Fishing Report - 1/09/10

GREETING FROM THE TROPICS

WHERE WE ONCE MEASURED OUR TIME SPENT FISHING IN HOURS, DAYS, WEEKS AND YEARS. WE CAN NOW COUNT IT IN DECADES. THE YEAR 2010 MARKS THE START OF OUR 11TH YEAR OF FISHING IN PANAMA. WHEN WE FIRST DECIDED TO START FISHING THIS AREA WE KNEW IT WAS GOING TO BE GOOD, BUT WE HAD NO IDEA HOW GREAT IT WAS GOING TO BE. SO WITH 10 YEARS OF FISHING IN PANAMA BEHIND US, PESCA PANAMA IS LOOKING FORWARD TO ANOTHER SUCCESSFUL DECADE OF FISHING.

WHAT A BETTER WAY TO START THE DECADE THAN TO WELCOME BACK VETERAN ANGLER AND WRITER, AL RISTORI. AL'S HISTORY OF FISHING THIS AREA GOES BACK TO 1973 AND THE START OF THE NOW LONG GONE, CLUB PACIFICO. AL CAN BE CREDITED WITH BEING THE ANGLER THAT INTRODUCED "POPPER FISHING" TO THE AREA. A LOT OF OUR FISHING TECHNIQUES HAVE CHANGED SINCE THEN WITH THE INVENTION OF GRAPHITE RODS, SPECTRA LINE, BIG POPPING LURES AND $1,000 SPINNING REELS. BUT SOME THINGS HAVE REMAINED THE SAME. THE "PENCIL POPPER" LURE WILL STILL EFFECTIVELY CATCH FISH AND AL IS STILL REELING THEM IN.

CAPTAIN BEN FLOYD HAS RETURNED FOR HIS 10TH YEAR TO HELP GIVE ME A HAND WITH THE FISHING. BEN GOT A "KITCHEN PASS" FOR 10 WEEKS FROM HIS WIFE NICOLE. I WOULD LIKE TO THANK HER FOR SHARING BEN'S TIME WITH US. BEN IS ALWAYS A BIG HELP TO OUR ANGLERS AND THE CREW OF PESCA PANAMA. WELCOME BACK BEN!

I WOULD LIKE TO THANK RETURNING ANGLER JOE REAP FOR GETTING THIS WEEK'S GROUP OF ANGLERS TOGETHER. FISHING ALONG WITH AL RISTORI WAS JOE FARRELL, DOMINIC DINAPOLI, JOE HALL, DAVID RIEMAN, BILL BAROSKA, STEVE COLUMBE AND BOB DUFFY. WE ALSO WELCOMED HUSBAND AND WIFE ANGLERS, TRICIA AND CHRIS MANZINI ON THEIR FIRST FISHING TRIP TO PANAMA.

MOTHER NATURE SEEMED TO CONSPIRE AGAINST US THIS WEEK. WE FOUND THE FISHING MUCH SLOWER THAN NORMAL AS THE FISH WERE OFF THE BITE. EVEN WHEN WE GOT INTO A HUGE SCHOOL OF YELLOWFIN TUNA AND ALL THE CONDITIONS LOOKED RIGHT, WITH PORPOISE AND TUNA JUMPING IN THE AIR AND FLOCKS OF BIRDS CIRCLED OVERHEAD, THE FISH WERE SLOW TO BITE. THIS COMBINED WITH DAYS OF HIGH WINDS FROM A DEEP LOW PRESSURE SYSTEM THAT SEEMED TO STALL RIGHT ON TOP OF THE ISTHMUS OF PANAMA MADE FOR A TOUGH WEEK OF FISHING.

BUT EVEN WITH THESE LESS THAN FAVORABLE FISHING CONDITIONS THERE WERE SOME NICE CATCHES MADE. THE MANZINI'S, WHILE CONCENTRATING ON THE INSHORE FISHING, CAUGHT A MIXED BAG OF FISH INCLUDING THREE ROOSTERFISH THAT WEIGHTED UP TO 50 LBS. AS THE WEEK WENT ON THEY ADDED CUBERA SNAPPER, AMBERJACK, YELLOW SNAPPER, PINK SNAPPER, HORSE EYED JACK, JACK CREVALLE , SEVERAL SPECIES OF SHARKS AND NUMEROUS OTHER SPECIES TO THEIR CATCH.

OFFSHORE A COUPLE OF BIG PACIFIC SAILFISH WERE CAUGHT AND RELEASE BY JOE REAP AND STEVE COLUMBE. WHILE MARLIN FISHING AT MONTUOSA AND HANNIBAL BANK THERE WERE MANY DORADOS CAUGHT ON POPPERS, SWIM BAITS, AND BELLY BAITS. SEVERAL YELLOWFIN TUNA UP TO 120 LBS WERE ALSO LANDED WHILE FISHING NEAR MONTUOSA ISLAND.

OUR ANGLERS PUT IN A LOT OF TIME THIS WEEK TRYING TO REPEAT THEIR SUCCESSFUL CATCHING OF 11 BLACK MARLIN WHILE FISHING WITH US LAST YEAR. WITH DAYS PUT INTO THE FISHING EFFORT ON HANNIBAL BANK FOR MARLIN, IT WAS NOT TO BE. JOE HALL CAUGHT AND RELEASED ONE BLACK MARLIN THAT WAS IN THE 450 CLASS. WE ARE HOPING THAT NEXT WEEK THE WIND DIES DOWN AND THE FISHING PICKS BACK UP.

TIGHT LINES,
CAPTAINS JAY GUSTIN AND BEN FLOYD

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK:



JOE WITH A NICE DORADO


JOE AND A CUBERA SNAPPER


DOMINIC WITH A BLUE TREVALLE


BOB AND ANOTHER OF THE DORADO CAUGHT THIS WEEK


JOE REAP WITH A QUICK PHOTO OF A LONG SAILFISH


BOB WITH A GOOD SIZED ROOSTERFISH


CAPTAIN AL RISTORI WITH A CABRILLA


DAVE WITH ONE OF THIS WEEKS SMALLER TUNA THAT WAS FEEDING


BILL WITH A BIG ROOSTERFISH


DAVE WITH A DANDY OF A CUBERA SNAPPER