KICK ASS FISHING TRIPS
TAIMEN
Eg River, Mongolia
BONEFISH
Christmas Island
TAIMEN A member of the trout
family, taimen will take dry
flies like a 10-inch brookie.
Only multiply your quarry’s
size by five and you have a
clearer picture of what you’re
after. Which is an entirely
different beast than a dainty
little brook trout. Yes, it’s true
taimen reach 50-inches and
readily take flies with
abandon. These highly
cannibalistic fish, also called
Siberian salmon, are some of
the most exotic in the Far East.
BEST TRIP TO TAKE Travel to
Mongolia and fish the Eg River.
You won’t be disappointed.
ROOSTER FISH They prowl the
ocean shallows in constant
search of food and at times
become so blinded by the
urge to feed they attack flies
with reckless abandon. There
are also times they are skittish
as a whore in church; but once
hooked, they’ll skedaddle to
the open ocean faster than a
runaway locomotive. The fun
is trying to stop them!
BEST TRIP TO TAKE East Cape of
Mexico.
GOLDEN DORADO With an
attitude of a cage fighter
and teeth like razor blades,
who wouldn’t want to tangle
with a golden Dorado? They
feed ferociously on baitfish
and will take a fly with the
tenacity of a pit bull. And once
they’re hooked you will be
hard-pressed to find a fish that
fights harder pound for pound.
BEST TRIP TO TAKE You won’t find
them in colder temperatures
which means you’ll have to
head to Argentina or Bolivia. It’s
a toss up on which is better. If
you go to Argentina, check out
the Parana River. If you set your
sights on Bolivia, it’ll be in the
Amazon’s Secure River.
SEA-RUN BROWNS A brown
trout that weights 20 or more
pounds that acts very much
like a steelhead? And you pur-
sue them with two-handed
rods casting flies as big as hot
dogs in the fiercest of winds
in South America? Huh? It’s
true. And once they’re hooked
they’ll tow back into the
Atlantic Ocean if you’re not
careful.
BEST TRIP TO TAKE Fly to Tierra
del Fuego in South America
and fish the Rio Grande River.
You won’t find better sea-run
brown fishing anywhere else.
PERMIT Considered the most
difficult fish to catch on a fly,
a permit is also one of the
fastest swimming fish alive.
Which means once you hook
one, you’ll be in for the ride of
your life. It is not unheard of
that permit can peel off 150
yards of line and backing in
a New York minute. Factor in
that they’re extremely difficult
to catch, not to mention land,
and you have the makings of
the holy grail of saltwater fly
fishing.
BEST TRIP TO TAKE If you want to
stay stateside, head to Florida
and fish Key West. If you want
to experience permit greatness,
travel to Belize. Specifically
head to Turneffe Flats.
TARPON There are two primary
reasons you’ll love fishing for
tarpon: they’re huge and they
jump like Spud Web in the
Slam Dunk Contest. With a
mouth made up primarily of
bone getting a hook to
penetrate is the most difficult
task. Once you accomplish that
you can expect an aerial
display and a fight the likes
you’ve never seen (or felt)
before.
BEST TRIP TO TAKE Lack of
pressure, and good numbers of
tarpon, puts Mexico at the top
the list. Specifically, Isla Holbox,
which is a three-hour ride from
Cancun.
BONEFISH Not necessarily dif-
ficult to catch, bonefish should
be on your bucket list for the
sheer sake of where you have
to travel to catch them. Places
like Christmas Island, the Ba-
hamas, Costa Rica and Mexico
all come to mind. Once you
picture yourself wading the
flats you’ll agree that spending
time in these tropical places
is worth it. Thro