A Roundup above the rest
On February 8th, 2025, we held a Boat Rodeo for our local Guatemalan friends and family, honoring our late, great Captain David Salazar.
Almost every boat in our Marina joined us as we set sail to gather around and say our “see you later’s” to our beloved Captain—because for us, it’s never goodbye.
Our fierce Jefa, Kristen Salazar, and the four Salazar girls lead the procession on the Pica Más. Kristen shared some beautiful words, along with many other captains calling in on the radio channel to speak their own pieces as well.
This is what our Jefa had to say:
“Amigos, hoy nos reunimos con gran pesar para honrar la vida y el legado del Capitán David Salazar, una verdadera leyenda en la comunidad pesca deportiva guatemalteca. Su pasión por la pesca deportiva no tenía comparación y, a través de su dedicación, elevó a Guatemala a uno de los principales destinos de pesca del mundo. El Capitán David era más que un capitán: un pescador experto, un mentor, un líder y una inspiración para innumerables pescadores que siguieron sus pasos. Su inquebrantable creencia en la conservación, la sostenibilidad y la camaradería que brinda la pesca nos guiará por siempre.
Aunque ya no está con nosotros, su espíritu sigue vivo en las aguas que amaba y en las personas a las que enseñó. Ahora es nuestra responsabilidad llevar adelante su visión, proteger el deporte que apreciaba y garantizar que las generaciones futuras experimenten la misma emoción del mar. Descanse en el paraíso, Capitán David; su legado nunca se desvanecerá.”***
It was an emotional, but bittersweet show of so much love and remembrance. We’re so fortunate to see just how beloved Captain David was to so many people.
For our extended Miami family, we’ll be hosting another David Salazar Boat Rodeo: June 25th at sea and June 26th on land. Please mark your calendars and keep an eye on your inboxes for more information.
***For our English Speakers, here’s a translation of the speech from our Jefa, Kristen:
“Friends, today we gather with heavy hearts to honor the life and legacy of Captain David Salazar, a true legend in the Guatemalan sportfishing community. His passion for sportfishing was unmatched, and through his dedication, he elevated Guatemala to one of the world’s premier fishing destinations. Captain David was more than a captain – a skilled angler, a mentor, a leader, and an inspiration to countless anglers who followed in his footsteps. His unwavering belief in conservation, sustainability, and the camaraderie that fishing provides will forever guide us.
Although he is no longer with us, his spirit lives on in the waters he loved and the people he taught. It is now our responsibility to carry forward his vision, protect the sport he cherished, and ensure that future generations experience the same thrill of the sea. RIP, Captain David—your legacy will never fade.”
Please watch the video below:
Lodge Updates!
Looks like the cat’s out of the bag!
If you’ve taken a helicopter transfer into the Lodge recently, you may have seen a tiny bit of construction going on by the other side of the landing pad…
*drumroll*
We’ve added new rooms to Casa Vieja Lodge!
Eight new rooms to be exact. Just like all our other comfy, cozy rooms; but in a brand new adjacent plot on our property!
Fully completed and ready to book, we must admit…these new rooms are pretty extraordinary! And even though these eight rooms are just the beginning of new, big things to come for the Lodge, we’ve got to say: what a start so far.
Stay tuned for more renovation updates, soon to come!
In other news, we just wanted to drop a quick friendly reminder that the lodge has been filling up with bookings up to a year out!
This means, if you’re even thinking about finally taking that trip to Casa Vieja, call. us. now! Or EMAIL! With bookings a year out, we can’t guarantee your perfect dates are available, and we want nothing but the best for you and your crew.
Last but most definitely not least, we’re bringing back our boat naming contest for the fleet newcomer: the Isla Más!
We were so overjoyed from the response we saw with naming our (now) Chilero, we knew this contest had to make a reappearance!
Starting now until April 6th at Midnight (EST), we’re opening our emails/DMs/phone calls—however you want to get your boat name idea to us—we’ll take it! For now, if you have an idea for a boat name you’d like to submit, please click HERE!
February Fishing Report
February has been INSANITY!
We’ve already started taking this year by storm! Our new boat, the Isla Mas has been making waves; this 43′ Merritt—who’s currently taking over for The Hooker during its’ ongoing renovations—has already proven to be a fishing machine, just check out those numbers below.
Altogether this month we saw 8,337 sailfish raises, 7,424 sailfish bites, and 5,045 sailfish releases!!! As for marlin, we saw 50 raises, 38 bites, and 24 overall releases—3 of them striped marlin! On top of that, several of our fleet saw over 100 sailfish raises in a single day; the Makaira with 106 raises, the Isla Mas with 100 raises, and the Finest Kind with 108 raises!! Lastly, congrats to the Makaira with 81 sailfish releases, the most in a single day this February!
If you’d like to check out how phenomenally we’re already doing, click over here for the Fishing Counter on our homepage! There you’ll see our total Billfishing Release numbers so far from 2025, plus past years as well!
Below are our fishing highlights (combination of conventional & fly):
- February 1st-5th,Afinity (39′ Billy Knowles) with Capt. Franz Hoffman, had 40 raises, 33 bites & 22 sailfish releases, 3 marlins raised, 1 marlin bite and 1 marlin release, plus 5 mahi-mahi!
- February 1st-19th, Rum Line (40′ Gamefisherman) with Capt. Terry Brennan, had 1,021 raises, 911 bites, 612 sailfish releases, 9 marlin raised, 9 marlin bites, 5 marlin released, plus 1 tuna & 19 mahi-mahi!
- February 1st-25th,Finest Kind (40′ Whiticar)with Capt. Benji Bairez, had 1,032 raises, 838 bites, 550 sailfish releases, plus 3 marlins raised & 8 mahi-mahi!
- February 1st-26th, the Makaira (37′ Rybovich) with Capt. Jeffrey Garcia, had 922 raises, 873 bites, 639 sailfish releases plus 7 marlins raised, 5 marlin bites, and 5 marlin releases, plus 1 tuna & 13 mahi-mahi.
- February 1st-26th,Pica Más (48′ Whiticar)with Capt. Nicho Alvarenga, had 1,163 raises, 1,088 bites & 735 sailfish releases, 2 marlin raises, 2 marlin bites 2 marlin released, plus 4 mahi-mahi!
- February 1st-26th,Poco Loco (44′ Nickerson) with Capt. Jono, had 961 raises, 848 bites, 587 sailfish releases, 8 marlins raised, 6 marlin bites, 3 marlin releases, plus 10 mahi-mahi!
- February 1st-26th, Isla Mas (43′ Merritt) with Capt. Carlos “Caluco,” had 894 raises, 807 bites, 595 sailfish releases, plus 7 marlin raises, 6 marlin bites, 4 marlin releases, 5 tuna & 16 mahi-mahi!
- February 1st-26th,Release (37′ Merritt) with Capt. Sammy Baires, had 771 raises, 709 bites, 445 sailfish releases, 6 marlins raised, 5 marlin bites, 1 marlin releases, plus 3 rooster fish & 21 mahi-mahi!
- February 2nd-26th, Chilero (38′ Warren O’Neal) with Capt. Nico Melendrez had 1,030 raises, 927 bites, 592 sailfish releases, plus 5 marlin raise, 4 marlin bites, 3 marlin releases, & 20 mahi-mahi!
