We're coming to AC for the first time November 9 - 16 staying at the Holiday Hotel. My dad would like to know if he'll be able to fish from any of the piers, and if so, what type of tackle he should bring with him. He's in his 80's, so going out on a boat for a whole day may be too much for him. Any ideas?

Your dad will have no problem catching a few fish from any of the piers.Tell him to bring a lightweight spinning rod and tackle to fish with cut bait or small lures. Most of the typical reef fish, as well as bonefish, can be caught from the docks. Grubs, Rattletraps, Beetle-Spins and the like will all work. Tell him that if the lures he brings will catch Crappie and Bass at home, they'll catch fish on AC. Cut bait will catch almost everything. Good Fishing!

Thank you so much Edd. Dad wasn't sure what to pack. Now he has a good idea and is very happy to hear that fishing from the piers will be worth his while.

Pier fishing...well, good luck, we've been
coming down for years and lately, there are
no fishing signs posted on many, many docks.
This fun, my husband had to go way south...
I hope he can fish off the docks, but I
wouldn't count on it!!!

Forgive the typo...I meant that this summer,
my husband had to go way south to fish...
and good luck to anyone who wants to fish
on the docks near the village!!

He won't have that problem anymore...all the signs have been blown away!!! Ha, ha ha ha...

Pamalalee,
Have your dad hire one of the guides for a half day reef fishing. On normal days the water is not rough at all and he will have a blast catching 5 types of snapper, trigger fish, grupa and barracuda. He'll be out for 4 hours or so and wont forget it!! The guides have tackle.
Good fishing

Thanks for the additional information. Dad's going to be disappointed if the only fishing he will be able to do is on a schedule with a guide in a boat. Anyone have any idea of the approximate cost of the 4 hour boat and guide?

Granted, alot have no fishing signs...however there is a very nice large one that is very close to the Holiday that I always see people fishing at.

So, unless things have changed since May...it located right by the school with all the little different colored houses on the beach. I'm afraid I don't know the name of the school. Maybe a local can help out with this, but it is directly over from the Island Supermarket on Coconut Drive.

Otherwise, I'm sure that the Holiday could help you out as to the location.

We certainly wouldn't want to disappoint a 80 yr old angler in a fishing paradise. If we can pin down this pier I am thinking of, I'm sure he'll have the time of his life! We have seen people pulling out the lunkers as we go kayaking by.

Have a great trip.

Ruth...
The school is the Island Academy (or the "Belikin"), but the pier your describing sure sounds like it would be the pier out in front of the Bowen's house. I'm not so sure about the general public fishing there. I'll have to go ask SWMBO, who has a far better memory than I, if there is another pier between there and the Yacht Club. Geeez, you'd think I would be able to remember this stuff.

Hey, that half day with a guide is about $150 (as many as 4 people), and you should have more fish than you'd know what to do with. I go at least three times every trip and we can't possibly cook and eat all that I catch.

[This message has been edited by CHOOCHOO (edited 11-03-2000).]

Thanks Chooch,

We have always wondered who belongs to that pier. Who is Bowen by the way?

You guys are awesome! Dad's off at Wal-Mart now buying new fishing stuff to take along. He wouldn't mind doing a half day boat fishing trip while we're in AC, but just really had his heart set on just strolling to a pier and dropping a line in when the mood struck. He's going to bring along his equipment and hope for the best. If anyone knows of private piers that we may be able to ask permission for him to use, that would be really nice. Also, he's a catch and release fisherman, so he shouldn't be too messy ... we live at the beach in California, and I've seen how messy a pier can get with people cleaning their catch (yuck!) and that won't happen with him, promise.

I'm sure the folks at Holiday can help you get permission to fish from a nearby dock. Maybe I've just been lucky, but I've never had anybody refuse my request to fish from their dock. As for the guide fees, they have fixed rates, but most will work out a custom trip to meet your needs and price range.(By the way, you don't need a professional fisherman per se, anybody with a skiff and a little spare time will be fine. These guys were raised on the water and can ALL fish). I've taken my son out for a couple of hours for as little as $20-$30.We didn't go far, but we always caught plenty of fish, including some pretty nice barracuda.

I have the dock between Bowens(Belikin)and the Yacht Club. If your dad would like to fish off my dock he is more than welcome. We did put up a no fishing sign but it was mainly for the local kids that were fishing and keeping really small fish. Since the hurricane the fish have been scarce but everyday we see more and more. Just have him ask at the house and he is more than welcome.

Dawn
Barefoot Watersports

[This message has been edited by barefoot (edited 11-03-2000).]

Thank you soooooo much Dawn! I owe you a drink while we're there! The house to ask at will be obvious to us newbies? How many docks south of the Holiday is it so we don't get the wrong one?

Pamela,

We are a little ways south from Holiday Hotel. You can walk the beach if your dad is up to it. Go past Ramons and the Island Academy and we are the house with all the jetskis and boats on the beach. Can't miss it.

Dawn

barefoot,
Is that your house with the pool that I can see the back of from the back porch of Jade Garden?

Ruth...that would be Barry Bowen as in BELIKIN. Just a coincidence that the house, dock, boats, etc. are that dark green shade? Sure.

CC

[This message has been edited by CHOOCHOO (edited 11-04-2000).]

Thanks Choochoo,

I had a feeling he was a big man on the island...he would be the TOP as far as my husband is concerned!

And PamalaLee, I knew your dad would be able to find a perfect spot to fish! Wish him luck for me.

Yup, ChooChoo that would be us. 4 kids,dog and all those boats.

Hi:

Just got back from San Pedro last night. Several of us brought poles and tackle and caught snapper, barracuda, bonefish, and even a sting ray right off the pier of the Texaco fule dock next to Amigos Del Mar. We caught enough snapper to have a beach bbq for about a dozen folks. Keep that line tight and have fun.

Texaco dock..??.they put a gate up a couple
of years ago and ban the fishing, so to speak. Maybe the hurricane blew down the
gate, huh??? Anyway, as I said, in July
there were no fishing signs...everywhere!
My husband did fish a couple of times on
Bowen's dock, but when he was joined by a
couple of locals (he didn't know), security
chased them all off the dock! My contention
is that all people should be allowed the right to fish a good many docks. (I can see reserving some for snorkeling, etc.)Tourists
shouldn't be allowed to stay if locals cannot! Maybe they need to post signs to limit the size of the fish...(Take no fish
less than _____inches)...if kids were taking
small ones. Anyway, all I can say (and I
said it in the newspaper) is all people should be allowed to fish the docks, for some
it means food for the table...for the tourist
it doesn't mean life or death...usually only
sport. PamelaLee, I hope your Dad and you
and yours have a great time in San Pedro...
I/We love that place!!! A long time tourist
and property owner!!! ha.

Dawn, it sounds like we won't have any trouble finding you and your dock with the jet skis out. And it appears that it's close to the beer distributor, so I'm sure he'll have that path down the first day! By the way, we may be interested in renting one of your jet skis. Not for dad, but, hey, you never know! He did parasail a few years back in Puerto Vallarta and this year for his 86th he went up in the Goodyear blimp which he had to run after to get aboard. What is the cost of renting? Are they the stand up or sit down variety? We're all getting so excited to get there! 5 days and counting!!

Ruth and everyone else, thanks for the good wishes on the pier fishing, I'll pass those along to dad from all of you. I'm sure he'll have a great time!