Bonefishing in the Bahamas is a quick fix for the flats fanatic.
By Matt Sextion

You find yourself with a free weekend, and want to do a little bonefishing in The Bahamas. Is it possible to arrange a trip on short notice,without the reservations and rates of a dedicated bonefishing lodge?

They're generally smaller than Florida bones, of course, but those eagar Bahamas fish are worth traveling for.

Grand Bahama and the nearby Abaco cays offer some convenient and surprising opportunities. It’s possible to travel to either Freeport or Marsh Harbor on direct flights for around $209. Bahamasair and several commuter airlines all make the trip out of Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach.

Recently, with a little time off from my busy personal and professional life, I did some research and found two options that fit my time and budget constraints. One that looked promising was a trip to Sandy Point in the Abacos, but it turned out that all the flights to Marsh Harbor were booked.

The second option, and the one that I took, was to fly from West Palm Beach to the bustling city of Freeport, Grand Bahama, and fish with a local bonefish guide—of which there seems to be a growing number. This route is akin to hiring a flats guide in any Florida city, such as Miami or Islamorada, but offers the allure of a real Bahamas experience. I chose Capt. Phil and Mel’s Bonefishing Service out of McClean’s Town on the east end of Grand Bahama. This afforded me enough time for a half-day fishing on my own and two days guided fishing. Captain Phil helped locate lodging in the McClean’s Town area for Friday and Saturday nights for $50 per night (I just wanted to fish, eat and sleep) and he agreed to take me to a flat where I could fish on my own on my arrival day. Capt. Phil picks up and drops off clients who choose to stay in Freeport at no extra charge, and this is the case with other island guides.

After a 30-minute flight and 10 minutes in customs, I was greeted by Harry Rolle, a guide with Deep Water Caye Club who, as a friend of Capt. Phil’s, drove me out to McClean’s Town.

He pointed out a school of bonefish feeding 200 yards away on the town flat.

On the drive, Harry showed me a couple of the other places I had found when doing my Internet research: Smoking Reels Bonefish Club in Pelican Point and Bishop’s in High Rock. Both provide accommodations and are located on nice beaches. Bishop’s no longer provides bonefishing packages, but Capt. Phil and Mel’s often provides bonefishing trips for Bishop’s clients. I understand that the beaches at both locations also hold bonefish, but I did not have time to conduct any primary research, as I was scheduled to go to another flat near McClean’s Town.

Upon arrival in McClean’s Town, Harry showed me the government dock and the flat just beyond. He pointed out a school of bonefish feeding 200 yards away on the town flat. I knew that I’d come to the right place. After dropping my gear at Ricardo’s, a modest room with air conditioning and a shared bathroom (one for men and one for women), Harry took me to Crabbing Bay Beach, about a mile west of town.

The beach was deserted except for a couple snorkeling the blue hole near shore, two Germans who were camping at the far end of the beach and (I hoped) several large schools of bonefish. Harry picked a tan Crazy Charlie from my fly box and suggested wading along the edge of the seagrass by the blue hole and scanning for fish over the sand flat. I thanked him for his help and said goodbye. At 12:30 p.m., on a low to rising tide, and with the wind at my back out of the east at 15 mph, I waded onto one of the most beautiful flats I had ever seen. At 12:36 I spotted my first fish and made my first cast. At 12:45 I spotted my first school. At 12:56 I spotted my second school. By 1:00 p.m., only six hours after waking up in West Palm Beach, with feeding bonefish tailing and flashing in gin clear water all around me, I hooked and landed my first bonefish of the trip. There is something very rewarding about catching a bonefish on a fly wading on your own, and I made the mistake of taking a few minutes to enjoy it rather than continuing fishing.

The next two days, I fished with Capt. Phil’s head guide, Harryo Beavans. On the east end of Grand Bahama, Capt. Phil’s guides fish basically the same flats as the Deep Water Cay Club, an exclusive bonefishing resort on a private island a mile or so from McClean’s Town. We started off fishing the edge of Harbor Creek on the north side of Sweetings Cay. I landed my first fish of the day and second fish of the trip in the first five minutes on this flat. With the arrival of a group of rain clouds though, I reeled up my line and we continued our trek north.

The author, wading, releases a fish.

The next flat was outside of Rumor Creek. It was large, open and wadable. We saw gray marks all over on the flat bottom, each representing the feed mark of an individual fish. There were hundreds; some were still “smoking.” Unfortunately, the wind was up again. With the weather conditions we had shots at only a fraction of them (probably 30 to 40 fish in five different schools). I had the sense that if the wind was down, we would be able to see tails waving at us as far as the eye could see. But, I was not complaining.

Harryo piloted his 17-foot skiff along a winding creek channel, carving snaking curves across the flat with the boat rotating from 45 degrees to port to 45 degrees to starboard and back again until the channel broadened and straightened for a couple hundred crystal clear yards. Harryo then resumed his nautical acrobatics for another hundred yards or so until we reached our next destination. When we arrived at the flat, it was well protected from the wind. I probably would have paid for the boat ride alone, but my second fish of the day was a nice bonus.

At lunch, which consisted of a tuna sandwich purchased at Kenny’s Take Out and Arcade across from the government dock, I asked Harryo, if I could bring only four types of flies, what would he recommend? His number one choice was a Pink Puff in pink, khaki or brown tied on a No. 6 hook. Second choice was a Gotcha on a No. 4 or 6 hook, silver, with a tan body. Third choice was a spawning crab tied on a No. 6 hook in brown with an orange body. His fourth choice was a Simran.

Harryo pointed out, though, that if you put the fly on a Grand Bahama bonefish’s nose, it will eat just about anything. All of my hookups came on either tan Gotchas or tan Charlies, fours and sixes.

There are choice bonefish flats within a short drive of Freeport, Grand Bahama, and a growing number of local guides who offer daily charters.

There is definitely an opportunity to travel to Grand Bahama for a weekend trip on your own, with the family, with first time anglers or with non-anglers and have plenty to do. There is the obvious touristy destination of Freeport, with its straw markets, casinos and beaches. And then there is the national park and the more isolated beaches such as Crabbing Bay Beach. There are also birding opportunities. Walking the shell road in to Crabbing Bay Beach, I spotted a number of birds that I had not seen up close before, including a warbler, a flycatcher, a catbird and a hummingbird. The blue holes and reefs provide amazing snorkeling opportunities.