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Conservation — 3 Comments
31
Oct 11

Aitutaki and the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust

Ah… I love it when favorite things come together.  In this case the Bonefish and Tarpon Trust is heading out to Aitutaki to get all learned up on the Cook Island Bones.  Cool.

Aitutaki sounds like a really interesting place and while I have yet to travel there myself, I’ve long enjoyed hearing from Butch Leone as he tries to get the locals on the conservation wagon.  Things are moving forward there, or at least is a generally positive direction.

The Bonefish and Tarpon Trust, of course, is pretty much awesome and if you love bones (or permit or tarpon) this is an organization that should be getting some of your hard-earned (or fairly stolen) money.

Here’s a link to the story.

Conservation / Fish Tails — 1 Comment
21
Aug 11

World Angling Media and Permit

OK, I usually stick pretty tight to bonefish… this is a bonefishing blog, after all.  Still, I just saw this over at This is Fly Daily. I like it.  A lot. Beautifully shot and a conservation message.  Yeah. That’s pretty much my bag.

Well done.

 

Conservation — No Comments
17
Aug 11

Turneffe

Ya know what… the Turneffe Atoll Trust has some real fly fishing cred on their board.  Like… A lot (that was two ellipses, if anyone is counting).

One of those guys is Jim Klug of Yellow Dog.  Another is Craig Matthews of Blue Ribbon Flies in West Yellowstone.  That a group.

They are working hard to keep Turneffe as beautiful a place as it seems to be.  A place with bones and permit and tarpon and lots and lots of space for those fish to roam and feed and breed.

This is a bit of what they are up to:

TAT continues to lead the way in instituting a Turneffe Atoll Marine Reserve. The process is moving ahead at a rapid pace with half of the required stakeholder meetings completed and a first draft of the Turneffe Atoll Management Plan forthcoming.  This past week, the Belize Minister of Fisheries was presented with a proposal to establish the reserve.  It was warmly received and it is expected to move on to the Belize Cabinet. (read on)


Check them out.

Conservation — 2 Comments
03
Aug 11

Bonefish Flat interviews Aaron Adams

The Bonefish Flat recently ran an interview with Aaron Adams… one of my favorite guys.  Aaron, of course, is the Director for the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, a fine organization you should all be supporting (yes, I’m looking at YOU… that is… if you don’t already).

You can also read my interview of Aaron here.

Aaron is amazing in that he is a very busy guy, but seems to always make time for questions.  He’s super accessible and easy to talk to… just don’t expect him to divulge any secret places!

Conservation — 11 Comments
27
Jul 11

I hate jet skis too

The Port Department this week met with New Providence jet ski operators to outline policies to “deal with the nuisance” their craft cause, with Exuma-based bonefishing guides warning that efforts to establish similar businesses on their island could jeopardise the $13 million earnings they have generated over the last 15 years.

via The Tribune.

Seems some folks in the Bahamas are none too keen on Jet Skis mucking up the bonefishing business. I can’t say I blame them.

I don’t get the point of a jet ski. They are loud, stir up the bottom and generally annoy anyone who isn’t riding one at the time.

Hitler liked Jet Skis… just say’n.

Conservation / Locations — 2 Comments
26
Jul 11

The pearl of Aitutaki – Way to go Butch

If Aitutaki were an oyster, the budding bonefishing industry would surely be its pearl.

via The pearl of Aitutaki | PostIndependent.com.

Well, look at that, Butch Leone!  A nice little story about Aitutaki that features Butch Leone, who has started a tagging program there in his little piece of the Cook Islands.

Fantastic.

 

Conservation — No Comments
21
Jul 11

BTT Symposium November 11-12

Bonefish & Tarpon Trust continues to be one of my favorite nonprofits.  Support them if you can.  If you are REALLLLLY into bones and conservation, head to Key Largo in November for the Symposium.

yeah... what he said.

Key Largo, FL: The Fourth International Bonefish and Tarpon Trust Symposium will take place on November 11th and 12th, 2011 at the International Game Fishing Association Hall of Fame in Dania Beach, FL.

Held every third year, this Symposium promises to be the largest and most informative to date. Two full days of presentations on cutting edge scientific research of bonefish, tarpon and permit from fisheries scientists around the world is scheduled, as well as panel discussions, fly casting seminars and tying clinics by some of the world’s noted flats anglers. On the final night an “Evening with the Legends” banquet will be emceed by author and angler Andy Mill, participants include; Joan Wulff, Bob Popovics, Lefty Kreh, Flip Pallot, Chico Fernandez, Sandy Moret, Rick Ruoff, Mark Sosin, Ralph Delph, Steve Huff, Bill Curtis, Stu Apte and George Hommell.

Leading up to and as part of the Symposium, Bonefish and Tarpon Trust will be auctioning multiple guided days of fishing and special one of a kind fishing adventures with expert guides who have donated their time to benefit BTT. For more information on these auctions and to submit your bids please go to www.tarbone.org and click on the the “Symposium Auctions” button.

Space is limited, so be sure to register early. All interested anglers are welcome. For more information and a complete schedule of events, please visit www.tarbone.org. We can also be reached at 239-283-4733 or info@tarbone.org.

 

Conservation — 2 Comments
25
May 11

OK, some of my own good C&R Bonefish Pics

I didn’t start out too good.  The first success I had was with a guide that either didn’t know, or didn’t practice good C&R. The results were lots of grip & grin shots with the fish out of the water for way, way too long.

Since then, I’ve read, I’ve listened and I’ve learned. The general math looks like this… (- air exposure) + (- handling) = Good Release

Here’s me putting that into practice…

A nice shot from Cameron at FIBFest II with Andros South

Ok… so, not everyone has a professional photographer as totally awesome as Cameron hanging out with you all day, so, here are others.

Tom Larimer took this pic.

A pic I took down in Belize

Another pic from Belize with El Pescador.

A DIY Bone from Grand Bahama.

Conservation — 1 Comment
24
May 11

Some Good Bonefish Pics That Are Also Good C&R

Here are some examples of pictures of bonefish that were also pretty good for the bonefish.

Minimize Air Exposure.  Minimize Handling.

Here's Aaron himself. The fish is in the water. That's good.

Another good pic from Aaron, this one underwater. Underwater cameras are coming WAY down in price. Pick one up.

A nice fish and not a lot of air exposure. A+

 

Three pretty good examples of getting the picture and doing so in a way that the fish is less likely to get munched upon.

Conservation — 2 Comments
23
May 11

Bonefish Handling Week – From the Pro

Alright, I told Aaron Adams that I’d make this week’s posts all about handling bonefish correctly… so… that’s what I’m going to do.  Monday to Friday will be dedicated to showing fish being handled and released well.

As far as the catching part goes, just fish as heavy a tippet as you can and have enough drag to make progress in getting the fish in.  Don’t overplay the fish… that’s a pretty easy concept.

In terms of the release portion of the issue goes you just have to be aware that every little bit longer you keep the fish out of the water increases the likelihood that it will get munched on when it is released.  These aren’t trout.  Just because it swims away doesn’t mean everything is OK.  If it swims away, but is tired… well… the odds that a cuda or shark will eat it go up a fair bit.

Here’s Dr. Adams…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfbGI3DuFrI

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