Ever want to hit the flats in search of bonefish? Graham Waterton tells us about a place he has visited that he feels would be the ideal destination for the first time flats angler
I suspect there are many fly fishers who have stretched their experience to salt water in the UK by chasing mackerel, bass and mullet. It's a great way to experience something different and the entry bar is set pretty low. It is relatively accessible, does not require much new tackle and therefore is very inexpensive. There will come a time though when the lure of something a little more exotic is too hard to resist, but where to start? I am often asked for a suggestion of a reasonably priced destination for the newcomer to the tropical salt water world. There are countless options: from the US east coast, the Caribbean, Australia and the Indian Ocean, the list is almost endless but it is very difficult to get an unbiased opinion of these options as described in the agents' brochures. None of them are cheap but there are a surprising range of cost options. Having experienced a few of these wonderful places I am in no doubt that one of the best options for the newcomer to SWF is Los Roques ... a group of islands off the Venezuelan coast in the south Caribbean.
A factor in your choice is the time and expense of the journey. In travelling terms it rates as a medium to long journey. A little longer than Florida and other Caribbean destinations, about the same as the Seychelles but considerably less than say Christmas Island or Oz. Normally the journey comprises a direct flight, or via Paris, to Caracas and then a short flight out to the island. As you approach LR the view from the light aircraft of the dozens of small islands which make up the archipelago raises the pulse and after one of the guides meets you at the strip you walk on the narrow sand streets through the fishing village of El Gran Roque with an overwhelming sense of excitement and anticipation. On my first trip we landed at 07.00 in the morning and after a quick coffee (the local coffee would wake the dead) within half an hour I was attached to a 50 pound tarpon in the harbour!
Why is it a good place to start? Firstly the operators on LR will arrange a long or short trip. It does not have to be a week or a multiple of weeks as many of the Indian Ocean and other Caribbean trips require and you don't have to start on a Monday! This means you can tailor your trip to suit your diary and your pocket. Many UK fishers I have met there think that 8/10 days is a good way of getting value for money from the flight, others are happy with 3 or 4 day's fishing.
Guides are provided by the local operators and you will need them, not only for their ability to get you on the fish but they have the licences and the boats to access the distant islands and flats. However you don't need one every day and small, local and somewhat chaotic ferries to some of the closer islands, give you the chance of some self guiding which is fun and can save you money. Many I have met there fished alone or in small groups and had great fun fishing the publicly accessible islands and their beaches. Don't forget LR is a popular tourist destination for holiday makers, mainly mainland Venezuelans, which makes El Gran Roque such a buzzy place in the evenings. You will not get the variety that a day with a guide can provide but a mixture of both often works well. The good thing about LR is that as long as you give them notice, the operators will allow you to mix and match guided and self guided days.
Another great advantage for the novice is the variety of fishing available. Many Caribbean destinations are geared for the bonefish aficionado and so have excellent but often heavily fished flats and therefore very challenging bonefishing, particularly for the novice. For the newcomer there is nothing more frustrating than a long day stalking the flats with only one or two shots at fish resulting in a grumpy guide and a bad day all round. It's a hard and dispiriting way of learning flats craft. LR has a great variety of bonefishing. For example you often find good shoals of bones just off the islands and typically you can beach the boat and wade from the shore. Although not difficult to hook up it is the perfect way of introducing a first timer to the right speed of retrieve, how to strip strike and hook a bone and a good idea of the line management required to hold on to a disappearing fish. Then as the experience grows, the variety of bonefishing available allows you to work your way up to the easier flats and eventually onto a skinny pancake flat for tailing bones - the ultimate test.
One of the highlights of my last trip to LR was the exceptional fishing on these pancake flats. The tides were such that for the last four days we ended with two or three hours of perfect fishing. Some of these flats are no bigger than a tennis court, others several acres and if you're lucky will have several groups of feeding fish. If you hooked one fish in one of these sessions you were doing well. The water can be so shallow you can spook an entire flat with a stumble. The anticipation of slowly creeping towards the silvery waiving tails as they flash in the setting sunlight knowing that you may get one cast and one cast only is nerve wracking and exhilarating in equal measure. Often you creep towards a tail, judge the distance and put in the perfect cast only for it to spook a fish you haven't seen right under your feet. Then the fly falls in the right place, strip, a tail twitches and moves towards your offering ... the fish cants its head, he's seen it. He moves forward again, another slow strip, he moves again, strip, strip, he's still coming the tail dips, the next strip meets resistance, strip strike and all hell's let loose. The other fish in that group spook and tear off in all directions, some towards you, some away. Which is yours? The line disappears out of your hand. Rod up, line hand up, the line twangs against the rod the reel spins and however many time it happens, you are stunned by the speed and strength of this six pound fish. It gets no better than this.
