Turneffe Island, Belize
December 2009
Brett Wedeking at Creekside Angling had been trying to get me on a trip of his for a while now so when the Belize trip came up in December right after my project would release I pretty much had to say yes. I had wanted to get back to Belize since my 2005 trip and the fall/winter deal at Turneffe Island Resort was too good to pass up. I told a few other fishing friends from past trips about it and Martin & Hillary decided to join our small group from Seattle. Unfortunately the timing wasn’t as good for Catherine so she didn’t join me on the trip, instead going to SoCal for a family reunion weekend.
Photos of me and underwater photos by Brett Wedeking
Getting there is
half the fun
I knew I
was in trouble at check-in when only one of my two boarding passes was spit out
of the kiosk. I called the attendant
over saying, “I’m going to Belize, not Houston” and, after whacking away at the
terminal a bit, he informed me the afternoon flight to Belize was already
cancelled due to snow in Houston. Snow
in Houston???? Where is global warming
when you need it??? Was Al Gore
wrong??? Regardless of these
larger questions this posed the immediate question of how would I get to Belize
City by Saturday at 3 pm when the boat leaves and where would I stay in Houston. I quickly
got booked on the Saturday morning flight to Belize City and got upgraded to
First Class at the same time. I then got
through security and onto wireless to book a room in Houston before they filled
up, which they did. Getting on-board
was exciting too, people were getting restless and frustrated with the full
flight. One guy, who refused to check
his wheel bag got into it with the flight attendants and finally ended uo getting escorted off the plane. Once the door was closed I sat back, relaxed,
and had a good 4 hour flight to Houston.
Amazingly enough I ran into Martin & Hillary, who were coming in
from Boston, in the airport after they had just gotten their flight switched. They booked what must have been the last room
available at the same hotel and off we went.
Yes it was
snowing in Houston and while the locals thought this was a major climactic
event this winter storm would not have even caused problem in Seattle, another
snow challenged city. All said and done,
while some suburbs got up to 5” of snow, Bush International had 0.5” by the
time the snow stopped falling yet the airport was shut down. The IAH Marriott turned out to be a good
choice though, not much was flying so the noise was not a problem and the airport
tram was a much better option than a shuttle bus driven by some guy who had
never seen snow and ice in his life. We
had a nice dinner and a drink then I went back to the room and crashed for 9.5
hours awakening to clear but cold skies and renewed hopes of seeing Belize City
before the boat left the dock.
Saturday morning dawned clear and cold but flights were running on time. I boarded into my extra comfy First Class seat waving at the rest of the crew who remained in coach as they went by. The flight went smoothly as did getting through customs and soon we were piled in the van and heading to the Princess Marina to catch the boat. Martin had only one bag and was thus missing most of his clothes and gear so we all agreed to pitch in to get him fishing the next day. We had lunch at the Calypso waiting for everyone to show up. The Christmas songs playing seemed very out of place in the tropics but the food was excellent. We had to wait a bit longer for all the flights and finally departing at 4 pm and arriving at the island right at dusk. After a brief orientation and a very nice dinner we set up gear and headed to bed.
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| Martin and his one bag | At the Calypso | Rum punch at departure |
Day 1 – Unexpected cold front and misbehaving bonefish
We awoke
on Sunday to find a totally unexpected cold front had evidently followed us
from Houston to Turneffe. As soon as I went outside at dawn it began
raining. Granted it was a warm rain but
still it was the very thing I’d travelled thousands of miles to get away from. We had breakfast, headed to the Tackle Shop
and dock, met our guide Joe, got in the boat, started
out and the rain got serious. By the
time we got to the first flat though the rain had stopped, the sun was out and
the wind was down. We donned wading booties
and headed out. Finding bonefish was
pretty easy but getting them to take a fly was nearly impossible. The fish were in cruise mode and didn’t seem
interested in eating. I found tails but
they weren’t really tailing fish, more like fish finned out near the
surface. A good cast in front brought a
strike but it was a snapper, not a bone.
Post flat wading we poled the edges of some deeper flats looking for permit and
managed to see a few but never had a real shot at any of them.
