8 reasons my kayak fishing trip to Panama was so thrilling

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#1 The fish are plentiful and varied

The photo above shows just one of our group, Bob Deane from Denver, with a sampling of the species he landed over five days on the water. Clockwise from the top left, he shows off his: near-world-record needlefish, bluefin trevally, yellowfin tuna, roosterfish, African pompano and sierra mackerel.

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Think for a moment about the Canadians you know who’ve gone fishing while on a tropical getaway to Cuba or Mexico. A single day on the water costs almost as much as your entire vacation, and then odds are you spend six hours trolling, while fighting off seasickness and catch… nothing. This does not happen on the Wild Coast, where the fish see minimal angling pressure, and there’s very little commercial or subsistence fishing.

(Clockwise from top left): Rob Dankowsky with a mutton snapper; the author with African pompano and jack crevalle; Jamie Nelson with a roosterfish

In fact, with the exception of a collage of jaw-dropping trophy shots near the end, ALL of the photos in this story were taken during my trip. Amazing.