Grand Cayman Bonefish

By Tim DeMay

I recently had the opportunity to fish Grand Cayman Island.  The calm, clear water, and the rocky shorelines makes fishing from the shore very easy.  The species that I targeted on this trip was the bonefish.  Bonefish like to feed in the shallow flats ranging from 6 inches to 4 feet of water.  Knowing this, I would have to find out where the flats where located on Grand Cayman.  After researching the area, I found that the Bonefish are caught on three main flats: the North Sound, the South Sound, and the Frank Sound.  

Now that I know the location of where I am going fish, I need to put a game plan together.  Bonefish mainly feed on the bottom eating crabs, shrimp, and other crustaceans.   So whether you fish live or artificial bait, a slow retrieve with a long pause will be most effective. Bonefish are more likely to pick up bait off the bottom, rather then chasing a bait.  If a Bonefish is chasing your bait, let it drop to the bottom and sit.

After doing more research on the area, I found that there are no bait or fly shops on the island.  With no bait shops, I would have to catch my own crab.  Not wanting to take the chance of not being able to catch crab, I decided to take artificial lures.  The artificial lures that I fished were wiggle jigs, artificial crabs, and artificial shrimp.  The wiggle jigs colors that I used were: white, pink, tan, and chartreuse.  The jigs can be productive by themselves, or tipped with shrimp.  If you are going to use a fly rod, shrimp and crab imitations in all colors are your best flies.   Remember , Bonefish like to feed on the bottom.  The most productive method when using the fly rod would be slow strips with the fly rest on the bottom in between strips.  Pictured below are the wiggle jigs.                                                                     

These are the best producing colors.

Bonefishing is a very visual sport.  There are two ways to fish for Bonefish, by boat or wading.  All of the guides in Grand Cayman wade, and that is how I fished as well.  Sometimes it is an advantage being in a boat, because you are up higher, and it is easier to spot the fish. When spotting fish there are three main ways of spotting them.  The first and easiest Bonefish to spot is a tailing fish.  Pictured to the right is a tailing Bonefish.  A tailing fish is usually feeding on the bottom, and the fish's tail is sticking out of the water.  This is a good opportunity to cast your bait in front of the fish and let it sit on the bottom.  There is a good chance that if you get your bait in front of the fish, it will continue on and pick it up.  The second way to spot bonefish are mud clouds.  When a Bonefish sucks in a meal off the ocean floor, it makes a little cloud in the water from the sand.  These mud clouds indicate that the Bonefish are feeding, and you should throw your bait in front of the cloud.  If there is more than one cloud, throw your bait in front of the freshest one.  The third way to spot a Bonefish, is to actually see the fish through the water.  This method is easiest when the bottom of the flat is light colored sand.  When scanning the flat you will look for any movement and dark spots in the sand.  The dark spots that you will see will be the actual fish or the fish's shadow.  The Bonefish is also know as the "grey ghost", because sometimes you can only see their shadows ghosting over the flats.  These shadows can be seen for long distances,  making your chances of a sneak attack better.  Spotting fish in a sea grass covered flat is more difficult than sand covered flats.  The shadows of the fish blend into the dark colored sea grass.  When spotting fish in sea grass, looking for the mud clouds and movement will be very helpful.  When in really shallow water look for the wake of the fish as well. 

Your best chance of hooking a Bonefish is to make long and accurate casts.  While fishing for Bonefish in the Florida Keys, I have made the mistake of getting too close to the fish.  When you get too close to the fish they get spooked and dart off.  The Bonefish are so fast, once they get spooked and dart off, you will not have a chance to get a cast off before they are gone.  Sometimes you cannot prevent from spooking the fish.  While in the Keys, I was walking right into fish that I did not know were there.  As stated before, the Bonefish blend into the sea grass so well, you do not even know they are there.

During my stay in Grand Cayman fishing conditions were tough.  We had high winds all week and a tropical storm come through one of the days.  It was difficult to see down in the water with the wind whipping across the water.  Instead of calm crystal clear water, we had choppy murky water. Spotting fish in these conditions was nearly impossible.  Also the flats were mostly covered in sea grass, which made spotting fish that much more difficult.  Pictured to the left is the North Sound on the least windy day of the week.  The last day of the trip I decided to get off the flats and try in the mangroves for Tarpon.  The trip did not produce a Bonefish or Tarpon, but exploring new waters was exciting and challenging.     

If you are planning a trip to the Grand Cayman Island be sure to check out the Bonefishing.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate with you. The information in this article can be used for Bonefishing everywhere, not just Grand Cayman.  Hopefully this article will help fellow  anglers be successful catching the Grey Ghost.