Bonefish in Antigua

[Adam F]

Hi,

Planning our holiday this year to the Caribbean, and Antigua is looking like the best bet at the moment for several non fishing related reasons.

A big pull for me through is that I can get some decent bonefishing in while their. I know the other islands are famous for it, but cant find much on Antigua even on Google - any ideas, tips, pointers or advice?

Thanks

Adam

[PanamaJack]

Hi Adam
Whilst I've fished for Bones from several parts of the Caribbean - Los Roques (Venezuela), Belize and the Bahamas - I've never visited Antigua. Could I suggest you try posting to the Caribbean forum on http://www.reel-time.com.

Whilst it's essentially for fly fishermen the Flats they're targeting will be able to be similarly fished with micro jigs or bait. You'll find them extremely knowledgeable and very constructive. And some, as well as fishing with guides will probably also have self-guided.

Also - you'll need to register - and once they realise you're from this side of the 'Pond' they'll fall over themselves to help.

Probably, from the end of this month, you'll find, other than first light and towards the end of the day, that the shallow - sight fishing - Flats will 'heat up' too quickly to hold fish during the day. But there'll always be opportunities with 'mudding' fish in 4 to 5' of water. Things normally start to 'cool down' again towards the end of October, but remember - if you're unlucky - you're still in the tail end of the hurricane season.
Dave

[Adam F]

Thanks Jack - I will pop over their and have a look.

We are looking to go late Oct, early Nov - so fingers crossed - no big winds!

Adam

[Cascars]

I went to Antigua 8 years ago and although I am sure the fishing there would be great, I could not find anywhere to hire a boat or buy any gear. Maybe things have changed a bit now but it will probably take a bit of research to find what you want.

[rock hopper]

going to turks and cacios 2morro and will be fly fishing. what flies will the bonefiash take?



rh

[PanamaJack]

Hi Rock Hopper
You'll need weighted (bead/dumbell chain eyes) flies to fish on or near the bottom - you're 'puffing' sand to attract attention. Things like Crazy Charlies and Gotchas simulate shrimps and will work any where. You find as well, in tying books, a host of other variants of those basic patterns. Crab patterns work as well. Colours are naturally things that effectively blend in with the background of the Flat itself.

And Clouser Minnows are also a great imitative fly simulating small fish.

Wishing you every success! And please report back on how your trip goes.
Dave

[rock hopper]

cheers mate!


qwish me luk


rh

[cod king]

Hi im goin aswel and i was wondering if spinning for the bonefish is just as good as fly fishing for them.

[PanamaJack]

Hi Cod King
I guess all styles of fishing for Bones can be equally rewarding and exciting, especially if you're sight fishing for them in very shallow water. I'm more than comfortable with both, but often a live shrimp is going to be taken more voraciously - as well as being visual there's the scent trail it's giving off.

For preference though I prefer the fly, just like fooling something on an artificial. And even though you're not casting vast distances, often just 30', if the fly line lands a tad too heavily they're off like a 'scalded cat'! Although that said I once caught one in the Bahamas in ankle deep water just 18' from me - the length of a fly rod and 9' leader. That was exciting! Both its back and tail were out of the water as it drove forward, on a rising tide, to nail the fly.
Dave

[cod king]

Thanks mate. Will small shakespere spinners work the ones you use for mackeral fishing.

[PanamaJack]

Probably NOT. I've only ever heard of one Bonefish being caught on a spinner - well actually it was a Toby.

If you look back at the posting on this and one of the other threads you'll see I suggested either using micro jigs, with or without shrimp to 'sweeten' them, or just a piece of bait - conch or shrimp - on a baitholder hook. With the bait option you'll probably need to attach a swan shot, near the hook, to give it casting weight.

[marktheshark]

Hullo matey
Not too many flats in Antigua, so you might need to rethink. Not a problem: the fishing has always been good for me (I've been four times), but you'll need to be adaptable. There are bonefish, and I've caught them off most of the beaches, but with bait, and never on fly. There are tarpon, mostly small, and often in very fishable places such as creeks, harbours and salt ponds, and they'll take a fly and are an absolute scream when you get one to stick. Barracuda are plentiful inshore and will take also go for a fly, as will bar-jacks, which fight very well, and houndfish (garfish). The fishing is also plentiful offshore: lots of tuna, kingfish, dorado, wahoo and of course cuda from the boats.
Where are you planning to stay? I'll be able to give more specific advice if I know.
All the best
M

[Adam F]

Hi Mark,

Sorry for the late reply, dont visit here too often!

