~A permit under the belt on the first morning~Permit on the Prowl:
Those new to tropical saltwater fly fishing will initially find striking fish an issue. To set the hook properly, you need to pull sharply on the fly line rather than lift the rod, as we commonly do when trout fishing. All sounds simple enough in theory, but in the heat of the moment, it's easy to forget and lift the rod instead. So having ease into my annual trip by stalking bonefish, with promising conditions, we went in search of permit. Highly prized, these fish have blistering pace and can be difficult to fool. Imagine our excitement then to find them feeding hard on the first day. The fish above took the fly a mere rod length from me. Moments later it was some 150 yards away and still heading for the horizon. Jonathon was possibly one of the most fortunate that day. Skillfully hooking a permit the fish charged off, only to come unstuck moments later. He managed to get another cast at the same fish and amazingly it took again (jammy sod....), no mistake second time as Jonathon piled on the pressure to land a cracking permit.
Paul~
~Crocs haunt the margins, terrorising fish and frogs~
