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VISIT Eleuthera - Spanish Wells - Harbour Islands Mayaguana - Great Inagua - Ragged Islands San Salvador - Rum Cay - Conception Islands
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ANDROS ISLAND Island News: Bair's Lodge has added two new deluxe rooms to their already wonderful lodge, and can now take up to 12 guests at a time. This is our top recommendation for wade fishing, and relaxed luxury. See more information below in the South Andros section.Great Value and DIY Option -- Frankie Neymour, Charlie's brother, has a small guest house on Cargill Creek....this is an ideal spot and a great price for anglers who want to fish with a top guide and/or DIY....excellent wade fishing options in the area. You can just book a room with cooking facilities, or you can have meals included....same for guides fishing.......fish with Frankie or other top guides, or do it yourself. Email Kim for the details.
Hank's Place - Hank's Place restaurant, on Fresh Creek, is "the place" to hang, eat and drink in Fresh Creek/Andros Town. The food is good, relatively inexpensive, and the drinks are dynamite. Hank also has two rooms to rent, and three 16' Carolina Skiff with 30 hp to rent. Hank's Place is now FOR SALE. If you're interested, click on the link above for more information. Small Hope Bay Lodge - is an excellent option for fishermen bringing non-fishing companions to Andros. And this isn't a compromise to the anglers. The fishing (especially bonefishing) is excellent in Fresh Creek, and Small Hope guides also take their clients into the Bights. Non-anglers can experience sensational scuba diving and snorkeling, relax on the beach, go sea kayaking, bike, windsurf, or go sailing. The lodge has 20 cottages right on the beach. All-inclusive packages are available, and the include an open bar. Creekside Lodge, Cargill Creek - The lodge is under the ownership of Captain Rupert Leadon, longtime owner of the famous Andros Island Bonefish Club, however, Rupert has leased the property to a diving operation, so it is being operated independently. For more information about the Bonefish Club call 242-368-5395, or email them.
Tranquility Hill Fishing Lodge - Located at Behring Point on the North Bight, the lodge offers exceptional hospitality, delicious food, comfortable air-conditioned rooms, and top guides including Ivan and Dwain Neymour, Barry Neymour, Frankie Neymour, Deon Neymour, Raymond Mackey, Ricardo Mackey and other experienced independents. Tranquility is now taking bookings for the fall and winter season. You can contact them directly at 242-368-4132, email Kim to assist with your booking. Flamingo Cay, Wide Open, West Side - Established in the 1920s as a duck hunting club by the Bethel family, the club has been an exclusive hunting and fishing lodge every since for family friends, including British royalty. A couple of years ago, Charles Bethel III decided it was time to open the fun to the public, although the lodge rarely advertises, and most guest make their bookings from word-of-mouth recommendations from previous guests.
Flats Fishing Patterns: Fairly normal fall weather patterns are in effect, though it has been a windier than normal season, with strong winds prevailing from the northeast. You should always carry a good breathable rain jacket and pants in the boat for possible rain, and use the jacket as a windbreaker on early morning runs. We recommend wearing long pants to guard against "doctor" flies, especially while wading. There is nothing a "doctor" fly likes better than saltwater on bare skin. These flies also like to bite bare feet, so we wear socks and insect repellent in the boat. Patagonia baggie pants and Ex Officio Amphi pants are cool, dry-fast, and don't allow the flies to bite through the material like they can bite through other thinner material. January 27 , 2008 Fishing Reports Central Andros/The Bights and West Side - Fishing has been good this past week on the oceanside flats, and in the Bights with some nice weather, though you can't count on this, just appreciate it. With cool water temperatures, fishing for big bones is very good. Now through early March is the best time to try to catch a double digit monster. For anglers looking to fish one of the most beautiful areas in the world, the South Bight is a good option, and easily reached by guides from Nottages and Tranquility Hill. One of our favorite spots is the shoreline just east of Tiamo Resort. This lush eco-resort blends wonderfully into the natural setting of the bight, and is situated on a stunning golden sand beach. Snorkeling is available right off the beach, or you can wade toward Driggs Hill on the incoming tide and look for big tails. Tiamo offers complete eco-vacation packages, and can book independent bonefishing guides, and reef and offshore guides. Independent guides Charlie Neymour, Andy Smith, Barry Neymour, Frankie Neymour, Ricardo Mackey, Deon Neymour, Benry Smith and others are the most experienced and professional group of independent guides in the Bahamas. They work out of Dolphin, Action Craft, and Maverick flats boats with 70 to 150 HP outboards (mostly Yamahas). Tranquility Hill Fishing Lodge and Andros Island Bonefish Club also have excellent house guides including Ivan and Dwain Neymour at Tranquility, and Captain Rupert Leadon and his son, Nick, at AIBC. Our favorite flies include #2-4 Gold Shiner and Gotcha Clouser's Minnows, #2-4 Gotchas, #2-4 Veverka's Mantis Shrimp, #2-6 Pink and Tan Hoovers, #2-4 Spawning Shrimp, #4-6 Beck's Sililegs, and #4-6 Tan Yarn Crabs. When in doubt, go with a Clouser and you'll catch plenty of fish. Our favorite tarpon flies include #4/0 Shallow Water Cockroach, #3/0 Abel Tarpon Anchovy, and #4/0 Red/White Sea Bunny and Dahlberg's Nothing Fancy.
