Catching a Roosterfish in Panama. Super trip!
The 35-nautical-mile open-sea cruise from Panama to the first islands of the Pearl Islands Archipelago is an adventure in itself.
Catching a Roosterfish was quite the adventure
The 35-nautical-mile open-sea cruise from Panama to the first islands of the Pearl Islands Archipelago passes through three main drops. As you sail, you'll notice you've arrived as soon as the wildlife begins to bloom — birds, bait balls and even dolphins.
We didn't head out planning to catch a roosterfish; we just wanted a good monster. That day we left early at dawn. We were on board our Viking sport yacht with three anglers.
The clients went straight to the inner cabins for a morning nap while the captain ran the boat at cruising speed. That continued until he suddenly slowed down — the first rod was showing signs of life, with pelicans circling above.
Things start getting interesting
The captain dropped to trolling speed and the lines went into the water. In less than 5 minutes — boom! The first bite of the day was a decent-sized bonito. While some anglers ignore them, our crew knew it was a sign of potential tuna. The captain decided to reel in and head out to deeper water and the next drops to maximize the time.
After a few miles, it was clear we were on the next drop. Here, dolphins were swimming aggressively — that meant hunting mode. Dolphins usually come to play with boats, but this time they completely ignored us because they were chasing their own prey.
The captain decided to get ahead of the dolphins. He let out the lines and the magic happened for about two hours. We got yellowfin tuna bites — we even had two rods bent at the same time!
The clients told the captain to stop and rest at the Pearl Islands when their arms and shoulders started to ache.
As the captain approached the outer reefs of the islands, he spotted some blue bait balls. He suggested fishing quickly for 10 minutes around the structure — and two lines were hooked up immediately!
The first fish was a giant jack. The second line took out a lot of line and the team was unsure whether it was a snapper or some kind of bottom monster. But as the fish got closer, we could see its colors. It was quite whitish — and there it was: a huge roosterfish.
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