Go to the site… check this out. Simply fantastic.
This River is Wild is a very, very fishy blog with a strong bonefish showing.
I know I usually give you more in these posts, but in this case, just go to the site and check it out… it stands on its own.
Learn everything about boating safety at BoaterExam.com
It has been a great, great week here in South Andros. Today is the departure day… as you read this I am either in an airport or on a plane.
Here are a few things I learned this week…
– My casting is better than I give myself credit for… someone even said there is a “grace” about my casting. That was a surprise.
– Given the right combination of factors, I can still trout set like a mo-fo.
– I really like fishing for cudas… even if that means trolling.
– A head lamp is a MUST HAVE on my next trip.
– My core belief that “modern gear is all pretty good” is being a little shaken.
– I may have a good business idea.
– Night fishing is full of danger and possibility.
– My flies worked.
– I need to find some sun gloves that I actually want to wear.
– The guides who were supposed to be “tough” weren’t. They were honest and it didn’t bother me in the slightest.
– A guide who sings and laughs may be the most fun to fish with.
– I really, really want to come back here.
(photo credit Tom Larimer)
It isn’t every day you get to go fish and have a kick ass photographer along for the trip who is going to do nothing more than take pictures.
That was my day.
So… instead of cluttering up things with my words, I’m going to let Cameron’s pictures give you a sense of the day.
Norman picking out the fly... only fly we used all day.
Ready for action
The magic fly for the day.
A tagged bonefish... nice.
Fish on.
Tagging the fish.
Casting
Joy
Today… it was a tougher weather day, but still had two perfect moments. 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.
OK… there was a lot of travel to get here, but today was go time… bizness time… bonefishing time.
I was paired up with the Outdooress today and with Andros South guide Ellie.
Fish were caught. The guide was hooked. A lemon shark was alllllmost caught. A good time was had. I kind of love this place.
The crew, waiting to get on the water.
Ellie, our guide for the day.
waiting... looking...
The skunk is off... first fish of the trip.
The Outdooress and her first bonefish
More will come, but now… Kalik is calling.
Go to the Michale Gracie blog to see the best bonefish pic you will see this week, or month, or year.
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.
Today I get on a plane to start my journey to Andros Island. SFO to LAX then to Miami then to Nassau and then to Congo Town, South Andros. The trip will span two days, but will be close to 16 or 18 hours from the time I leave SFO to the time I touch Androsian soil.
A lot of time has been spent thinking about this trip, tying for this trip, writing about this trip… and here it is… finally. Departure Day.
Recently, I saw this story about a trip the Troutfitter made to… ya, you guessed it… Andros South (that’s where I’m going, if you haven’t been following long).
From the story…
“You’re down there fishing in sunny weather, wading in knee-deep water that’s 72 degrees. Meanwhile, there’s 2 to 3 feet of snow back home. You can’t do better than that,” he said.
via Central New York anglers enjoy their Bahamian bonefishing adventure | syracuse.com.
I’ll be trying to give updates daily. They have the internets down there, I’m told. I can’t wait to meet the other FIBFest folks, throw a Kalik or two back and then throw a fair bit of line.
Is there anything better?
Learn everything about boating safety at BoaterExam.com
As I’m getting ready to head to Andros the This River is Wild blog has been spewing bonefishery as of late. Basically… he had a really nice DIY trip somewhere in the Caribbean. I don’t know where… maybe you do… if so, I’d keep it to myself (and then plan a trip there).
This was, easily, the best fishing I’ve ever experienced to date. In those two full days on the flats, I saw not another soul.
The This River is Wild bonefishology is broken down in three parts over the three days of his trip… Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Read them. Read them all.
Learn everything about boating safety at BoaterExam.com
OK… Andros is coming up really, really fast. Today… Thursday. Tomorrow… Departure Day. Saturday… Andros.
The posts are starting to come fast and furious. When things really get kicking off, you can follow the mayhem mostly by following the Deneki website.
In the meantime, you can check out some of the blogginess from some of the folks who will be joining me (or will I be joining them?) at Andros South:
There’s even a hashtag for FIBFest, for those of you who do the Twitter thing… #FIBFest.
Anticipation is cresting. Come the adventure!
