PESCA PANAMA WELCOMED BACK THE MIT FISHING TEAM ON THEIR ANNUAL FISHING TRIP WITH US. LITTLE DID WE KNOW AT THE BEGINNING THAT THIS WAS GOING TO BE ONE OF THE BEST FISHING TRIPS THEY HAVE EVER HAD!

MOST OF THE YELLOWFIN TUNA ACTION WAS CENTERED ABOUT ISLA MONTUOSA. SCHOOLS OF HUNGRY YELLOWFIN TUNA WERE AWAITING OUR ANGLERS OFFERINGS. ABOUT HALF OF TUNA WERE TAKEN ON POPPERS, WHILE THE OTHER HALF WERE CAUGHT ON LIVE BAIT. MOST OF THE FISH WOULD WEIGH IN THE 50 TO 100 POUND CLASS WITH A FEW SMALLER FISH AND A FEW LARGER FISH BEING TAKEN. WHAT THESE FISH LACKED IN SIZE THEY MADE UP FOR IN NUMBERS. LOTS OF TUNA, LOTS OF STRIKES AND LOTS OF ACHING MUSCLES.

CARLOS WAS THE FIRST ANGLER TO HOOK-UP A BLACK MARLIN THIS WEEK. A NICE 300 TO 350 POUND FISH THAT HE WAS ABLE TO RELEASE. CARLOS AND THE OTHER ANGLERS IN HIS BOAT THEN WENT ON TO LAND ROOSTERFISH, JACK CREVALLE, BLUE TREVALLE, POMPANO, CUBERA SNAPPER AND GROUPER ON THE SAME DAY. THIS WAS A HAPPY BOAT LOAD OF ANGLERS WHEN THEY RETURNED TO THE BARGE.

TONY LANDED AN ESTIMATED 480 POUND BLACK MARLIN THIS WEEK AT HANNIBAL BANK. THE FISH WENT FOR PESCA PANAMA'S FAVORITE MARLIN BAIT, A SLOW TROLLED LIVE BONITA. THIS WAS THE SECOND CATCH AND RELEASE OF A MARLIN.

NEXT CAME TOMAS' BLACK MARLIN THAT HE CAUGHT WHILE FISHING WITH CAPTAIN MACHO. THIS FISH WAS ESTIMATED AT AROUND 500 LBS. AGAIN THE FISH ATE A SLOW TROLLED LIVE BONITA WHILE FISH AT HANNIBAL BANK.

MANY OTHER NOTABLE CATCHES WERE MADE BY OUR ANGLERS THIS WEEK INCLUDING ONE HUGE RAINBOW RUNNER, SEVERAL DORADO, CUBERA SNAPPERS AND A WHOLE HOST OF OTHER SPECIES. CARLOS'S BOAT ALONE CAUGHT 10 DIFFERENT SPECIES IN ONE DAY.

KINGSLEY AND ALLENSWORTH SET PERSONAL RECORDS

MIKE KINGSLEY AND JUSTIN ALLENSWORTH HAD RETURNED THIS WEEK FOR THEIR SECOND FISHING CHARTER WITH PESCA PANAMA IN A YEAR. THEY WERE CASTING POPPERS IN THE PARDIAS ISLANDS WHERE MIKE DESCRIBES WHAT HAPPENED. "I WAS CASTING MY POPPER INTO A GROUP OF ROCKS EXPOSED BY THE OCEAN SWELL. WHEN MY POPPER HIT THE WATER IT WAS LIKE IT JUST FELL INTO A WHOLE AND DISAPPEARED . JUSTIN SAID HE THOUGHT I MIGHT HAVE HOOKED A ROCK BUT I TOLD HIM ROCK DO NOT STRIP OF LINE AS THE FISH HEADED DOWN INTO THE ROCKS." WITH THE STELLA 10,000 SET AT MAX DRAG, MIKE'S CUSTOM POPPING ROD WAS BENT TO THE THE BREAKING POINT AS HE FOUGHT TO TURN THE FISH. WHEN HE GOT THE FISH NEAR THE BOAT HE COULD SEE IT WAS A COLOSSAL CUBERA SNAPPER. THE BIGGEST HE HAS EVER CAUGHT IN HIS SEVEN TRIP TO FISH WITH PESCA PANAMA.

