where next?

[H-Rex]

Calling all international y experienced anglers. I have spent the last 2 winters fishing in Gambia - it was cheap, sunny, and fairly productive.
I am stuck for ideas for this winter - is there anywhere anyone would suggest which compares? I want good weather, and can afford to pay maybe a bit more (but not lots more)
What do you think guys?:g:

[GrumpyBloke]

Go to The Gambia again but go up - river and try for the Tigerfish.
Other than that , Namibia seems quite popular and you have had all the jabs.

[martinw]

How about the Cape Verde Islands? these are now more accessible, I think The Gambia Experience goes there now, not sure of the costs though.

[H-Rex]

Cape Verde is worth considering, but I wasnt sure about shore fishing there - very new and I havent heard many reports on where to fish etc. I was also thinking about Cuba - 2 weeks all inclusive for about £800 seems affordable - has anyone been there fishing recently?:secret: :secret:

[taff2]

cape verde is not cheap been looking at it go to puerta vallarta in mexico some of the best fishing you will ever get from shore or boat go all incl cascars is going there this year we had a talk he is looking forward to it i have been to gambia and loved it but it is not in the same league it is on the pacific side of mexico

[H-Rex]

thanks Taff. I,ve been fancying Mexico but can't choose it because the Wife told me if I go there she wants to come too! Sorry but fishing trips are strictly men only! :uhuh: For some strange reason though she's not interested in Cuba hence my idea to go there!

[GrumpyBloke]

Sea fishing in Cuba looked ok when Matt watsisname on SKY fished there.The inland stuff wasnt up to much but the sea was great.

[PanamaJack]

thanks Taff. I,ve been fancying Mexico but can't choose it because the Wife told me if I go there she wants to come too! Sorry but fishing trips are strictly men only! :uhuh: For some strange reason though she's not interested in Cuba hence my idea to go there!

Hi H-Rex
Um....OK, that sets the scene. But patently your wife isn't aware of the other temptations that Cuba offers! We 'lost' one of our Club members for four days in Havana. Everyone else caught the plane back except XXXXXX. Deeply apologetic he finally got to ring his wife and came up with some contrived excuse about cancelled flights and over-booking. Did she believe him? I think not.

Any rate back to your enquiry. And I have to firstly admit that I've done very little shore fishing overseas, other than wading for Bonefish - fairly specialised, light tackle and fly sight fishing - and at the end of the day lobbing baits in channels for Sharks.

So lets see. If that's the figure, around £800, that you're comfortable with then places like Cuba and Tobago are worth considering, although I'm obviously not certain what sort of a deal you'd get from Scandinavia to Tobago. But for both venues have a look at the posts in the Caribbean forum, particularly those by Mark the Shark - he's got a wealth of experience of that part of the world. There're some good links to follow in some of the posts.

Venezuela's a possiblity I suppose, especially from Scandinavia. But the devastating land slides, probably 3 years ago, wrecked much of the tourist infrastructure on the mainland. Los Roques is some 110 kilometres offshore and although you could self guide most of the fishing would be for Bonefish. Realistically it's more akin to freshwater fishing with the majority of the fish in the 2 to 5lb range. Doubles are always a possibility AND they are 'jet propelled!

There're also places like Belize but again most of that would be Bonefish and Tarpon, with the possibility of Permit and Sharks. But that might 'stray' over your budget.

I think you earlier raised the subject of the Cape Verde Islands. It's a great place fishing offshore for Blue Marlin and Yellowfin Tuna, & inshore for Amberjacks and Jack Crevalle, and off Sao Nicholau for Tiger Sharks. But that's all boat fishing which would rack up the costs, and the season really doesn't start until late April. In terms of the shore fishing the majority of the islands are volcanic in origin and shore fishing marks would in the main be quite inaccessable. The odd sandy bays are mainly in towns and, yes there are fish around, but mainly small Bream species.

Have you perhaps thought about the Canaries. Look through the posts in the European forum. Some good Rays seem to be caught from the shore. And some of the bottom fishing boats, relatively cheap, would go out for things like the Rays, Congers and some might now be targeting the big Amberjack using jigs.

