Relato de Pesca - 03/19/11

GREETINGS FROM THE TROPICS

WOW, WHAT A LARGE GROUP OF ANGLERS WE WELCOMED THIS WEEK. THROUGH A SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT WITH MANZANILLO INTERNATIONAL TERMINAL WE HAD ARRANGED TO GO FISHING FOR THREE DAYS EACH WITH TWO DIFFERENT GROUPS. WE WERE HAPPY TO WELCOME THE FOLLOWING ANGLERS; WILLYS DELVALLE, RICARDO LINCE, LUCIANS FERNANDEZ, RUBEN KARAMANITES, BRADLE BINGHOM, ALEXEL ODUBER, THOMAS KENNA, RICARDO FERNANDEZ, OSVALDO ROBLES, JUAN CARLOS CROSTON, DON WRINKLY, WILLIAN ELLIOTT, JIM WINN, ELKIN RODRIQUEZ, JOSE IRIBARREN, T.J. RUCKER, GREG HIGHTOWER, MIKE KITCHEN, DON TAYLOR, TOM VAN BUSKIRK, ERDAL TANNER, TODD TATTERSON, SCOTT O'HARA, HEATHER MILLER, MARY YOUNG, DEBBIE ARNOLD, EDGARDO LOPEZ, GILBERT FERRO, AISSA MCKENZIE AND CARLOS URRIOLA. YES, WE WERE FULL TO THE TOP OF THE GUNNELS.

DAY ONE AND BLUE WATER WAS FOUND IN THE LADRONES ISLANDS. WE FOUND THE BOTTOM FISHING THERE PRODUCTIVE FOR SNAPPERS, GROUPERS AND ALL KINDS OF JACKS.

DAY TWO AND IT WAS OFF TO MONTUOSA ISLAND WHERE THE TUNA WERE RUNNING IN HUGE SCHOOLS AND GET THIS, THEY WERE FEEDING ON ANYTHING YOU PUT IN FRONT OF THEM. THE YELLOWFIN BITE WAS WIDE OPEN FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS AND THEN THEY SOUNDED. BUT IN THAT TWO HOURS OUR ANGLERS LANDED 32 YELLOWFIN IN THE 60 TO 120 RANGE. EVERYONE WAS EXCITED ABOUT THE NON STOP FISHING ACTION. IN THE EVENING THE FRONT BAR ON THE BARGE WAS FULL OF FISHING STORIES BEING TOLD, DRINKS WERE BEING POURED, FRESH GRILLED TUNA STEAKS WERE BEING SERVED AND A TROPICAL MOON WAS SHINNING DOWN ON US. IT WAS MAGICAL!

BEFORE LEAVING ON DAY THREE, SEVERAL DORADO AND AMBERJACK WERE CAUGHT. THEN THE ANGLERS RETURNED TO THE BARGE AROUND NOON AND PREPARED TO RETURN TO PANAMA CITY. THE CREW OF THE BARGE WAS BUSY GETTING THE BARGE READY FOR THE NEXT BIG GROUP.

THE SECOND ANXIOUS GROUP OF ANGLERS ARRIVED AS SCHEDULED AND STARTED THEIR EXCITING, THREE DAYS OF FISHING. GROUPERS HAD MOVED INTO THE LADRONES ISLANDS AND WE WERE ABLE TO CATCH 23 THE FIRST AFTERNOON. MOST OF THEM WERE IN THE 20 TO 25 LB RANGE, THOUGH I KNOW MANY OF THE SMALLER FISH WERE RELEASED. THEN JIM WINN HOOKED A BLACK MARLIN. AS HE CAME TIGHT ON THE MARLIN HIS LINE PARTED AND THE WAS A LOST FISH. LATER WE CHECKED THE LINE ON THE REEL AND FOUND IT WAS FAULTY. BUT REST ASSURED THAT JIM LET ME HERE ABOUT IT, SEVERAL TIMES!

NEXT STRANGE THING TO HAPPEN CAME WHEN DON WAS SLOW TROLLING A LIVE BONITA ATTACHED TO A CIRCLE HOOK. HE HOOKED INTO SOMETHING BIG BUT COULDN'T TELL BY THE FIGHT WHAT IS WAS! WHEN DON HAD REELED HIS CATCH TO APPROXIMATELY 15 FT BELOW THE BOAT EVERYONE COULD SEE HE HAD SOMEHOW FOUL HOOKED A LARGE RAY. DON LEANED BACK ON THE 50-80 ROD TO RAISE IT. THIS IS JUST ABOUT THE TIME HE SNAPPED THE ROD, BROKE THE 80 LB LINE AND THE LAST TIME THE MASSIVE MANTA RAY WAS SEEN HE WAS SWIMMING IN THE GENERAL DIRECTION OF MIDWAY ISLAND.

DAY TWO AND THE ANGLERS WERE FISHING HANNIBAL BANK WHERE THEY ENCOUNTERED HUGE SCHOOLS OF YELLOWFIN TUNA. IT WAS AN EXCITING BUT FRUSTRATING FISHERY. ONE BOAT WOULD BE REELING IN THREE TUNA AT A TIME AND SITTING RIGHT NEXT TO THEM WOULD BE ANOTHER OF OUR BOATS THAT COULDN'T GET BIT. WE ENDED THE DAY CATCHING 18 YELLOWFIN WITH THE SMALLEST FISH WEIGHING AROUND 50 LBS AND THE LARGEST WAS A 200 LB PLUS YELLOWFIN THAT WAS FOUGHT FOR OVER TWO HOURS BEFORE BEING BOATED. A COUPLE OF BLACK MARLIN WERE BAITED UP BUT ALSO PROVED TO BE PICKY EATERS. T.J. ALSO BOATED A SAILFISH. A LONG, BUT GOOD DAY OF FISHING.

OVERNIGHT THE WATER IN THE PARADIAS ISLAND HAD CHANGED FROM GREEN AND MUDDY TO BLUE, BLUE, BLUE. THE LAST DAY OF FISHING WAS ROUNDED OUT WITH TEN ROOSTERFISH CAUGHT AND RELEASED, ALONG WITH LOTS OF JACK CREVALLE AND POMPANO.

IT WAS A BIG GROUP AND A LOTS OF FUN WAS HAD BY ALL. THANK TO ALL OF YOU FOR COMING TO FISH WITH PESCA PANAMA.

TIGHT LINES,
CAPTAIN JAY GUSTIN

FISHING TIP OF THE WEEK: THE LOSS OF A BIG MARLIN DUE TO BAD LINE IS INEXCUSABLE TO ME. IT BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION THAT WE NEED TO BE CHANGING OUT OUR LINE MORE OFTEN. THE PROBLEM HERE IS THAT LARGE SPOOLS OF 50 AND 80 LB MON0 ARE NOT USUALLY AVAILABLE IN PANAMA. WHEN ANY OF OUR ANGLERS ARE COMING TO PANAMA AND HAVE ACCESS TO LARGE SPOOLS OF MONO, PLEASE PUT ONE IN YOUR BAG AND I WILL PAY YOU FOR IT WHEN YOU ARRIVE. SAME IS ALSO TRUE FOR 80 LB POWER PRO SPECTA.

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK: