Tracy&James | Wednesday, 6 May 2026
James and I are back in the UK and are experiencing saltwater fishing withdrawal symptoms – so we are discussing options for Autumn – perhaps Maldives, Los Roques or Belize – though not Mexico after we heard about the 19% charge on fishing equipment when you arrive there. That would be ridiculously expensive for us so if that is what is happening there, then we are not going. Annoying as our previous trips to Mexico were amazing and it would have certainly been one of our top destinations if not for this weird tax.
I loved going to the Bahamas and intend to go back again next year. We caught so many different species and the total number of bonefish was equivalent to our previous best trip. We had a great time and thankfully James didn't have any accidents that involved medical attention. We caught lots of bonefish and quite a few barracudas, only a few shark though. That's the one thing that I want to change for next year – catching a few more big sharks. I am pleased that I managed to entice quite a few triggers to take my flies, this year being one of the best for me. Catching queen triggerfish was a highlight as we were informed that hooking them on a fly was unusual. The number of big bonefish caught was higher than previous years, or this might have been due to my note-taking being more accurate than previous years. One of my highlights was catching a big barracuda, early on in the holiday, after lots of casting to annoy it. The take was amazingly vicious with lots of jumps clear out of the water, and I would have loved to have caught one or two more.
Next focus is to improve my back casting to be more accurate and also resume river fishing. At the moment we are away again due to James' work commitments in Cambridgeshire, and then I'll be in Scotland due to mine, so the Welsh rivers will have to wait for a bit. Though as the weather is turning cold again for a week or so, maybe when I'm back in Wales it will improve in time for the first BFCC event at the end of the month. We normally take the instructors, who help out at the event, fishing on the River Dee so hopefully this will be the case this year.
We have managed to organise a BFCC event for every month from May to October, currently excluding August. This was to ensure that James and I could attend the World Fly Casting Championships in Italy, however due to the ridiculous charges for entry by the ICSF we have decided not to go this time. This means that we may organise another BFCC event or go fishing somewhere in the UK instead. With 5 planned BFCC meetings and support to 3 country shows, plus a joint event with GAIA, we'll be busy this year. Though another BFCC meeting perhaps at Cheshire might be feasible.
Whatever you are doing this week, enjoy
Cheers
Tracy