Depending on the time of year a similar variety of tarpon fishing can be found from the small babies in the mangrove lagoons to the large babies (up to 40 lbs) off the beaches and mangrove fringes and the migratory whoppers which cruise around the harbour in the Autumn. Whilst the big ones are great - all big fish are good fun - it is the 'big babies' on the mangroves' edge that keep my pulse racing. As you drift standing at the front of the boat you are side casting a fly as far under the mangrove as you can, typically to fish you can see. Sometimes if a strong tide is running the fish are stationary and often not spooked by the splash of the fly. What wakes them up is the first strip. They twitch or move their head. As you strip again they can accelerate to the fly in a split second and then you hold your nerve and strip again almost pulling the fly out of their mouth. This gets them closer to the open water and with luck makes them even more determined. You see the huge mouth open and the fly literally sucked in as they turn back to the cover of the tangled matrix of solid mangrove roots. Strip strike and hold on for dear life - some will jump but you need to bully them out of the roots as soon as you can. They call them babies but a 20 pounder caught like this is a real buzz ... hugely exciting.
As ever with sea fishing the tides are important but LR is one of the few venues where they are not critical. Whereas at some of the specialist bone fishing resorts when the tides are not favourable there is little to do, at LR there is rarely a moment when something is not keen to take a fly. For instance, one of the southernmost islands has a good stock of snook and whether you are flicking a fly under the mangroves or casting off the beach, snook are often there. Within a few of the islands are muddy mangroves where an hour or two can very enjoyably be spent wading through the mud and catching baby tarpon and snook, great on a 6 or 7 weight. An additional joy of this group of islands is that while you dash from flat to flat or beach to beach you will spot feeding birds which gives you the chance of throwing a popper to a shoal of feeding jacks, blue runners or bonito. Wading the beaches or fishing from a drifting boat down the sides of a long mangrove can provide such variety from tarpon, mangrove snapper, needlefish, barracuda as well as bones, of course. On my last trip to LR my 7wt Xi2, which is my preferred bonefish rod, was smashed when while standing on the edge of a flat I rather foolishly threw a minnow pattern to a passing spanish mackerel ... oh well you live and learn.
The boats are not the classic flats skiffs but larger and more robust, ideal for two people to fish from although most of your flats work is wading which is my preference. If the weather is kind, these boats can take you outside the outer fringe of islands where trolling for tuna provides yet another interesting distraction.
If luxury and nightlife are an important part of your trip then LR may not be for you. The small hotels, locally known as posadas, which are used by the operators are clean and comfortable and the food generally good but limited - good if you like fish! I think they are perfect for this type of trip and I for one would rather see my money spent on the fishing and good guides rather than luxury. I'm normally so shattered after a long day on the flats that a few beers after supper is enough to send me off for a good night's sleep wherever I am.
I suppose the most important question for many is how much? In my view LR offers the best value for money in the Caribbean if variety is what you like. I suspect that one of the reasons for this is that although American fishermen visit, it does not offer the level of luxury many of them demand and politically the US and Venezuela have never been great friends. So much the better for us! Although often heralded as a bonefish destination in my view it is real mixed saltwater fishery. An ideal place to dip your toe into warm salty water.
You will need to gear up for this trip but there's some excellent, relatively inexpensive, saltwater rods and reels all of which can be used in this country. I often use my saltwater rods for salmon and sea trout fishing in the UK. You may also want to brush up on you double hauling. Flats are mostly windy and whilst your guide will try and get you fishing downwind you will often need to switch direction quickly and cast into or across the wind. If you can't double haul your accuracy and distance will be compromised which, as I found out when I started, is frustrating. There are also several techniques for casting quickly and accurately without the need for false casting. These can all be learnt and practised in the UK before you go and will make the trip more enjoyable.
If you want to know more please feel free to get in touch. I'm very happy to help you get the best out of your trip.
Graham Waterton ~ email