GavilanSportfishing Check availability
Captain Gabriel Gavilan holding a peacock bass on Lake Gatun

Gamboa · Republic of Panama

We fish a
drowned forest
inside the canal

In 1913 the Chagres was dammed and the valley filled. The trees never came out — and that submerged jungle is where Lake Gatun’s peacock bass live. Captain Gabriel Gavilan has been running these flooded treelines since long before the tourists found them.

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Position
09°07′N 79°42′W
Water
Lake Gatun · fresh
Surface
85 ft above sea level
Cast off
Gamboa · 06:00
4.9average over 45 verified reviews
3boats and trip formats
2–8hon the water, you choose
$150lowest trip, per boat

Three ways onto the lake

Pick your hours

Every trip leaves from Gamboa at first light and is priced per boat, not per head. The bars below are drawn to scale — each one is a real departure time and a real length of day.

Two anglers with a peacock bass caught in the Panama Canal

Panama Canal Tours

4.9 29 reviews

Boston Whaler 20′ (2020) · Yamaha 70 · up to 6 anglers · $35 per extra guest

Fishing inside the shipping lane itself, where sport fishing, jungle and canal history run together. Peacock bass, snook and tarpon, with Monkey Island on the way. The most popular way we run the lake, and the easiest day if you have never held a rod.

Monkey Island eco tour $150
4 hour fishing trip $310
6 hour fishing trip $330
8 hour fishing trip $380
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A group of anglers holding peacock bass aboard on Lake Gatun

Fishing Trip in Lake Gatun

5.0 10 reviews

Up to 7 people · Monkey Island included · $35 per extra guest

The group boat. Room for families and friends who want a relaxed pace, a stop to watch howler monkeys and capuchins, and still a real shot at peacock bass, snook and tarpon. All gear and a professional guide come with it.

4 hour fishing trip $310
6 hour fishing trip $330
8 hour fishing trip $380
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Angler holding a large snook caught on Lake Gatun

Gavilan SportFishing

5.0 6 reviews

Boston Whaler 18′ (1988) · Yamaha 60 · sonar aboard · 3 anglers maximum

The small boat, and the one to book if you came to fish. Three rods, sonar, and a captain who will run the timber lines until something eats. This is the only trip that offers a full day rigged for fly.

4 hour fishing trip $285
6 hour fishing trip $320
8 hour fishing trip $350
8 hour fly fishing trip $350
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Prices are per boat. Booking, payment and free cancellation up to three days out are handled on PescaYa, our booking partner.

Aerial view of the boat fishing among drowned tree stumps standing in Lake Gatun

Why the fish are here

Those stumps are hundred-year-old trees, still rooted where the valley floor used to be. Peacock bass hold tight against the timber and ambush from it, which is why local knowledge beats a fast boat on this lake. Nobody reads these treelines the way Gavilan does.

Year round, no closed season

What eats out here

Light tackleFly fishingPoppersLuresSpinningBaitcasterJiggingTrolling

Two peacock bass held just under the surface before release

Your guide

Captain Gabriel Gavilan

Gamboa-based, ID and licence verified, and guiding peacock bass inside the Panama Canal since well before December 2024, when he brought the operation online. Years of reading Gatun’s water — its wind, its levels, and where the fish sit on a given morning — are what put clients on trophy peacock bass instead of near misses.

He fishes with beginners and with people who have chased this species across South America, and adjusts the day to whoever is in the boat. Guests write about the same two things again and again: how much attention he pays, and how much he clearly enjoys it.

Based
Gamboa, Panama
Verified
ID & licence
Guiding since
Dec 2024 online
Rating
4.9 of 5

The fleet

Two Boston Whalers

Both run flat casting floors, rod holders and sun shade — the lake is on the eighth parallel and the sun is not a detail.

The 20′

Canal tours and group trips

Builder
Boston Whaler
Length
20 ft
Year
2020
Engine
Yamaha 70 hp
Capacity
6 anglers
Top speed
15 kn

Flat floor · Rod holders · Cooler · Livewell · Sun shade

The 18′

Dedicated fishing, three rods

Builder
Boston Whaler
Length
18 ft
Year
1988
Engine
Yamaha 60 hp
Capacity
3 anglers
Top speed
20 kn

Flat floor · Sonar · Rod holders · Cooler · Sun shade

Before you book

What the price covers

Included

  • Rod, reel and fishing tackle
  • Live bait
  • Lures
  • Professional guide

Not included

  • Transfer to and from the departure point
  • Food and drink

Good to know

  • Children are welcome aboard
  • Keep your catch, or release it
  • Free cancellation up to 3 days before
  • Weather cancellations are refunded or rescheduled

Questions we get

Straight answers

Do I need any experience?

No. Roughly half the boat on a given morning has never fished. The captain rigs everything, shows you the cast, and stays on top of your line. Guests with children write specifically about this.

What does a trip cost?

Between $150 and $380 depending on the boat and how long you stay out. Prices are per boat, not per person. The group trips add $35 per guest beyond the included four.

Where do we leave from?

Gamboa, where the Chagres meets the canal, about forty minutes from Panama City. Transfer is not included in the trip price, so plan a taxi or a car.

What time do we go?

06:00 for most trips, 07:00 for the canal fishing trips. Early is not a formality here — the peacock bass feed hardest in the first hours and the lake is calmest before the wind builds.

Is there a season?

No closed season. Peacock bass, snook, tarpon, jack crevalle, rainbow bass and tilapia are all available year round, though what is feeding shifts with water level and weather.

How do cancellations work?

Free cancellation up to three days before the trip. Inside three days the 15% deposit goes to the captain as a late cancellation fee. If the captain cancels, you are refunded in full.

How do I actually book?

Availability and payment run through PescaYa, our booking partner. Every “check availability” button opens the live calendar for that trip.

Gamboa · 06:00

The lake is best before the wind gets up

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