OK… not everyone fly fishes… I get that… so, if you have to go do some spin fishing, there are much, much worse places to do it than Andros Island.

The landscape, the ecosystem of Andros is really remarkable.  Turns out it is also rather valuable too.  Now, it must be said that the report comes from folks who are trying to raise money to preserve that environment, which is the kind of math that makes you wonder a tiny bit, but the overall thrust is pretty solid… mainly that Andros is special and worth protecting.

The ecosystems, species and landscapes of Andros are a “huge ecological and economic endowment” worth $260 million a year in net economic benefits, and billions if preserved into the future, but millions must be raised to protect its value, the Bahamian director of a major environmental organization warned yesterday.

Read the full article here at The Tribune.

That there is Andros.

I’ve been a fan of the folks over at Skinny Water Culture ever since I found their website a couple years back and ordered my first shirt from them.  They’ve continued to up their game as I’ve continued to up mine.

For my trip to South Andros they sent me some shirts to try out and I gladly wore them.  These are micro-fiber, quick-dry, sun-protecting type shirts.  There aren’t the dozens of pockets, back vents and buttons of the standard “uniform” type flats shirt and more and more manufacturers are offering this kind of technical wear for folks that don’t want all that extra “stuff.”

The shirts do what they do very well. I was cool and comfortable and didn’t get a sunburn.  Plus… I looked goooood.

I love that graphic.

Check these guys out and buy some stuff.  They are good peeps at the starting point for building something really fantastic.

This is my guest post for Deneki Outdoors, the owners of Andros South.  Love that place.

Photo by Andrew Bennett, fish catching by me.

While out stalking the phantom of the flats, it turns out you can do more than just catch and release. You can fish for science!

via Bonefish Science | Tagging and Fin Clipping Bonefish.

Tagging and fin clips… two great ways to help the folks at the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust.

–

A few folks have asked… so… I gave it some thought.  I think this patterns was the one I wish I had more of down there in Andros at FIBFest.

Reverse Gotcha... bunny tail... rubber legs... ya know... "stuff"

Maybe this has a name… I’d think it is just a bit too similar to other patterns to have it’s own.  It’s goodness.  I added some UV Cure whatever to the back of the fly, which is a move I really, really like.  Some folks said it would make the fly land too heavy… I didn’t see that, but it is possible that would be an issue in really skinny water.  This fly is a #2… so… not little, but after reading some of Aaron Adams’ thoughts on the matter, I think we should probably move up a size or two on most of the flies we throw.

Hope this helps.

I fished with Tom Larimer today and Josie for a guide here in South Andros with Deneki Outdoors.  Tom is a steelhead guy, fishing the Deschutes (among other places).  We had a good time, even if the weather didn’t cooperate for most of the day.

We started off on fire… four fish to hand fairly quickly.  The day was full of promise.

Then… the wind came up, the clouds rolled in and the lights went out.

We didn’t catch another fish and we only saw a few (although one was a pig).

Still… a good time was had.

Tom tied up this fly last night… he called it the “Bahamian Condom” because it is made mostly of rubber.  The first two fish to see it crushed it.

After we got back I went out and tried again to catch a Cuda.  The second cast I had a nice, 3 footer smash the fly… but it didn’t bite the pointy part… so… I’ll try again tomorrow.

Today… it was a bit tougher.  I was paired up with guide Josie and Andros South (and Deneki Outdoors) owner, Andrew Bennett.  So, I knew I was going to have to reduce the number of botched jobs today.

Andrew Bennet, hooked up.

We went down south, which turns out is a very, very bumpy ride.  It is totally worth it though.

When we got where Josie wanted to go we set up.  Andrew gave me the bow first and I stepped up.  Soon Josie called out “Bonefish, 11 O’Clock, 60 feet” and I got to work.  Oddly, I delivered on the very first cast of the day. 60′. Right in front of the fish.  It ate on the first strip.  I didn’t get a picture of that fish but it was a nice 2-3 pound fish or so.  Andrew was then up and so were the clouds.

Clouds… I know we kind of need them, but I wish there were fewer of them around… really.  They turned the lights out on the flats for large periods of time today, which was kind of a bummer.

