Leaderboard

My wife and I were down in the Turks & Caicos last week. The son of my fishing buddy of 40 years was getting married at The Shore Club in Providenciales. Weather was a perfect sunny 29c every day, and the ocean a warm 28c. Beautiful resort and a great wedding. Since there were 4 hard-core anglers in the group, we naturally wanted to take a day or two after the celebration to do some fishing...specifically Bonefish, and since Bones aren't really good eating, maybe something for the table too. This was my 3rd trip to Provo, and in the past I had hired a guide with a flats boat, but frankly I didn't find it worthwhile. Besides, the prices for a charter have become astronomical. So we rented a car and decided to do a couple of days of DIY fishing from shore. From previous trips, I had some spots in mind so we weren't going in completely blind. As for tackle, I packed a 3 piece TFO med-lt 7ft spinning rod (30" in the case so you can carry on the flight), reel with 10lb braid, some 8lb FC leader and a small box of 1/8 oz bonefish jigs. We found some nice shallow sandy flats and simply wet waded stalking the silver ghosts. We very quickly all got into a few on the rising tide, but after that they disappeared. Timing is everything with Bones. Bonefish pull like no other fish that swims (pound for pound). A 4 pounder will peel off drag 50 yards at a time. They typically live in skinny water (often less than 12") and their only real predators are Sharks and Barracudas...so the only way for them to escape is to swim like hell. One of the fastest fish in the ocean...they can reach speeds over 65kph. What makes fishing for Bones so much fun is that it's more hunting than fishing...it's sight fishing at its best. You're stalking them in very skinny water, hoping to see them (often just a shadow, as they are pure chrome and mirror the bottom) before they see you. Then it requires a soft accurate cast to "lead" them without spooking them. After having some fun with the Bones, we then found a rock jetty and decided to do a little bottom fishing. Using some shrimp we "borrowed" from the resort, we quickly filled a cooler with Strawberry Grouper, Snapper and TriggerFish. One of the Snappers lost his rear end to a Barracuda as it was being reeled in. On the way back, we stopped at the harbour and negotiated a great deal on a bucket of freshly caught lobster (Caribbean Crayfish) tail from a local fisherman. One of our group had rented a villa with full kitchen and BBQ, so we cooked up a seafood feast fit for Kings and Queens that night...all washed down with local rum cocktails. I have fished the flats in many places around the Caribbean (Mexico, Belize, Roatan, Cuba) but if you're looking for a winter destination with direct flights, beautiful resorts, the best beaches, very clean, safe (no need to look over your shoulder), great food, English speaking (its a Commonwealth country), and good DIY fishing...I highly recommend the T&C's. I'd be glad to point you in the direction of some fishing spots if you go...it's not a big island.