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Stretching southwest in a great semicircle from the west point of Long Island, lies a chain of beautiful and deserted cays. The Jumento Cays arc south some ninety miles, until they terminate at Ragged Island. Ragged Island has only one town, a remote settlement of 60 people who meagerly live on what the surrounding ocean provides. There are no scheduled commercial flights to Ragged Island and the pace of life is measured by the lunar tides and the ocean's bounty. Only a few of the local islanders own cars and with good reason... on Ragged there are only a couple of poorly maintained roads that form a loop through "town". The ocean provides a simple life for these natives and the big event each week is when the mail boat arrives on Thursday. With only an occasional sailboat ever reaching these cays, the extensive flats, patch reefs and sandy pockets sit waiting, untouched and absolutely pristine. This is truly an untapped paradise for the light tackle sport fisherman.
Anglers visiting Ragged Island have two fishing options:
A.) Fish unguided and on your schedule. During your week, you will have a boat and driver at your disposal. This water taxi will take you to specific areas based on tide, moon phase and your wishes. You will be responsible for your fishing success or failure making this the ultimate bonefishing challenge! Our pre-trip materials will give you a chart of the area and some "hints" that will help you to successfully explore this fishery. This information is designed to be a shortcut and eliminate the the time needed to learn how, where and when the bonefish move on Ragged Island's flats. Our goal is for you to have enough information to be successful while still enjoying the challenges of a self-guided adventure. Proper safety protocols will be strictly observed (anglers always will fish in pairs and have VHF radios and redundant cell phones). Your boatman will be "on-call" to help anglers move about the area. But make no mistake, this program on Ragged Island is designed for self-sufficient fishermen who have the skills and the desire to fish on their own and can live with the results ($1895 plus $325 for the R/T charter flight).
B.) Spend the week fishing with one of Ragged Island's native guides. The big advantage to fishing with a guide is that you are sure to be on the right flats at the right tide with someone who can expertly spot fish and assist you. Both of the local guides the lodge uses have lived on Ragged Island their whole lives and know the patterns of how the bonefish move throughout the monthly lunar cycle. This fully guided option offers anglers who need a little assistance a great opportunity to maximize their fishing results during a week on the island ($2670 plus $325 for the R/T charter flight).
The main target for most anglers will be Ragged Island's bonefish. Bonefish are abundant and uneducated here. 'Cudas are prolific and permit are sometimes seen on the deeper flats. These permit are usually on the edges sometimes cruising on the backs of rays as they look for leftovers. All of the fishing on Ragged Island is done by wading the many beautiful and firmly compacted white sand flats. Our boatmen use well-maintained, brand-new, state-of-the-art Beavertail skiffs to take you to the various flats. These high-tech 495 lb. boats are able to silently approach flats in 6-7" of water. These great boats will quietly put you on the right flat at the right time! Better yet, when it's time to leave, the hydraulic jack plate on the boat allows the guide to get up on plane in depths as skinny as 10 inches. These features translate into more fishing time during your day since you won't spend so much time poling or idling off the flats on the way to the next chosen spot!
Many of the area's flats can be accessed without a boat ride via a short walk or ride from your lodging. Off-road golf carts will be available to cruise to local flats or explore areas during the golden evening hours or on your arrival day. These options give guests the ability to fully enjoy this small island paradise and actually get in a full seven days of fishing! So if you've ever dreamed of remote, rarely fished islands, where it's just you and the bonefish, this is your chance!
The Ragged Island Lodge is brand new and has all the amenities any angler might need for a comfortable stay. The facility was built on a hill to take advantage of cooling breezes and to provide a scenic east-side view. The rooms are clean and comfortable with air-conditioning, tile floors and private baths with showers. The lounge area includes a full bar where you can enjoy conch fritters and a cold Kalik beer while you watch the 52' flat screen satellite TV or tie flies at the well-stocked tying bench. Cold breakfast including cereal, yogurt and muffins will be served while on Ragged Island. Cooler lunches are taken beachside, between casts on your schedule. Dinners will include chicken, pork and local seafood prepared in the Bahamian family "out-island" style. All the water for the lodge is produced and filtered by a reverse osmosis system, allowing guests to have bottled quality water right from their bathroom taps.
For those interested in reef and bluewater opportunities, the lodge owns a 31-foot "Contender" center console sport-fisher mounted with twin Yamaha 250 h.p. engines. This craft gives anglers on Ragged Island the ability to successfully pursue, weather permitting, all of the marquee blue water gamefish (tuna, dorado, kingfish, wahoo and others) that ply the local offshore waters. This boat also allows fishermen to probe the many patch reefs for snapper, 'cudas and jacks. Interested anglers can arrange this "a la carte" inshore/offshore option for an additional fee.
We are really excited about Ragged Island Lodge and think it offers adventuresome anglers superb fishing opportunities. Ragged Island Lodge offers an exceptional value and is perfect for those who love wild and untamed locations and can roll with a few rough edges. Bonefish, 'cuda and permit on the flats, kingfish, tuna, dorado and wahoo in the "big blue" and a wide variety of snappers and jacks on the reefs all await fishermen who make the journey to tiny Ragged Island. Give us a call and we’ll be happy to mail you a full DVD with additional information, slide show and a short video.
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