When I was little, if I was not fishing on a Saturday
morning, then I was watching my favorite fishing shows. I always enjoyed watching Spanish Fly,
Walkers Cay, and Hunt for Big Fish. A lot of the time these shows took place in
the Bahamas, flyfishing for tailing Bonefish.
I have always wanted to be standing on the front of a flats skiff, flyrod
in hand watching 5 or 6 tails slowly swimming towards me. Last week I got my chance, I finally got the opportunity
to catch a bonefish on the long rod.
While on a family cruise in the Caribbean and at one of the
port calls, my mom surprised me with a 3 hour Fly fishing excursion for
bonefish. I met Captain Tony at the dock
and within 15 minutes I was on the bow searching for bonefish. It didn’t take long for Capt. Tony to say “11
o’clock there are a few”. I made a 30ft
cast right in front of the cruising fish.
A few strips and BAM! Fish on. A blistering
run with screaming drag abruptly ended when the fish ran into the mangroves and
broke off. I quickly re-rigged and was
back out searching.
A few minutes later a massive school of at least 30 fish came
down the flat. I made a long cast and
almost immediately a bonefish hit my shrimp fly. This fish took off away from the mangroves
and down the flat. I was amazed by how
fast this fish could move against a strong drag. After a good fight I worked the fish to the
boat where Capt Tony grabbed the fish.
The fish was about 18in long and very healthy. After a few quick pictures and a release, it
was back to the bow looking for more.
There was a ton of life on the flat. Blacktips, bonnetheads, and lemon sharks
prowled the flats along with massive stingrays.
Another cool sight was seeing giant triggerfish finning in only a foot
of water. While I was seeing a lot of
life, it appeared that the bones had vanished. With about 30 minutes left in the trip, Capt
Tony poled around a point and there they were.
Just like on TV, I saw one tail pop up, and then another, and
another. There was a group of about 6
NICE size bonefish tailing my way. Once
we got into range I laid out a good cast, and then everything went into slow
motion…
Strip…
Strip… Pause… Strip… Strip…
BAM!
FISH ON!
Immediately the fish dumped all of the flyline off the spool
and half of the backing. I could tell
that this fish was substantial. I worked
the fish back to the boat where it took off again, dumping all of the flyline
again. The power in these fish is
incredible. The fish made several runs over
the next few minutes, but Capt Tony did an awesome job poling us away from the
mangroves and eventually it slowed down.
I fought the fish back to the boat and Capt. Tony grabbed it. This fish was about 23in and fat. I was excited to have a day just like the shows
I used to watch. It was everything I hoped
for; seeing the tails, making the cast and feeling the power of the
bonefish.
If you are ever in the Bahamas and interested in catching these
awesome fish, checkout South Abaco Adventures.
Here is there website…
http://www.southabaco.com/
