Fishing Report - 04/03/10

GREETING FROM THE TROPICS

PECSA PANAMA WELCOMED A COUPLE OF FATHER AND SON FISHING TEAMS THIS WEEK. SON MARK WAS FISHING WITH FATHER KEN REED.  JACK WAS FISHING WITH HIS FATHER BOB LITSCHEWSKI. IN ANOTHER BOAT WE HAD THREE HARD CHARGING ANGLERS MIKE KENFIED, JIM MANDLY AND JACK SPRENGEL. WE HAD TWO MORE GROUPS OF ANGLERS FROM CHILE THAT WERE PLANNING ON FISHING WITH US. THAT WAS BEFORE THE ECONOMY TURNED DOWN AND THEN THE EARTH QUAKES. THEY HAVE RESCHEDULED FOR NEXT NOVEMBER. WE ALL WISH THEM WELL AND HOPE FOR THEIR SPEEDY RECOVERY.
 
FROM DAY ONE, MIKE, JIM AND JACK WERE INTO THE FISH. THESE ANGLERS WERE HARDCORE JIGGING AND POPPING, WITH AN OCCASIONAL LIVE BAIT THROWN IN TO KEEP THE FISHING ACTION GOING. IN THE FIRST TWO DAYS THEY HAD CAUGHT 7 CUBERA SNAPPER, 9 JACK CREVALLE, 6 BLUE TREVALLE, 1 SILK SNAPPER, 1 MULLET SNAPPER, 8 FALSE ALBACORE, 6 POMPANO, 2 ROCK SNAPPER AND 6 BONITO. THEN WHILE FISHING AT COIBA ISLAND THEY HOOKED A GIANT SIZED TARPON ESTIMATED AT AROUND 200 LBS. WITH THE DRAG BUTTONED DOWN THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO BUT WATCH AS THE TARPON JUMPED AND RAN FOR THE ROCKY SHORE LINE. MIKE HAD BETTER FISHING LUCK AT THE "SNOOK HOLE" WHERE HE CAUGHT AND RELEASED A 25 LB SNOOK, THEN JIM HOOKED AN EVEN LARGER ONE THAT GOT AWAY ON A SPECTACULAR JUMP. DAYS THREE AND FOUR THE NORTH EASTERS TURNED THEIR ATTENTION TO YELLOW-FIN TUNA, RIGHT OUT OF THE GATE CAPT JACK HOOKED UP AND LANDED A DORADO UPWARDS OF 50 LBS, SHORTLY AFTER THAT THE TUNA SHOWED UP AND AND ALL THREE ANGLERS RAN A CLINIC ON THEM, LANDING OVER 16 FISH ON POPPERS AND SPEED JIGS. DAYS 5 AND 6 WHERE CLEAN UP DAYS TARGETING MULLET SNAPPER AND AMBERJACK, AND TARGET THEM THEY DID. AFTER THEY LANDED MULTIPLE REEF DONKEYS ON VERTICAL JIGS, MIKE KENFIELD GOT OLD SCHOOL AND LANDED A LARGE MULLET SNAPPER USING A "HAND-LINE". TO RAP UP AN AMAZING WEEK JIM MANDLEY SCORED AN XL SPANISH MACKEREL MOMENTS BEFORE HEADING HOME!
 
MEAN WHILE MARK AND KEN WERE CATCHING A FEW ROOSTERFISH WITH KEN LANDING ONE THAT WOULD WEIGHT 60 LBS. CAPTAIN TOMMY LOCATED A SCHOOL OF YELLOWFIN LESS THAN THREE MILES FROM PUNTA HERMOSA WHERE THE BARGE WAS ANCHORED. THEY WERE ABLE TO LAND 13 YELLOWFIN UP TO 80 LB, A COUPLE OF GOOD SIZED DORADO AND CAUGHT  VARIOUS SNAPPERS AND JACK AS THEY FISHED THEIR WAY BACK TO THE BARGE.
 
JACK AND BOB STAYED FISHING ON HANNIBAL BANK TRYING FOR A BLACK MARLIN. THEIR EFFORTS PAID OFF WHEN A BLACK MARLIN SWAM UP AND ATE BOTH OF THEIR SLOW TROLLED LIVE BONITA. THEIR LINE CROSSED AND BOB LINE PARTED BUT JACK'S LINE HELD. AFTER A 45 MINUTE BATTLE JACK HAD THE FISH ALONG SIDE OF THE BOAT. HE SAID, "HE HAD JUST ABOUT HIT THE WALL ON THIS FISH!" AT RELEASE, THE BLACK MARLIN WAS ESTIMATED AROUND 400 LBS.
 
