Early in the morning, you will be picked up at your hotel in Panama City. Enjoy a scenic 45-minute drive through the old Panama Canal Zone, driving by two sets of the Panama Canal Locks (Miraflores and Pedro Miguel Locks) and then through lush, pristine rainforest to Gamboa at the junction of the Chagres River and the Panama Canal. At the marina, you will board a charter fishing boat that comes fully equipped with a shade canopy, an electric trolling motor, two front swivel chairs, a live bait box, full tackle, rods and reels. Shortly after departing the marina on the Chagres River, you will speed out onto the Panama Canal, racing past big giant Panamax ships as they make their way through the canal. Then, you will turn into the jungle water pathways that wind around numerous rainforest covered islands, offering many dark shaded inlets and coves to explore.

You will have the opportunity to catch peacock bass and to troll for snook and tarpon. Peacock bass, an introduced species in Gatun Lake, is a world renowned, sought after, game fish. The younger 2 to 3-pounder Peacock bass are abundant in these waters and swim in schools along certain areas of the lake.

Gatun Lake was formed to give way to the Panama Canal in 1914. With a surface area of 423 square-kilometers, at the time of its creation, it was the largest man-made lake in the world. The flow of all the rivers within the Panama Canal Watershed is contained in Gatun Lake to provide water for the operation of the lock system. More than 52 million gallons of fresh water are used for every ship that transits through the Panama Canal.

If you are not an experienced angler, you do not have to miss out on this great opportunity. We welcome beginners and families with children that want a fishing adventure on the Panama Canal. Children will enjoy the ease of catching the smaller 2 to 3 pounders. En-route to the best fishing spots, the boat allows for close approximations to rainforest covered islands (former hill tops) in Gatun Lake to search for white-faced capuchin, mantled howler monkeys, Central American spider monkey, and Geoffrey’s tamarin. Drop back at your hotel in the early afternoon.