Bill Kiene semi-retired
06-02-2018, 07:52 AM
Why Christmas Island should be on your bucket list!
Christmas Island (Kirabati) is located near the equator, a three hour 737 jet ride south of Hawaii on Fiji air (1,000.00 US)
We went with a group of 16 people from a Canadian outfitter (Michael & Young Fly Shop) The cost was 2750.00 plus 500.00 or so in tips and your bar tab. This place is a 10 with respect to bonefishing. You can also stalk triggerfish, Giant Trevally and Milkfish. Offshore trolling with large flies and heavy rods is also offered. Our guys caught 3 sixty pound yellowfin tuna although one was chopped in half by a shark!
There is a Fiji jet that leaves on a Tues from Honolulu and returns the following Tues, so it’s 6 full days of Fishing. We stayed at The Villages, a large complex with 16 rooms and 4-5 boats. The boats are outriggers with a 70HP engine on them, They are covered as the sun is brutal this far south. Gloves and full clothing are a must, as well as heavy sunscreen and zinc oxide cream. Breakfast is served at 5:30AM and the boats leave at 6:30AM, you make your own lunch at breakfast and tell the servers what kind of drinks and snacks you’d like to be placed in the cooler, 4 bottles of water are packed for each fly guy/gal also.
The locals are friendly and are taught English in school but speak to each other in Gilbertese. They are fairly shy and do not want to offend the guests in any way. Upon arrival the matriarch gave a speech welcoming us and the staff sang a few songs of welcome. Later in the week there was a dinner on the beach with Karaoke and a roast pig. The farewell dinner featured local songs and the gals on staff danced to the music with skirts adorned in green leaves.
Christams island is a very large lagoon with many named flats and pancake flats (totally surrounded by blue water) The pancake flats are generally fished at lower tides and can be really productive. The head guide plans the guides and areas you will fish with based on your quarry preference. The guides rotate each day, they have amazing eyesight which is especially handy when there is low light, clouds or choppy or glare conditions. A lot of cast were extremely short with fish chasing the flyline well into your guides. It takes 30-45 minutes from the lodge to your first flat.
The Bonefishing here can be world class, avg fish are in the 2-3lb range with some 5-8lbers also being caught. My better day had over 25 bones landed, many more spooked or lost to (constant) operator error :) We had some slow days based on high winds and cooler flats temps but most people did well and we had some newbies along who had a great time.
Trigger fish are abundant and really easy to spot tailing. They are darker and easy to sneak up on, however they will spook with the wrong cast and when hooked like to hide under a coral rock and employ their locking trigger fin so that you cannot get them out. They like a brighter fly, a short strip at first and just keep a tight line and hope he tails and eats your flies, Most times they spook but another shot will appear shortly. Giant Trevally were around but are spooky and it’s tough to get off a shot at them since you have to switch rods with the guide (10 or 12 wt) and hurry a cast before they disappear. my roommate managed a 15 lber and myself a baby but the 30+ pound fish were tough. Smaller milkfish roam the flats in shcools and are easily mistaken for bonefish, they swim higher in the water column and are greener in appearance however.
Usually sashimi is served at Happy Hour and dinner is filling with a lot of lobster (usually overcooked) and tuna and other local fare. At night everyone meets in the large tiki like hut for drinks and to recount the days events. I was tying flies at night trying to catch up. I used long Mantis shrimp in tan with rubber legs and Christmas island specials in pink and/or gold with a tan wing. It’s important to have two different weights of these CIS in size #6 mostly.
We tried for Milkfish one morning on the outside (ocean). Schools of 20-40 lb Milkfish are located and cast to from the boat. 2-3 anglers can cast at one time only however. We tried various algae fly patterns and I had a minor 2 second hook up but it can be maddening watching these big fish cruising around on top with their mouths open inhaling plankton.
I also had one of the guides show us how to lure large Mantis shrimp out of their holes in the sand with cut bait on a piece of mono, we ate them, yum.
This trip consists of mostly wading sandy flats. Most of them are really easy, one guide mentioned that some of the older clientele trolled flies for Trevally in the afternoons however. The guides will walk as slow or fast as you can handle. You can opt to fish a flat with a buddy and his/her guide, I tried this later in the week as it can get a bit lonely with just just you and the guide and not much conversation.
