|
RIO PARISMINA, COSTA RICA
The best show on water
RIO PARISMINA, COSTA RICA
I was totally engrossed in spooling a new fly line on one of my reels when the telephone rang. “Tell me the truth,” the caller demanded, “is the Costa Rican tarpon fishing really as good as you claimed? Is the fishing better than Boca Grande, Florida? ” “Absolutely Babe,” I replied, “and in fact, I’m going back to see if can top my personal best.” “OK, I’d like to go with you,” he declared, “and shoot a new television show for next season.” And so it unfolded. Apparently he had been talking with Spence Petros about my exploits and Daily Herald columns pertaining to the phenomenal Rio Parismina tarpon angling I encountered. Babe Winkelman has been thrilling American anglers and hunters for over 25-years with his very popular fishing and hunting television programs. From catching slab-sized crappies and bluegills to wrestling ancient, monster sturgeon, Babe ventures out to capture excitement on video tape. I’ve known Winkelman for about 20-years, and one thing he is not, and that’s dull, on and off the air. He’s also adamant about teaching American anglers how to improve their skills in a sport now flooded by a massive minion of television host want-to-be personalities. Winkelman has a natural flare for mixing on-screen electricity with common sense instruction that has helped fuel his success throughout the years. Spence Petros, Mike Seeling, me, Babe and his two-man crew met at the plush jungle digs of Judy Heidt’s Rio Parismina’s fishing lodge on the east coast of Costa Rica. Our group also included local anglers James Wallace and Randy Keif (owner of Keif’s Reef restaurant on Rt. 176-Burtton’s Bridge). Prior to this outing, Babe and his wife Kris had experienced the west coast of Costa Rica for billfish and rooster fish. “This is going to be a lot different,” I declared as we headed a hundred yards off shore to find our “sliver kings”. We used circle hooks and live sardines that we caught from shallow water. Sometimes we used heavy Coast Hawk jigs if we fished very deep water. And my Garcia High Speed 7000, Big Game reels were spooled with 25-lb. Berkley Big Game mono. It wasn’t long before Winkelman’s light casting reel screamed an alarm that a fish had taken the sardine bait. With cameraman Jim Grover recording the action from the bow and me amidships, we urged Babe on as he wrestled a big fish up from 40-feet below. Twenty minutes later the guide and Winkelman hoisted a 150-lb fish up for pictures. “Whew,” that was great Babe declared, “let’s do that again.” And we did. Winkelman and I took turns catching dozens of giant fish like the first one. When it was time to go in for lunch, Babe didn’t want to quit. “It will be better in the afternoon,” I informed him. “I’ll bet,” he answered back. And it was exactly as I predicted. Babe’s other cameraman, Jim Bedell was in another boat and he got close to us so he could use the Aqua-Vu underwater camera for below-surface shots of us fighting big tarpon. You’ll see those shots in January of next year. We lost track of the number of double and triple hookups and landed fish during the four-day shoot. I was exhausted. Babe declared on-camera that his arms and back ached after catching several fish in a short period of time. Petros, Wallace, and Keif had the exact same action in their boats as well. Mike Seeling was “busting” his own freight trains in the still camera boat off to our side. I keep coming back to this wonderful lodge and fishing adventure because this angling is addictive. And I always tell my friends who are interested-how many years does a person have to experience this kind of fishing and jungle beauty? It’s worth it every time. Keep an eye peeled on your television program schedule, because the show we shot will run on the Outdoor Life Network; The Sportsmans Channel; WGN-TV; The Men’s Channel; Great American Country; and College Sports.
WHERE: Rio Parismina Lodge, Costa Rica COST: $2,200 for the mid-week special, including all meals and the flight from San Jose. Air Fare to Costa Rica is separate CONTACT: 1-800-338-5688
|
