Panama’s Spectacular San Blas Islands
The Caribbean? Must be some mistake. This photo has to be the Seychelles or some remote island paradise in the tropical Pacific. But no: It’s one of hundreds of San Blas Islands off the northern (Atlantic) coast of Panama. A group of anglers — two shown here casting from a flats skiff — recently joined Panama Yacht & Fishing Charters to spend five days exploring these astoundingly beautiful waters. Enjoy a taste of the spectacular San Blas in this photo gallery.
Idyllic
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
On site: Panama Yacht & Fishing Charters‘ operation in the protection of the San Blas Islands, as seen from a drone flown by Ryan Danoff. Accompanying the 98-foot, luxurious mothership Ms. B Haven on all (Atlantic and Pacific) Panama destinations is a 66 Buddy Davis and a brand-new Strike 37.
Gear Galore
Shimano marketing manager Marc Mills sent down plenty of gear for this trip.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Gear for Any Occasion
Some of the new Shimano rods and reels in the beamy cockpit of the Ms. B. Haven, set up and ready to fish.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Simply Dazzling
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
In this drone’s-eye view, the PYFC skiff runs up a channel in clear, pristine flats that characterize the San Blas Archipelago.
First Casts
The skiff stops near a small sandy island so anglers can cast lures.
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
Light-Tackle Mutton
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
AFTCO CEO Bill Shedd prepares to unhook a yellow Shimano Waxwing lure from a mutton snapper.
River in the Flats
Anglers from the PYFC group work the clear waters of a channel along the edge of a large flat.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Tough Customer
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Big (and tough) horse-eye jacks seemed to outnumber the usually more common crevalles on this outing. Here, Sport Fishing‘s publisher, Dave Morel, admires a horse-eye that struck a Shimano Orca.
Hook Crusher
The good news for Dave Morel was that this surface walking lure attracted the attention of a nice snapper. The bad news was that the punishing jaws of a big snapper quickly did a job on the freshwater hooks, no doubt leaving the fish laughing all the way back to the reef.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Dave’s Revenge
When the next dog snapper went after Morel’s lure — an Orca stick bait, designed for saltwater bruisers — the hooks held fine as the angler muscled the fish on a locked-down drag quickly from the reef.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Start Melting That Butter
Local fishermen dive the reefs for large channel clinging crabs like this and spiny lobster from their dugout canoes. Before heading back to the mothership, our guide — PYFC general manager Hennie Marais — stopped to buy some of the indigenous crustacea to top off our dinner entrees.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Enticing Salon
The ice-cold Ms. B Haven salon is a welcome sight at the end of a long day on the water.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Crustacean Feast
Enough to make any mouth water: Dinner on the Ms. B Haven starts with a huge platter of fresh channel clinging crab claws and lobster tails.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
As It Ever Was
The Guna Indians, native to these islands, take pride in living traditionally, as evidenced by their canoe and paddles and mostly traditional, colorful dress.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Whence Tomorrow?
After dinner, anglers and crew consider their options for the next day’s fishing, poring over the big chart in the wheelhouse showing part of the San Blas Archipelago.
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
Having a Swell Time
The decision to do some jigging offshore wasn’t affected by a bit of swell. Well, okay: a lot of swell. Even the 66 Buddy Davis Cherin III bobs about a bit like a toy.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
First Drop
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
These anglers would maintain that a bit of swell isn’t so bad — Bill Shedd (left) and Marc Mills enjoyed simultaneous strikes from lovely dog snapper on their Shimano FlatSide fishing jigs on the first drop of the morning.
Toothy Smile
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
Toothy grin from a school-sized king mackerel for Dave Morel, after it struck his speed jig on the way down.
Following Sea
A large following swell looms astern of the Cherin III as it heads to a new jigging spot.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Jigmeister’s Decision
Welsh fishing journalist and outfitter Dave Lewis has an array of Shimano jigs from which to choose for his first drop offshore.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Very Red Nassau
It would seem that Lewis picked a winning jig, since he came up with strikingly colored Nassau grouper, which are apparently much more red than they are in much of their range.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Speedy Cero
Lewis strikes again: This time the writer’s jig was picked up by a large, speedy cero mackerel.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Handle With Care
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
They’re everywhere: lionfish, a toxic-tipped reef dweller not found outside the Pacific until recently, are now established in most tropical Atlantic waters. This one went for a large Butterfly jig.
Island Outpost
Simple thatch huts and dugout canoes characterize Guna outposts on small islands.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Colorful Custom
Gunas are well-known for their short stature and vividly colored traditional clothing (molas).
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Traditional and Modern
Near a reef just beyond a San Blas Island: in the foreground, two native fishermen in a sailing canoe; in the background, two anglers cast from PYFC’s inflatable.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Why, How Do You Do?
Caught by the camera in the moment: Bill Shedd only appears to be shaking hands with a ghost; in fact, an angler in the stern of the skiff tossed up a glove to Shedd who is just about to make the catch.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Shallow-Reef Snaper
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
The reason Shedd asked for one of AFTCO’s Release Fishing Gloves: The better to grab this feisty dog snapper that he caught on an Orca stickbait.
Endless Flats
Except for the drone overhead, fly-rodder Dave Morel has this huge flat to himself. Despite several permit and bonefish spotted during the trip, these flats trophies eluded anglers on this expedition.
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
Fly-Rod Surprise
But the flats did provide fly-rodders with action such as Dave Lewis’s lovely bar jack.
Marc Mills
Contrasts
Another study in the traditional (fishermen in dugout canoe) and contemporary (fly-fisherman) working the same flat).
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Jungle River
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Although the rainy season here was running late in late July, some rivers still had a clear and clean if modest freshwater outlflow. Here, Henny Marais puts the inflatable into position as Dave Morel casts along a cutaway bank.
River Snapper
Morel scores when this young cubera snapper attacks his Jackall minnow lure.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Horse-Eye Attack
Why, the horse-eye jacks were so abundant even SF‘s editor-in-chief caught one. A floating Orca lure did the trick.
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Omnipresent Doggy
The most abundant snapper we caught in the San Blas Islands were these guys — dog snapper, Lutjanus jocu.
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
Substantial Schoolmaster
Dave Lewis / davelewisfishing.com
Schoolmaster snappers don’t get a whole lot larger than this one that Marc Mills nailed using one of Shimano’s new Pop Orca topwaters.
Muy Tranquilo
Anglers in the inflatable motor slowly into a still lagoon. It proved to be loaded with sardines.
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
Settled In
Jason Arnold / jasonarnoldphoto.com
A serene scene — as dusk approaches lights begin to come on in boats at anchor in the protection of Panama’s San Blas Islands.
A San Blas Sunset
Doug Olander / Sport Fishing Magazine
An orange sky paints the surface of the Caribbean in the islands on the trip’s last night.
