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This Central American paradise offers picturesque views, stunning reefs, and fish clever enough to challenge anglers of all kinds.
By: Jennifer Haupt — Spring 2006
I never feel more content and contemplative than on the crystal-clear waters of Belize, which is why I keep going back to this unspoiled gem for milestones: most recently, my 45th birthday. This time I wanted to challenge myself by learning a new sport, and I’d heard a great deal about saltwater fly fishing in these waters. Anglers from the world over come here to test their skill and luck against the wily permit, tarpon, and bonefish skulking amid the tangled web of sea grass in the shallow flats off the mangrove-lined cays and mainland. It sounded like a nice day trip, a break from cruising, and a chance to explore the narrow waterways and hidden lagoons.
I didn’t have a dinghy at my disposal, but luckily I found Bob Stevenson, the fly-fishing guru at El Pescador fishing lodge on Ambergris Caye, a popular slice of island just northeast of Belize City. We headed out in his 23-footer powered by an outboard just strong enough to keep us gliding along the water. “There’s a certain Zen to fly-fishing,” he told me. “The waiting is as much a part of the game as the catch.” The challenge is to learn to look for the flash when the sunlight hits the silvery back of the bonefish. It takes time, patience, and a far different kind of concentration than trolling for tuna or salmon.
We anchored in a lagoon off the south side of the island, a swampland teeming with turtles, eels, and the occasional manatee. As with other fly-fishing flats, you can’t take a large boat in here; if you don’t have a shallow-draft vessel, you’ll have to dock at the nearby Belize Yacht Club and either dinghy in or go with a guide, as I did. Rest assured, it’s a welcome change of pace from cruising up and down the coast in a 40-footer. Even though I was at our second site in two hours and had yet to catch a fish, it was surprisingly easy to be content, kicking back and contemplating not just my past, present, and future in Belize, but also the state of powerboating there.
A BEAUTIFUL CHALLENGE
About the size of Massachusetts, Belize has the distinction of being compact and yet immensely diverse. The entire coastline is less than 200 miles long, but it encompasses the world’s second-largest barrier reef and four unspoiled atolls. Since I’d been to Belize many times before and had never had trouble finding lodging, activities, and other sorts of tourist-friendly services, I figured I’d have my choice of charter boats as well. I was surprised to learn that powerboat charters are just starting to become available in this wonderland of more than 400 islands.
Michael Singh, co-owner of the Belize Yacht Club plans to charter a Lagoon 43 Power Cat in the near future (see “Charter Options”). It just wasn’t possible before, what with the stiff winds, strong currents, and hidden coral heads. “But things are changing,” he says. “Over the last five years, the Port Authority has put in much better lights, cones, and charter tools.”
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