I had said that my priority was to catch a big Tarpon (any size would have done) and a permit and if possible one of the hard fighting snook so i knew that I had a lot of travelling around to do and time that was going to be spent just trying to spot fish! So Raphael picked me up at the hotel dock at 8 am and we set off to try and find some permit that he had spotted earlier in the week. Much of the first day was spent looking out in the open water for the big groups of permit and the cruising tarpon. After a shot at a couple of permit had resulted in some small jacks coming out of no where and smashing into my permit fly frustrations were riding high!! (not that the jacks didn’t go well but the 15lb+ permit that I cast to would have been much nicer). No Tarpon to be seen due to the decent swell that had started to build up with the growing wind so we headed to the flats and tackled some bones on 6 and 8 weights. Having landed several bones up to about 5lb the day was starting to draw to a close so we headed back to the island to get changed and showered and head out for a few beers and discuss the days fishing (as you do).

The tides were perfect in the morning for chasing the bones so made a trip straight to one of Raphs favourite flats. We arrived to se a flat alive with 5lb + bones, I had never seen so many bones of this size in Belize in one place, the biggest was around the 7lb mark, so needless to say I was doing my best to catch him when a snook of around 6lb came out of the mangrove and chased to the bone away. "Quick grab the tarpon rod snook, snook,” said Raph as it cruised in and out of the mangrove home from where it silently appeared from.

Down went the # 8 and I picked up the 10# with a tarpon fly on and roll cast it to within about 4 feet of the fish. "Strip it, strip it, he's coming, keep going" my instructions were being whispered in an excited and nervous way " he's got it, don’t let him get in those mangroves!" I couldn't believe the power and shear determination from this fish to get back to it's home, but after a brief and powerful fight the snook came to the boat to a sigh of relief followed by and cheers of joy!

Once again we spent the remainder of the day trying to find tarpon and permit but the fish had other ideas!

After a couple of days off to go snorkelling and swimming it was back to the fishing again and this time we were determined to find the tarpon!

Another 8am meet and out we went accompanied by my friend and owner of the tour company I organise trips with for clients in Belize, "Ill come and take the pictures for the day" Haywood exclaimed with renewed enthusiasm. But sure enough out we went to one of the lagoons hidden in the middle of a mangrove island. " I always find tarpon in here some time just the babies but I have caught them to nearly 100lb's in here!" As we entered the lagoon we were met my one of the resident manatees just cruising on by. "up at the back there in those channels that’s where they tend to be, but the water isn't very clear the mangroves are releasing a lot of dye at the moment and it stains the water" So up I jump with the 11 weight in my hand and a load of line on the boat floor. Slowing moving through the channel I suddenly spot 2 Tarpon "Tarpon ,Tarpon!" 2 fish meander past some where between 50 and 70lb's in weight and my hands began to shake. We followed the fish around a bend in to a very narrow run to see an even bigger fish basking in the sun. I put the best possible cast out that I could and it just caught a mangrove before it landed, just a small pull and it was free, the 4/0 fly landed about 2 foot in front of the fish like a size 20 gnat on the Wye, but the tarpon was having none of it!! and bolted away at mach 4. Never mind, and off we went to catch some bones on the way to some more permit and tarpon water. A few more bones but still no permit or tarpon, but tomorrow is another day!

Usual start to the day and found a nice wadable flat and attacked some bones when all of a sudden at about 40 yards we see some tailing fish so we wade on only to discover that lying in the deeper water on the edge of the flat a group of 4-5 permit head down and arse up busy feeding! A quick change of fly and slight move and we were in position to make a cast. The fish were in an area about 6' across just moving and tailing. So cast 1, the fish started to move to the right so put it slightly to the right of them and what do you know, they turned and went left! picked up and cast again this time to the left of them and the buggers turned right. Stripped in a little line. "put it as close as you dare “ if you can” So I picked up the line and started to cast towards the very content fish just as I was about to release my final cast and place it just were Raph wanted me to a motor boat came out of no where along the channel to the side of the flat and the fish disappeared only for my fly to land perfectly onto top of the turbulent water produced by the large permits sical tails as the disappear to the horizon!! A few more bones and a couple of barracuda finished the day off and we headed home. In the back of my mind I kept thinking that would probably be as good an opportunity as I was ever going to get!

Tomo