We have arrived on Bonaire and it is a really interesting island. Known as a divers and wind surfers paradise, it is a beautiful coral island, surrounded by a reef. Bonaire was part of the Netherlands Antilles until the country’s dissolution on October 10, 2010, when the island (including Klein Bonaire) became a special municipality within the country of the Netherlands. It definitely has a European feel to it, shopping is good, lots of restaurants and plenty of high quality groceries when you feel like cooking at home. Our search for bonefish started today with some success. Saw plenty of fish and hooked a few, but it may take a day or two to get it figured out.
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Bonefishing on Bonaire
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DIY Bonefishing On Eleuthera
Barry Morse from the U.K. was kind enough to do a report on his trip to Eleuthera, which follows below. For all the “press” Eleuthera gets on DIY style trips I find it to be one of the more difficult places to actually catch fish. I’ve had many one, two and three fish days there. Had a twenty fish day, but that was by far the exception. The great thing about Eleuthera is it is a beautiful place with wonderful beaches, restaurants, amenities and every kind of accommodation imaginable. A nice place to take a non-fishing companion with the opportunity to catch a few fish thrown in. Barry’s Report: First of all, if you are a complete ‘newbie’ to fly fishing for bonefish and live in or near U.K., go to this link. http://www.bonefishadventure.com Graham’s organized trips to Eleuthera are the cheapest and most useful intro to the sport. I benefitted hugely from the help and instruction. I followed up with a DIY trip of my own to Eleuthera along with my accomplice, Lars, to consolidate what we had learnt from Graham. The fish were very hard to locate on both of our trips but we managed to land a few. Once located the bones were very spooky indeed and repaid our clumsy efforts by taking off for the horizon at the slightest of bad casts. A good feature of DIY on Eleuthera is that, with a ‘rent-a-wreck’ hire car, there are many good access points to the flats. We based ourselves at the ‘Duck Inn’, Governor’s Harbour, which is about mid-way down the 110 mile island. Being only a couple of miles wide Eleuthera’s shores are accessible ‘Ocean Side’ or ‘Sea Side’. Getting there from U.K.: B.A. direct from Heathrow to Nassau. After one night in Nassau there is a connection the following morning from Nassau to Governor’s Harbour, Eleuthera. This flight arrives with plenty of time left to pick up the car, dump your bags and get out on one of the nearby flats. There is a good one actually behind the airport. Accommodation and costs: First visit we were with Graham from Bonefish Adventure and stayed full board at the Rainbow Inn. This and vehicle hire was included at around £1,000 for the week + petrol and beer and BA fare. Overnight in Nassau was at the Orange Hill Hotel, better known to us Brits as ‘Fawlty Towers’ but don’t be put off by that. Rooms here around $130 for a twin. Our second visit followed the same route but we stayed at the Duck Inn, Governor’s Harbour, self catering with a shop nearby. This is perfect fishing accommodation and you can step outside before breakfast and fish the harbour area. Cost here was about $400 + food. Transport was a ‘rent-a-wreck’ arranged for us by John at the Duck Inn. $50 /day plus petrol. Conclusion: You won’t ‘fill your boots’ with bonefish here but you will learn a lot and there is a fantastic buzz the first time that you actually wade; spot a bonefish; put a fly in front of it then hook up. Much of this is missing when fishing with a guide whether from a skiff or wading.
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Bonefishing and life
I’m a very fortunate guy and I know it. I try not to take it for granted, but sometimes one day on the flat leads to another and you forget the blessings that have been given. Traveling the world, chasing the ghost of the flats with my wife and friends is a pretty good life. After enjoying a nice day fishing on Bonaire yesterday, I opened my email to read that my next door neighbour had passed away the night before. It was expected as he had been diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer two months previously while I was on Acklins. But it still hurts. Last Thursday, as he was laying in bed, I was holding his weakened hand, both of us knowing that it would be the last time we saw each other as Kim and I were off to Bonaire the next morning. The certainty of events to come, weighed heavily in the air. But when we left, goodbye was really goodbye. The tears flowed freely, there was no reason to hold back. No reason to be strong anymore, life was playing out for him as it had been determined, 67 years earlier. These days my life tends to revolve around fishing and my relationship with my neighbor was no exception. When we moved in three years ago we were cordial and enjoyed each others company. We had come from entirely different lives, he through the ranks of the Canadian military and me from the world of business and finance. Our paths would not have crossed in a million years except that we ended up living next door to each other. No reason to think we would ever be more than neighbours who said hello. But friendships tend to grow through commonality, and my fly rod turned out to be the bridge. Shortly after moving in, he watched me load my gear into the truck, preparing to hit one of our local streams. He shut off the lawnmower, walked over and mentioned that his wife had bought him a fly rod and reel for Christmas but didn’t know how to use it. There it was, the fat pitch, the red cape waving in front of a bull, the invitation to bring another otherwise sane individual over to the dark side……….fly fishing. We went to the park for casting lessons, talked about fishing around the Province, discussed lines, leaders and flies and generally carried on the way fly fishermen do when they are together. But every moment talking about fly fishing is really learning about each other. Our last trip together was fishing for pink salmon off the beach. We brought back our limit and he smoked them up. Later we shared some of the oceans bounty together. It’s what fishing does. Heaps events, trips and discussions on top of one another to build a foundation. Creates ties and knots that intertwine to bind like-minded individuals together like one of those Chinese Linking Rings that can’t be undone. You spend time together under the guise of fishing, but obviously there is more. Walking the flats today will be different then walking the flats yesterday. Bye Rick
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Spotting Bonefish