We are staying at the Jolly Beach resort, which I guess is near / in Jolly Harbour.

ANY advice is HUGELY appreciated! It is very hard to come by and I was almost becoming a little dispondant about fishing over there!

Thanks

Adam

[marktheshark]

Hullo matey
Jolly Beach is on a curved white sand beach maybe a mile long, with low headland (where Coco Beach hotel is) at the southern end. At the northern end, it peters out into a bouldery spit that becomes one arm of the channel into Jolly Harbour. Just north of the hotel is a little inlet connecting the harbour to the sea. It's a shallow beach but shelves away steadily after a while.
I've fished Jolly Beach, and I've even caught bonefish there, but not on the fly. The water is often stirred and a milky blue colour owing to the fine sand, and visibility is often poor. I tried fly fishing the length of the beach and only had luck at the northern end, close to the spit, where I took some small shoaling mackerel-type fish on an epoxy fly, and a snapper on a shrimp imitation. None was bigger than 6in. I think that if you want flats fishing for bones, you'll have to contact a guide with a car or boat. There aren't that many flats on Antigua.
However, there are bonefish there; I took three to 4lb on a strip of bonito ledgered on the bottom, along with stingrays, snake eels and small snapper and grunts. I tried poppering, as it looked like that method might bring something in, but it didn't work. I would say the shore fishing there is not brilliant, although the locals say that some big snappers are taken in front of the little inlet to the harbour at high night tides on a full moon. Use livebait or fish strip.
A better bet is Jolly Harbour, where there are 50lb-plus tarpon, snook and barracuda, and plenty of mullet for bait. The tarpon seem to turn up when the charter boats come back and start cleaning their catch, and they head straight for the pontoon pilings when hooked. When I was there last the fishing closest to the hotel was ruined by the construction work but it should have finished by now. There was also some suggestion that fishing was not allowed in the harbour, so a little discretion may be needed. Take bug spray if fishing evenings.
Elsewhere ... there are salt ponds all over the island and most hold tarpon in the 3-15lb range, but some up to 35lb, which will take a fly. I've taken them from the ponds behind the Galley Bay Hotel, and also near Dickenson Bay. They'll take the usual bait patterns but I found softer flies, with either minky or marabou, worked better. Only four species normally tolerate the ponds: tarpon, snook, mullet and tilapia (locally called kadi), so you'll need to imitate one of those, in theory. You'll need a shock tippet of at least 25lb.
The best shore fishing is supposed to be from the rocks around Mamora Bay and Rendezvous Bay, to the south of the island, but I can't vouch for that as I never went there. There is good rock fishing at the Devil's Bridge, but that's on the other side of the island, and a British expat told me of some monster snapper, grouper, jacks and cuda taken from the oil refinery jetty, if you can find it. I couldn't I'm afraid. There is (or was) a tackle shop in the Jolly Harbour complex, so you might get better advice there.
The light-tackle boat fishing is good, and plentiful, in Antigua, with the sea between the island and Montserrat being full of tuna, cuda, wahoo, kingfish and dorado, plus a few billfish in summer. Most of the charters leave from Jolly Harbour, so it's on your doorstep. I used a youngish skipper named Mike, who was very good. You'll be asked by touts on the beach and reps at the hotel if you want to fish; I'd go straight to the harbour and you'll get a better price if you talk direct to the skipper. Best approach there is tuna heads with ballyhoo, and wire, so check with the skipper to see if they bring bait.
Hope this is of some help. Good luck and let us know, as always, how things go.
Mark

[Adam F]

Markee,

Many thanks for taking the time to reply. Ill let you know how i get on. I do belive their are one or two flats from reading a guy from UK - Phil's report posted on several forums.

Cheers

Adam

[wattsie503]

can anyone give me some advice have hired a boat in antigua in january would be gratefull of any advice as to
1. what sort of lures after wahoo permit cuda small tuna etc ?
2. do you look for feeding seagulls on a baitball ?
3. trolling speeds
4. reef fishing
5. rods and line
6. any methods that would be usefull
sorry for all the questions i'm sure someone has some good advice
many thanks
Mark

[TomBettle]

Hello Watsie
Is it self drive or charter?

