Fly Fishing World Headquarters- Angler Reports about Flies, Lodges, Guides & Gear

The following is the lead article in the November 2, 2011 issue of “The Nassau Guardian” newspaper by Jeffrey Todd, NG Business Editor.

Multi-million-dollar Black Fly joins forces to U.S. company and will serve at the heart of rising Schooner Bay development

The lodge is expected to not only attract high-net-worth tourists, but investors in the Abaco development.

A multi-million-dollar fishing lodge now under construction in Abaco plans to attract “the best of the best” when it comes to tourism, while providing the heart of a development that could change the island’s economy.

Through a powerful joint venture, Black Fly Bonefish Lodge in the Schooner Bay development is trying to catch the big fish.

“Fly fishing clientele are top of the food chain when it comes to tourism in this country,” said Clint Kemp, one of the key investors behind the project.

“Not only are they high net worth, but they tend to come in private aircraft and are excellent repeat visitors. They aren’t just coming for one week. They bring their friends and family and their presence often leads to further investment.”

The lodge, slated for completion in 2013, will feature eight large rooms, a restaurant, bar and supplies store. A new fleet of boats will also be offered, giving guests access to salt-water fly fishing and deep water fishing.

Coming in at $1,000 per night for the full experience, the boutique lodge is meant to cater to exclusive guests which are often synonymous with the sport.

Meanwhile, Black Fly has also partnered with Nervous Waters, one of the most recognizable names in fly fishing, which operates 14 establishments all over the world.

Kemp told Guardian Business that Nervous Waters has bought a stake in the lodge and now acts as a shareholder.

“They bought a substantial stake in the company,” he explained.

“That gives us the good housing seal of approval.”

Kemp said the lodge will also be open to the general public, although certain areas are meant for guests only, such as the cigar smoking room on the top floor.

Kemp estimated the initial cost of the project to be between $4 million and $5 million.

But beyond the exclusivity of one lodge, Orjan Lindroth the president of the development company behind Schooner Bay, added that this venture serves as a centerpiece for what should one day become a flourishing harbor town.

“The lodge sits at the head,” he told Guardian Business.

“It’s very important architecturally and creates that feel. It will become a meeting place for friends and family.”

Lindroth explained the idea behind the property is to create a “robust business model” that can cater to not just the tourists but the community as well.

As work on the lodge kicks into gear, Schooner Bay continues to rise up around it.

Lindroth said five houses are now complete, and another 10 are expected to be done in the late winter or early spring. Five other separate dwellings are slated to begin construction around Christmas.

A six-unit condominium unit, consisting of traditional buildings with both residential and commercial units, is breaking ground in February 2012, he added.

Several of these units have been sold already, with prices ranging from $250,000 to $350,000.

Lindroth said the pricing is meant to reflect the wide cross-section residents Schooner Bay wishes to attract.

The harbor opened in June, with the lodge resting at its mouth.

The name for the lodge, Lindroth added, came from Vaughn Cochran, the artist and owner of Black Fly Outfitters, which sells world-famous merchandise bearing his logo.

Cochran is also a shareholder in the new lodge.

Kemp called Cochran’s involvement and the Black Fly name a “lifestyle statement” lending further credibility to the project.

He said no other lodge like this exists in The Bahamas. What makes the venture particularly unique, he felt, was the fact the lodge is located in a community.

“This is the only one that incorporates itself into the community,” he said.

“To have a fishing lodge in a community where they can interact with people is important. It means a higher, more textured experience. As it becomes a living town, our guests will want to be a part of that.”

I’ve been thinking about getting into fly fishing. Aaahhhh, those are special words to hear to a fly shop owner. On the one hand, you know you’re in for a “groundhog day” type of conversation which can last anywhere from one to three hours, depending on if a fly casting lesson is part of the overall explanation of the art. On the other hand, you become the messenger for one of the most beautiful and rewarding sports you could ever take up…..you have the honor of changing someone’s life.

In the larger scope of someone’s life, taking up fly fishing probably won’t be the most important thing they’ve ever done, but I have witnessed behavioral changes and changes in attitude worth noting. “I sold all my huntin gear” said one young convert not long after he had crossed over some have divorced over the sport. I think what the essence of fly fishing amounts to is a progressive disease. It starts out with “It’s just fun to cast”. It really IS fun to cast and you can do it over and over and it’s still fun to cast no matter how long you do it. Even to this day, 30 years later, it’s still fun to cast!

Next….. you actually catch your first fish on a fly rod. Then you begin to understand what the fuss is all about!

The next momentous occasion is leaving all, I mean ALL of your spin gear at home, departing from the boat ramp with only a boat full of determination and your fly rod, never to look back. Braid and Gulp become words of your past.

Life goes on after this as you catch more and more fish. You check off the species of fish one by one that you’ve caught on your new rod. You develop new friends, join the local fly club for God’s sake and maybe even convert some of your old bait fishing buddies into devotees of the “long rod”. Worst of all you really don’t care anymore how many fish you catch. You just can’t wait to get out on the water again and take up the challenge of “the hunt, the cast and fooling the fish into eating your fly”. It just never gets old.

But the very best part of becoming a fly fisherman is thinking about all of the new rods, reels and tackle you’re going to need and how you’re going to hide them from your wife.

For years now the consensus among professional guides in the Bahamas for the best bonefsh fly has been the “Gotcha”. A famous fly with a great story to go with it. I’ve always heard it this way…. When Ted McVay and his son Jim were staying at the Andros Island Bonefish Club, Jim snipped some strands of carpet from the interior of their taxi as they were heading to the lodge and used them to tie a new fly. Every time a bonefish ate the fly, guide Rupert Leadon would say, “Gotcha.”

My fly box is loaded with these incredibly dependable flies and there are many, many colors now available since Ted tied the original, but the tan/pearl color works best for me. I always bring size 2 through 8 with bead chain eyes and another full set with lead eyes, and remember, the “sink rate” goal is for the bonefish fly to hit the bottom in two to three seconds no matter what the water depth is. No eyes required for tailers in really shallow water.

At the Black Fly Bonefish Club in Abaco, we’re thinking of naming our official welcoming drink the “Gotcha”, we just haven’t figured out what the ingredients should be. Two things we do know….(1) after two drinks it should live up to it’s name and (2) there should be rum involved.

The other candidate for world’s best bonefish fly, in my opinion, would be Veverka’s Mantis Shrimp….Bob Veverka that is. Bob’s quest for the missing “go to fly” yielded this tan beauty that we sell in the Black Fly Outfitter by the dozens. I use 4′s mostly but we sell size 2 and 6 just as well. On some Bahamian islands that I have been to, namely Mayaguana, the mantis shrimp is the only thing they’ll eat consistently. The lodges on Andros are big believers in this fly also.

This gives me an idea….send me your favorite choices and we’ll build the ultimate bonefish fly box. Send your suggestions to: blackflyoutfitter@gmail.com