FISHEYE
11-21-2014, 09:40 PM
For the 12th time I fished in Placencia, Belize with friends Al, Mack, and Mike. Our guides, as always, are Bruce Leslie and Ian Cuevas. Bruce has been guiding for 20 years and I think Ian for about 11. These guys are amazing at finding fish, and they go the extra mile every day. This year, in the 10 days of fishing we had 4 incredibly windy and rough days where we could not get out to the cayes. On these days we went south to Ycacos Lagoon or we fished in several other areas back in the mangroves closer to Placencia. This is one of the reasons I really like Placencia. We can fish the myriad of cayes close by, all the way north to Tobacco Caye, south toward Punta Gorda and Ycacos Lagoon, and if the weather is really bad we can fish behind Placencia in the mangroves, creeks, and lagoon.
This year brought a major change to our trip, because Lisa and George Westby were forced to close down the Westwind Hotel due to a land dispute. Really really missed staying there since it is right on the beach, and within walking distance of some wonderful local restaurants. Lisa and George always treated us very well and have become close friends. We did not know how good we had it. The first 4 nights we stayed in a hotel which just did not meet our needs. We are all pretty bummed out until Bruce came to our rescue. Bruce's brother Bryce has fixed up a family house right in the middle of town. It is going to be called Sundowner Lodge. They did not have all the furniture yet but they had beds and enough so we could get by. We each had our own room, and shared 2 bathrooms. It is fully air conditioned and when completed it will be incredibly nice and will have daily maid service. Bruce was pretty amazing this year and he even cooked dinner for us and Ian 3 nights. Two of the nights he made Belizian gumbo which had shrimp and grouper. It was very delicious. The first night we had it we each had two bowls and then Bruce brought out lobster and cilantro rice. WOW! Bruce's significant other was there to keep us well behaved and she brought their 15 month old son Albert to entertain us. The kid is a ball of fire and never stops. We really enjoyed him. Bruce, Anita, and Ian have become very close friends and we really enjoy their company.
So what about the fishing?
Well the first two days in Ycacos were a little slow for permit but we did have several shots each day. The rivers were high and muddy so there were no tarpon and even the babies were gone from the normal spots. The saving grace was bonefish. We saw a large number of fish each day and they were a little bigger than normal. We also found a few small jacks and on both days for Bruce and Ian found very willing schools of small tarpon from dink size up to 15 pounds. These are incredibly fun on an 8wt. I was using a Sage Xi3 with a Rio WF F/I and it worked really well. It pretty much did not matter what fly we threw because they went nuts over everything.
On day 3 the weather cleared and the winds calmed so we were able to get out to the cayes mid day. This year as last, we did very little dredging since there was baitfish pretty much everywhere on the cayes and flats and we were able to sight cast to cruising and feeding tarpon. We saw some really big fish but Mack was the only one to get one. Mostly the fish were in the 20 to 35# range. We caught plenty and have never really seen this size tarpon much out in the cayes.
When we were not fishing tarpon we chased permit. Some days we each had over 20 shots and permit being permit and boys being excited boys, only 2 were caught. We get so excited when we see permit that half of our casts are bad and even when we make great casts the permit always have the last say. Mack had another grand slam on the day after his birthday and on the day I cught my small permit and bonefish I could not hook the tarpon. The permit I caught was in a group of six feeding behind a ray on a coral flat in 2 feet of water. I had 3 eats on one cast on a shrimp pattern. I missed the first 2 and hooked the third. After getting the permit and then a bonefish we went for tarpon. I had 2 bumps but did not hook one, I had a fish eat the fly and come to the boat and I never good get a really good hook set which stuck, although each time I set, I could see the fish roll on its side. I had another fish eat which we saw and when I set with my lightening reflexes I pulled the fly out. It is really fun to watch tarpon eat, but the catch rate goes up when you can't actually see them close the deal.
On the 4th day of bad weather I had a single day with Ian at Ycacos because Mike was sick. We had shots at easily 20 nice permit, some of them 15 pounds, and no eats. Some of my casts were perfect and the fish just swam by. At one point in a small area of probably 70 yards by 70 yards we had shots at 12 fish. They just kept showing up each time Ian would start moving to a new spot. This included 3 big fish which were joined by another big fish which rejected the crab and kept cruising. That is permit hunting and it is very exciting.
This was another great trip and I can hardly wait to go back. I have already booked 14 days next year. Here are some photos.
