Cuba, land of cigars, rum, vintage cars, Ché Guevara and of course, bonefish. Only 30 minutes from Miami, landing in Havana, capital of the communist island, you feel as though you’ve been transported back in time. After battling with broken cash machines and an impossible currency exchange system in the airport (you can’t purchase Cuban Pesos outside of Cuba) we jumped in a taxi and shared the road to our Casa Particular (B&B) with a number of the 1950s American cars that Cuba has become so famous for. We were soon reminded that June marked the start of the rainy season and the biggest electric storm I’ve ever seen swept in as we looked out over the sprawling city, sipping mojitos on the Casa balcony. Worries of cloudy days on the flat were soon dispelled by a visit to one of Hemingway’s old hang outs – Bodeguita del Medio. The theme the next day was the same – vintage Chevys, plenty of salsa and of course Havana Club rum… this time in the form of a famous daiquiri in another of Hemingway’s old haunts – El Floridita.
Needless to say, we had hazy heads as we flew out of Havana the next morning en-route to what can only be described as paradise, Cayo Coco, on the archipelago to the north of Cuba. With only two days with a guide, I wanted to make the most of my time on the beach, and having read about an easily accessible flat from our hotel I threw up the 8 weight grabbed a box of weird and wonderful looking crab patterns (thanks Clive) and went to find out what this bone fishing was all about. It didn’t start well. First problem was the coral between the beach and the flat and my lack of wading boots. Next up was the 20mph onshore wind and the final blow was delivered when I met another angler heading home as the tide was in and it was no good. After a long and hot walk home I returned to the hotel and spent the rest of the afternoon pulling pieces of coral out of my feet.
Take two. I met the guides in the hotel the next morning. An hour of crazy Cuban roads and stories of big tarpon, free taking permit and bonefish up to 20lb had me raring to go when we arrived at the dock. Duneski, the head guide took one look at my kit and re-did the whole setup, preferring 20lb straight fluorocarbon to the expensive tapered bonefish leaders I had with me. Aleks was my guide and we started close to camp, fishing from the boat. After 15 minutes of practice casts I was and still coming to terms with heavier rods and having to throw a long cast in one attempt when we headed to the first likely spot. With a high tide that morning, the flats would have been a tricky place to introduce me to bonefish, big currents and deep wading making the bonefish tricky to spot, so we opted to fish the “mud” to kick things off. Bonefish feed in groups, and in higher tides you can see big areas of cloudy water were bones were feeding on the bottom. Aleks anchored up and I was soon into my first couple of bones on a sinking crab pattern.
Bonefish have long slow takes where you really have to pull back on the fish to set the hook before all hell breaks loose. I was starting to get the hang of this, so we went out to sight fish some bones and who knew, maybe even a permit. The hardest thing for me was seeing the fish in the deeper water, I really didn’t know what I was casting to and with Aleks shouting, “big group of fish coming, big fish, maybe permit, get ready, hundreds of bones ahead, cast it!” It inevitably ended in tears! I did manage a couple more fish that morning, bigger ones too and ones I had actually seen before making the cast but I also messed up a lot of chances especially with the biggest bone I saw during my trip… It went something like this “Cast, wait, wait, strip strip strip, slower slower, strip faster faster Strip STRIP Hook him hook him hook him – ahhh sh*t why you do that?!”… as I lifted the rod too quickly and didn’t give the fish line early enough.
The tides dropped away in the afternoon and the flats really opened up, with their amazing light green water illuminating the landscape. The fish became easier to spot and I was really getting used to casting from the boat. We had to employ diversion tactics for some local barracuda who were pursuing a bone I was latched onto, Aleks threw a plug at it, cranked the multiplier before handing the rod a fish to Helen. The double hook up didn’t last long as the bone broke me on some coral and Helen’s cudda bit through the line! Next up we parked the boat on the biggest flat in the area and the search for the “grey ghost” continued on foot. This was where it all went to pot, not having the luxury of a boat meant all my line was in the water around me whilst waiting for a fish to cast too, the fish could come from any direction (usually with the wind behind them) and with Aleks the guide not allowing more than one false cast I really struggled to get the fly where I wanted it. I missed six or seven fish that afternoon, only connecting with a couple of unlucky ones! A brilliant days fishing but one that left me feeling very much like a rookie.
Day two was a different ball game, we went further afield and fished some stunning looking water around inlets and small islands. Perfect water for permit and not too deep for bones so I was hopeful I could restore my dignity after yesterday’s back order collapse. With a high tide, we started in the boat and soon landed some nice bones. We then waded the water around an island and despite the deeper water and turtle grass bottom, I actually started to see the fish. My casting improved and my hit ratio was on the rise. I think previously I was trying to land the fly on the fish’s head, but these fish are so alert you really only need to get it in the ball park. Seeing a bone change direction and head for your fly has to be one of the most exciting things I’ve experienced!
How not to do it! Excuse the mixed aspects, terrible camera work and Cuban expletives
A couple of far off trigger fish got my heartbeat up, as I thought their dark silhouette resembled that of a permit. Unfortunately not, and despite somebody landing two permit a couple of days before, I didn’t see any. There was also a 200lb tarpon landed the previous week, but high winds meant rough seas and little chance of spotting one, although we did spend 30 minutes poling through the main channel of an inlet to see if anyone was home.
With the tide out, the afternoon session was spent wading a huge flat and this was where I finally cracked it. By the end of the day I had spotted and cast to fish myself. Forward and back casts were sailing with ease and life was good. The last cast of the day was to a big bonefish that was circling round a large deeper bucket in the flat, with a needlefish on its tail I was easily able to track it, the first cast went out too short, and a slow retrieve went un-noticed. The next was again short, I left it to sink and gave the small pink shrimp pattern a spell off two or three short strips, with a flick of the tail my target turned to home in on the fly. Strip, strip, strip– hook it. Fish on. A 7/8lb bone that was followed by the smaller male throughout the course of the fight, changing direction in unison as the hooked female took me further and further to the backing. A final photo before she slipped back across the sandy flat to find her partner, and Aleks and I headed for land.
The flies that did the damage – shrimps and crabs, Aleks liked them small and heavy and so did the bones!
Cuba was a perfect introduction to bone fishing, an awesome country and on an extremely manageable budget. Please get in touch if you want to find out more about where we were and the setup hotels / guides / flights etc. We definitely didn’t fly the most economical way to the resort and opted to jump in a 6 hour taxi to take us back to Havana and allowing us to spend our last few days exploring some other parts of the island, including Vinales – cowboy country and home of the world famous Monte Cristo, Cohibo and Romeo Y Julieta… I really cannot recommend Cuba enough!