South Andros - For numbers of fish, this is a top location. The past week was good with large schools of fish in the creeks and along the oceanside shorelines south of Mars Bay. Windy conditions made it rough going to and from the south tip of the island. Fishing on the white sound bottoms makes spotting bones easy, even on cloudy days, and there are numerous creeks, including Little and Deep Creeks, and Hawksbill Creek where anglers can find protection from the wind, and the wade fishing in these creeks is excellent. This is one of the most beautiful flats areas in the Bahamas, or anywhere. Our favorite flies ere include #4-6 Gotchas, #4-8 Veverka’s Mantis Shrimp, and #6 Tan Yarn Crabs, #4-6 Greg's Flats Fly, #4-6 Spawning Shrimp, #4-6 Hoover's, and #4-6 Beck's Sililegs. Bair's Lodge is the best option for fishing South Andros. This is a deluxe lodge, with excellent food, and good guides...one of the most comfortable lodges we have ever stayed at. They have expanded the lodge, and now can take 12 anglers, but they are still booked months in advance so you need to make your plans as far ahead as possible. Lots of fish here if you're into number...some big fish too, especially in Deep Creek and Little Creek. Please email Kim directly to facilitate your booking. This is one of our TOP RECOMMENDATIONS in the islands for wade fishing and relaxed luxury. West Side - The water out here is spectacular, and when the wind stays in the northeast, there are good lee shorelines to fish, but in places, the wind turns the water milky. The resident tarpon are in the 60 to 100 pound class, which is ideal size for a 10-weight fly rod, although we are seeing fish up to 150 pounds at this time of year. Our favorite setup is a Sage Xi2 4-piece 10-weight with an Abel Super 10 and a Rio Tarpon Taper clear sinktip line. The only fly you really need is a Shallow Water Cockroach.
Reef/Offshore: On calm days you can enjoy excellent fishing for dorado and tuna around the naval buoys. The midnight blue water, 6,000 feet deep, is so clear you can see fish fifty feet below the boat. For fly fishing over the reefs we normally use a 10-weight fly rod, but an 11 or 12-weight would not be too much. A Rio Tarpon Taper with a clear intermediate sink tip is our line of choice. |
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©
2005 Stephen and Kim Vletas
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Charlie Bethel
is an outgoing host, and along with his friend, Cindy, they make you feel
at home, and they create an overall relaxed atmosphere by taking no more
than six guests at a time. The club sits on a remote creek on Andros's
uninhabited West Side, in a sprawling bay known as Wide Open. Large schools
of bonefish roam the white sand flats from Pretty Creek to Williams island,
though you don't have to go far to catch fish. We've had days of 40 plus
bones just fishing the shoreline right outside the home creek. And if
you're looking for big bones, those double digit monsters roam the outer
sand bank not more than fifteen minutes from the lodge. Tarpon fishing
is also excellent, and its not uncommon to get shots at permit. For wing-shooters,
the dove and duck hunting is fabulous. Fishing season in October 1 to
June 31, and shooting season is October 15 to March 31. Email 
North
Andros - Fair fishing this past week, and very windy. A good choice in the
area for serious anglers is 
Fishing
on the West Side of Andros is an awe-inspiring experience. It is just
so beautiful, and it often seams surreal, as the sky and the ocean blend
in a way that erases the horizon. Fishing in the West Side creeks is also
a fun alternative, going for snappers, sharks, barracuda and jacks. Guides
Charlie Neymour, Andy Smith, Barry Neymour, Benry Smith, Dwain Neymour,
Ivan Neymour and Ray Mackey specialize in fishing on the West Side, as
do guides from the Andros Island Bonefish Club and Creekside Lodge. Running
times to the tarpon flats range from 30 to 60 minutes.