It all started years ago when I was asked the simple question “How do you spot bonefish?” Simple enough question, but a really complicated answer. Particularly when you fish the way I do (wading) and in the places I fish (creek systems and small flats) that are accessible by car, bicycle, foot or kayak. Inevitably the locations are anything but large white expanses of sand. The standard answer is “look for movement, different colours, tails, nervous water, etc” but I have realized it is much more complex than that. I have given the standard answer to countless anglers and it has not helped them in the least. The real answer involves many variables and has as much to do with an individuals wading style and rhythm then it does “sighting” ability. What I can tell you is “spotting fish” can be learned and your ability to see fish can be improved. In preparation for an upcoming engagement as a Keynote Speaker I developed the graphic below to help explain to the audience “How to see bonefish.” In essence it is designed to talk about each individuals Personal Spotting Zone (that area in which you can actually identify fish), how much time you should spend scanning for fish in the Spotting Zone and by extension, what affect walking speed has on an individuals ability to see fish before they sense you. Later this week I’ll talk about how and why you need to get real about your Personal Spotting Zone (spoiler alert: it’s closer to fifty feet than eighty) the correlation between walking speed and the Personal Spotting Zone and then “how to scan”.
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Bonaire Bonefishing Update
We have been on Bonaire for two weeks and beginning to get a feel for the place. The good news is there are a lot of bonefish here. Far more than I imagined or ever read about and there are no fishermen. Most people here don’t even know what a bonefish is or know that they inhabit the local waters. The challenging part is determining where to fish for them. The island is surrounded by a National Park and coral reef, with it’s own set of rules. The southern end of the island is comprised of the salt ponds owned by Cargill. Then there is Lac Bay, with the northern mangrove sections made up of another santuactuary to protect flamingoes. The southern shore (which holds a beautiful classic flat) is surrounded by wind surfers. They are literally whipping by within casting distance as you wade the outer edge of the flat. All that being said we are casting to dozens of fish each day, managing to land between two and seven fish each. My guess is the fishing will get better as we figure out the when, where and how of Bonaire.
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On The Fly Magazine
If you haven’t seen it yet, there is a great new on-line magazine called On The Fly where Jim Gebhart combines his two outdoor passions of fly fishing and bird hunting. The Winter Issue begins with an article I wrote titled DIY Bonefishing where I discus the “Why” of DIY rather than the “How” or “Where”. For those of you who walk the flats on your own you will understand what I am saying in the article. There is just something different about catching a bonefish when wading the flats by yourself. It’s not about how many fish you catch (because you will catch more with a guide) but more about the feeling of accomplishment when you decipher the riddle of how to catch them by yourself. It’s a great magazine with wonderful photography and stories, take a look, you will enjoy it.
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The Personal Bonefish Spotting Zone
I developed the concept of the Personal Bonefish Spotting Zone in the hopes of making it simpler to explain to “newbies” how to see bonefish. Everyone has a Personal Bonefish Spotting Zone, defined as the distance from where you are standing to where you can identify a fish. In a moment I will tell you why knowing the dimensions of your Bonefish Spotting Zone is important. (As usual I am only referring to a wading angler). The zone size is different for each individual and depending on conditions, you will be surprised how small it actually is. I guarantee that most fishermen other than the most experienced flats angler over-estimate how far away they can see fish. Let me pass on a personal experience. After my first five years on the flats, fishing exclusively with guides, I had come to the conclusion I was seeing fish really well. Not as well as the guide, but pretty close. I was ready to go out on my own. My first DIY adventure, I saw squat. My bonefishing IQ went from 110 with a guide to 30 without a guide. My ability to spot fish on my own was nowhere near as refined as I thought it was. There was a lot to learn and the painful truth was I really couldn’t identify a fish that was eighty feet away unless someone pointed it out first. The reality of our vision vs the professional. When standing on the front of a boat your spotting zone may be 60 – 70 feet. Your guide’s is 80 – 100 feet. The difference is a combination of both his superior spotting ability and the additional height provided by the poling platform. When wading, your zone may be 40- 60 feet and your guides is eighty. The difference being his ability to see fish vs yours. The problem this “partnership” (fishing with someone who can see better than you) causes is you begin to believe “you” are actually identifying fish at eighty feet. The reality is the guide identifies the fish, he points it out to you and now you see the fish. There is a big difference between “identifying” a fish on your own and “seeing” a fish once someone shows it to you. We all learned early on to watch a fish as it swims away and then are surprised when we can still see it 100 feet away. Why can’t we spot fish 100 feet away when obviously our eyes are good enough to see them? Now, that you are out on your own, there is no need to impress anyone. You need to be honest and figure out how far away from where you are standing you can identify a fish. If you are new to the sport or only get on the flats a couple of weeks per year, my guess is it is between 30 – 50 feet. The distance is less if it’s murky, cloudy or there is a mottled bottom, more if it’s a nice white flat. Remember that your brain works better when focused on one activity. Your spotting zone when standing still may be 60 feet, but once you start moving and your brain can’t focus on one task, it shrinks to 50 feet. You see better when standing still. The reason it’s important to understand the size of your zone is to insure you spend a majority of the time scanning through the water within the distance where you can identify fish. Then committing to spotting every fish within that zone. If you can’t see fish eighty feet away, limit the time spent looking out that far. My formula for scanning: spend 70% of the time scanning within the Personal Spotting Zone (in that area where the sun/wind makes visibility the best) and 30% of the time divided between the sides, behind and on the surface for tails, pushed water and disturbances. In the end the goal is to stop spooking fish, because you spend too much time scanning where you can’t see and start identifying every fish that is within your Personal Spotting Zone. Next up is the correlation between “Walking Speed and Spotting Fish.”