JUSTIN WAS THROWING A POPPER AT COIBA ISLAND WHEN A BIG ROOSTERFISH ATTACKED HIS POPPER. IT WAS THE BIGGEST ROOSTERFISH HE HAD EVER CAUGHT. A NICE LIVE RELEASE WAS MADE AND BOTH OF MIKE'S AND JUSTIN'S FISH SWAN AWAY IN THE OCEAN TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY. TWO GOOD FRIENDS , TWO BIG FISH, ON ONE FISHING TRIP. IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS DOES IT?

LET ME ANSWER THIS QUESTION FOR I AM NOT DONE WITH MIKE AND JUSTIN'S FISHING TALES. THEY WERE POPPING FOR YELLOWFIN TUNA NEAR MONTUOSA ISLAND WHEN MIKE LOOKED DOWN INTO THE WATER AND RIGHT BESIDE THE BOAT HE SAW WHAT HE THOUGHT WAS A SAILFISH. BUT AFTER A SECOND HE SAID, " THERE IS A BIG BLACK MARLIN SWIMMING RIGHT BY THE BOAT." CAPTAIN LUCHO ACTED QUICKLY AND THREW A LIVE BONITA HE HAD RIGGED UP INTO THE WATER AND WHAM, THE MARLIN TOOK IT. AS THE FIGHT ENDED MATE CHI CHI REACHED FOR THE LEADER AND AS HE TOUCHED IT THE MARLIN MUST HAVE SENSED THE EXTRA PRESSURE, AS THE POWERFUL MARLIN QUICKLY REVERSED DIRECTION AND DRUG JUSTIN AROUND THE BOAT. THE FISH WAS ONCE AGAIN BROUGHT TO LEADER AND THE RELEASE WAS MADE.

ANOTHER GREAT WEEK OF FISHING HERE AT PESCA PANAMA. I WANT TO THANK MIT FOR ONCE AGAIN CHOOSING TO FISH WITH US. ALSO THANKS TO MIKE AND JUSTIN FOR RETURNING. NOW IF WE CAN JUST GET GREG BACK FISHING WITH US AS WE MISSED HIM HERE THIS WEEK.

TIGHT LINES,
CAPTAIN JULIAN JAY GUSTIN

FISHING TIP OF THE WEEK: THIS WEEK SOME OF OUR ANGLERS HELPED RELEASE A SEA TURTLE ENTANGLED IN SOME DISCARDED FISHING NET. SEVERAL WEEKS AGO I WAS INVOLVED IN A SIMILAR RELEASE WE MADE FROM THE BARGE AS WE HAD ENCOUNTER ANOTHER TURTLE ENTANGLED IN A DISCARDED LINE. SEVERAL MONTHS AGO ONE OF OUR CAPTAINS DECLINED TO HELP SEVERAL TURTLES ENSNARED IN A HUGE NET CLAIMING IT WOULD TAKE TOO MUCH FISHING TIME AND EFFORT TO SAVE THEM. I AM HAPPY FOR THE TURTLES WE WERE ABLE TO ASSIST AND SADDENED FOR THE ONES THAT WERE NOT ASSISTED.

PHOTOS OF THE WEEK:


RAY HAS HIS ARMS FULL OF DORADO



FERNANDO WITH A NICE AMBERJACK



CRAZY CHICHI, THE ENTERTAINING MATE, WITH JUSTIN AND A BLUE TREVALLE



JUSTIN WITH HIS BIG ROOSTERFISH



LOTS OF DINNER SIZED YELLOW THIS WEEK



CARLOS, TIRED FROM REELING IN FISH, GETS AN ASSIST TO SHOW HIS ROOSTERFISH



FERNANADO WITH A CUBERA



I CAN'T TELL WHO THIS IS BUT I KNOW IT IS A RESPECTABLE WAHOO



TUNA FOR THE DINNER TABLE



JOSE HUGS AN AMBERJACK