Finally, and I don't know how comfortably this would 'sit' with your wife, there's the east coast of the 'States. I guess if it was me, and I was shore fishing, I'd be tempted to go to either North - particularly the Outer Banks - or South Carolina. Key species would be the Red Drum and some of the Sharks. There's also the possibility of Striped Bass. Post again if that sounds of interest.

At the moment the 'States, providing you don't follow the 'snow birds' down to Florida, is CHEAP given the strength of the Euro and European currencies. But in terms of the International flights it's perhaps worth considering a 'cheapie' to New York, Boston, or perhaps even Orlando, and picking up an internal flight. That's often a cheaper option than flying direct.

Any rate I hope that's given you some food for thought.
Dave

[lucky]

I was also thinking about Cuba - 2 weeks all inclusive for about £800 seems affordable - has anyone been there fishing recently?:secret: :secret:
HR for some info on fishing in Cuba you should also check out the fishing forums on the Cubamania web site at http://www.cubamania.com/cuba/forumdisplay.php?f=93

Mark the Shark who Panama Jack mentioned has posted some really helpful stuff over there as well.

[Orange Hustler]

For shore fishing you would have to try very hard to beat Namibia.
We had a tough week there by Namibian standards earlier this month with the wind and water temperature against us but still had a fantatstic time catching plenty of fish
I can thoroughly recommend it.
Mike

[marktheshark]

Hullo matey
For cost and simplicity, it's difficult to beat the Cayos in Cuba. A week's all-inc can come in at less than £500 and in Cayo Guillermo there are many different options for DIY shore fishing for all kinds of beasts, plus guided flats trips and some offshore boat action.
It's worth noting that the Iberostar Daiquiri, one of the mid-range hotels popular with anglers there, doesn't charge single supplements for lone travellers between May and July (but it's also worth noting that it's closed for renovations around then this year - I'm not sure when you intended on going) in the Thomas Cook brochure. Flights go direct to the Cayos from Gatwick or Manchester so if you want to do Havana, you'll need to book an excursion.
Otherwise, it's a great place full of great people. Guillermo and Coco have fantastic beaches. I wouldn't say there's a great deal to do off-resort as it's in a zona turistica, which is sealed off from the rest of Cuba, but if you're there for the fish, and the rum, and the salsa, you're fine. It has a hurricane season, late summer to autumn, then it's dry during winter, but it can be windy - for weeks sometimes, which knocks the fishing on the head. The guides reckon the best flats fishing is in Nov-Dec, wind permitting, and the offshore action for dorado is also good then.
Have a rummage on the CubaMania website if you're interested. I'm back there in April and will update.
Mark

[H-Rex]

Hi Orange - I always thought Namibia was v expensive - how much we talking about?

[H-Rex]

Hullo matey
For cost and simplicity, it's difficult to beat the Cayos in Cuba. A week's all-inc can come in at less than £500 and in Cayo Guillermo there are many different options for DIY shore fishing for all kinds of beasts, plus guided flats trips and some offshore boat action.
It's worth noting that the Iberostar Daiquiri, one of the mid-range hotels popular with anglers there, doesn't charge single supplements for lone travellers between May and July (but it's also worth noting that it's closed for renovations around then this year - I'm not sure when you intended on going) in the Thomas Cook brochure. Flights go direct to the Cayos from Gatwick or Manchester so if you want to do Havana, you'll need to book an excursion.
Otherwise, it's a great place full of great people. Guillermo and Coco have fantastic beaches. I wouldn't say there's a great deal to do off-resort as it's in a zona turistica, which is sealed off from the rest of Cuba, but if you're there for the fish, and the rum, and the salsa, you're fine. It has a hurricane season, late summer to autumn, then it's dry during winter, but it can be windy - for weeks sometimes, which knocks the fishing on the head. The guides reckon the best flats fishing is in Nov-Dec, wind permitting, and the offshore action for dorado is also good then.
Have a rummage on the CubaMania website if you're interested. I'm back there in April and will update.
Mark
Hi Mark thanks for reply - was thinking Cayo Guillermo as I've read up on that - going out end Nov 07 which sounds a good time to choose. Still favourite I think!

