Children’s Workshop on Good Practices for Sportfishing Held Successfully in Paquera

This past Saturday, June 7^th 2025, a successful children’s workshop on Good Practices for Sportfishing was held here in Paquera, organized by the local youth association (Asociación de Desarrollo Específico de Juventud en Paquera -ADEJ) in collabor

ation with Isla Chiquita, FECOP (Costa Rican Federation of Fishing), and the international Passport to Fishing program from the IGFA (International Game Fish Association) — an educational initiative that has benefited more than 100,000 children worldwide.

For the last two years, we at Bahia Rica Adventures has been actively involved as members of the Youth Association and we are delighted to be part of the organizing teams of events like this one.

The event brought together 35 boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 14, including 10 girls, who throughout the day learned in a fun and hands-

on way about assembling rods and reels, tying fishing knots, identifying marine species, and the importance of responsible fishing through the catch-and-release technique.

The workshop was made possible thanks to FECOP’s partnership with Isla Chiquita and the valuable support from us here at Bahía Rica, both of which contributed four experienced sportfishing captains, who, together with representatives from FECOP, guided the children through various educational stations.

In addition to the training activities, the children enjoyed tasty snacks courtesy of Tortuga Vida Boutique Hotel, and a delicious lunch provided by Isla Chiquita. At the end of the day, each participant received their official IGFA Fishing Passport and a diploma, as recognition for their participation and effort.

Activities like this one, promoted by the Asociación de Desarrollo Específico de Juventud en Paquera (ADEJ), not only foster learning but also raise environmental awareness and encourage respect for our marine resources, planting a seed of sustainability in the new generations of the Paquera community.

We are already in the preparation phases of the next events:

• Local fishing tournament for children
• Workshop on Good practices for catch and release for captains and crew
• Women’s Nautical School – promoting labor inclusion for women in the sport fishing field.