Colorado Fly Fishing by The Flyfisher Group: September 2010

As a guide I am well aware of the value of a good pair of polarized sunglasses. Good polarized sunglasses serve two main purposes. First and foremost they serve as protection from the sun’s harmful rays as well as wayward casts (or even tree branches) that you may encounter as you bushwhack your way to your favorite backcountry brookie stream. Second, without polarized glasses you stand very little chance of seeing fish in most circumstances.

For as long as I can remember I have always worn Action Optics or Smith sunglasses. I was always confident that they were the best in the business. I believed that I was seeing most fish -- or so I thought. Last year some of my fellow guides began wearing sunglasses from Costa Del Mar. As more and more of the guides began wearing Costas, I kept hearing about how they were spotting, and catching more fish than I was. They were attributing their success to their Costas. Still, I was skeptical. I assumed that they were just telling fish stories. Costas couldn’t be that much better could they?

Fast forward to Spring 2010. I got my hands on a pair of Costa Del Mar polarized glasses. The specific pair I have now are the Blackfin model with the 580 Green Mirror Glass lenses. This particular style comfortably wraps closely to my face which allows very little light to come in around the frames.

My first test was in Colorado’s Cheesman Canyon on the South Platte River. Cheesman Canyon is known for spooky fish that can be tough to spot. On this particular day I took along my Smiths in the event that I wasn’t sold on the new Costas. After doing side by side glasses comparison during the first couple of hours in the canyon, it quickly became clear that I was able to spot the really camouflaged trout much quicker and more easily with the Costas. For me the 580 lenses enhance the level of sharpness, clarity and definition.
As the day went on, I was spotting fish after fish that in the past I would have assumed was a rock, bottom, or a shadow. At one point I was standing with another guide and I spotted a fish at the bottom of a run tucked in the rocks. It took my fellow guide quite a while longer to pick out the same fish even after I pointed out the fish. He wasn’t wearing Costas.
By the end of the day I was a sold on Costas, hook line and split shot. In the following months, I have used my Costas all over Colorado, Michigan, and Wyoming with the same results. I estimate that I am seeing approximately 20-30 % more fish with my Costas. This is huge because spotting more fish leads to catching more fish, which in my case keeps the good natured ribbing from my fellow guides to a minimum. And that’s no fish story.
For me the bottom line is this: Costas have enhanced my ability to spot more fish.. Period. I can't imagine fishing in anything else. For me Costas are the best polarized sunglasses on the market today.

Here are a few before Costas and after Costas shots.

BEFORE COSTAS

BEFORE COSTAS
BEFORE COSTAS

AFTER COSTAS