Grand Bahama Island Flats Fishing

[Cuda]

I sent out a message about a month ago asking for info on fly fishing for bonefish in Belize and got a couple of good responses. Thanx for the info. Unfortunately, we couldn't muster up enough participants for that trip so we had to cancel. But there is always a silver lining........

A high school buddy of mine called me the other day to tell me that he is working on Grand Bahama Island on a temporary assignment and has a condo that I could use whenever I want! Since I already had the Bonefish bug in me from the Belize plans, it took all of about 30 seconds to get on the web and book tickets for a visit!

I have never bonefished before but have gathered some good info on what to use and tactics from some books and people I know who have experience. What I'm specifically looking for is areas which will be productive on this particular island. It appears that most of the flats are located on the north side and I've read that there and the east end are good spots. Can anyone suggest areas where we can wade some solid bottomed flats that are accesible from shore? I will probably be doing this w/o the help of a guide (I already had a hard enough time talking my wife into letting me go w/o her, so I'd better keep the trip cheap or I could be buying lots of jewelry when I return!) Are the trade winds bad at times (ie should we try to stay on the west side of land masses since the trades usually blow from the east?) Any suggestions about patterns that have worked for you in this area would be would be great also.

Thanks in advance for the info!

[Salar]

I have no experience fishing Grand Bahama. But this book has been invaluable to me while planning my own Bahamas trip.

http://www.bahamasflyfishingguide.com/index.html

[shanks]

Cuda,

I was there in January with my wife. Check out this thread that I posted when I got back.
http://www.tidalfish.com/boards2/viewthread.asp?forum=AMB%5FAP603105492&id=31179&sr1=grand+bahama&sr2=&ExMth=no#post31188

Bmail me and I will give you more detailed info on the places we found to wade.

shanks

[crepuscular]

Cuda, sorry i didn't see your post until today. I was on Grand Bahama in late February and had grat bonefishing without a guide. I rented a jeep and easily found fishable flats with alot of fish and i never saw another fisherman. Let me know if you want any more detail.

[Cuda]

Shanks and Crepuscular,

I b-mailed both of you yesterday, but I have a feeling my mail server is'nt working properly lately. Could you let me know if you recieved them or not?

Thanx,
Cuda

[chuckcanavi]

I'm going down to Grand bahama and im trying to figure out if you can go spearfishing or lobstering without a 150$ permit if you just go off the beach without a boat. also trying to figure out some good places to go. im leaving here in about 2 weeks so i need information asap.

[Cuda]

Cuda,

One of the reasons you may be having problems with your b-mail is because you have the same username that I have been using on Tidalfish for the past several years. I got a b-mail recently that was a reply to your post about GBI. I sent Brandon a note to see what we could do to resolve the issue of us having the same username.

It's funny that you wrote about GBI also because I have been DIY fishing there several times (but not in the past couple of years). There are plenty of road accessible flats that you can fish the entire length of the island and most have LOTS of fish. However, I have found them to be very educated. You will have plenty of shots at bones, but they are VERY picky eaters. If you want to get away from Freeport, rent a car and head east. There is only one road that goes to Macleans Town (far east end of the island). After getting about a half an hour down the road, just look for side roads that go to the right (most are dirt) and take drives down them until you hit the water. More often than not, you will find a flat to fish. Many are visible from the road and all have fish (some more than others). Good luck!

[dalton]

Cuda, it looks like you wrote this post six years ago (original post dated 2005) and someone managed to bring it back up. Does this sound possible?