Jardines de la Reina
Named the Queen's Gardens by Christopher Columbus,the
Jardines de la Reina is a pristine chain of islands, very similar in
nature to the Florida Keys in the USA.The island system runs more than
one hundredmiles back to the northwest, from Cuba's south-eastern coast.
Most of the area we fish is fifty or more miles offshore and has been
designated as a Cuban Marine Park in 1996 and now is the biggest Park
in all the Caribbean area.As such, there is no commercial fishing in
the area, and no other operators allowed. There is no inhabitation of
any kind on any of the islands in the Marine Park, where Avalon's operation
is located.This is a huge expanse of saltwater wilderness, perhaps the
last place like this left in the world today.With Cuba's continued protection
it should remain a treasure forever.
FISHING
Bonefish:
You'll find some of the finest bonefishing in the world
in the JDR. Since these flats are never commercialy fished, they are
teeming with bones that average a solid four to six pounds.
An angler has lots of opportunities daily for fish in the seven to nine
pound class. Bones in the 10-14 lb. class have been caught with more
regularity especially in the last years thanks to the Marine park, but
what is impressive are the overall numbers and average size of these
bonefish.There are a variety of flats, from pure white sand to a mixture
of sand and grass, to flats where it can be solid turtle grass and marl.
Guides use the flats skiffs to cover a lot of water, but when they encounter
an especially good flat to wade, they often park the boat.
The anglers will hop out, accompanied by the guide, and wade fish the
flats. There are a great number of flats that provide outstanding wade
fishing for large tailing bones on an incoming tide.
The late afternoon and evening fishing can be especially pleasant. The
guides are willing to fish late, and the wind typically dies in the
afternoon. Tailing and feeding bones can be spotted hundreds of yards
away on the calm flats, and in the low evening light the bones pounce
on a fly with abandon you don't see in mid-day.
Tarpon:
Probably the best tarpon fishing in the entire Caribbean
thanks to the huge Marine park ecosystem that in only 10 years repopulate
what everybody are now able to experience and most of all thanks to
the low pressure flats/n# angler/year that allow Avalon to fish almost
everyday in an untouched flat.
Numbers reflect only part of what reality can offer and not even 7,000
jumped tarpon per season can give you an idea what a regular tarpon
fishing day can be. Tarpon are abundant in the island system, especially
baby tarpon in the 20-50 pound class. Larger fish, 80-140 lbs are getting
more and more common every year especially during March – June months.
What you can expect is some of the hottest fishing for tarpon to be
found anywhere in the world! Baby tarpon is a perfect fish to catch
on a 10 weight fly rod, or on spin or bait casting tackle.
The many "rivers" and "creeks" flowing between islands
are especially good at higher tide levels. Schools of bigger tarpons
are often found right out on the flats, in two to six feet of water.
The fishing is fast and exciting and all in sight casting. Schools of
anchovies and glass minnows can often be found packed along the mangrove
islands, and when you find baitfish in big concentrations like this,
you'll find hundreds of tarpon feeding on them. This can be total non-stop
action! It is also thrilling to fish for tarpon at night, after dinner,
when the tarpon will come to a popper with dramatic lunges, not for
the faint of heart.
We also fish tarpon in the outside flats during dawn time especially
if there is no wind around.
Permit:
Other than the Florida Keys, this is perhaps the best place in the world to catch a big permit on a fly. There are both good numbers of big permit, and superb permit flats to be found in the JDR. Flats that are barely out of the water, or just below the surface at low tide are two to three feet deep on a high incoming tide - perfect habitat for the largest permit. Many of these flats are bordered by deep water- exactly the same kind of conditions you see in the Florida Keys where most of the world record permit have been caught. It is not uncommon to pole up to these flats and see a half a dozen permit tailing, all of which are in the 25-35 pound class! The Jardines de la Reina is one of the few spots in the world where you have a very real opportunity to catch a grand slam - any day of the year!
Other species:
Mutton Snappers
Mutton Snappers are everywhere in the JDR, and plenty are found and
caught on the flats- a real rarity. This is perhaps the best (and only)
place in the world where you can now expect to catch mutton snappers
on the flats. They are high powered fish that will pull with dogged
determination when the safety of the mangrove roots is within sight.
Mutton snappers are extremely wary when out on the flats, but if you
can get the cast in there without spooking them, they are suckers for
taking a fly. Most muttons caught on a fly run between three and eight
pounds, but fish right up to fifteen pounds are a distinct possibility.
Jack Crevalle and Horse Eye Jacks
Jacks are wonderful game fish, and are very abundant in the JDR. It
is common to see a school of big jacks patrolling the flats, eating
everything in sight. Many of these fish are in the fifteen to twenty
pound class with some right up to the thirty pound mark. They look somewhat
like the permit, being in the same family, but Jacks are one of the
most aggressive feeders on the flats and very easy to catch in relation
to permit. As a bonus, the Horse Eye jacks make wonderful sashimi back
on the boat before dinner. Cudas and Sharks Big Cudas are plentiful
around all the bonefish flats. Most will be three to four feet long,
and will give any fly angler a terrific fight. Their aggressive take
is exciting and few fish can swim faster or jump farther than a big
barracuda. They are easy to catch on the many good needlefish patterns,
using a wire leader.
Silky Sharks
Silky Sharks and Caribbean Reef sharks are very common on the flats.
You will see some surprisingly large sharks in shallows, looking for
bonefish or anything else they can catch. Most are three to five feet
in length, but you'll also see larger sharks in the seven to nine foot
range. All of these will take a fly and the action can be spectacular.
Good sized flies like divers utilizing soft foam popper heads, get their
attention when popped aggressively in front of a shark. Sharks up to
150 lb. have been landed by fly anglers. Seeing one of these monsters
roll up to the surface and smash a popper is sure to get your adrenalin
flowing.
Other fish.
Anglers that want to try trolling off the reef with plugs, bait, and
even flies encounter many other species of fish. Various snappers including
the huge Cubera Snapper are present as well as groupers, jacks, kingfish,
albacore, wahoo, and bonito and big cudas. One group of visiting anglers
caught twenty five different species of fish off the reef-in one day!
