Harris Angling are often asked a question which goes along the lines of, “I’m going to (name a tropical location) for my holidays, and I want to do a bit of fishing while I’m there. What gear should I take?” Clearly there is no substitute for research, but even with the resources of the internet at most people’s fingertips, it can be devilishly difficult to find out what kind of fishing to expect when you arrive at your destination. The full-on fishing trip is easier to prepare for than the casual “bit of fishing off the beach”, as you are likely to have arranged your guide in advance, and you can expect to be given a reasonable amount of information on the tackle you’ll need (but this is by no means a given). So what constitutes the right tackle? Ideas about what constitutes the right tackle vary from angler to angler and country to country, of course. We often find that Americans use lighter tackle than we would personally choose. This is probably because they are used to a more generous fishery than we are, and are therefore likely to come down on the “fun of playing the fish” rather than the “get it in at all costs” side of the equation. They are also more interested in line class records than we are.
Family holidays are the most difficult to prepare for The most difficult trip to prepare for is the one where you are essentially going on holiday, usually with the family. You may have heard that there is good fishing to be had in the area, and hope to have the odd day when you have the chance to wet a line. But without research, you could be in for a disappointment. That’s because holiday destinations are often the diametric opposite of fishing destinations. They tend to have shallow, sandy beaches, lots of people around, and an active demand for fish for the table. For example, the most popular Caribbean destination for travelers from the UK is Cuba. Everyone knows the fishing in Cuba is fantastic, however, the best places (the ones you’ve seen on Matt Hayes’ TV shows) are in the south of the island (which is around the size of the UK) whereas most of the holiday destinations are in the north. People in Cuba are hungry, so populated coastal areas are hard fished. Your chances of ad hoc good fishing from the beach are not great. Your chances of finding a friendly local fisherman to take you out are non existent – it’s a communist country, and they are a bit funny about people going out on boats on a casual basis. We have recently heard that there are some excellent sport fishing boats based at some of the tourist resorts – the trouble is, they have literally no tackle. The chances of them not having fuel, or a crew, or food to take on a day out, are also pretty good – in Cuba, everything “eez beeg problem”.
The second rule is, THE FISHING OFF THE BEACH IN FRONT OF YOUR HOTEL WILL PROBABLY BE RUBBISH. Use the forums to ask questions However, we don’t want to discourage you, there is a lot of fun casual fishing to be had in the tropics, if you approach things in the right way. (And of course, the serious fishing is fabulous.) But do try to find out beforehand where you can get some decent fishing not too far from your holiday destination. The absolute top way of getting this information is by using forums/message boards. You can get a tremendous amount of information from other people who have been to your destination before you. The forum here on FISHINGmagic, or at www.harrisangling.co.uk, are excellent places to start looking. A bit of research, and some common sense fishing thinking often pays off. For example, if you’re going to Barbados, the west coast is typical Caribbean – sandy beaches, lots of hotels, not the greatest fishing spot in the world. But the east coast, which is the Atlantic coast, is just a short drive away in a hire car, and is rocky, exciting and much more thinly populated with tourist facilities, and will almost certainly yield better fishing. A bit of research on the internet before you leave means you have this information at your fingertips, and can plan in a trip to the Atlantic coast, with the chance of some nice fishing. The Tackle Here is our recommendation for the tackle you should take with you in order to take advantage of the likely fishing opportunities which will come your way. We’ll assume that you you’ll be fishing from the beach, and that you may get a chance of some inshore boat fishing. We’re also assuming that you are coarse, rather than fly fishing. The kind of species you might expect to catch are snappers (in wide variety) barracuda, Spanish mackerel, ladyfish, bonefish, tarpon, speckled trout, small shark, etc. If you get the chance to fish deeper water, say outside a reef, you are looking at tuna, king mackerel, grouper, dorado, wahoo, etc. We’d suggest a travelling rod, the Harris Globe Trotta. It’s a four piece 8ft rod which feels like a conventional rod, yet will pack into your suitcase with ease. This is a 30lb class rod (6lb test curve) which is fun to use for smaller fish, and well up to fighting bigger ones. (Yes, you really do need a rod this meaty.) Match this up with your favourite baitcasting or spinning reel, one with a line capacity of a minimum 200yds.
You will need a trace – everything in the tropics has teeth. We’d suggest our QED trace wire in 28lb from the beach, QED Safari wire for trolling. Just add QED snaps, snap swivels and crimps to make up an endless supply of traces, or buy ready made traces to save time. Although you can get good results with bait, both dead and live, especially when trolling, the easiest and most fun approach is lure fishing. Fortunately there are some tried and true ‘bankers’ which will work for you in most tropical situations. Choose colours including silver, mackerel, orange and redhead, and you won’t go far wrong. Luhr Jensen Krokodile (spoon) There are of course other lures which will work, but this selection are reliable, and we wouldn’t go without them. All the tackle we mention and more is available on www.harrisangling.co.uk Other Useful Items It’s worth mentioning a few other ‘must have’ items. It can’t be emphasised too strongly that the tropical sun is very powerful. Even when it’s cloudy, you can burn. So wear a good hat, plenty of sun screen, and have a long sleeved shirt available for protection. Make sure you carry water with you if you are going to be away from ‘civilisation’ (ie, the beach bar) for more than half an hour or so.
A waist pack is a very good idea, leaving your hands free for fishing. An unhooking tool is essential, either a Baker Hook Out or curved nosed pliers. A word of warning – barracuda have teeth like a dog, they are very dangerous. If in doubt, cut the line. A good book enabling you to identify species is very handy. A couple of our favourites are ‘Pacific Coast Fishes’ by Eschmeyer, Herald and Hammann and ‘Sportfish of the Gulf of Mexico’ by Vic Dunnaway. If you need more detailed information, contact Chris Harris on chris@harrisangling.co.uk or Sue Harris on sue@harrisangling.co.uk , or give us a ring on 0870 7444970 – we’ll be happy to help. |
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