On Cruise Ship Fishing.....

CRUISE SHIP FISHING ODYSSEY: DESTINATION ANTIGUA

By

Jan Stephen Maizler

My wife, Shermin, and I have been on a worldwide cruiseship fishing odyssey for the past 8-½ years. We’ve managed to choose at least 37 ports of call where we have been able to fish in salt waters with fly and light casting tackle. Some destinations have provided non-stop action, while others produced more modest results. Yet every port of call has been an adventure of casting into new and beautiful waters.

In the Fall of 2004, I was checking out the Norwegian Cruise line website (www.ncl.com), and found a new “Southern Caribbean” cruise offering considerable fishing opportunities aboard the NCL Spirit. The ports of call on the itinerary were exotic and interesting: Barbados, Grenada, St. Lucia, Antigua, and Tortolla.

I researched all these islands on the Internet, and found possible bay and beach fishing on Grenada and St. Lucia. My research on The Angling Report website provided me with much useful information, and I was glad to see that better inshore angling opportunities seemed to exist in the Tortolla area, and even better possibilities were the case on Antigua!

Using this information as a lead, I refined my search on the island of Antigua (An-TEE-Ga). With a moderate amount of work, I was able to find an inshore guide who focused on snook, tarpon, and bonefish on the island. His name was Captain Phillipe (Phill) Harley and his charter company was PHILL’S ECO FISHING AND ADVENTURES. I emailed him at fish@actol.net, and after some discussion, I booked a charter with him. In addition, I was impressed with his politeness, as well as his sense of humor.

Our 9-day cruise from Miami through these five islands took place in December 2004. The weather in the Windward and Leeward Islands featured clear china-blue skies, and freshening winds.

As we approached Antigua, we could see an island accentuated by low hills, plenty of coves, and protected bays. As we climbed to the highest deck onboard the Spirit, my wife and I seemed to see some shoals and flats inside a cove. Three other islands on the cruise-Barbados, Grenada, and St. Lucia- proved to have spotty inshore fishing. They were lush and beautiful, but their volcanic drop-off profile made for negligible inshore fishing. We would find out soon enough that Antigua would be different.

The NCL Spirit docked around 7:30 a.m. in St. John’s Harbor, and we disembarked the vessel about an hour later. As we walked down the pier towards downtown, we could see Phill waving towards us. My identity was easily revealed: I was the only cruiseship passenger that looked like a TV antenna, with all those rods! Moments later, we all shook hands. Phill took my rods to assist us in the short walk to his 4-wheel drive SUV parked a few blocks away.

As we walked through the wharf area, I was impressed by the large number of fashionable eateries, boutiques, and other shops. It gave the cruiseship area a crisp, sophisticated, upbeat atmosphere.

Our drive through St. John’s to Jolly Harbor-where Phill kept his boat- again revealed an island that had an atmosphere of prosperity, safety, and cleanliness. I felt this looked like an island that would be an ideal destination for the fishing family, or for the angler with a non-fishing companion.

We arrived at Jolly Harbor and its many canals only fifteen minutes after getting off the NCL Spirit. Phill told me that whenever he used his boat, he employed a captain to run the vessel so he could fully attend to his clients and the actual fishing.

For instance, if he was fishing for sandbar bonefish on the northeast side of the island, his captain would ease the boat up to the shallows and drop off Phill and his clients to wadefish the sandy flats. The captain would then reposition the boat to be waiting for Phill and his anglers at the end of their “wade.” Phill would also use a captain to run the boat for inlet snook, tarpon, and jack fishing, as well as offshore fishing.

We pulled up to his vessel, which was a new 25-foot ProSport powered by twin 140 HP Suzuki 4 strokes. We were introduced to Phill’s usual captain, Gerard “Titou” Gill. We were then informed of the proposed fishing itinerary.

Firstly, we would boat-fish the canals of Jolly Harbor for snook. After that, the four of us would run the boat around the Antiguan coastline and fish the bay sand flats for bonefish. Finally, we would leave Titou and the boat back at Jolly Harbor, and Phil would take us on a land-based trip for snook and tarpon in the inland lakes or salt ponds. I was pleasantly surprised that so may types of angling could be sampled in the 11 hours our ship was in port.

