Susie and I departed Boquete and flew out of David to Panama City last Saturday morning and transferred to Flamenco Marina to board the Cherin III, a 66 foot Buddy Davis luxury sport fish. With calm seas, we cruised south into the Pacific headed to The Pearl Islands, the starting point of our 5 day trip at sea. I have not taken much time off in the last two years, what with planning and building our dream home in Boquete so this was a perfect way to start the year off. Our host John Gorman and his wife Cheryl gave us the invitation of a lifetime that we so looked forward to.
So here we are headed to Isla Pedro Gonzalez to meet up with John’s other boat, the Ms B Haven, a 98 foot Knight & Carver yacht fish which is our home base for the trip. Our plan for the next day is to run 2 hours out to the 1000 foot ledge and then East to Pinas Bay which is close to the border of Colombia. Ms B Haven would follow and the plan was to meet up early evening. This will be a great day of cruising and fishing as we head out to one of the best Marlin grounds on the planet.
The day was incredible, calm seas following us with Porpoises running along side of the boat. As we approached the drop off, we set up a spread of baits and were immediately hooked up with Mahi or Dorado as it is known here. By noon we had caught a half dozen huge fish and we decided to pull in the baits and run to the Tetas to try for Marlin. As we approached the underwater mounts, we could see the shore line in the distance, or should I say the mountain range here in the Darien. Pinas Bay was in sight but we stayed out on the Zane Grey reef to see if we could raise a late afternoon Marlin. We caught so many Mahi that we decided to put out some large Bonita live baits but the Mahi kept it up and crushed one after another. By 5:30 PM we decided to join up with the Ms B Haven for the evening. Dinner was being prepared, the wine and fresh sashimi was set out and all was good. Time to put down the IPad and relax. More tomorrow.
Up at 6:00 AM for a day of chasing Marlin here in Pinas. The coffee (we brought from Boquete) is hot, the fruit is fresh and the muffins warm. First light is soothing on the calm water here in Pinas Bay. What a way to start the day. We headed out to the Zane Grey reef and set out our spread of baits. By 9 AM we had a few Mahi in the box and I was up for the next fish. FISH ON!!!! A nice Blue Marlin took a bait and screamed off toward the horizon, leaping high into the air while trying to throw the hook. I had the belt on and I was ready for the fight. After about 10 minutes, I said, “that fighting chair was put there for a reason” and I was ready to use it. The fish was to the boat within another 10 minutes and released in good health. Our friend Eric was up next and within 10 more minutes, he had a nice Sailfish on and he got it to the boat quickly to release it while it was strong and healthy. What a way to start the morning. While we did not get anymore bill fish, we caught dozens and dozens of Mahi to 40 pounds.
While the boys were fishing, the girls took a panga up a river in Pinas Bay to one of the native villages. They explored the village and shopped for some beautiful hand woven baskets. Susie decided to buy me a boat and returned home with a 6 foot cayuco or hand made wooden canoe carved out of a single log. This would be our new planter for an herb garden at home.
So, after another wonderful dinner and some great wine from John’s collection, we headed off to sleep in preparation for the next day. We were up again at 6 AM and headed out to the Zane Grey reef for our final day of fishing. BY now, we had caught so many Mahi, we were ready to cut the lines if another hooked up. Most people would kill for a day of fishing like we had several times over. By noon, we picked up and started our return run to the Pearl Islands. About half way there, we stopped and did some deep drop fishing in 500 feet for Grouper. We took only enough for dinner and then took off for Hacienda del Mar for an afternoon cocktail at the beach. Isla San Jose is an impressive island of about 144 square kilometers and one of the largest privately owned islands in the world. It has rivers, waterfalls, wildlife that was brought in and flocks of beautiful Macaws. What a way to finish the day and prepare for another wonderful night on the MS B Haven.
All great times come to an end and I write these final words as we slow cruise from Isla San Pedro to Panama City where we will head to the airport to return to Boquete. Our hosts John Gorman and his wife Cheryl gave us a wonderful gift and I cannot thank them enough for such a wonderful time at sea.
Until next time, I wish them tight lines and calm seas.
So, if you would like to try this type of vacation on for size, John has set up Panama Yacht and Fishing Charters. You too can book one or more boats that will be cruising the waters of Panama. From the San Blas Islands to Bocas del Toro you can visit the waters of the Caribbean Sea. From Pinas Bay to Isla Coiba, you can fish some of the best Billfish waters in the world, not to mention the other species that are plentiful including Dorado, Wahoo, Tuna, Snapper, Rooster Fish and giant Cubera. If you are lucky, you can book a charter when the boats transit the Canal moving from one Ocean to the next.
Just contact the booking manager Hennie Marais and mention that you read this in The Panama Perspective and he will treat you to a small discount.