Found this little nugget… the guy who plays Sawyer (Josh Holloway) on Lost out fishing in Hawaii with the Familiar Waters crew… nice.
Hawaii doesn’t suck. I love Hawaii, although we go to Mexico these days when we are looking for tropical climes… but we’ll be back to Hawaii… and I’ll bring along a 9 wt. and some heavy tippet and at least a day carved out in the schedule to allow me to go get humiliated by those big, educated bones of the Aloha State.
Lost... is that still on?
The most recent issue of This is Fly is out and not only is it their longest yet, all full of fishy goodness, but it has two, COUNT ‘EM, TWO, stories on bonefish.
This, of course, meets with my approval.
The first story is about Coach Duff and those big, huge, massive, unreasonably large bones of the Aloha State. You can find that story here.
The second story was by one of the guys behind This is Fly, Paris Fleezanis. This story takes the TIF crew to Andros and Kamalame Cay.
Kamalame is a place that has shown up on Bones on the Brain before.
TIF, I salute you. Keep putting out the good stuff. They remain the leading edge of the e-zine revolution. A lot was made of the fact that Catch Magazine came out on the same day, but they really are different fish, even if they are both fly fishing-centric. TIF is for those who read the stories and Catch is for those that like the pictures more than the text (I like Catch, even saw some places I’ve fished in this recent episode). TIF adds the crazy art… none of which I’d want in my home, in the homes of my friends, on the walls of my friends’ friends, but, ya know… different strokes.
To keep the paper still circulating, I recently subscribed to two magazines… physical magazines… Fly Fishing in Salt Waters and Fly Rod and Reel. I’m doing my part… ya know, mostly.
The idea of fishing competitions/tournaments is met with utter disdain not universally embraced by the fly fishing community… at least the trouting part of it anyway. In the salt, it seems there is a whole different attitude… one that includes lots of tournaments for lots of species, including bonefish.
I saw the results of the Redbone Deep Water Cay Celebrity Classic. I couldn’t find a list of folks that entered, or what makes them “celebrities,” maybe they don’t wear panties, I don’t know. Deep Water Cay is the uber-exclusive lodge/operation on the far, far end of Grand Bahama… actually, just off shore on their own cay… Deep Water Cay… they have their own airport.
I caught my first bonefish right behind Deep Water Cay, although I was with an independent guide. I don’t begin to have the the kind of obscene wealth resources it would take to have bought in at DWC.
The story can be found on the ESPN site here. The winner was Cal Collier Jr. who posted 22 fish over two days. Points were given for Permit too, but no one caught one (no one caught one the year before either). Sounds like he had to battle some difficult conditions (like a 57 degree morning and 20 mile per hour winds). He got 16 in the final day to end up on the podium (do they use podiums?). The guide was Cecil Leathen… can’t find too much about him. I’m guessing he should have won half of whatever was won if he’s like any of the many, many guides I know.
The biggest fish of the tournament went to David Collier (yes, related) with a 28.5 inch fish. Um… that is frigging massive, by the way… 12-13 pounds according to the chart I looked at. TWELVE PLUS POUNDS. I would have liked to have seen that fish.
Maybe people don’t actually GO to Mexico to fish for Jack Crevalle, but I’m going for a little 2/3 family trip to Vallarta and I’m going to bring a couple rods. Tying up a few patterns to complete my beach box. Last year I got a nice Torro from the beach, so I’m bringing some bigger flies this year. We’ll see.
The Being Karl blog (new to me) put up a report about his trip to Belize and his first bonefish. Always great to hear about someone’s first bonefish… it can be a revelation.
They are at El Pescador… the place I was hoping to go this summer. I’ve moved my Belize 2010 trip to Belize 2011, but stories like this make me want to head there… um… now.
I make another cast and, bam, I get a hookup. The fish takes off and is clearly the hardest fighting fish I’ve ever hooked on a fly. After a couple of minutes of tussle, I bring it to the boat where Carlos reaches down, grips the fish, about 14 inches in length, and lifts it up for me to see. My first bonefish on a fly. I had imagined it would take a day of trying and here we’ve been fishing 15 minutes and I’ve got my first in the boat.
El Pescador photo... go there.
I haven’t seen the Being Karl blog before. The salty stuff is an outlier, but it is honest and not pretentious in the least.
I think my plans for Belize 2010 are turning into Belize 2011 plans. By that time my money tree should be bearing fruit… that’s what the guy who sold it to me said, anyway.
This has be wondering what it might cost for a little bit of that San Diego bonefish action.
On the Fly isn’t too bad at $450 for about 5-6 hours.
Now, this isn’t flats fishing (see, cause there aren’t any flats). The rods are 6-8’s with shooting heads and the method is the cast/strip/cast/strip method you might use to prospect for small mouth. That doesn’t sound exactly like what the ideal bonefish experience might look like, but it is a good substitute when you live in California and don’t want to spend $800 on a flight somewhere more bonefishey.
There are other outfitters, of course. It looks like Conway Bowman’s outfit does some inshore trips, but I’m hoping I’m misreading the rate, as it would rank up there with the most expensive bonefishing in the world ($787.50 for two???????). Maybe I’m not reading that right… I’m hoping not, as that would be nucking futs, but, there is a lot of nucking futs out there.
Home to the CA bonefish
Costa del Mar makes some sunglasses that are pretty good, from what I understand. They just recently put their weight behind a movie project about Belize, the fly fishing guides who make their living there and the pressures of development. The flick is called “Currents of Belize” and it was made by Bradley Beesley for Costa del Mar.
In the movie Abbie Marin scores a Grand Slam, the only appearance of a bonefish with a much heavier focus on permit in the movie.
The guides shown in the video are from Blue Horizon Lodge and Go Fish Belize.
The rates are pretty good with Go Fish Belize at $300 for a full day of bonefishing.
Costa del Mar is teaming up with the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust to launch a Permit tagging program in Florida to gather more information about Permit. This should be some really important and interesting research and I commend Costa del Mar for stepping up to provide the funds necessary.
The Somethinsfishy blog has a great story about a trip to the Seychelles, which is just one of those places you want to go if you are a saltwater fly fishing angler.
Before I hit the daily breakdown, it is worth noting that the long trek half way around the world is well worth it. The bonefishing here is by far the most impressive on earth, but it is the diversity of species and stunning beauty of the place that makes it so incredible.
Check out the story
Saw something pop up on my Google Alert for Aitutaki Lagoon… which had me asking “where?”
Aitutaki Lagoon in in the Cook Islands and I’m guessing from the pictures, that there are some nice (NICE) bonefish there.
Not small
Here is what they say about the fishing…
If stalking trophy sized Bonefish in clear shallow water is what you crave then the fly fishing around Akaiami and the lagoon could keep you happy for a lifetime; the fish are big; the water is gin clear and the fishing challenging. You will get shots at trophy fish on a daily basis that will have your knees trembling and your heart threatening to explode from your chest and as your guide Butch Leone will tell you, the opportunity to catch a fish that will leave you with “a smile on your face that you could not wack off with a stick” is around every corner. The fishing is intense and challenging, but the best things in life always are.
Gina’s Akaiami Beach Lodge. All the prices are listed in New Zealand dollars, which mean nothing to me. I’m sure the travel costs are not insignificant, nor would the time commitment. I’m sure this is the kind of place that requires an love of long flights and sleeping medication. Still… those are some nice bones.