Titou fired the engines up. As we worked our way around the canals, it became obvious the sandy Caribbean, which fed Jolly Harbor, had muddied these inside waters thoroughly. Though we compensated for this by casting Chartreuse plastic -tailed jigs into culverts, docks, and under schools of sprat, the snook were “off the feed.”

It was time to try to find some clear water around the other side of the island. Their vessel performed well and we went north past the port of St. John’s. As we rounded the next corner, it was apparent that the winds, having shifted hard into the northeast, would make a safe passage impossible: we would have to turn back.

With the seas now at our stern, Titou had us back at their berth in short time. He smiled at us and said that Phill would be sure to find us action in the “lakes.”

On this small, delightful island, our drives to another fishing spot were very short: we arrived at the salt pond in only fifteen minutes. It was on the inside of a beach road and was shaped like a three hundred yard long kidney. We got out and hiked alongside and into the lake with tackle, backpacks, and water bottles.

Phill guided us carefully on the mud and sand bottom. With depths that quickly shifted from one to twenty feet of slightly turbid water, it was good to be under his guidance. I found this area to be primeval and full of life under the tropical sun: carpets of hermit crabs would move like a unified wave away from us in anticipation of our footsteps. Further out from the shoreline, I could see schools of minnows making their rain shower sounds.

I heard a splash off to my right, and a twenty-pound tarpon went airborne through a school of minnows. I cast my imitation shad lure into the frothy crater of the strike, but no take! I waded fifty more feet and spooked out a snook of around fifteen pounds. Five minutes later, another tarpon struck into the minnows in front of Phill. He cast immediately, but no strike.

In the two hours that we fished, we saw about thirty separate tarpon striking the bait. The 25 mph winds of the three previous days and a strong rain the previous night cooled the lake to the point where the tarpon and an obvious snook were slow to strike. Yet it was enormously gratifying to watch the fish feeding on such a beautiful island. When my wife and I explore these exciting destinations, it’s for the experience, which means fishing, not catching! We do plan on revisiting this wonderful island during the warmth and calmness of summer.

DATA ON PHILL’S ECO FISHING AND ADVENTURES

*Phill will provide pickups and drop-offs at your cruiseship or resorts on the island that you are staying in.
*Phill has two types of charters.
Land-based for snook and tarpon at $200/ half-day and $400/full-day.
Boat-based charters at $400/half-day and $800/full day for sandbar bonefish, oil rig fishing for tarpon, jack, and snapper, or blue water fishing for mahi-mahi, wahoo, and marlin.
*Unlike certain other guides, Phil gladly accepts beginners, youngsters, and is more than willing to offer sightseeing to compliment the fishing. This will appeal to the fishing family.
*Phill has a policy of releasing all inshore fish, including snook.
*Phil also has a policy of canceling during rougher days when he feels that either the fishing or the angler is stressed or adversely affected.

CONTACT DATA- The best way to book a charter is to set times and dates during the fairer weather from April to October. If you want a boat-based charter, ask if Titou Gill is available for Phill: they are a great team. If Phill is not available, you can speak with his wife, Francine.

PHILL’S ECO FISHING AND ADVENTURES
1-268-764-FISH(3474) cell phone
1-268-560-4882 home
email:fish@actol.net


ADDENDUM OF CRUISESHIP FISHING PORTS OF CALL VISITED:
1.Moorea
2.Bora-Bora
3.Papaette
4.Playa Del Carmen
5.Kauai
6.Mauai
7.Hawaii-Hilo
8.Oahu
9.Istanbul
10.Salerno, Italy.
11.San Juan
12.Dominica
13.St. Lucia
14.St. Martin
15.St. Thomas
16.St.John
17.Jamaica
18.Antigua
19.Martinique
20.Curacao
21.Bonaire
22.Aruba
23.Grand Cayman
24.Belize
25.Cozumel
26.Roatan
27.Tortugero, Costa Rica
28.Sitka
29.Ketchikan
30.Juneau
31.Skagway
32.Jost van Dyke
33.Grand Bahama
34.Little San Salvador
35.Cabo San Lucas
36.Mazatlan
37.Puerto Vallarta
38. Sturrip Cay