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Brian O'keefe Catch Magazine.net
28/04/2010
Guadeloupe worth the trip
During 6 days in mid April I had the great pleasure and honor to show the fishery to mister Brian O'keefe, photographer, traveler, owner of Catch Magazine.net and Rick Hartman several time fly casting champion and Texas guide. They have absolutely love the fishing and the place. We had caught every species of a Super Grand Slam during their trip, bonefish, permits, tarpons and snooks. Find the outstanding pictures of their fishes and trip on-line at Catch Magazine from the 1 of May 2010.

Bonefishing and Permit in Guadeloupe it's getting hot!!
02/02/2010
The French West Indies Fishery
"High Anglers"

This day on itself deserve a report, first of all I'd like to thanks my two casters of today Louis and Marie-José for being such great guests, easy going and smiling through our adventure journey.

We started at 7 am on a permits flat, as we reached the reef, we could already see some black tails as a welcome, we seen something like 3 schools of 5/7 permits from 15 to 25 lbs, 4 singles about the same size, we had cast to all of them but really had 3 great shots that could have done it, Marie-José had the greatest one, guess what ? it's permit fishing you don't win many times.

Anyway the excitement was there and as we processed to a higher part of the flat we encountered "picky bones" after spooking couple singles, a small school of five arrived on our right all in the 6lbs, the shot is for Louis, fly dropped...let is sink...short strip...stop...strip..stop.set.let it....BANG!! snap off, he got the fly on the rod's butt. After that hour the tide started to be to low for that flat.

We headed back to the car and drove to a second flat, deep-big bones, we didn't seen any on the first hundred meters as I checked the drop-off for a mother-ship once we where out of this section and on a bit shallower part, a nice single was there cruising the beach and feeding from time to time, Louis is on it..
strip/stop/set stuff but the strip set never came only the old trout set...haaa habits!!!way to learn.
Soon we had multiple shots at some bones alone or in small school, both tried their luck unsuccessfully as we came to slack low tide. It's now time for a break. Under trees shelter with a sea view we had a beer, I remind them again all what they should do once the hookup a bonefish. We hate a pepper-onions pie, a rice salad and dessert on a delicious lemon pie with a slice of bananas/figs/apples cake. Let me tell you that all you want to do after that is snooze but it's not the point here, I want them to land fish, so we moved for a last spot on the incoming tide.

We entered the water and I was even more decide that we should make it happen, opportunities to cast are what you ask, hooking is what you wish and holding the fish is what you come for...for some people it makes a huge difference between a good or a crap day. I told them that we where going to fish for AHPB, the bones we found we're not all above 8 lb but some where. Two shots did'nt make it, the third one was the good one...let the fish go I yelled...Louis was into the backing in sec" all smiling and impressed by the speed of that fish, I told him that it could take some minutes as the bone was a beauty, he gave two sizzling rush and try to escape again 10 yards by 10 yards each time Louis was reeling the fish close to him before mister bone surrender for a quick shot.

After that release I pushed Marie José to insist on the fishing as she did not feel able to do it and was mostly more in a mood to watch since the morning. I found a good angle top spot the fish, the wind in our back, sun aside and waited for them to show up, what they did a minute later in a large 20 AHPB bonefish shcool on the wind side..."Everyones crouch!!!...lower I whispered...if we spooked them it's over"..we stayed like this for a long minute before they change their path and put themselves in a way she could reach them "easy". A couple "cast" later, strip, stop, strip.set..let it....BANG!! snap off, It seemed to me 10 sec but it happen in mili"" watching the line getting tense, seeing her holding tight the fly line with the two hands on the rod's cork and hearing me saying let it gooo. Some minutes laters the tide started to get too high and the sun low, anyway the bones had gones. It was really great to put them both on fish and good opportunities, that Louis landed his bigger bone ever took and that Marie-José had her first bonefish taste.

Who's next ?

Tight Lines

Alexis Ducros
EkwataFly's Guide

Bonefish-Permit-Snook-Tarpon
19/01/2010
Guadeloupe island offers them all
Having someone catch his first bonefish, super grand slam or simply seeing the smile on the angler face after jumping or landing a nice tarpon or a monster snook is what makes me want to keep on doing my job. Step on board, you are in good hands, it will be my pleasure to help you to land the fish you've ever dreamed about. Guadeloupe island fishery is surprising, our bonefish are rather big and average 6 lb, the mangroves offers nice opportunity to fish for baby tarpons year round, the big one are fished from April to June. For snooks the best season is from January to end of April, there are real chances to land some fatty like this one 19.5 lbs landed the 11 of January 2010. Since that date, some about the same size had been missed.
Fishing pressure is still low, and fish react wells on flies. Your just one step from a fishing trip of a lifetime on this virtually untapped fishery.

Alexis Ducros
EkwataFly's guide

2009, a good start
24/09/2009
Bonefish, snook and soon Mister Silver King.

2009 has start on fire, Bones, Snooks and Cudas said "yes we want to play". Flats fishing has given great results, bones where more than willing to play in good numbers and I had the pleasure to make all "newbies" to the salt I had guided to hook up and land their first bonefish on the fly, despite weather conditions sometimes hards, heavy wind, clouds and rain...that's the game too. Some bones above 7 pounds had been lost and many schools 6+ lbs average where on most of the flats. Babys tarpons where numerous in January but the water did not warm up enough to make them stay, they started to be rare as we managed to jump some nice ones in those early month, from 8 lbs to 15 lbs. With the summer months coming and a water warming up for some degrees, some big tarpons has start to shows up in a sporadic mood and laid up babies from 8 to 20+ lbs are now waiting flies along mangroves to make the show. June is coming and I'm waiting it eagerly as it's one of the greatest to catch silver king up to 150+ lbs in channels and some rivers and up to 100+ lbs on some flats at sun rise. On the snook side, the fishing had just been top notch, sight fishing for them on shallow mud as you could do in the Everglades is just one of the most thrilling game you can have here in Guadeloupe. Some spots where just incredibly overcrowded with big specimens up to 20+ lbs. We've caught mainly snook from 8 to 13 pounds and mister Wallner's son, on his first day at his second cast, hookup and land a 17 pounder at 10 feet from the front of the casting deck on light tackle. We had a bunch of Highlights and all fly fishers came back home happy with their first saltwater experience.
Tarpon season will be on heat in June, and until end of October, they will bite. September and October being the months after June I prefer to fish for Tarpon for those who couldn't make the move in June.
Summers months, July and August will just be very nice to wade for bonefish and permit...take your chance on Guadeloupe flats, you can't be disappointed!!!

See you soon under the Tropical sun for great fishing.

Tight Lines