OUR TUNA NUMBERS WERE DOWN THIS WEEK FROM PREVIOUS WEEKS. BUT THE TUNA WERE ACTIVELY HITTING TOP WATER BAITS AND OUR ANGLERS WERE ABLE TO LAND A TOTAL OF 46 YELLOWFIN TUNA. BIG AMBERJACKS WERE ALSO HITTING JIGS GOOD THIS WEEK, PRODUCING SOME KNEE BUCKLING STRIKES. 
 
WE ENJOYED CALM SEAS THIS WEEK AND THE RAINY SEASON HASN'T STARTED YET. I FOR ONE AM LOOKING FORWARD TO THE RAIN AS IT WILL COOL DOWN THE SEA TEMPERATURES.  THANKS TO ALL OUR ANGLERS  FOR PUTTING OUT THE EFFORT TO MAKE THIS A MOST ENJOYABLE WEEK. WE HOPE PESCA PANAMA IS IN YOUR FUTURE FISHING PLANS.
 
TIGHT LINES,
CAPTAIN JAY GUSTIN
 
FISHING TIP OF THE WEEK; ON OUR NEW SHIMANO STELLA SPINNING REES, SIZES 10,000 AND 18000, WE ARE HAVING A FAILURE WITH THE LINE ROLLER. SEEMS INSTEAD OF USING ONE TYPE OF HARD METAL, SHIMANO HAS USED A SOFTER METAL WITH A HARD METAL PLATED OVER IT. THE PLATING WILL NOT HOLD UP UNDER THE EXTREME DRAG PRESSURE AND CRACKS THUS EXPOSING THE SOFTER METAL UNDERNEATH. THIS ALL LEADS TO AN UNEVEN SURFACE THAT THEN QUICKLY DESTROYS THE SPECTRA LINE. I KNOW THAT I HAVE OVER 10,000 WORTH OF THESE REELS WAITING TO BE REPAIRED. SHIMANO NEEDS TO GET ON TOP OF THIS SITUATION AND MAKE THE NECESSARY CHANGES. THEN SHIMANO NEEDS TO GET PESCA PANAMA ON THEIR GUIDE PROGRAM AS THIS IS WHEN THEIR TACKLE IS REALLY PUT TO THE TEST!
 
IF YOU ARE COMING DOWN, REMEMBER TO THROW IN SOME DVD MOVIES YOU ARE FINISHED WITH AND ALSO ANY OF YOUR OLD MAGAZINES. I AM RUNNING OUT OF CURRENT MATERIAL. THANKS
 
ON A MISSION TO EXPERIENCE AS MANY SPECIES AS POSSIBLE, MIKE KENFIELD, JIM MANDLY AND CAPT JACK SPRENGEL HAD SO MANY INTERESTING PHOTOS THIS WEEK THAT I SENT A SPECIAL PHOTO ALBUM OF JUST THEIR CATCHES . NONE OF THESE PHOTOS ARE DOCTORED, BUT THE FISH EYE LENS REALLY DOES THE FISH JUSTICE. HOPE YOU ENJOYED THE PHOTOS HALF AS MUCH AS THEY ENJOYED CATCHING THE FISH.

GREAT FISHING PHOTOS OF THE WEEK:


BITE ME!


7 FT BULL SHARK BROUGHT TO THE BOAT


FATHER AND SON, KEN AND MARK, WITH A NICE "DOUBLE" ON CUBERA SNAPPERS


MATE  CHI CHI MAKES HIS DIVE TO REVIVE A CUBERA SNAPPER


JACK'S BLACK MARLIN BEING LEADERED IN BY MATE CHI CHI


JACK READY TO RELEASE HIS 400 LB BLACK MARLIN


























KEN WITH A NICE ROOSTERISH


BARGE IN THE RIVER, READY FOR AN EARLY MORNING DEPARTURE


KEN WITH AN EVEN LARGER ROOSTERFISH


KEN WITH A DORADO


PANAMANIAN SUNSET, BEAUTIFUL!


MARK WITH ANOTHER YELLOWFIN TUNA


MARK LOOKS HAPPY WITH HIS CUBERA CATCH, CONGRATULATIONS MARK!


KEN WITH A BIG ROCK SNAPPER


MATE CHI CHI LENDS A HAND TO ANGLER BOB ON A BIG CUBERA


CAPTAIN AND MATES, READY AND WAITING TO GO FISHING


MATE CHI CHI AND BOB WITH A BIG ROOSTERFISH FOR RELEASE


NICE SCENERY SHOT


JACK WITH ONE OF THIS WEEK'S MANY ROOSTERFISH