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Toughest Places To Bonefish
Question: What do Lac Bay, Bonaire, Cherokee Sound, Abaco, The Town Flats of Green Turtle Cay and Savanah Sound, Eleuthera have in common? Answer: The toughest places I have fished for bonefish. The good news is there are plenty of fish at all of these destinations and you get lots of shots. The bad news is they all went to the same “school of bonefish” and are spooky as heck. I don’t have any real secrets to “cracking the hatch” but here are a few tips. Start with long leaders with very light tippet, delicate casts and super small flies. But even when you do everything right, the chances are the moment you move the fly they bolt. Another approach is to use materials that move on their own in the current and don’t require stripping to impart action. These include rabbit and other furs, marabou and light rubber legs. The fish like this technique and will often pick up the fly lying in the sand, the trick is knowing when the fish has it. You can use a simple, slow, hand weave to stay connected to the fly or for the advanced angler, detect the little dip the fish makes when they pick up the fly. I have fished all of these flats, but to be honest, spend very little time there. It’s just too aggravating. I seek other fish that act more like a normal bonefish. Be prepared for the expense related to fishing these locations. First there is the cost of the trip, add to that the extra liquor required at the end of each day to calm your shattered nerves and finally expect to pay thousands to a therapist upon your arrival back home.
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Clear Bonefishing Lines
Tony was gracious enough to comment on my recent Blog asking about clear floating lines for bonefish when casting to “highly educated” fish. My answer is just a little long to be a comment reply, so here it is in the form of a Blog. This is my opinion only, worth the price of the paper it is printed on. I don’t need to mention brand names, but to the best of my knowledge I have fished all of the clear floating saltwater lines for bonefish. They do one thing well and two things not so well. First they definitely help to not spook fish. They work as advertised in that department. So a definite plus. But…………. I find they tangle all of the time (they have a lot of memory) so not great for the wading angler and when I cast, I can’t tell where my fly lands. The second problem is most likely old age, so maybe not the fly lines fault. But there is no coloured line to follow out to the fish. My style of fishing requires accuracy, a clear line works best for me when accuracy is not such an issue, i.e blind casting or deeper water fishing (off a boat) where you aren’t required to hit such a small target. So if a full clear floating line is not “exactly” the answer, what do I do? My answer is to use a floating saltwater line with a “ghost” or clear tip. I like them a lot for spooky fish. They are particularly useful for those of us who cannot cast eighteen foot leaders. A 10 -12 foot ghost tip plus eleven feet of leader is over twenty feet of clear line. With the added benefit of the ghost tip casting nearly as well as a normal floating line. Presto, you can now cast the equivalent of a twenty foot clear leader and your eye can follow a normal fly line out to the point the clear tip starts. Probably evident but the clear tip absolutely needs to float. An intermediate clear line just doesn’t work on the really skinny water we fish. These lines are commercially available as saltwater clear tip floating lines. I have also “built” a clear head that I add to my normal bonefish line by cutting off ten feet of a clear floating line I had bought (didn’t cast worth a crap), put a loop on each end and it works really well. That gives me ten feet of clear tip plus an eleven foot leader. For those of you who can cast a really long leader, you are better off. The ghost tip does not land as softly as a constructed eighteen foot leader. Thanks Tony, hope this helps.