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0072_zpsf5eced63.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0072_zpsf5eced63.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0060_zpsff1996cd.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0060_zpsff1996cd.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/DSC_1433_zps36f3bdd1.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/DSC_1433_zps36f3bdd1.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0812_zps69c27b61.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0812_zps69c27b61.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0743_zps13ce197f.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0743_zps13ce197f.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/DSC_1430_zpsd4e1d4b6.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/DSC_1430_zpsd4e1d4b6.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0740_zps03e09b71.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0740_zps03e09b71.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0737_zps9a8de204.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0737_zps9a8de204.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0735_zps3ae2cf19.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0735_zps3ae2cf19.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/DSC_1423_zps210b87c4.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/DSC_1423_zps210b87c4.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0732_zps56b82fef.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0732_zps56b82fef.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0729_zps8738fb7e.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0729_zps8738fb7e.jpg.html)
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http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0716_zps96dd9502.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0716_zps96dd9502.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0756_zps987e5484.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0756_zps987e5484.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0737_zps73fc8cad.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0737_zps73fc8cad.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0660_zpsc0826f5e.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0660_zpsc0826f5e.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0694_zps367ae74b.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0694_zps367ae74b.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0786_zps2d9c8afa.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0786_zps2d9c8afa.jpg.html)
This year brought a major change to our trip, because Lisa and George Westby were forced to close down the Westwind Hotel due to a land dispute. Really really missed staying there since it is right on the beach, and within walking distance of some wonderful local restaurants. Lisa and George always treated us very well and have become close friends. We did not know how good we had it. The first 4 nights we stayed in a hotel which just did not meet our needs. We are all pretty bummed out until Bruce came to our rescue. Bruce's brother Bryce has fixed up a family house right in the middle of town. It is going to be called Sundowner Lodge. They did not have all the furniture yet but they had beds and enough so we could get by. We each had our own room, and shared 2 bathrooms. It is fully air conditioned and when completed it will be incredibly nice and will have daily maid service. Bruce was pretty amazing this year and he even cooked dinner for us and Ian 3 nights. Two of the nights he made Belizian gumbo which had shrimp and grouper. It was very delicious. The first night we had it we each had two bowls and then Bruce brought out lobster and cilantro rice. WOW! Bruce's significant other was there to keep us well behaved and she brought their 15 month old son Albert to entertain us. The kid is a ball of fire and never stops. We really enjoyed him. Bruce, Anita, and Ian have become very close friends and we really enjoy their company.
So what about the fishing?
Well the first two days in Ycacos were a little slow for permit but we did have several shots each day. The rivers were high and muddy so there were no tarpon and even the babies were gone from the normal spots. The saving grace was bonefish. We saw a large number of fish each day and they were a little bigger than normal. We also found a few small jacks and on both days for Bruce and Ian found very willing schools of small tarpon from dink size up to 15 pounds. These are incredibly fun on an 8wt. I was using a Sage Xi3 with a Rio WF F/I and it worked really well. It pretty much did not matter what fly we threw because they went nuts over everything.
On day 3 the weather cleared and the winds calmed so we were able to get out to the cayes mid day. This year as last, we did very little dredging since there was baitfish pretty much everywhere on the cayes and flats and we were able to sight cast to cruising and feeding tarpon. We saw some really big fish but Mack was the only one to get one. Mostly the fish were in the 20 to 35# range. We caught plenty and have never really seen this size tarpon much out in the cayes.
When we were not fishing tarpon we chased permit. Some days we each had over 20 shots and permit being permit and boys being excited boys, only 2 were caught. We get so excited when we see permit that half of our casts are bad and even when we make great casts the permit always have the last say. Mack had another grand slam on the day after his birthday and on the day I cught my small permit and bonefish I could not hook the tarpon. The permit I caught was in a group of six feeding behind a ray on a coral flat in 2 feet of water. I had 3 eats on one cast on a shrimp pattern. I missed the first 2 and hooked the third. After getting the permit and then a bonefish we went for tarpon. I had 2 bumps but did not hook one, I had a fish eat the fly and come to the boat and I never good get a really good hook set which stuck, although each time I set, I could see the fish roll on its side. I had another fish eat which we saw and when I set with my lightening reflexes I pulled the fly out. It is really fun to watch tarpon eat, but the catch rate goes up when you can't actually see them close the deal.
On the 4th day of bad weather I had a single day with Ian at Ycacos because Mike was sick. We had shots at easily 20 nice permit, some of them 15 pounds, and no eats. Some of my casts were perfect and the fish just swam by. At one point in a small area of probably 70 yards by 70 yards we had shots at 12 fish. They just kept showing up each time Ian would start moving to a new spot. This included 3 big fish which were joined by another big fish which rejected the crab and kept cruising. That is permit hunting and it is very exciting.
This was another great trip and I can hardly wait to go back. I have already booked 14 days next year. Here are some photos.
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0072_zpsf5eced63.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0072_zpsf5eced63.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0060_zpsff1996cd.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0060_zpsff1996cd.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/DSC_1433_zps36f3bdd1.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/DSC_1433_zps36f3bdd1.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0812_zps69c27b61.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0812_zps69c27b61.jpg.html)
http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0743_zps13ce197f.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0743_zps13ce197f.jpg.html)
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http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/DSC_1423_zps210b87c4.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/DSC_1423_zps210b87c4.jpg.html)
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http://i154.photobucket.com/albums/s240/BN2FSH/Belize%202014/IMG_0737_zps73fc8cad.jpg (http://s154.photobucket.com/user/BN2FSH/media/Belize%202014/IMG_0737_zps73fc8cad.jpg.html)
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