Ascension Bay Take 2
I was down in Mexico for a family trip 4 years ago and managed to sneak away with a friend for a guided day on Ascension bay. My friend and I managed a few very small bones and some other random species, it was great. Now a little older and little wiser (debatable), I was ready to sneak away from another trip down, back to the Pesca Maya lodge, for a day in the bay. This time the trip was a a little more exciting. My fiancee and I had booked a trip to Tulum for the Strings and Sol bluegrass festival. That's right, 4 new school bluegrass bands on the beach in Tulum, just one hour by van from one of the worlds greatest shots at a flats grand slam. And believe it or not, my fiancee Beth was willing to go along. The day was cloudy with intermittent rain and a steady wind. This made the fishing pretty difficult. I had shots at a few smaller bones tailing but the wind, and a pesky needlefish, proved too much for my skills. One of the bones hit my fly, missed, chased but was thwarted by the skinny pest. Luckily, I did manage a few more shots. Here are 2 of the 3 bones I managed. Probably both about 2.5 lbs. These guys can fight.
And almost more exciting (not quite) are the fish that Beth caught.
A jack (I think travelle)
And a small bonefish
Didn't have a shot at any of the other species. The weather made it really tough. The other guys I spoke all said the afternoon was a total bust. I still had a blast.
Then on the beach back at the hotel I managed to catch a couple small yellow tale snapper. There was a large jack of some type tailing in the shallows but it was erratic, not moving in one direction for very long. Threw a ton of flies but between the waves and not having ever tried to drop crabs in front of a tailing fish nothing was doing. Very exciting though. One thing I'll never forget is fishing from a reef while Leftover Salmon (the band, not the fish) was playing in the background. Between the fishing and four nights of four of my favorite bands this was one great trip.
And for an encore, a little taste of "Strings and Sol" (although the pics are at night) with the Yonder Mountain String Band:
p.s. Bought a brand new bonefish line at the Orvis outlet in Norwalk for $14 just for this trip. Really liked the line. Bought a 10 weight line for my 9 weight St. Croix Avid rod. I know its a little heavy for bones but it was all they had in a saltwater line and it actually came in really handy due to the wind. Cast a true 9 weight on a much lighter 9 weight rod (Albright A-5) and it wasn't nearly as powerful through the wind. And it really doesn't feel like a heavy 10 weight line. Hope to use it this summer when our water warms up.
p.p.s We were down in Mexico on Friday when the news broke about Newtown. Felt very strange to be away from home and hear about this tragedy. Not that there was anything I could have done but knowing it is so close to home (I frequent a river in Newtown about 15 minutes from, very close to the school) and being so far away I felt extra helpless. My heart goes out to everyone affected.
Last edited by jaybp30; 12-17-2012 at 10:19 PM.
Reason: Added pics
"There's mosquitoes on the river. Fish are rising up like birds.
-The Music Never Stopped (Grateful Dead)
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