[marktheshark]

Hi matey
In order:
1) Lures that have worked best for me in Antigua have usually involved ballyhoo or flying fish. A few years ago I took some Zuker tuna feathers out and they were absolute killers in front of a ballyhoo, rigged with hook in the tail. I'd also bring a selection of small skirted lures (the Williamson selection of six for about £35 is fine) for dorado, bigger tuna and kingfish. I'd also take 14cm Rapala X-raps in spotted minnow, hothead or sardine, a deep-diving 18cm Rapala Magnum in red/white, and maybe some big poppers too. Also, a selection of muppets.
You'll catch mostly 3-10lb barracuda and small skipjack tuna, the latter on small muppets. If the tuna keep getting cut in half on the way in, you know there are big kingfish around, so it's worth having a casting outfit and bridle-rigged livebait ready. The biggest wahoo I've seen there have been caught either on downriggers or deep-diving Rapalas. You'll also catch jacks, dorado, rainbow runners, snappers, groupers, and very rarely, billfish. Unlikely you'll catch permit at all, let alone on lures.

2) You can look for birds, but I've not seen really huge baitballs, or bird storms, there ... I'm sure they happen, and you'd be a fool to ignore them when they do, but far more widespread, in my experience, is a quick bit of surface splash, then gone. The key to birds is not that they're there, but what they're telling you. The sea between Antigua and Montserrat is pretty rich, but the fish are usually evenly spread out.

3) Trolling speed varies depending on what lures you're using. About 8-10kt is ok for heads, skirts and poppers, a touch less for big Rapalas and plugs.

4) Reef fishing is very popular out there (called drop-line fishing, with handlines) but it's a complete pick and mix. One bite may be a snapper the size of a leaf, the next a shark. If you're fishing for the pot, you'll catch a lot of palatable fish (snapper, hind, grunt), as well as a lot of reef fish far too pretty to kill. Livebait is best, especially with some chum in the water, but tuna strip, squid, octopus and needlefish are also good. Dusk is best.

5) Yup ... you'll need them. The more the merrier. If you're taking a charter most of the reputable boats have pretty serviceable gear, but it's often too heavy for a sporting fight. If it were me, I'd take a 50lb outfit and fish it heavy for wahoo etc; one or two 30lb trolling outfits for dorado, cuda etc, and a 20lb fun rod for tuna, reef etc. You can get away with cheap rods if you don't want them to last, but get the best reels you can afford, preferably lever drag for the heavier outfits.
I'd also take a heavy spinning or casting rod, in case you do run into a shoal of tuna or kingfish and want to have fun. By heavy, I mean one that can cast a 3/4lb tuna livebait 50 yards, not a 30-60g spinning wand, so think more along the lines of catfish, popper or uptide rod. You can also use it for heavy shore, poppering and reef fishing too. If you have a 30-60g spinning rod I'd take that for light shore spinning and catching bait. You can get bar-jacks, jacks, cuda, needlefish and snapper on small silvery spoons and poppers.

6) I don't know if you fly fish but there are tarpon around, mostly babys. The McKinnon salt ponds near Dickinson Bay was full of fish to 10lb when I was last there, and if you're staying at Galley Bay the lake there had some pretty large (to 40lb) ones. An 8wt is fine for the babys, also for bonefish (where you can find them), jacks and small cuda inshore, and small tuna from the boat, but you'll need a heavier rod, or a heavy lure rod, for the bigger fish ... they're brutes.
The northeast coast, around Devil's Bridge and Green Island, is a network of inlets, cays, reefs and flats. If you troll around these, it's barracuda city. Freelined livebait, especially around mangrove, gets you snook, tarpon, mangrove snapper and barracuda; around reefs, you'll get snapper, bar-jacks, blue jacks and more soddin cudas. It's a good idea to bring small hooks and a bucket and aerator. You can catch mullet and ballyhoo inshore using bread, or you can chum them up if you have a castnet. Look for areas near hotels or harbours where tourists feed the fish - they'll be less spooky.
Finally, the locals don't usually eat jacks in Antigua, claiming they're usually poisonous ("copper" - it's another term for ciguatera). They do, however, eat barracuda, which are far more likely to be ciguatoxic. I've eaten neither there, but it's worth pointing out.

Good luck, tight lines.

[ulsterfisher]

Marktheshark, I am for Dickenson Bay in April and would love to wade and fly but not only for bonefish. You mentioned earlier in this thread about a good spot near to Dickenson, if you can be more specific I would be grateful. Also, what rated fly set up would be most suitable?
Thank,s
Bill