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How Many Bonefish? Bonaire Update
Ever had one of those days when you caught all the bonefish you want in a day? How many bonefish is enough? Saturday was one of those days. It was a beautiful bonefishing day. Brilliant sunshine and winds in the 10 – 15 mph range. Great visibility and the fish were happy. After twenty straight days of 25 – 30 mph winds, we had actually forgotten what it was like to fish in a normal Caribbean breeze. There was only a slight ripple on the water and the silt that had been stirred up by weeks of fierce winds was settling out. My buddy and I cast to hundreds of fish and the fish had begun to feed and act normally once again. I’m beginning to think the insidious wind had more impact on the fish then I had originally thought. Hopefully the last ten days of our trip on Bonaire will be more like Saturday.
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Bonaire – A Cautionary Tale
Had one of the best days of my life bonefishing yesterday on Bonaire. Fish were everywhere and landed a number in the five-pound plus range (along with pics because my friends won’t believe me). Which makes what I have to say next all the more difficult. Whenever I travel to a new destination, one of the items on my planning list is to obtain the crime statistics for the area. I don’t do this to deter me but more to prepare for what to expect, how to pack and the precautions to take while there. For some reason I did not do this for Bonaire. Whether it is because it is a Special Municipality of the Netherlands, a major cruise ship destination or always listed high up in diving magazines, I don’t know. I gave it a pass, broke one of my own travel rules and it cost me. On Sunday all four of us were out on the flats for the day and when we returned back to our rented home in the afternoon, it had been broken into and we lost four computers, iPhones, iPad, electronic readers, camera gear, wallet, credit card……….you get the picture. Our home is in a fully gated, locked compound. I have no doubt we were targeted and only our home was hit of the several villas within the gates. Not easy to get up and running again as you may guess, but operational we are. I canceled the publication of a local newspaper article I was asked to write and a couple of magazine pieces promoting Bonaire, as my personal feelings toward Bonaire have changed. I then did what I should have done in the first place and checked out “Crime on Bonaire” and it is bad. This is a tiny little island with something like 16,000 residents and crime here is rampant. In fact a prominent local who sees each day’s police blotter described it “as an epidemic.” There were so many break-ins on Sunday he couldn’t even determine which one was ours. The discussion of crime is as common as talking about the weather. We have not met a local who has not been a victim and god knows how many tourists have stories. So what have I learned that will be of value to you? First my planning rules are there for a reason, I should have checked the crime stats for Bonaire. Include this in your planning. After fully understanding the crime stats on Bonaire would I have still come? Absolutely. But I would have made sure that our rooms had adequate safes, to hold “all” valuables not just wallets and passports. We would have locked everything up in the safes each time we left. No valuables in the car, ever, and leave the car unlocked with windows down. Always check windows and doors to make sure they are locked (one of our window latches had been mysteriously opened from the inside). In other words, been more cautious based on the information obtained in the planning stages. Why do “Life’s Lessons” always cost money? But lesson learned once again. Not saying bad guys are the sharpest knife in the drawer, but this takes the cake. There were two strung up eight weight Sage rods with quality saltwater reels leaning up in the corner. Now what idiot would take a Mac Air and leave two bone fishing rods? I mean really?????
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Bonefishing Report From Acklins
Here is a nice report sent in from a group sent to Ivel’s Bed & Breakfast on Acklins by Vince Tobia of Cattaraugus Creek Outfitters. The report was written by Glen Colton from Fort Collins, Colorado. “We had a good trip to Ivel’s. The accommodations were excellent and the food very good. The staff was very friendly and helpful. With the more central location, we spent our time fishing places more centrally located. Snug Corner, Binnacle 1 and 2, and Ivel’s to be precise. We didn’t spend any time on the North part of the island other than walking along the beach at location 12, where we spotted jacks and barracuda. We each spent a few days fishing with Reno, who took us up to the creek/mangrove system NW of snug corner. In general, we agreed that Reno (local guide) knows where the fish are, is easy to communicate with, and hard working. Below are a few specific comments I have off the top of my head. Ivel’s - The accommodations were a step above some others on the island in terms of quality. - The truck we got was in pretty good shape – which is important when driving on the road south of Spring Point. - They had one kayak, which had a slow leak in it. My brother, who is not a big angler, used it a couple days to explore the coast. I would recommend that they get a few more kayaks – including two person kayaks, for non-fishers and to allow anglers to explore areas not accessible easily from the road. - The food overall was excellent. I like the emphasis on local Bahaman cuisine.” From what I gathered the fishing on the trip was good, though Glen doesn’t specifically mention numbers.