That was the story of the day - we saw tons of bonefish yet had only a
few follows, caught some snapper and a cuda, and saw
only four permit with no shots to them.
The other boats did a bit better at least landing bonefish but the
numbers were very low.
Back at the lodge we changed from fishing gear to snorkel gear and swam out to the artificial reef in front of the lodge. It was pretty good snorkeling there with lots of sea urchins, fish, and even lobster. After a shower I headed to the bar for a margarita then to dinner and bed to rest up for a new day.
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| Sea urchins | Lobster |
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| Snappers | Tropicals |
Day 2 – Rain, wind, moody bones and then redemption
Our second
day started out cloudy, windy and a bit ominous looking as we headed out. We ran a bit further north to a large reef
flat to fish for bonefish. During the
run we had a touch of rain and a slightly rough crossing then arrived at the
flat. Wading out towards the reef we
found bonefish pretty quickly but couldn’t get them to take anything. As we fished the sky darkened and suddenly we
were hit by a squall of hard, cold rain.
Luckily it didn’t last too long though we got soaked completely and
after that the sun came out and the weather improved a lot. The mood of the bones though did not improve
and after about three hours we had a couple of follows to show for it.
We moved
up the flat and found another group of bonefish just before lunch and these
fish at least wanted to eat. I hooked up
quickly and just as quickly got cut off by coral. After losing 3 bones I finally landed a small
one then proceeded to lose a few more before landing a nicer fish. By lunch I was 2/8 and one piece of coral
had claimed about half those lost the fish obviously knew right where to go. After lunch we headed back out and in the
next hour or so I landed the next 4 bones that took, I finally learned how high
I really needed to keep my rod up. Brett
went 2/6 too plus managed to hook a very nice trigger fish that broke off near
the end of the fight. Between us we also
landed at least a dozen snapper that grabbed the fly out in front of the
bones. Martin had hooked a permit on a
reef flat which, of course, found the coral heads and cut off late into the fight. We finally
moved on as fish stopped coming up on the reef and went in search of new
fish. We poled around a bit and saw one
permit that we instantly spooked and then finally headed back in to the lodge
for margaritas and dinner.
We finally
started to see some fish moving in to feed but only a few and we never had good
shots at them. When I was up once we had
two fish fin up right next to the boat and my quick cast just spooked
them. A few times we got close but still
nada. Then we found the school. A huge school of very large, I would say
massive, permit cruising in deep water.
They were flashing and finning up so we knew
there were a lot of 25-50 lbs permit in the group. So, for four plus hours Martin, Brett and I
tossed everything but dynamite at them and still came out fishless. We had great casts into the school many times
but no takes. I had one fish
legitimately break out and follow a spawning shrimp but again no commitment to
take. It was very frustrating but also
very amazing just to see hundreds of really massive permit swimming close to
the boat. This was the first time I’d
seen anything like it and my only comparison would be to the huge school of big
redfish I’d encountered in Tampa Bay earlier this year. Finally we
lost the school and headed to a reef flat for bonefish but saw nothing.
Martin, further up the flat, made a few
hundred casts to a group of bones and finally landed one while Brear and Ray on another ocean flat hooked up a permit but
lost it to coral.
Today dawned the best yet, totally clear skies and light breeze,
pretty much perfection. We headed out to
The Elbow to search for bonefish on the reef flat there. For the first hour or so wading we saw
nothing but some snappers. Of course
these were decent, tailing snappers so I had to cast and managed to get one
early on. We waded about a mile down the
flat and back without another fish.
Passing the boat and heading the other direction up the flat, however,
we began to see schools of bonefish.
Some schools had small bones, other schools had big bones. We worked our way to the school of bigger
fish we’d seen flashing and as they were coming onto the reef I hooked up and
raised the rod high to avoid the coral.
After a few good runs I landed a nice 3-3.5 lbs bonefish, the best so
far. Unfortunately he came unhooked and
out of my hands while messing with the camera.
