Fly Fishing in the Caribbean Sea

[tom.fish.man]

Cuban fishing trip was a complete surprise and when I was told that we were to spend the third week of January fishing there I was stoked.  The experience far surpassed my  expectations. As a fly fisher who lives in the mountains north of  Montreal Canada I felt  totally at home in what is really a Caribbean wilderness. Hunting for bonefish and permit on the vast flats surrounding the archipelago was as magical as it was amazing. I had heard that bones spook easily, actually they do not stand a chance when stalked by our  guide George. We could see the fish, but only after he had smelled them I am sure. George put us on fish after fish and was relentless in his enthusiasm to do so. Whether it was from the deck of the flats boat or wading pristine white sand in the middle of nowhere...the only other living thins we saw besides fish were sea birds,.... (and iguanas who were very willing to share our lunch.) we were given the opportunity to hook up with some very strong fish.
On my third cast i was into a 6 lb. bonefish and it only got better!!Although I missed my chances on a number of shots at permit I am inspired and determined to return to "dance" with those incredible fish. They won't be so lucky next time!! I have grand slam fever, and it feels good.
Mauro Ginevri was a most gracious and knowledgeable host who willingly shared the secrets of fly fishing in Cuba. He is a true master of hospitality and the art of fly fishing, and the facilities and boats were exceptional
As all of your guests on Cayo Largo we stayed at the Sol Cayo Largo hotel.
Like anywhere else I have visited on the planet, the people make the difference.. even in paradise,... and that is where the Cuban people shine, I hold a heartfelt admiration and kind-ship with them.

Thanks Avalon!!!!
Good angling,

[Kevin Fisherman]

We spent a WONDERFUL time to Cuba.  The accommodations, staff, guides and food were excellent.  We hated to leave.  After arrival everything ran smoothly. Ruxandra at the Parc Central Hotel was also very nice and very helpful. She helped us set up a Hemingway tour, taught us about the money system, warned us about all things we shouldn't do and made us feel comfortable and well taken care. The Hotel was beautiful. So much nicer than we expected.

We were free to use our own flies, experiment with flies and fish for any species. That made the fishing quite interesting and experimental too. In general and after our personal experiences the catches are more plentiful in JDR but we also fish with an eye at nature. WE often fish were pelican's diving for the sardines and caught fish at all those locations. Even some times 3 species in just 3 different casts. We had extremely easy fishing for bonefish but also hit some spots where we saw HUGE bonefish that were simply impossible to catch or simply spooked too easily!  We didn't fish at all for permit at JDR because we still were too busy learning. The biggest experience in JDR was my catch of a real big GT on a popper that almost took 200 meters of backing! I had no idea this fish was so powerful. The tarpon therefore was less strong as I had expected although I didn't catch a real big one of course. The permit and big snapper both gave a real good fight too. Bonefishing was very easy one moment, then hard up to extremely hard at other moments. The big bones really fight well. Learned a lot from them.  We enjoyed our day in Havana and the ride through the Countryside to the boat. It was like we were driving through a history book.