We reeled in and headed off to find better fishing grounds.  After a short run we stopped to see if we could see any more fish.  A school happened to be about 100′ off the boat.  Now… this was not a little school of fish.  Josie estimated it was about 10,000 fish.  TEN THOUSAND BONEFISH!

Yeah… I love this place.

I got out and started wading with just my bare feet.  White sand bottom, 10K bones in front of me… this does not suck.  I caught up to the school and cast into it and quickly caught a little 2 pounder.  I managed to pull it out of the school so it didn’t spook the rest of the fish.

I cast right back into that school and pulled out a nicer fish.  It had me in my backing a couple of times and was just beautiful.

photo credit - Andrew Bennett

The first fish and the big school… two perfect moments.

I didn’t catch a lot today, but I experienced a really beautiful place and I got to fish with Andrew, something I’ve wanted to do for a while now.  A good, solid time was had by all and now… now I’m going to the Slack Tide… yeah… I know… I suck.

I kind of love this place.

PS – I have fished my new Rise 8 wt. for the past two days, with shark fishing taken over by the Redington 10 wt..  I am liking what I’m seeing from both.

The pictorial report will be up in a while, but I wanted to share a little bit of magic I saw tonight here in Andros.

I went out tonight after dinner to the little jetty at Andros South in search of ‘Cuda’s.  I didn’t fine them.  What I did find, however, where a couple hundred phosphorescent green flashbulbs going off in the water.

I don’t know what they were.

They weren’t there long.

They were beautiful.

Flash, flash, flash.  Green little lights that lit up and then faded away all over the water for a hundred feet.

It just doesn’t get much better than that, bonefish or no bonefish.  This is a special place.

Well, I made it to South Andros.  I also have a nice cold that is gunking up my lungs and nose pretty well, but I made it and I’m sure a few hours of sleep will get me back to fighting shape for Androsian bonefish tomorrow.

One little surprise I had was that the trip from SFO to Miami turned out to be 1st Class.  I book with miles and that was the only fight that got me where I needed to get when I needed to get there.  I didn’t realize it was 1st Class. I’ve never sat in 1st Class before.  There is a WHOLE lot more leg room up there!

I didn’t get to enjoy the added that much as I was coughing and weezing for a lot of the flight, but thanks to a NyQuil, I was able to get a couple hours of shut-eye.  When I got to Nassau I pulled up the only bit of carpeted ground to get some more.  Andrew Bennett (owner of Andros South) came and got me to meet the rest of the FIBFest folks and the two paying clients also here this week. In short, it is a great group.

You can follow all the goodness on the Deneki blog.

Checking out Andros, waiting on the bags

Tomorrow… the fishing.  Needless to say, I can’t wait.

The race to get ready for Andros turned out to be a bit of a sprint.  I was waiting on three packages that ended up all coming on Thursday (I left on Friday).  One of those packages had gear from Redington… two rods, a 7 and a 10, and two reels.  When they arrived I could finally really get serious about what I was bringing with me.  So… here’s my quiver for Andros.

Main Bonefish Rod – Rise Level 9′ 8 wt. ($250)

Fun Bonefish Rod – Redington CPX 9’6″ 7 wt ($330)

Barracuda/Tarpon/Other Rod – Redington RS4 9′ 10 wt. ($220)

So, all told, $800 of rods along.

When I went to Belize in November I had three rods along, but the combined value was closer to $2,200 (two Sage Xi3′s and an Orvis Helios).  So, I’m taking a different approach on this trip.

The two Redington rods are loaners and the Rise is a rod I own, but didn’t pay for (to fully disclose all that should be disclosed).

I’ve only cased the Rise rod once on grass and the Redington rods are totally virgin.  In fact, I didn’t realize that the 7 wt. was a 9’6″er until a few minutes ago.  Longer is usually not encouraged for bones due to windy conditions, but I caught my first bonefish on a 9’6″ St. Croix 7 wt., so, this is like coming home a bit.

I thought about bringing a 9 along, but in the end I figured three rods was probably good and I was pretty close to the recommendations made by Deneki for South Andros fishing.

As you read this, I’ll probably be in the air or waiting for flights on my way to FIBFest.  By the time the day ends I will have a Kalik in hand and I’ll be on Androsian soil.