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Bonaire Bonefishing – The Last Cast
Sitting here overlooking Airport Flats in Exuma I knew I should crank out a last report on the overall experience in Bonaire. I just find it difficult to decide between writing and fishing. Woa…..wait a minute it isn’t a difficult decision at all……….which of course is why the final report on Bonaire is two weeks late. I will post reports from Exuma as the days slip by. But we have been here a week and the fishing has been superb. I forgot what an ideal place Exuma is for the DIY angler. Not sure why, but the fish we are seeing are larger than normal, plenty over ten pounds spotted, one hooked. Back to Bonaire. As you know I spent a month on Bonaire with my wife and another couple. I decided to try this small island as I had heard rumors and read sporadic reports that there were bonefish, so what the heck, it was worth a try. Located just off the coast of Venezuela, it is a Special Municipality of the Netherlands. Tourism is the #1 industry, with plenty of cruise ships docking daily. It is a scuba divers, kite boarders and wind surfers paradise, bar none. For the kite boarders (Atlantis Beach) and wind surfers (Lac Bay) the wind blows all of the time. On only two days of fishing did the wind fall below 30 mph. That will put most fishermen off, but we sure improved our casting. The divers love Bonaire since you simply drive to all of the dive sites (must be 100) park the car, put on your gear and walk into the water. Some days we saw a hundred divers in some stage of entering or leaving their cars. I’m not a diver but the conditions looked ideal. Overall, my sense is this place is for the “active” vacationer. Sports minded, lots of bicycle riding, everyone looks fit and always on the look out for the next water related activity. With the Dutch influence you sense a bit of European flair mixed with the Caribbean weather. Dutch is spoken everywhere, English is prominent mixed in with Spanish and the local language Papiamentu. Many of the locals we met spoke all four languages fluently. My two languages, Canadian and American seem pathetic in comparison. Bonaire is outside the hurricane belt which means you can safely plan your travel there any time during the year and because of its very southerly location the weather is spectacular almost all of the time. Unlike many of the places I travel to, the infrastructure in Bonaire is first class. There are nice villas, apartments and condos to rent. Plenty of resorts if you choose a more all-inclusive arrangement. A couple of casinos. More fully stocked grocery stores than you can shake a stick at. The rental cars look like they are off a show room floor. And enough restaurants to choose from to make your mind spin. As a visitor you will lack for nothing on Bonaire. Since there is a coral reef that surrounds the entire island (fantastic for divers) there are virtually no sandy beaches. There are a few that have been carved out but nothing like some of the other Caribbean islands with long stretches of sand. Wouldn’t be fair for me to leave out the wildlife, since they make up such an interesting part of the Bonaire experience. There are wild donkeys everywhere. There is a donkey preserve (you should go). Goats wandering freely, beautiful parrots, if you don’t see five hundred lizards and twenty large Iguanas in a day, you are spending too much time on a chair and spectacular flamingos on both the northern and southern ends. Interesting note that there are no sharks or rays, apparently these were fished out years ago. Before I talk about fishing, here is the cautionary note. For those of you who read my Blog, you know our fully fenced, locked Villa was broken into. Our computers, phones, eReaders, camera accessories and a wallet were stolen. Replacement value in excess of $12,000 plus the pain and headache of trying to be operational again. It turns out that crime on Bonaire is bad…………..statistically it is horrible. For the tiny island they have 127 police officers, yet the crime is rampant. You cannot find a local that has not been impacted. The bottom line is your accommodation must contain a safe where everything can be secured. You cannot have anything in your car, leave the windows rolled down and car wide open. This precaution may not even help, as someone we know had their tires taken off their car while diving. It is a dichotomy I can’t come to grips with. It is a tiny geographic territory, relatively small population, predominantly Dutch influence, well run, new infrastructure with lots of high-end development, everything works, no broken windows, totally devoted to the tourist trade and attracting people from around the world. And yet a decrepit underbelly bubbles just below the freshly painted facade. Our home was broken into on Sunday during the middle of the day when we were fishing. Our friend who receives the daily police reports could not even tell which break in was ours because there had been so many on that day, stealing exactly the same things we lost. It of course puts an entirely different spin on an otherwise positive experience. Now to the fishing —in a nutshell, way better than I expected. We had a number of days where my buddy and I each caught ten plus bones and I think he had more than twenty fish landed one day. That being said it is an unusual fishery and not easy to figure out. There is virtually no fishing on the northern end of the island, though some of the locals fish around the bays in Washington Slagbaai National Park. There is a small creek system with direct access to the ocean at Lagun. Apparently there are bones there though we […]
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The Perfect Morning
I’m Canadian and live in British Columbia. Hockey is not a sport for us. Soccer is a sport, baseball and basketball are sports. Hockey……is well………..hockey. Yesterday I woke up to a magnificent Bahamian sun streaming over the flats of Exuma. Miles of white sand starting to show as the tide receded, just beyond the porch of our rented home. SKYPED my son back home (4:00 a.m. his time) because I knew he would be awake. Everyone in Canada was awake. Because the Gold Medal hockey game was about to start. And start it did. Out front, the tide was falling and the tails were popping but my wife and I did not move. Planted firmly in front of the TV, we rooted on the team and shouted encouragement as if we were in the stands. It was the perfect game, 3 – 0 for the good guys. Ending the Winter Games with a Gold Medal in hockey. What could make this day any better. Maybe a few bonefish. The two of us jumped in the kayak, paddled across the channel for 200 yards and began fishing. The tide was just starting to come in but we still had a couple of hours. I saw hundreds of fish, landed some in the five-pound range and best of all I had a nice walk in bare feet while sharing all of it with my favourite fishing partner. The Perfect Morning.
