>I believe it's been about 2-3 months since esteemed List members Miyawaki,
>Hamilton, and Gudger (sounds like a law firm, doesn't it) went on a trip to
>Ascension Bay, MX. I also believe some List members are interested in
>hearing the outcome of their trip.
>
>C'mon guys; give us some details!
You're right, sorry.
I have a ton of notes and am currently writing an article for an emag,
Wilderlands, on a first time bonefishing angle. Gene and Bill can give you
theirs from a return to Yucatan perspective.
Here's mine:
We were at Pesca Maya Fishing Lodge in Yucatan, Mexico from April 6 to 15.
The trip was put together by my good friend, John Hergenhan of Countrysport
in Portland, and cost $1,990. It included transportation from Cancun,
double occupancy lodging, guides, boats and, this is important - all LIQUOR
and meals. It didn't include the flights from Seattle to Cancun, or
gratuities which amounted to roughly $20 per flyfisher per day for the
guide and boatman and $100 to the staff at the end of the week. It also
didn't include the $2000 I spent on tackle, gear and flytying materials. If
you don't have enough people in your party to occupy the entire lodge, I
would also suggest traveling in an even-numbered group of four good friends
or more. That way you won't find yourself bunked down with a stranger who
snores loud enough to negate the sound of the rolling waves.
The lodge is off the single dirt road that goes south down a narrow sand
spit that dead ends in Punta Allen. It is in the middle of the 1.3 million
acre Sian Ka'an (Mayan for "where the sky is born") Biosphere Reserve. The
Reserve is home to 339 different species of birds, many of which are
endangered. During the week, we saw flamingoes, pelicans, herons, egrets,
scarlet ibis, spoonbills, porpoises, greenback turtles, nurse sharks,
black-tipped sharks, and the largest barracudas I have ever seen.
The lodge is run by Brian Jones who is from Yorkshire, England. Maybe that
explains why we had roast beef, mashed potatoes, gravy and Yorkshire
pudding one night for dinner. Speaking of food, we had American or Mexican
breakfast (basically whatever you wanted). We made our own lunches from a
buffet every morning. The lunches were then put with the guides' lunch into
a cooler and taken down to the waiting pangas. When we returned from
fishing, nachos of some sort was waiting in the main lodge as well as
Modesto, a terrific young man, who served up some nasty margaritas. Dinners
were things like chicken with mystery green sauce, steaks, mixed seafood
grill, and the aforementioned roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.
I fished with three different guides. The first, William (in hindsight -
remember this was my first bonefish trip) seemed the least experienced of
Francisco, and Javier, the acknowledged Permit master. I caught my first
bonefish a couple hours after we began. It was pretty easy and it weighed
four pounds. It had been tagged and was worth a small bounty for the guide,
William. I learned to sight and cast to fish in all conditions: bright blue
sky with wind, cloudy and overcast with wind, and breezy, windy and very
blustery. I wade-fished most of the time and cast to singles, pairs, small,
large and huge schools in flats, in amongst the mangroves and along
beaches. I used a six-weight Sage 590 sp and an 8 weight Scott HP888, both
with Abel reels. I didn't even come close to using all the flies I tied
(next time, less will be more). I didn't land a huge number of bones, but
it wasn't from a lack of coming up to the plate. On the last day, I had a
permit experience that I will never forget. I didn't hook it, but it hooked
me. I will be going back as soon as I can.
Leland.
