Bonefishing -- Steepest Part of the Learning Curve

[David Churbuck]

Dick,
What do you think is the hardest thing for a newcomer to the sport of bonefishing to learn? Is it seeing the fish? Learning how to detect a take and then strip-strike without taking the fly away from the fish? General stealth? Or how to get a cast off quickly without false-casting too much?

Thanks in advance
DC

[Marshrunner]

There are many contenders for what frustrates newcomers most--and it may not always be the same. For an unlucky novice who lands on Exuma in a howling cold front, the biggest challenge is going to be casting into the wind and finding anything to even cast to as water temps drop to the low sixties. (Look for inner flats sheltered from the wind for better casting conditions and warmer temps and carry a thermometer.) For a mid summer trip to Andros or Los Roques it may be learning how to drop a fly just the right distance alongside schools of tailers so they don't spook and also so they see it as the raise their heads. (Experiment with slow-sinker flies and vary the distance from the fish's sight window till you see interest.) Or for the happy new traveler who hits the Berrys when everything is just right, it may be how to cast to keep the small fish from stealing the fly before the bigger fish take. (Pull it away fast and recast to the larger fish.)

But, that said, seeing the fish is probably the number one challenge for most newcomers. Meaning, first, seeing it at all, and then seeing it well enough to know its direction, its speed, its depth, and its attitude. All the challenges of casting to the right place, choosing the best strip pattern, and strip-striking at the right moment fall away if you can really see your target and read its attitude. If you see him hoover that fly up or light up and quiver as he goes down on it you know you've got him interested ... and you one tiny tug away from a blistering run.

Dick

[David Churbuck]

It seems that everytime I go bonefishing with a guide, it's the same drill.

"Bonefish, 2 o'clock, coming towards us. 90 feet away."
And I think (where?!? where!?!)
"Do you seem him? Right there. 50 feet. Give me one now."
I cast, chucking the fly with no hope of connecting. It lands.
"Nice. Wait. Give it a strip. Strip. DO YOU SEE HIM!"
Nope.

A few hours later, I seem to regain my bonefish eyes and start spotting fish. It's weird, but I always seem to key in on something different. Some days I can see their shadow over the bottom. Other days I see their eye and the tip of their tail. Schools are generally not a problem -- a grey mass moving under the water. But the loners .....

What do you look at it? Stuart Cleare told me to look "through" waves, using them like a clear magnifying prism. That works, sometimes.

How do you deal with them over different bottom types? Sometimes I key in on a known immovable landmark -- a rock, a piece of debris --- and then look for anything that moves in relation to it.

And while we're on the topic. What do you prefer for in terms of sunglasses? Do you wear the full side-shields or just regular polarized specs?

[Marshrunner]

David,

Your question is at the core of what makes bonefishing so special.

Bonefish camouflage is a miracle of nature and it takes me at least a day to regain my island eyes each trip. Guides see better because they are out there every day and sometimes have height on you if they are on a platform. But a good guide will try to get you to see the fish, telling you not only where they are on the "clock" but also what they look like on that flat, on that day, over that bottom in that depth of water.

On a sunny day on a shallow light mud flat: three fish at 10 o'clock, 40 feet, going right, dark shadows.

Or on a cloudy day over white sand: Three fish at 10 o'clock, 60 feet, going right, look for white bodies.

Or bright day in deeper water over grass: one fish at 12 o'clock, 30 feet, coming straight and turning right, look for a dark body and watch for a flash.

Looking through the water is good advice for bright days in shallow water because you'll see either the shadows or the fish itself depending on the bottom color. But if the day is very cloudy or very deep, seeing through it becomes challenging or impossible.

The effect of bottoms is simple to say but hard to act on. The reflective plates on the side of the fish will adopt the bottom color and the more varied the bottom color/pattern, the more mottled the reflections. But the amount of light, angle of sun, and depth of water that's present all intensify these effects into a staggering array of possibilities.

What do I personally look for? Probably a few hundred different things. This is where there is no short cut to time on the water. Sometimes it's the obvious: shadows, tails, nervous water, a wake, a side flash. Others times it's more subtle: a sketch of mud left in the water column, a tiny suggestion of a pattern of several ghostly forms moving together in the distance, or an edge of a tail or fin turning away in gray water on a cloudy day. I use to wish this were easier--that there was a simple way to codify all the possibilities and present them in a clear model so anyone could become an instant sighting expert. Now, I no longer regret the absence of such ease. Seeing fish is the badge of honor among dedicted flats anglers and the fact that you can admit your frustration, and articulate the specific circumstances of not seeing, says to me you are well on the way to becoming good at spotting them. Stay with it.

I like amber lenses with full side shields and a curved cap bill to keep out as much ambient light as possible.

Dick

[David Churbuck]

"Or on a cloudy day over white sand: Three fish at 10 o'clock, 60 feet, going right, look for white bodies."

Clouds drive me nuts. It's like lights on, lights off. Cloud cover the sun and it seems like it's not worth even looking. If I was striper fishing I'd just blind cast. Do you have any tactics for handling clouds? I've spotted fish out of range, watch them move in, get ready to cast and bang, cloud covers the sun, fish vanishes.

You're right, it's the seeing part that makes it so special.

[Marshrunner]

"Clouds drive me nuts. It's like lights on, lights off. Cloud cover the sun and it seems like it's not worth even looking. If I was striper fishing I'd just blind cast. Do you have any tactics for handling clouds? I've spotted fish out of range, watch them move in, get ready to cast and bang, cloud covers the sun, fish vanishes. "

Almost anywhere and anytime you fish for bf you will have to deal with clouds. First of all, if you have fish in sight in bright sun and a cloud comes over, if you have a partner in the boat ask him how long the sun will be gone and keep your eyes locked on that fish or school. If you are lucky and its a thin or small cloud you may not lose sight of the fish.

Second, work with your guide--tell him look, I just can't see in this situation. Tell me what to look for (color and how many) and try to tell me as precisely as you can where to look. Ask him to point his pole or at least turn around and look at his eyes to see where he is looking (this one helps me all the time). And then try to find that one moving shadow of a cue that you can lock onto.

Finally, clouds are not binary. Try to sense the degree of cloudiness by looking up at the sun. If there are holes in the clouds they will let bright light through. If they are hazy they will let filtered light through. If there are two layers and one slides away, it will become twice as bright. Look upwind (usually behind you) to see if there is a bright patch of sunshine careening across the water toward you and force youself to read the water as it passes over and in front of you. After a while you will begin to sense the subtle differences that enable you to see a little better when it brightens a bit instead of waiting until its full bright again.


Dick