Chasing Permit … somehow you can get everything right and still not catch these fish…

A lot more Permit this year, but Eric and I did not contribute. Both of us were close, but no cigar.

Fishing with a legend.

Chasing bonefish is hard. Wonderful, but hard. My food friend wading the flats hoping to catch a glimpse, a flash, of a tail or shimmering fish beneath the surface. We did spot fish on this flat, it was a good day.

Percy and my good friend discussing why we didn’t catch fish that day.

My good friend, line tight with a bonefish on the other end. He is fishing with legendary bonefish guide Percy who is an expert on the Berry Islands in the Bahamas.

A friend of mine standing at the bow scanning the water for Permit and Bonefish. I like this story because there is an anticipation and readiness for action all in a very simple picture.

The legendary Percy, at 70 years old, poling us over the permit flats in the hopes of hooking up on this “bucket list” fish for fly fisherman. He worked his butt off. While we spotted a number of rays, always an encouraging sign, we were unable to hook up on a permit. This clearly means we have to go back.

This image simply does not do justice to the Berry Flats. The depth of colors was simply amazing. The fishery as well. Make no mistake, we will be back.

My good friend with a landed bonefish. It’s never easy to catch these elusive fish. Helped by the fact that he is fishing with the legendary Percy on the Berry Islands. Success! And the bonefish was safely released to fight another day.

Having visited several lodges in the Bahamas I can safely say Soul Fly has an outstanding lodge. Rooms were perfect, and the gathering area and restaurant were also spectacular. A beach close by, and a pool to relax in after a day’s fishing, and a casting platform to fix the woes of missed fish. Capped off with wonderful guides (thanks Percy, Dre, Freddie and Travis) and incredible hosts lead by Kyle and Kitri but helped by Mikey, Kara and Annie. Truly a great experience.

As a rookie photographer I loved the images Kyle and Kitri had around Soul Fly lodge. This is just a small sample but captured my absolute favorite, the one on the bottom. A flats boat chasing bones with a distant storm dropping rain (and likely wind). A superb drone shot that I was envious I didn’t capture.

This isn’t a unique image by any means, but what is in it is. Kyle and crew constructed a casting platform for us to practice when not out on the water. I think almost all of us were on it most nights looking to perfect our craft in the never ending Bahamas winds. I certainly believe I got better and I also got sold on a Thomas and Thomas rod as I casted their 8 weight Sextant rod better than any rod I’ve thrown before.

The guides are always willing to help. This is Dre casting on the practice platform giving some incredible advice to one of the guests.

Same lodge shot as before, but kind of a cool effect in B&W.

This was certainly a beautiful sunrise that greeted us one morning. The issue… clouds mean less sun and we see a lot less fish when we don’t have clear skies. Bonefish are known as the ghosts of the flats because they are so difficult to see to the untrained eye. Despite this challenge my fishing partner hooked up on two bones that day, one where he spotted his own fish, cast to it, and hooked it. For those that haven’t experienced this, it is a feeling beyond reproach. He actually did this twice on the trip, an incredible experience to be certain.

As unhappy as I was with the resolution of my new camera (I don’t really like any of the images overall as a result of poor resolution) the one thing that makes a camp is the people in it. We had a great group, truly awesome. This image is blurry, and pretty poor, but the group was the polar opposite. Great anglers, great people, and a great time was had by all. One of these folks managed to bring a Permit to the boat … absolutely incredible.

The permit wall of fame … every permit caught in the season receives a plaque on the wall signed by the angler. Neither my buddy or I are up there …. yet. But our group did add one permit to the wall and my friend Eric had an outstanding shot at one. It was truly a remarkable sight to see, that tail poking out of the surface a mere thirty feet away.

Hmmmm …. it looks like someone in the group was looking to catch a barracuda on the fly. A steel leader to protect from those jagged and sharp teeth. Barracuda are vicious predators of the sea, you will never “miss it” if one is chasing your fly!