If you're planning to fish for rainbow bass (known locally as guapote) on Costa Rica's 22-mile-long Lake Arenal, you'd better pack your big reel with some heavy string. The lake is only 3-1/2 hours' drive from the Central Valley where I have lived for the past 21 years, and as old bass fishermen, this is where I fish more often than anyplace in Costa Rica. The fact that it is the least expensive fishing may have something to do with that.
My largest from the lake is 8-1/2 pounds, taken last year, and a rainbow bass will pull any three or four largemouth bass its same sine around the lake by their tails. You fish rainbow bass just as you do largemouth bass, throwing spinner baits, surface lures or flies into the sticks along the shoreline in the early morning and late afternoon, but going deep during the day, trolling the river channels or working jigs off the points.
They bore for the bottom when hooked so you have to stop that first run. When trolling, 20- or 30-pound braided mono is advised, and you'd better hammer the drag down before he wraps you around an old church steeple in the town that was inundated when the lake was created. Regular monofilament has too much stretch when you have a lot of line out. Scientific name for the species is Cichlasoma dovii, and they are beautiful fish, with feathered dorsal and caudal fins, a mean set of teeth and colored in rainbow hues of rose, blue and green. Guapote means "the most handsome" in Ip Spanish.
The IGFA record book lists a 15-pounder caught from Nicaragua's Lake Apanas, the only other country they are said to exist. However, Tersio Hidalgo, the guide I most often fish with on the lake, caught one last August on 12-pound lino that also weighed in at 15 pounds, but did not submit it for the record books. He caught it throwing spinner bait along the shoreline.
In June, Tersio nailed a 12-pound tilapia; also on a spinner bait fished inshore, but didn't submit that fish either, although the current listed all-tackle record is nine pounds, caught in Florida in 2003. Tilapia abounds in the lake, along with mojara, machaca and other small species. Lake Arenal was created with construction of a hydroelectric dam in the mid- 1970s at what was once a small lagoon, and satellite photos show evidence of archaeological ruins in the valley that date back 2,000 years. The northern end of the lake is a wind-surfing paradise, with winds averaging 25 miles an hour, sometimes much more, from about November through April.
The wind has little affected on fishing, however, which is based primarily at the southern end of the lake where the many coves and points offer protection for the angler. Best fishing is generally March through June, but I have caught fish there almost every month of the year. Experienced local guides and modem bass boats are readily available, with top quality tackle, lures, lunch and beverages on the boat included.
Cost for a day's fishing ranges from around $350 to $400, depending on the reputation of the guide, the number of fishermen and the quality of the boat and tackle they furnish. Lodging is available at the many hotels around the lake. The newest operator at Arenal is Dr. Alfred Lopez' Rain Goddess, a luxurious 62-foot houseboat, originally based at Barra del Colorado and more recently on the San Juan River, at Alfredo's posh Rio Indio tarpon and snook lodge just across the border in Nicaragua.
The Rain Goddess anchored in the cove near the dam — is air- conditioned, offers 19-foot fully- equipped bass boats, and has six staterooms, two lounges and a crew of three. All meals and overnight accommodations, open bar and fishing are included in his packages. Ron Gardner, who holds eight small mouth bass records in Texas, is his associate and manages the fishing operation. Kayaking, swimming, nature tours and other activities are available to guests.
Your best bet for a big fish is working the river channels, as indicated on the map, which was created by my old fishing buddy Doug Kralik who obtained old topographical maps that show the location of river beds (indicated by the dark blue lines) that extended into the lake from the shoreline before it was flooded when the dam was created. The lake has not been stocked, and the fish entered naturally through the rivers when the dam was built.
A visit to the lake also offers anglers and their families a chance to swim in the hot springs, heated by the thermal action of one of the world's most active volcanoes If there is not a cloud cover, you can see fire coming out of the cone of Arenal Volcano and glowing lava rocks flowing down its sides at night. For assistance arranging a trip to Arenal, including transportation, lodging and fishing.
Activities and Sports 
