Snook Fishing in Panama - December 2016

My wife and I spent the winter months volunteering at a guest house on the Caribbean side of Panama. When I was lucky enough to get some time off I was able to indulge in the fantastic fishing that's available. 

We were situated on a tiny island in the Bocas Del Toro archipelago, ideally placed to explore the inshore fishing. Within an hours boat ride there are many different environments available to the adventurous angler. Mangrove swamps, sand flats, huge tranquil lagoons, giant estuary systems and small tidal creeks to name but a few. It's a veritable anglers paradise and home to Tarpon, Snook and huge Jack Crevalles. 

Caribbean Vibes!

There are no roads in the archipelago and everyone gets around in their own private boat or by water taxi, it's a really lovely way of life. Consequently, finding a boat and a Captain for my days off was no problem. All of the boats are fiberglass pangas of between 15 and 25 feet, kitted out for transporting the locals and tourists around. Not your regular kind of sport fishing boat, being full of bench seats, but seaworthy enough which was all that mattered.

My captain, Roberto, was a lovely old boy in his late 60's. Born to an indigenous mother and black father, he was a typical Panamanian of mixed race. It's a melting pot of ethnicity's in Panama. The history of the country is really very interesting, if a little harrowing at the same time. He loved to fish for tuna and wahoo with his trolling gear when the ocean was flat. The inshore fishing was not really his thing but he agreed that if we wanted to find my inshore species then the estuaries, creeks and bays would be the best place to look. It sounded good to me!

My friend Bob fights a Snook way up a jungle river

Snook are a hard fighting species that hold great appeal to me. To find them we'd need to head deep into the mangrove swamps through the maze of channels that they create to a spot right at the back of a huge lagoon. There were a series of small rivers and creeks that run deep into the jungle here, it's proper backcountry fishing.

My 'go to' Bucktail Jig

My 'go to' lure in this situation is usually a Bucktail Jig with a rubber grub attached to the hook. This lure has served me well everywhere. I find the combination of the profile, the pulsating action of the bucktail and the vibration of the curl-tail grub to be irresistible to most species, it looks so lifelike in the water. It can be fished fast or slow, down deep, along the surface or bounced along the bottom. It really is the most versatile of lures. My favourite colour to use is white but green or yellow can be good some days.

Roberto insisted that the way to catch the Snook was to troll small rapala lures up and down the river. I wasn't exactly convinced, thinking that the engine noise would put the fish off.  We gave it a try but couldn't get a bite. I then asked Roberto to drift down with the current quietly so I could stand up front and flick my Bucktail Jig into all the likely looking spots instead. This proved to be just the ticket!

My biggest Snook of the trip

Fishing the lure sink and draw style brought three small Snook in quick succession and seemed to be just the presentation they wanted. The fourth fish proved to be an absolute belter and the specimen I was hoping for. The fight was spectacular with the fish leaping and thrashing it's head about a couple of times before boring down under the boat. Thankfully, I managed to keep the line away from the hull and soon had my prize on board. 

Estimated around 17 lbs I was made up with this fish, a very special creature. To catch it way up a tiny river in the jungle made it all the more special. Fantastic fishing!

Click on the below video for full footage of 
catching 2 Large Snook