Pedro the Pelican (The Pearl Islands)

Having made our sedate way over the short 30 miles to the Pearl islands - our first foray into Pacific Ocean sailing, we dropped the hook just off the shore of Isla Bayoneta. There we really started to relax. A welcome pause after the stresses of the last few weeks. (The crash, the bank, rudder repair, canal transit, broken impeller, outboard overheating.. to name a few).

To give an idea of our new surroundings, the islands around us have been used by various TV shows as the perfect idyllic desert island location: The American show ‘Survivor’ has shot three series here, and Bear Grylls ‘The island’ has shot five.

We’ve anchored close to our new friends John and Debbie on ‘Ballyhoo’ with whom we spent a pleasant evening sharing a few cold beers, some sailing stories and our future plans - suspect we’ll meet them again in a month or two in French Polynesia a mere 4000 miles away!

We’ve spent days either on the boat or strolling the empty beaches around us, picking up shells, listening to the birdsong, and the gently lapping water. It’s hard not to come away with a smile on your face.

I tried my luck at fishing this evening - there’s definitely fish down there, evidenced by the scores of pelicans who dive bomb the waters surface throughout the day. They come up bobbing their heads, gulping fish down their gullets more often than not.

In the two hours I spent out, I caught three of what I believe to be ‘spotted rock cod’ - enough fish to easily feed us both for a couple of meals.. however in the absence of a book or my phone to clearly identify them (and rule out being poisoned) I returned them all to the water.

Upped anchor this morning heading off to the island of Mogo Mogo - this was the name given to one of the tribes who stayed there on the TV show Survivor - a boring fact for many, but a fascinating detail for fans like me. The sail there (during which I’m writing this) is a calm steady 4ish knots, the sun’s shining, large flocks of pelicans crisscross our path - rather a lovely morning all round really. Arriving at the island, we join 4 other boats well spaced along the pale yellow line that marks the gorgeous looking shore. One of these is ‘Bisou’ - our rafted Aussie neighbours from the canal transit.

Close to sunset at low tide, we take the tender to the beach at Mogo Mogo, over fairly shallow water. I ended up rowing the last 50m or so to avoid damaging the propeller. There’s a few signs of low level tourism on shore: some palm frond umbrellas, a couple of eco style glamping tents, and one local guy who returns our ‘Beunas tardes’ with a friendly smile. As beaches go - it’s a good one. Long sweeping sandy line, rocks defining each end, mixed palms and mangroves at the edges and enough interesting shells to keep us stopping and stooping down every few steps. Walking through to the other side of the island, the first beach we’ve just left is outdone in all respects. What lays before us is a vision of perfection with the sun still glinting on the calm water beyond the long smiling curve of the beach. I can see why Mogo Mogo was so often chosen for filming (…the 25% cash back rebate offered to production companies by the Panamanian government probably helped too)

I had another go at fishing this afternoon. Casting a fishlike lure from the transom and slowly winding it back. After a few unsuccessful tries I was joined by an inquisitive pelican. He had seen the little glistening lure I kept pulling back on board, and assumed I had fish to share. He hopped onto the transom and spent the next 3/4 hour intently staring at me waiting for his lunch - none was forthcoming. An absolutely gorgeous bird up close, I was sorry to finally have to shoo, then swim, him away. The alternative was to leave him where he was and have our stern get covered in guano.

Come the weekend, our previously peaceful haven fills with jet skis, party boats with music blaring, and hoards of day trippers. All good - it makes for an interesting spectacle.

We’re also joined by a surprisingly large school of fish who keep breaking the surface tantalising close to our boat. I decide to take the dingy out and drift over to them with my lure. There follows an hour of hide and seek which has me repeatedly casting into the splashes and reeling in nothing as the water calms and I slowly drift out to sea. Turning for home, I start the outboard and drag the lure slowly behind me. Snap! The rod bends to an exciting angle signalling the start of a five minute fight. I nearly lost my line at one point, as the fish at the other end seemed to get the upper hand. It’s probably the best fishing battle I’ve ever had. Not the biggest, but a real to and fro tussle. With advice from Martin and Alistair ringing in my ears (“Easy does it”) I slowly worked the fish in close enough to hop it on board. It’s a gorgeous looking silver and blue striped bonito - big enough to feed us both for a few meals. This one is not returned to the water.