Our trip began with my sons Brian, Chuck, and myself meeting up at the airport in Houston for our flight to Guatemala and some great fishing. The Casa Vieja Lodge driver picked us up in Guatemala City with a few more folks and we were off on a two hour drive to the resort at Puerto San Jose.
Arriving we were greeted with ice cold cocktails and shown to our rooms! Dinner and drinks that evening was served under a huge palapa by the pool and we crashed pretty early!
A knock at the door the next morning at 5:45 am and a hot cup of Guatemalan coffee was a great way to wake up. Breakfast was served, and soon we were off to catch our boat at the marina, and meet the crew. Captain Eddie welcomed us aboard The Release and introduced up to Sammie and Edwardo, the first mate and crew for our 3 day fishing trip adventure.
Soon we bid the marina farewell, taking about a two hour boat ride out to reach the fishing area about 47 miles off the coast. The crew immediately prepared all the lines, and we were trolling for sails and marlin.
Quickly we had two sails on with Chuck and Brian handling the rods. All sails and marlin are catch and release in Guatemala and we soon had two releases on the board! We fished and fished, stopping only when Sammy fixed us burgers for lunch. Later in the day we decided to go look for a Dorado for me and we found a pretty good size one to battle...he was 54 inches long, and between 50-60 pounds.
He put up a good fight and I had fun battling him! Finally onboard the boat we grabbed some photos and planned on fresh Mahi Mahi for dinner that night! Arriving back at the resort the staff took the filets and we ordered Mahi ceviche and blackened Mahi for dinner. It was absolutely delicious!
With my shoulder and neck bothering me, I grabbed a quick shower and had a wonderful hour long massage with Vicki in my room before dinner! That and a Mojito were the sure cure for what ailed me! After dinner we crashed...fishing is hard work!
The next morning a coffee wake up call, time for breakfast, and a trip to the marina, for more fishing! Staying closer in about 27 miles out we trolled an area Captain Eddie had fished in the past with good luck!
We hooked several sailfish and a few small Dorado as the day went on! The sails all put up a good battle and did great aerobatic displays jumping out of the water. Lunch today included a fresh Mahi Mahi grilled burger, which was absolutely delicious with plenty of ice cold drinks! We continued to troll the deep blue Pacific waters when Brian got a Blue Marlin on the line...the fight was on! Chuck got some amazing video of the battle for Brian to show! As the Blue Marlin was reeled in, photos were quickly taken and then he was released to fight again another day. Heading back to the marina we raised the marlin flag to show the other boats our success.
Pool time, cocktails, snacks, and a great dinner followed!
Our final day of fishing included a two hour run out and more sailfish!
The seas were pretty calm and the water was a beautiful shade of blue!
The crew kept the lines out and fishing was good!
Suddenly another marlin hit the line and Chuck got into battle on with a Blue Marlin that seemed endless, but probably was about 30-40 minutes! The fish made a couple jumps far out, and then disappeared into the deep! The fight was on with Chuck cranking on the reel, and Eddie....the boat captain using the boat to take line from the fish. Chuck seemed to be gaining, then the line would whirl off the reel as the fish dove deeper into the dark blue Pacific waters. Finally after a lot of sweat Chuck pulled the creature up to the boat, only to find the Marlin was tail wrapped. This happens as the fish jumps, turns, and leaps out of the ocean and the line running from the hook loops around the tail. This makes it feel like you are reeling in a 2x4 because the fish is being pulled by the tail and the head!
The marlin was listless, and had lost most of its color…meaning the fish was stressed and lacked oxygen! The crew immediately cut the line and began efforts to revive it! Sammie, one of the deck crew held it with its head in the water, while Chuck tried to keep it upright in the water as the boat slowly moved forward. We saw it weakly move its tail and the guys let go, only to see the big fish roll belly up! Again they grabbed the fish and repeated the resuscitation method two more times before the fish began to move. Released again, it slowly swam barely under the surface because it was weak and stressed! The Captain then maneuvered the boat near the fish and gunned the engine, giving the fish a big push of bubbles down into the depths! This seemed to be just the thing it needed and it swam off!
I was amazed at how hard the crew worked to save this magnificent creature! They spend almost a hour trying to help this helpless creature get enough oxygen to survive! We did notice the fish began to get its color back before leaving! Sure was good to be a small part of the effort to save this big creature!
The three days of fishing with my sons is a memory I will cherish! In all we had 56 raises, 49 bites, and 34 releases of sailfish, plus two blue Marlin, and 4 dorado. Captain Eddie and his crew were fantastic and we loved our boat, The Release. Fishing done we headed home! Mom was fished out!
