GENERAL INFORMATIONS

Dear Friends;

My name is Don Carr and I am the owner and captain of the Predator. I used the word friends as I am from New Orleans and I look at the people who fish with me as friends I have not met, not clients. I have charted many boats and have seen many different attitudes from captains and crews. I know what it is like to fish in a Latin country where you can’t talk to the crew. I understand the worrying over the decision whether or not you have selected the correct boat and does it have what I want  and need for a good day of fishing.

There are not many GOOD boats in my area as it cost $30,000 to bring a boat from the U. S. and then Costa Rican import taxes are 100% of blue book value. There are many smaller boats under 31 ft. which are locally made.

The Predator has seating for 5 adult anglers on the bridge with me. I invite you to sit up top with me and I explain what I am seeing or looking for. You can see turtles, whales, Manta Rays, Dolphins and as well as our targeted fish the Sailfish. It is the perfect place for pictures and videos.

Most people perceive this sport as being so stenuous and all kinds of notions as to what is going to happen. Never saw Jaws in the ocean and have never had a client drug off the boat into the water, that is television. When we arrive at our fishing location we set out the outriggers and 5 to 6 lines and start trolling and only stop when we hook up a fish.

There is a simple rythum to fishing and I explain in detail everthing I and my mates are going to do and what you are to do as well and how to do it. When your fish is hooked one mate stands right with you and reinforces my instructions in English] and will even hold the rod with you until you get the rythum set. Once you learn this simple rythum you are prepared to catch any fish in the ocean. We fish as a team so if you can’t finish a really big fish you simply pass the rod to the next person. My wife Rosa is only 114 lbs and has landed 450 lb Marlin. She has been timed at 7.5 minutes to release a 100 lb sailfish using 20 lb tackler, stand up. Because women are blessed by God with a natural rythum they make excellent anglers. God did not put a woman on this earth that does not love to dance, this is the natural rythum and we teach women how to adopt this to fishing. Yes many say OH I can't do that.

My reply is if a woman can have natural childbirth catching any fish is a piece of cake! Men are completely different as the adrenaline goes off in us and we try to overpower the fish. We hold our breath and strain every muscle in our bodies. It is a natural reaction for men. I teach them to relax and breathe as the oxygen in the lungs is transferred to the muscles. It is much more difficult for a man to set the correct rythum. All fish that take over 15 minutes will make your left arm go num but it still works fine. The mate will hold the rod for you as you shake the arm to get more feeling in it. The reason for this is we start with cold muscles and it takes time for the lungs to deliver the oxygen to these muscles. It is good to remember that rush I speak of as it is the reason we fish for the big ones.

People invision only catching huge fish and we do our fair share and then some but realistically we catch many fish from 30 to 50 lbs. This may be a Mahi Mahi, tuna, Wahoo or any number of other species. Even a 100 lb. sailfish is pretty easy to catch as they jump a lot and spend their energy doing so. Normal release time is 20 to 30 min. I usually let you fight the fish for 15 min. or so and then slowly back the boat to the fish. I do not do this to save the angler but so we do not overstress the fish. I have tagged about 2,000 billfish for the Billfish Foundation. My crew and I will do whatever is necessary to help preserve these fish. WE RELEASE ALL BILLFISH. Table fish are cleaned and bagged for you and any restaurant will gladly cook it for you. You will see photos of Marlin in the gallery. These fish died during the fight, only 5 in 12 years. We also fish with flyrods but do supply them.

Hardcore stuff- We have 2 fish that will beat you half to death. They are big tuna and big marlin especially the black marlin. Our average marlin run 250 to 400 lbs. We do get much larger but nothing over 1.000 lbs. The time it takes to land the really big ones depends strictly on the individual fish. I have released marlin in about 12 minutes and have gone as long as over 5 hours. I once hooked 2 blue marlin at the same time, both over 500 lbs. I had a 500 lb. black take 700 yds on the initial strike! It is important for anglers to understand the earth’s surface is 70% water and the Pacific ocean is 50 of all that water! So we can have a monster in the baits at any second. This is why I explain what everyone needs to know and be ready to do.

Soft-core children I love taking the kids! I do recommend a ½ day for them. I have had anglers from 4 to 94. We target fish according to the size of the child and sometimes get bigger than we ask for but just help them thru it. I love seeing their faces with their smiles from ear to ear. The photo below is a 55 lb. Roosterfish and I assisted this 10 year old. It took about 25 minutes.

Anyone can pay for a website; even me, but they don’t spend the day with you. I have hunted and fished all my life and enjoy what I do and they tell me it shows. I thank you for reading this and hope you consider fishing with my crew and I on your next visit to Costa Rica. 

Kindest Regards

Rosa and Kingdon

Photo of me and boy with roosterfish.

Photo of Rosa with sailfish