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Eleuthera Bonefishing – Guest Blog
Here is a nice Guest Blog on Eleuthera written by subscriber, George Brayfield. Sounds like he had a great trip that fulfilled what he was looking for in the way of a vacation. It is not often easy to satisfy the “tropical vacation” requirements of a non-fishing companion while finding suitable DIY fishing. That is why in my book I included a “Spousal Rating” for each destination, representing my opinion of a locations suitability for a non-fishing companion. “The week vacation I had in mind was both for my wife and I so it had to provide beaches that were good for my wife to sunbathe and read books while I pursued Bonefish. Finding the DIY Bonefishing web site was extremely useful in this respect with a wealth of possibilities for both. The first location we visited was Winding Bay but unfortunately we took the right fork and followed an extremely difficult track to the end and no sea access. We turned round and spent a little time on a small beach on the Atlantic side where I saw two bones cruising the edge of the surf but generally it was too rough to allow for fly fishing. Then we drove further and found a nice spot on what I now believe was the southern end of Half Sound. Caught a small Jack, two snappers and although I cast at a couple of Bones failed to hook up. The following day we tried Ten Bay but again the tide was still ebbing and though the beach was beautiful there were no Bones. After an hour or so we moved on to Savannah Sound. Savannah Sound was a great success for my wife because of it’s beautiful endless sandy beach with not another soul on it. Although the tide was still dropping I managed to catch one small bonefish but the highlight of the visit was my wife’s in locating a tiny Hummingbird’s nest with the bird sitting on it. The following day drove to the southern tip of the island stopping at the Ocean Hole on the way to feed the fish. We found a nice spot at Deep Creek which had great potential but due to the wrong tide failed to present any opportunities to cast to Bones. I did, however startle a very large Barracuda in the shallows. We ended the afternoon with cool drinks and a fish sandwich at the Cape Eleuthera Marina. The last three days we concentrated on the areas around Winding Bay and Half Sound but apart from spotting two very large Bones which totally ignored my fly it wasn’t until the late afternoon of the last day that the tide was right. On this last afternoon around 1pm the tide started to rise and around 2pm I saw a single Bonefish at about 25metres. Ideal I thought, only to discover that the leader was wrapped around the tip of the rod and the chance was gone. I about faced and slowly headed back to where my wife was sitting on the beach some two or three hundred yards away. Suddenly at about 30m in about 18 inches of water there was a school of Bones leisurely meandering towards me. This time I got everything right and hooked up at the first attempt. After a good fight I released a fish of about 3lb. Just in time as the clouds were now rolling in fast in preparation for a thunderstorm. Governors Harbour was ideal for exploring the southern part of the island and there are supermarkets, restaurants, a Sports Bar & Liquor Store on Cupids Cay and a Friday night Fish Fry . This vacation fulfilled all the needs of my wife and I but I intend to return later in the year with a fishing buddy to seek out the spots that so far I have not found and to concentrate on fishing when the tides are right.”
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Abaco Bonefishing – Guest Blog
Thanks to Jay Tinsky for putting together a nice Guest Blog about his recent trip to Abaco. Like most of the people who DIY he hired a local guide for a couple of days and fished on his own the rest of the time. Really a great way to get to know an area. Jay fished an area north of Treasure Cay on Abaco. Thanks Jay. “I headed out early one morning to a spot Rod had shown me on the map. It was a tongue of a shallow flat on a bay. I chose that spot due to the wind direction and upcoming tide. The little road I found was used as a small dump area as I found out a lot of these roads are on the island. I parked, but I could see it would be a slog to get down to the water off a little rise. I went down there and hacked my way to the mangrove area which was much better sledding. In my paranoia I left a few pieces of plastic to in the mangroves bushes to find my way back. The flat was beautiful, shallow and fairly easy to wade however I was there way too early for the sun to show me the fish so I hoped for some tailing fish. I saw a small shark working and was happy to see him since the water was fairly cold for bones at that time of the am.. After a time I did see some nice tails approaching but they turned and started back towards the mouth of the bay. I pursued them as best as I could with my clumsy gait, careful not to spook them but I had an eery feeling they sensed my presence as they continued to work away from me at a slow pace. Eventually I caught up and threw a lightly weighted gotcha at the group of fish and was rewarded by a take and long run, the fish ran all over that little bay much to my chagrin. Sadly I did not see another fish and decide to head to the ocean flat for a look… The ocean side water was much warmer and I saw a larger shark and ray swim by, hmmm, I saw a mud and a turquoise bone stuck his head out. My cast landed short and I lost sight of the fish, however on the slow retrieve I was amazed to see the fish at my rod tip following the fly before he spooked. I sent a hail mary cast in the direction he swam off to and bang! he took the fly, a miracle I thought at the time… After the landing and photo he swam off an embarrassed but happy camper. Continuing down the beach as the tide was quickly going out and I saw at least 20 green missiles heading my way. I launched a cast 5 feet in front of the first fish and he nailed the fly before it had a chance to sink, it was awesome but he spooked the school running all over the place. Great morning, thanks Rod!” There are some nice areas to fish on Abaco north of Treasure Cay, a little bush whacking is required at times, but what the heck that is DIY fishing.