For the next few hours, walking out and back, and out and back again on
the flat I managed to go 2/4 on bones plus got a cuda
and Brett went about 1/5 landing a twin of my fish. He hooked up one really nice bone just at the
wave break on the reef which was the craziest bonefish spot I’d ever seen
before. After
lunch we headed to another reef flat where we immediately ran into bonefish and
lots of them. After the first few groups
went uncaught we started heading down to catch up with them. Fishing here was tough, the fish were right
on the shallow reef and it seemed you caught coral or a snapper on every cast
before a bone would take or a bone would take and immediately cut the
leader. Wading along I saw a black tip
come up, thought permit but it was a trigger fish. Having never landed one I cast the Gotcha at
it, it followed and I hooked a piece of coral.
Luckily I roll casted the fly clear, presented again and got a follow
and take. The fish didn’t run hard like
Brett’s trigger I think since things were so shallow there so I quickly landed
it. As I lifted the fish with the leader
though the coral damaged leader parted so again no photo op. Shortly after we saw another black fin but
this time it was a permit. Brett got a
few good shots at the fish that was staged up in a small depression waiting for
a wave to go through the reef. On the
third cast the fish moved to the fly, didn’t eat, then
shot through the reef into the Caribbean proper. We spent the rest of the afternoon chasing
bones and triggers getting hook-ups or follows and losing everything. Still all in all nothing to complain about,
got a few nice bones, a few other fish and I landed a new species. Back at
the lodge I switched to swim gear and headed in to go out to the artificial
reef to snorkel again. Immediately
though I was in the middle of a school of a hundred or more big bonefish and
instead followed them around watching them eat occasionally. I yelled for Brett to get his camera. Then I turned to shore and came right up to a
permit of about 35-40 lbs. I had seen
small permit before at Playa Blanca but never a permit of this size about 5’
away under water. I don’t know who
startled who more but the big fish quickly darted away never to be seen again.
The bones however did not care and I swam with them for another 15 minutes
before they started heading out of the little bay into open water. That was definitely my snorkeling high point
and worth the whole cost of admission to this place. In the evening they turned on the big dock
light facing the small bay and after dinner we went to see if fish had come up
in the light. What we found were big
fish rolling out by the cut made in the artificial reef. While we couldn’t get a close look they had
to be tarpon from their behavior. A
sight slam literally in front of our room, where else does that happen? It also made me want to break the “no fishing
from the island” rule. We took
off this morning for the permit flats again in hopes of finding some fish in a
better mood. The theory was that the
big school had been spawning and were taken off their
usual full-moon spawn by the cold front.
This was as good an explanation as any to their behavior and it was a
new day. We cruised
the flat up and down for about one and a half hours before we finally found
some permit. We then spent several hours
chasing fish, both small groups of fish and the big schools of fish. This time though they showed much more
interest. Using an olive crab, Brett
had a bump then a full take that was so hard the tippet knot failed. We then proceeded to throw three or four
different crab patterns at them and had no interest at all, like only one fish
cared about crab. I finally tossed out
my spawning shrimp and had a follow.
Shortly I had another fish follow and then right in front of me took the
fly. I set up on him and started
clearing line to get on the reel. Just
as I was about clear the fish came back so I was stripping fast. As he ran again I tried to get on the reel
and again he turned back and this time got some slack and came free. That was easily a 15-20 lbs permit, I
couldn’t believe it. A bit later I had
another one take as I was roll casting my fly up to recast, no chance at all to
set the hook. We were 0/3 on permit for
the morning. We lunched and tried
again but the fish were moving much faster now so finally we gave up on them
and headed to the reef. Perfect cast in front of waking permit On the
reef we got into some bonefish right away.
I got two on a small tan Charlie within a few minutes then a cuda came in and began harassing the fish totally shutting
them down. Brett and I also got a blue
runner and some grunts, more new species for me on this trip. The tide was coming up last and we had a few
more shots at some bigger bones. I had
some takes but no more hook-ups. We went
searching for cuda since they were everywhere on our
bones but in an hour saw nothing but a trigger fish who
showed no interest at all. We started
heading out to another spot but ran into engine troubles and had to limp our
way back to the lodge instead for the last hour of the day. All
in all a good, though disappointing, day.