A friend had been on this trip 4-5 times previously and said the fishing was maybe a 5 out of 10 stars. With more sun and less wind we could have done better but that’s fishing folks,
all the best,
Jay T
Christmas Island (Kirabati) is located near the equator, a three hour 737 jet ride south of Hawaii on Fiji air (1,000.00 US)
We went with a group of 16 people from a Canadian outfitter (Michael & Young Fly Shop) The cost was 2750.00 plus 500.00 or so in tips and your bar tab. This place is a 10 with respect to bonefishing. You can also stalk triggerfish, Giant Trevally and Milkfish. Offshore trolling with large flies and heavy rods is also offered. Our guys caught 3 sixty pound yellowfin tuna although one was chopped in half by a shark!
There is a Fiji jet that leaves on a Tues from Honolulu and returns the following Tues, so it’s 6 full days of Fishing. We stayed at The Villages, a large complex with 16 rooms and 4-5 boats. The boats are outriggers with a 70HP engine on them, They are covered as the sun is brutal this far south. Gloves and full clothing are a must, as well as heavy sunscreen and zinc oxide cream. Breakfast is served at 5:30AM and the boats leave at 6:30AM, you make your own lunch at breakfast and tell the servers what kind of drinks and snacks you’d like to be placed in the cooler, 4 bottles of water are packed for each fly guy/gal also.
The locals are friendly and are taught English in school but speak to each other in Gilbertese. They are fairly shy and do not want to offend the guests in any way. Upon arrival the matriarch gave a speech welcoming us and the staff sang a few songs of welcome. Later in the week there was a dinner on the beach with Karaoke and a roast pig. The farewell dinner featured local songs and the gals on staff danced to the music with skirts adorned in green leaves.
Christams island is a very large lagoon with many named flats and pancake flats (totally surrounded by blue water) The pancake flats are generally fished at lower tides and can be really productive. The head guide plans the guides and areas you will fish with based on your quarry preference. The guides rotate each day, they have amazing eyesight which is especially handy when there is low light, clouds or choppy or glare conditions. A lot of cast were extremely short with fish chasing the flyline well into your guides. It takes 30-45 minutes from the lodge to your first flat.
The Bonefishing here can be world class, avg fish are in the 2-3lb range with some 5-8lbers also being caught. My better day had over 25 bones landed, many more spooked or lost to (constant) operator error :) We had some slow days based on high winds and cooler flats temps but most people did well and we had some newbies along who had a great time.
Trigger fish are abundant and really easy to spot tailing. They are darker and easy to sneak up on, however they will spook with the wrong cast and when hooked like to hide under a coral rock and employ their locking trigger fin so that you cannot get them out. They like a brighter fly, a short strip at first and just keep a tight line and hope he tails and eats your flies, Most times they spook but another shot will appear shortly. Giant Trevally were around but are spooky and it’s tough to get off a shot at them since you have to switch rods with the guide (10 or 12 wt) and hurry a cast before they disappear. my roommate managed a 15 lber and myself a baby but the 30+ pound fish were tough. Smaller milkfish roam the flats in shcools and are easily mistaken for bonefish, they swim higher in the water column and are greener in appearance however.
Usually sashimi is served at Happy Hour and dinner is filling with a lot of lobster (usually overcooked) and tuna and other local fare. At night everyone meets in the large tiki like hut for drinks and to recount the days events. I was tying flies at night trying to catch up. I used long Mantis shrimp in tan with rubber legs and Christmas island specials in pink and/or gold with a tan wing. It’s important to have two different weights of these CIS in size #6 mostly.
We tried for Milkfish one morning on the outside (ocean). Schools of 20-40 lb Milkfish are located and cast to from the boat. 2-3 anglers can cast at one time only however. We tried various algae fly patterns and I had a minor 2 second hook up but it can be maddening watching these big fish cruising around on top with their mouths open inhaling plankton.
I also had one of the guides show us how to lure large Mantis shrimp out of their holes in the sand with cut bait on a piece of mono, we ate them, yum.
This trip consists of mostly wading sandy flats. Most of them are really easy, one guide mentioned that some of the older clientele trolled flies for Trevally in the afternoons however. The guides will walk as slow or fast as you can handle. You can opt to fish a flat with a buddy and his/her guide, I tried this later in the week as it can get a bit lonely with just just you and the guide and not much conversation.
A friend had been on this trip 4-5 times previously and said the fishing was maybe a 5 out of 10 stars. With more sun and less wind we could have done better but that’s fishing folks,
all the best,
Jay T