseph "Jose" with a tuna that taped out at 62 inches fork length. He caught it after a 2 1/2 hour battle. This just goes to show you that you don't have to be an Iron Man to catch a big fish. Just persistent!

The bite is still on strong and I expect some good fish stories from our crowd this week. I'll be posting regularly as well as catching you up on what has occurred during the last week or so.

Stay tuned as the "Spring Break" FRENZY continues ...

Jamie
www.FrenzySportfishing.com