I was glad to land some more bonefish and get some new species but not
happy with failing on the three permit we had eat
today. There is always tomorrow, the
last fishing day of the trip. Another
very nice but windy day today as we headed out for our last day of
fishing. We did a short run to the south
end of Big Flat, got out of the boat and within minutes we found tails stretching
across the sand/grass flats as far as we could see. This looked like it was going to be easy, it
was anything but. We spent the morning
going from group of tails to group of tails trying different and usually
lighter flies. I got a strong take on
my last olive bonefish toad by a big fish that popped the tippet as he
turned. Next fish that followed and ate
a small bead tan Charlie and missed the hook-up. Then I got one on a blind Gotcha in very
shallow water, the fish ran, came back at me and was somehow off. 0/3 in the morning hours and Brett had about
the same experience. We then headed up
to the reef where I had several follows but no takes by trigger fish and Brett
had a good shot at a permit and a few shots at big parrot fish but again, no
grabs. On the deep flat we chased a
group of big bones (4-7 lbs) around but never really got a good shot at them. After
lunch we fished the middle part of Big Flat and ran into tons of bonefish
again, many of them tailing again.
After refusals on a Gotcha and tan Charlie I finally put on a small tan
Puglisi shrimp, miraculously had some fish tail up downwind of me and got off a
good presentation.
The fish took the fly
and was way into my backing on the first run.
After a few smaller runs I landed the best fish of the trip, a 3.5-4 lbs
bone.
We tried the fish some more, even
went after some crazy mudding but moving fish and had no more grabs.
Finally as the tide got high we headed for
the creeks to cast for snapper and jacks.
Brett had one big cuda grab and cut through
the leader.
That was the end of the
fishing, we headed back a bit early to clean gear and start packing. At the bar The last
evening the bat was full. Everyone was
enjoying a drink or two and telling stories of the day and the trip. They were also gearing up for the hermit
crab races and people had crabs trapped in beer glasses, wine glasses, or paper
cups which would move about the table and occasionally allow a crab to
escape. Dinner was an outdoor BBQ at
the picnic tables and after desert came the naming and marking of the
crabs. Everyone gathered at the beach to
the crab track while Kai explained the rules.
The first heat was chaos with the dogs getting in the act going after
the crabs. It became obvious that the
key to hermit crab racing was a big crab and the staff had a ringer that won
two of the three races. The last
night was a wild one weather wise.
Several big squalls moved through the island, soaking our porch, bags and
room. The wind was howling, probably
35-40 and the rain was cold. I slept
very fitfully, never getting more than about two hours straight before the next
storm would hit. The morning didn’t
really dawn, the grey just got lighter reminding us of
home. We paid up our tabs, got packed
up completely, had breakfast then headed aboard the boat to head back to Belize
City. The next storm front hit before we
even made if off the dock and it the staff waved good-byes in the rain grouped
together under the palapa. The boat ride in was a bit adventurous but
not as wild as I was expecting. We arrived on-time in Belize City, shuffled luggage to the vans
and headed to the airport. The Belize
airport was chaos as every flight began to get delayed and people kept piling
in. My flight finally departed about 40
minutes late but at least I was on the way.