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Bonefish Retrieve – Drop, Dip and Strip
It’s been a fabulous month on Exuma and the fishing has been outstanding. Many days we have seen thousands of fish at a time and our shoulders ache at the end of the tide from casting. While fishing the last couple hours last night I was reminded of a simple “trick” to use during the retrieve. We’ve all experienced those occasions when a fish is following the fly and just won’t take it. Typically the reaction is to continue stripping or even strip faster. Hoping the fish will catch up to the fly and take it. Here is an alternative that works. Rather than strip faster try the ” Drop, Dip and Strip” retrieve. Once the fish is following, stop stripping and let the fly DROP to the bottom. Wait until you see the fish DIP to pick up your fly and then a long two foot STRIP to set the hook. So when a fish just won’t eat the fly, shake up your retrieve with the Drop, Dip and Strip.
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Clues There Are Bonefish
I suppose it had to happen. After two months of magnificent weather, yesterday we finally had a day that was cloudy, a little showery with a stiff breeze. Those kind of conditions make spotting fish tough. No chance of seeing them through the water column, a much better chance of seeing tails and nervous water. We were fishing the late afternoon outgoing tide, following the fish as they were leaving the flat. In tough conditions like last night the tails don’t glimmer like they do on beautiful sunlit twilights but rather appear dark, more like a mangrove shoot. So there you are, creeping along the flat, in an effort to see fish when in reality you can’t see squat. But there can be clues to help you be successful. In addition to things like nervous water there are “bonefish feeding marks/holes.” When you come across a group of holes that have the fresh looking grey sand extending back from the edge, at least you know that there are bonefish close by. I’m not an expert on reading “bonefish marks” but over the years I’ve learned a few things that are helpful. When the tide is running hard, like it was last night, the grey sand becomes lighter in colour very quickly. Say five minutes. If the tide is not running hard the grey sand maintains its colour for up to fifteen minutes, then begins to fade. When conditions are tough, like last night these clues can save you. When I came upon a large group of “new bonefish marks” I slowed down to a crawl. Fish were around and eventually I picked them up. They were thirty feet away and tough as anything to see. So fresh bonefish marks can be a great clue to alerting you that fish are in the vacinity………..especially when visibility is poor.
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Great Harbour Cay – Bonefishing
Here is a nice guest blog from Jonathon Frommer from San Francisco on his fishing trip to Great Harbour Cay in the Berry Islands, Bahamas. Jonathon is an experienced fisherman and by the sounds of it had a really successful trip. “I just ordered a copy of your book and realized that I never got back to you about my trip to Great Harbour Cay in the summer of 2012 (see thread below). I was on GHC with my wife for nearly 2 weeks. We stayed on the bay side in Ruth Ann Richert’s home that is on VRBO. We rented a 15′ Hobie skiff through Elorn at Happy People in the marina. The boat was not one of his but belonged to Alvin. The boat served us well for the trip. I fished one day with Percy Darville and the rest of the time I fished on my own. It took me a few days to figure out “the game” down there but once I was locked in the fishing was extraordinary. Since you have spent time there I’m sure you experienced the mind-boggling numbers of fish that can be encountered on the right flat at the right tide Most of the bonefishing I did was south of GHC but I explored a few areas to the north as well. I only fished the creek system on the interior of the island once (with Percy) and caught fish there as well. I imagine that area would be great in the winter as those flats are well protected and warm up quickly. I never made it into the Shark Creek system south of the airport but I’m sure it holds some larger fish (and sharks). The wading was so good to the south that I really focused my DIY efforts down there. Aside from bonefish, I had two shots at permit while I was there (both unsuccessful). The first shot was to the south of GHC while I was poling in the lee of an island on a flood tide (spring tide). I didn’t have much time and through a skimmer jig ahead of the fish which was quickly inhaled by a random cuda. The other shot was while I was fishing with Percy. We across two permit that were hounding a stingray up on the flat. I had a few good casts at them but they were moving quick and we were not able to keep up with them. I also had a few great shots at some large tailing mutton snapper with Percy. The shots all came at sunrise and image of their pink tails lit up in the morning lite was wild. I had one fish that was trying to eat my fly but it got held up in the turtle grass and the fish spooked. The one down side to GHC is the flotilla of wave runners that circle the cays when the cruise ships are docked of Stirrup Cay. Although they were not there everyday, it was annoying enough that it will keep my wife from wanting to return. I look forward to reading your book ahead of this next trip and exploring some new areas. Please let me know if you’d like any more intel on my experience in GHC or Long Island. Keep up the great work with your website – it’s really a great source of information. I didn’t see the info you’ve written on Long Island before my trip a few months ago and relied on Google Maps and me Explorer Chartbook to find flats. I’m excited to give a few of the spots you mention a shot! Congrats on the book.” Thanks Jonathan.
