By Elliott Stark
Since 1963, Tropic Star Lodge has been attracting anglers from around the world to one of the most remote, beautiful and inaccessible places in the New World. The fishing out of Piñas Bay, Panama is good enough to justify travel here. It has been drawing anglers since Zane Grey came here under sail power in the 1920s. No matter how many marlin and tuna there may be, describing Tropic Star Lodge simply in terms of fishing somehow misses the point.
Panama’s Tropic Star Lodge has been a staple of the sportfishing landscape since 1963. The present is a very interesting time at Tropic Star.
This all access pass provides a look at one of the most unique and historic fishing operations in the world:
Read Tradition and Trajectory at Tropic Star in our latest issue of InTheBite
“Super Fresh” brings you InTheBite’s culinary adventures. This was fishing with Captain Asael and first mate Harol on the “Miss Spain” out of Tropic Star Lodge in Piñas Bay, Panama. How would you prepare this mahi mahi?
CABO SAN LUCAS, BCS, Mex. – A 458-pound black marlin landed on the final day of the Bisbee’s Los Cabos Offshore Tournament was worth $520,485 in prize money to the Wild Hooker Team aboard the Wild Hooker.
It took tournament angler Danny Hogan 1 hour, 25 minutes to subdue the monster which ate a skipjack tuna.
The winning fish narrowly beat a 455-pound black marlin caught aboard the boat Predator. The second-place fish was worth $333,418 in prize money.
In all, the tournament’s 123 teams composed of 763 anglers and crews competed for a record $1,165,000, according to event director Wayne Bisbee.
Other notable winners in various categories included:
· A 235-pound yellowfin tuna by Team Overtime aboard the boat Overtimevalued at $129,860;
· A 73-pound tuna by Team Altata Bay aboard the Catamaran valued at $78,200; and
· A 455-pound black marlin by team Los Compadres del Dorado valued at $9,686.
Winning amounts are determined by tournament entry fees together with various daily and event jackpot prizes.
The tournament was divided into seven categories limited to marlin, tuna and dorado. Five billfish exceeded the minimum weight of 300 pounds, eight tuna and numerous dorado were brought to the scale. All the fish (2,869 pounds — 8,607 meals) that were brought to the scale were given to charities for orphans, homeless or disabled.