[H-Rex]

Hi H-Rex
Um....OK, that sets the scene. But patently your wife isn't aware of the other temptations that Cuba offers! We 'lost' one of our Club members for four days in Havana. Everyone else caught the plane back except XXXXXX. Deeply apologetic he finally got to ring his wife and came up with some contrived excuse about cancelled flights and over-booking. Did she believe him? I think not.

Any rate back to your enquiry. And I have to firstly admit that I've done very little shore fishing overseas, other than wading for Bonefish - fairly specialised, light tackle and fly sight fishing - and at the end of the day lobbing baits in channels for Sharks.

So lets see. If that's the figure, around £800, that you're comfortable with then places like Cuba and Tobago are worth considering, although I'm obviously not certain what sort of a deal you'd get from Scandinavia to Tobago. But for both venues have a look at the posts in the Caribbean forum, particularly those by Mark the Shark - he's got a wealth of experience of that part of the world. There're some good links to follow in some of the posts.

Venezuela's a possiblity I suppose, especially from Scandinavia. But the devastating land slides, probably 3 years ago, wrecked much of the tourist infrastructure on the mainland. Los Roques is some 110 kilometres offshore and although you could self guide most of the fishing would be for Bonefish. Realistically it's more akin to freshwater fishing with the majority of the fish in the 2 to 5lb range. Doubles are always a possibility AND they are 'jet propelled!

There're also places like Belize but again most of that would be Bonefish and Tarpon, with the possibility of Permit and Sharks. But that might 'stray' over your budget.

I think you earlier raised the subject of the Cape Verde Islands. It's a great place fishing offshore for Blue Marlin and Yellowfin Tuna, & inshore for Amberjacks and Jack Crevalle, and off Sao Nicholau for Tiger Sharks. But that's all boat fishing which would rack up the costs, and the season really doesn't start until late April. In terms of the shore fishing the majority of the islands are volcanic in origin and shore fishing marks would in the main be quite inaccessable. The odd sandy bays are mainly in towns and, yes there are fish around, but mainly small Bream species.

Have you perhaps thought about the Canaries. Look through the posts in the European forum. Some good Rays seem to be caught from the shore. And some of the bottom fishing boats, relatively cheap, would go out for things like the Rays, Congers and some might now be targeting the big Amberjack using jigs.

Finally, and I don't know how comfortably this would 'sit' with your wife, there's the east coast of the 'States. I guess if it was me, and I was shore fishing, I'd be tempted to go to either North - particularly the Outer Banks - or South Carolina. Key species would be the Red Drum and some of the Sharks. There's also the possibility of Striped Bass. Post again if that sounds of interest.

At the moment the 'States, providing you don't follow the 'snow birds' down to Florida, is CHEAP given the strength of the Euro and European currencies. But in terms of the International flights it's perhaps worth considering a 'cheapie' to New York, Boston, or perhaps even Orlando, and picking up an internal flight. That's often a cheaper option than flying direct.

Any rate I hope that's given you some food for thought.
Dave
Hi Dave thanks for comprehensive reply - food for thought there! Still fancy Cuba though! Havana sounds more interesting than I thought too!

[fishiee29]

From what I've heard Gabon is gonna be tough to beat. The fishing will be like Gambia but 10 times bigger and better! :)

I have it in my plans, but not for a couple of years yet... I have other plans first. It's the sort of trip that you'd need a group of you to go though I think as I'm not sure how well they cater for individuals, if at all.

Working out prices myself last year you're going to be looking at about 3.5k for a couple of weeks. Not sure how that fits in with your budget but it's gonna be awesome fishing!

I've fished Angola which is a little further down the coast but not sure how that fishes nowadays. It was pretty damn amazing in 2001ish and Gabon should be better still I think even now.