Andros Island, Bahamas
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*****But . . . the fish are what you come for unless you're searching for peace and relaxation. There's lots of calm on the island and hardly anything to do but go fishing...and the fish are everywhere. Of course, there's also snorkeling, open beaches without crowds ( I mean without anyone else) and day after day of warm gentle weather.
(This view is across miles of the flats, all of it only a couple of feet deep, north of Pidgeon Cay, near Driggs Hill, South Andros.)
Last time there, I caught permit
in the surf before breakfast off the beach, as a warmup before the day's
bonefishing! I also enjoyed homecooked meals prepared by my neighbor and
spent many an evening in good conversation with the friendly Bahamians (the
only kind I've ever met) who lived nearby. There's certainly enough variety
in the fishing to keep it interesting, jacks, snapper, 'cuda, tarpon, sharks
and such besides the worthy bonefish, and enough of them to make the fishing
very satisfying every day.
Take a look at the rest of this page and see if anything interests you. If so, shoot me an email and we'll talk. My next trips to Andros are April and November of 2005. I flyfish, spin, and even bait fish on occasion. I snorkel and spearfish with the Bahamians. I like to eat some of my catch, and I share with the locals (who are rich only in their positive attitude and peace of mind).
You can fly round trip from Boston (and most places east of the Mississippi) to Nassau and then to Andros and back for about $500. Share a room two ways and that'll cost you about $60/day/per person (or have a bed in a rented house on the beach for about $500 for a week). Bring your own food and you save again or eat local for about $15/day. I figure about $1500 for a full week, including the guide for two days - everything included.
How often you hire a guide versus walk out on your own (possible in some places), is up to you (guide rates are here). If you bring tackle, you'll catch fish. Hire a guide and you'll catch more and learn more too. So, what should a week cost you on the ground? A bit more than a hundred a day, room and board, plus guiding costs. If you're careful and resourceful, you may even barter a bit with the locals.
Not bad for a tropical vacation in the "Bonefishing Capitol of the World! (Frankly, this is possible because Andros has nothing but fishing. If there were highrise hotels, waterfalls and jet skis, the cost would be five times this...and it is at the "bonefish clubs" where they fish the same waters you will!)
Mangroves, mangroves, mangroves.
Bonefish pockmark the shallows in their hunting.
Have I caught your interest? Andros Island is the largest of the Bahamian Islands (MAP). Yet it's home to less than 10,000 people over it's entire 2,400 square miles! That's right, the island is about a hundred miles long by forty wide and everyone, just about, lives along the eastern shore. Do the math and you'll see that's a hundred people a mile or one every 52 feet of the Queen's Highway. There's lots of room on Andros between communities. The rest is mangroves, coral grain beaches, piney woods and bonefish flats. And ocean flats. And creek flats.
Flyfishing for bones is the number one attraction of Andros. Here the bonefish are so plentiful, the weather so mild and the flats so extensive and supportive of a healthy marine ecosystem that there is outstanding fishing at all times of the year, unlike many other destinations. North or south, river flats, ocean flats or mangroves, you can expect to see at least dozens of bonefish a day. Sometimes, thousands and that's no exaggeration! Thousands. Bonefish range in size from the little school fish of a foot or so to the monsters of over thirty inches and world record weights fo a dozen pounds and more. Bonefish are a pelagic or open-ocean fish, so are also found along the barrier reef too. Bringing a sinking line for these fish can add one more element to your fly fishing experience. |
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The texture you see underwater here is the result of the bonefish rooting for shrimp and crabs in the area, and leaving behind holes from where they've been digging. |
The flash of a bonefish is mirrorlike. |
| Bonefish make Little Tunny and Bonito seem like they have no stamina by comparison. A five pounder can take two hundred yards of backing off your reel and, if you try to stop him, he'll blow up your 14 pound tippet! They're spooky, sometimes fussy but strong beyond imagination for a fish their size. And, of course, there're more than bonefish around. Everywhere you look there are jacks, snappers, 'cuda, needlefish, tarpon, sharks, grouper. To name just a few. No shortage of fishing opportunities on Andros! |  |
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Mangroves, such as these, surround much of the flats. Careful approaches
and keeping a keen eye out for tails and the shadow of fish is a must.