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Bonefishing Abaco – Guest Blog
What a great Guest Blog from Ben de Vilmorin from France. Certainly expresses the ups and downs of fishing a new location on your own, but in the end he got on to it. Ben stayed at Casuaurina Point in Abaco, one of my favorite places. Fair to say the fish see a lot of flies, but there are plenty of places to go to find “bitey” fish. Ben spent a day with one of Abaco’s well known guides, Capt Buddy Pinder, which is always worthwhile. Enjoy. “Living in Europe the question was Where is the closest place I could go bonefishing and escape winter ?. Bahamas sounded like a great option as the plane ticket was not very expensive and the amount of islands could certainly offer spots that wouldn’t be completely hammered by the american neighbours. My girlfriend and I start looking for a house to rent. Of the several options one seemed to be “Bonefish Paradise”, a beachfront house (almost) facing a huge blue lagoon on the east side of Abacos island. Just in time to book everything and order Rod’s book on Amazon and I was ready to hit the flats ! I arrived at the end of January 2014 for almost 3 weeks, the book was still on its way, my Gf would join in 10 days. I had nothing to do but Go Fishing ! Without the Rod’s bible, the first DIY sessions were far from hectic. In front of me the magnificence of Casuarina’s lagoon was the superb postcard I was waiting for, but bones don’t really like postcards they prefer mangroves and turtle grass, where the food are… While fighting to hook my first bone I heard that the west side of the island had a huge area called The Marls but could only be fished with a guide because only boats could get in. Stories of ten to twenty bonefish could be catch on a regular basis, but this craziness had a “furry” price. On the other end I was lucky enough that one of the legendary fishing guide lives 2 minutes from me… in case of (blank) emergency ! Everyday I would look at the tide and fish 1 to 3 hours at the end of the low tide until the beginning of the flow. On the beach, a couple of fly fisherwomen Julia and Mary was also putting a lot of energy to chase the n°1 flat’s torpedo. We became friend quickly and exchange the most informations we could. Finally I needed a week to find my own fly pattern, understand the behavior of the fish and (at last) hook my first bahamian bone on the lagoon ! Therefore it took me a while to have the good conditions (not to windy !) and to be at the right spot at the right time. Because like the sea bass we have in Europe, bonefish come and goes with the tides to look for food. So, quickly I quit chasing bones on the spectacular sandy lagoon in favor of turtle grass and mangroves area. A tip that you will find in Rod’s book but the local postman was probably… gone fishing, because not arrived yet Every man knows that real happiness comes mostly in a flash, very few seconds… So is bonefishing! From the time you spent crossing that turtle grass and finally spot some tailing fish, then try to figure which way they go so that you can be in front of the shawl to the final cast and set the hook.. it’s like what ? 20 seconds to 1 minute, not more. I failed a lot because of the amount of wind you find in Bahamas during “winter” season and also because I am known as Mister Loose, for example, three big loners are coming towards me like the dream sequence I was praying for the night before, but at the right time to cast a seagull cross the sky above my prey and they are gone in a splash. Good conditions were found during two early mornings where tides were at the end of low. The sun was just drilling the horizon and I could see the sparkles of tails everywhere around me. My homemade Casuarina Candy arouse curiosity, a little flashy “gay” fly, pink with red groovin legs, that does get spank by some 4 pounders who make my reel sing and me smiled. The positive vibrations continues as my girlfriend arrives for her holiday week and Rod’s book finally also, perfect assets for some lazy afternoons ! As the low tides were not in the mornings anymore, I swap to a mangrove area Rod “the guru” told me about, most of the fish were loners there and you would see them most of the time when they are only 15 feet from you. Bend down and cast quickly ! I did schedule a day with Capt. Buddy Pinder, his reputation makes his agenda busier than the Bahamas President himself. It happens to be the last day before getting on the plane. Thanks God weather was awesome, sun and almost no wind. Buddie drove us in The Marls’ meanders for an epic day of bonefishing. The Casuarina Candy was not working that well far from the turtle grass, I changed it for a little clouser that Julia gave me, after 6 bones a nastier one snap the magical lure… Buddie gave me a shrimp fly that has only one eye left, after 10 fishes, the fly had no eyes at all and looks like nothing after being chewed, but still catch some fish ! In conclusion, 7 bones fishing DIY in 2 weeks and more than 20 with Buddy in one (perfect) day. Of course I lost a lot of times understanding where and when to fish. I should have had Rod’s book earlier as most of the spot he told me about by email were written in it ! Even though the DIY fishing […]
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