Arrival in Houston was late cutting my 2.5 hour layover to about 1.5
hours before boarding. Customs was a
nightmare, the lines were huge and it took about 40 minutes to clear. Baggage luckily was on the turnstyle but then more city-block long lines to get
through that checkpoint. Pack my Marie
Sharps hot sauce, re-check bags, go back through security and then head to the
gate. I had just enough time for a Starbucks
and a wrap before boarding. Made a call
saying I was getting on and should be home on time. About 45 minutes later we were waiting for
baggage still. Another 45 minutes and
we’d pushed off, headed out, had a warning light and went back to the gate. Finally about 2 hours late we actually got
on a runway and took off. It is amazing
how the relaxing effects of a week on the flats can be destroyed by the airline
industry in a matter of hours. Now I’m
at 35,000 feet and at least actually heading to Seattle in what has already
been a 14 hour day of travel with 3.5 hours of flying left to go. The lodge
and staff were great. Brett and I
shared a room in the quad buildings but they were spacious, had a big porch and
an outdoor shower. There were private
cabanas at the other side of the island which had the same amenities but a bit
more private. There were ample palapas, docks and hammocks all around for lounging or
reading. The tackle shop and dive shop
were the center of activities and the pool bar was the late afternoon
hangout. The main lodge was for dinner and also
had a lounge, bar and library on the top floor and a gift shop and office on the
bottom. The dining room and lounge were filled with Vaughn Cochran artwork
including an original oil painting of the lodge. They had kayaks and a Hobie Craft but I didn’t use these. Snorkeling on the artificial reef was very
good and kept me fishing so I wasn’t tempted to cut out the afternoons and go
on the organized snorkel trips. The resident croc
stayed in the mangroves, reportedly. The
island was small but never seemed crowded, you could
always get away walking a bit. Food
was excellent and my pescatarian needs were met at
every meal. I took
along 7, 9 and 10-weight rods this trip, my usual Yucatan set. Given there were no tarpon really around I had the 9 and 10 both rigged for permit but mostly used
the 7 for bones. A 7 was needed, a
6-weight would have been near useless in the wind and an 8 could have been a
bit better. We threw a
LOT of flies and it seemed each fish wanted a different one. For me what caught bones were Root Beer Crazy
Charlies, Tan Crazy Charlies,
Gotchas, Tan Puglisi Shrimp, Olive
Bonefish Toad. Others had luck with
small green crabs and Bonefish Bitters. My advice would be lots of flies and be
willing to change a lot or just religiously tick with your favorite pattern and
hope they turn on to it. Permit took
olive and tan crabs, Spawning Shrimp, and one even took a Gotcha. Triggers took or followed Gotchas. Good flats
boots are essential, the coral is brutal and you need solid soles and good
ankle protection. The grass flats are
not easy walking either, full of moguls and again support is important. Sun protection is also a must, even in
December. Once the fronts were done it was
in the 90’s. We were covered by mid-day
with SPF clothing, Buffs, sun gloves and glasses.
Brett with trigger fish on
First bone I actually landed for the trip
Another bone
"No tails der mon"
Day 3 – Standing on the bow of a boat, aka permit fishing
We finally
awoke to a perfect Caribbean sunrise this morning with only a few clouds and
slight breeze, so far looking like the best start to a day yet.
After coffee and breakfast we met Joe at the
boat and headed out on a long run to the primary permit flats about half way up
the atoll.
We ended up in a boat race
vying for best position with Martin’s boat and when we got there I realized
why.
This was evidently THE spot and it
looked like the line-up on a good steelhead run back in the Northwest.
We saw the other boats from our lodge as
well as three boats down from Turneffe Flats all
fishing the same long flat.
The deal was
to pole a stretch then drift off and motor back up.
A bit crowded at the start with boats,
especially with the lack of permit to be found anywhere.
After a few hours we’d seen one hook-up but
that was to a ray and the boats began to thin out (I later ran into The Girl
Who Caught the Eagle Ray on the way back home, she fought that ray for 40
minutes before basically close range releasing it by the boat.)
Cruising looking for permit
Kung Fu Crab
Martin chasing the school
Day 4 – I’d walk a mile (of flats) for a bone
Yet another Belizian Bonefish
Reef flats
Riding to the next flat
Bonefish
Brett the Bonefish Bandit
Octopus on the flats
Day 5 – Fins to the left, fins to the right
Permit fins
Retrieving the crab
More standing and looking
Giving them the finger after they
gave us the fin
Day 6 – Tails to the horizon but what the f___ are they eating?
Wading the deeper grass flats
Casting to tailing bones
A night at the (hermit crab) races
Last sunset
Crab under glass
Crab training
Hillary with First Dive certificate
Marking crab
Making the crab track
Start of the race
Close finish
Speedy
Travel day from hell
Morning squalls on the horizon
Loading up the boat
Goodbyes in the rain
The lodge
Kayaks
Main lodge
Lounge/Library
Our building
Private Cabanas
Our room
Skiffs, dock, Tackle, and Dive Center
Palapa sunrise
Sunrise at the artificial reef
Croc in the mangroves
Gear