I never really thought of Curaçao as a fishing destination. Diving, yes, but blue marlin, no. Then I received an invitation to fish the 40th annual Blue Marlin Release Tournament held this past March at the Curaçao Yacht Club. I admit that I was a bit surprised to see a blue marlin tournament I had never heard of celebrating its 40th anniversary. I grabbed my atlas to take a closer look at the island and give the trip a little more thought.

Curaçao sits between Aruba and Bonaire, just 35 miles or so off the northern coast of Venezuela in the lower Caribbean. Since it is so close to the bountiful waters of La Guaira bank, I figured the tournament was definitely worth checking out.

Over 30 teams from the United States, Aruba, Venezuela and the Dominican Republic came to participate in the event. Boats here fish the east side of the island and start trolling just 5 miles offshore. As you head out the harbor entrance, the island's steep walls quickly fall away to depths of over 2,000 feet.

Tournament committee member Billy Jonckheer told me that they always schedule the tournament to coincide with the March full moon. Although some years are better than others, the system seems to work: In 2001, 27 boats released 52 blue marlin in two days.

"All those boats that head from the U.S. to Venezuela to fish La Guaira Bank don't realize that they steam right by a great blue marlin spot," Jonckheer says. "The boats that do stop in Curaçao almost always come back because we have a great mix of game fish and world-class amenities."

The local fishing scene is still a developing one, and every angler I spoke to asked me loads of questions about rigging baits and trolling patterns. Capt. Dirk Van Vliet, one of the area's veteran captains, told me that as a boy he fished out of a rowboat. Van Vliet has come a long way since those days. As an active member of the International Light Tackle Tournament Association, he has befriended anglers around the world and has fished in some very exotic locations.

"I've fished all over," he says. "And though many places may be better than Curaçao, I still prefer to fish here in my home waters." In 1985, Van Vliet's son Robert caught the island's biggest blue to date, an 803-pounder. The fish was caught in March during the full moon.

Dorado Aplenty
I met my teammates, Artie Wever and Ruben Arends, early on the first day of fishing and boarded Wever's boat, Ja-Luhrs, a 40-foot Luhrs express. We motored out of the harbor entrance and headed east toward the point of the island where a large rip forms. I quickly learned that the trades blow year round in Curaçao, and a 2- to 4-foot chop qualifies as a nice day.

We fished three lines (per tournament rules) all with naked ballyhoo and two teasers. We spotted a few puffs of diesel smoke, so we knew some blues were around. After our early-morning excitement began to wear off and conversation started to flow, my reel interrupted with a nasty scream. I yanked the rod out of the holder, set the hook and asked for a belt. I was the smallest guy on the deck, and the belt fit like a hula hoop around my waist. After about 15 minutes of fighting with it more than the fish, I finally brought up a nice bull dolphin. "That one should go 30 pounds," Arends said. "I think you're on the board."

We found the dorado bite again later in the day, but this time we encountered a full-bore attack. Three rods went off at once, and we tossed back another ballyhoo, hooking up on that rod as well. The moment culminated with three flopping dorado bouncing around the deck and all of us playing soccer with the fish trying to get them into the fish box. When all was said and done, we had a box too full to close and the top spot in the dolphin category.

"The prime time for dorado is spring," Wever says. "As the fish migrate through, we always see some really big dorado." The water temperature fluctuates only a few degrees all year. This stable environment is also perfect for wahoo and tuna. Spring and fall mark the best times to find blue marlin, whites and sails.

On the second day of the tournament, we headed out to Klein Curaçao, or little Curaçao, a small island about 15 miles from the yacht club. We watched boats hook up all around us, but we never raised a fish. We weren't doing anything wrong; it was just one of those days.

Baggin' the Blues
Last year, Capt. Irving Irausquin and the crew of the 54 Bertram Hey Chama won all the local tournaments as well as two in Aruba. They continued their winning ways, taking first place in this year's Blue Marlin Release Tournament. Irausquin says his crew's attention to detail in rigging ballyhoo and their years fishing together helped their run of good luck.

Irausquin says he learns from other captains every chance he gets. "When I fish La Guaira, I sit with the American captains and listen to every word they say," he says. "I've fished Costa Rica and Guatemala and did the same there. By picking up other people's tricks, it helped us catch more here."

He prefers to fish in October when more bait is present. He also finds a larger mixed bag during this time of year and more white marlin in the area.

Whatever time you hit Curaçao, you can expect an open invitation, and you will catch fish. "I want to see more American boats come to Curaçao and help us explore the waters," Irausquin says. "There is a lot of water here that we haven't even fished yet."