Right Place at the Right Time???

[panamasportfishinglodge]

Tim wrote this fishing experienced at PSFL

 The truth is, I felt a bit like Dante, I wasn't even supposed to be there!  After 4 days of 11 plus hours daily on the boat, we cried uncle. I am man enough to admit when the bell has rung for me, and yessir, I heard it. So day 5 was supposed to be an "easy" day. Fish inshore, no long runs, no more marlinas trying to pull me overboard, an easy day. Lots of beer and sun, making baits with sabikis, you know, an easy day. Maybe a 50lb. rooster, perhaps a 70lb. cubera, but inshore. Ha.
  In hindsight, I think I was set up. I don't think Capt. Sergio had any intention of letting us off the hook. I am now pretty sure that Capt. Sergio knew exactly what he was doing, and try as we might, there was no stopping him....
  After 4 days of his relentless pursuit, I should have known he would not rest. I should have known that our pleas and requests for more languid fish would fall on deaf ears. Consider this: on day 2 we caught enough fish on poppers, jigs, soft plastic and cut bait around Islas Secas and Landrones to keep anyone happy. I told Capt. Sergio more than once after 5pm that we were ready when he was, we had a great day after 11 hours on the water and nearly 140 miles and 22 beers later. Bien, bien was his reply until I boated a 45lb. rooster as it was getting dark, only to watch Walt land a fish of a lifetime, an estimated 80lb. rooster only minutes later as the sun dropped from the Panama sky.
 Or consider: Day 3, my first time on the fabled Hannibal Bank. Bluebird day, easy 55-60 mile run, epic adventure. Everyone else on the bank struggled for bait, Capt. Sergio left the fleet, found the bonitas. Everyone else, oh by the way, that means the other 7-10 boats only, struggled for bites, us? Got my first black, estimated over 500lbs. And while we were basking in that glow, Capt. Sergio put us on another, a maniac blue for Walt that pushed 400lbs. 2 bites, 2 landed marlin for the good guys. Not bad for our first trip to Hannibal. Skunk for the rest. Perhaps they lack the scent !?!
 Or maybe I should have recalled day 4. Back to Hannibal, snotty all the way. Our sister boat turned back, only 2 other boats on the Bank, but Capt. Sergio would not be denied. 40lb. dodo later with ahem, developing seas, the only concession the Capt. would make would be the lee side of Isla Montusa, the prettiest island you have seen since we graced the Q105 and headed to Guadalupe. 700 feet 50 miles offshore. Just to prove a point we banged aj's and cuberas until we ran home in 5 footers that punctured my spleen. And we cried uncle. Bastante amigo. 4 days and nearly 50 hours on the boat, lets try inshore manana, please? God, I am getting old.
 So day 5 is going to be easy. Nice and easy. At least it starts that way. Poppers at the boilers, sabikis for blue runners and mangrove snappers, muy tranquillo. Cold Atlas, some mellow pics and chilled fruit, we may not even break a sweat! Walt got the sweetest 40lb cubera that was all lit up, only to be bested by my new personal record cubera of 65lbs. Both were released, and we started dreaming of cocktails at the PSFL dock by 5pm!!
However,no one told the Capt.of our plans, and while we were winding down, Capt. Sergio was catching more bait, pushing further offshore and finding the prettiest water you have ever seen. Purple and electric blue water only 28 miles offshore with loads of bonita, lockjaw yft and lazy pez vela busting. "I smell tuna and marlin", called the Capt. and I knew enough by then to heed his words. Walt would have agreed as well, but he had been snoring for 2 hours by that point. Our only problem seemed to be that as a result of my adamant demands for "inshore" fishing, we had only two 50 wides, no trolling lures and no harness. No problema.
 Ten minutes later we had a 3 rod spread, slow trolling 2 bonita on the 50 wides with a pez vela bellybait on a Trinidad 40 narrow strapped to a noodle Trevala rod on the shotgun. Well, wouldn't you know what gets bit, and it sure wasn't a skinny sailfish. I have never seen a bite like that, I have never been so undergunned on a fish. 400lb. blue, 22, maybe 24lbs of drag tops. The Trevala rod was funny for the first hour. 2 1/2 hours later, it wasn't so funny. Walt quit after the first hour, although he grabbed the rod a couple of times later just to see what it felt like. I pulled on that marlin like it owed me money. We finally got the leader, an inshore piece of only 6 feet of 150lb mono with a 10 circle, after 3 hours and popped it clean. We partied like Kings on the ride home and swore our allegiance to Capt. Sergio. He his fishy and a whole lot of fun.
 PSFL is a great place. Clean rooms, great staff,

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[LuckyLady]

Great read and love the pictures! Rooster Fishing is on the top of my bucket list

Thanks for sharing