signmansez

What a trip! There were 12 of us this trip. We rented 2 houses. One on the water and one on the beach (sort of). We rented 2 boats. (first time in 20 years we didn't take our boat). Weather was fantastic. Mostly sunny with the occasional t-storm and squall to keep things interesting. Water was crystal clear and not much of a current which proved great for bottom dropping.

We left out of Sanford aboard Air Unlimited. It's as close to flying private as you can get. $680 r/t per person. Drop your bags, park your car and wait in the hangar until the plane is loaded and your are ready to go! No security lines, no baggage lines, no bs about what you can or cannot bring. We brought rods/reels, tackle, beer (not enough) etc. We loaded up onto a pair of King Airs' and were off to the Abacos! An hour and ten minutes later we landed in Marsh, cleared quickly through customs and off to Cj's to get our rental boats.

signmansez

We had reserved a 26' Dusky and a 33' Donzi. Both had newer Suzuki 250's. We checked out the boats, took videos of the props and previous scratches and damage and headed off to Guana! All before Noon! What a deal for me. No more slugging it across the Gulf Stream for 6 hours. No more trailering two hour to Ft. Pierce. No more knots in the stomach worrying about weather, breakdowns, rough seas ,etc.
This is the way to go! It's like gaining an extra day or two of vacation.

Reel Lucky LHP

When are you coming back this way, I need to hear about this over a cold one. Sounds like an absolute blast.

r_ventura_23

Pics and we didn't even have to ask!

signmansez

Once on Guana we hooked up with my buddy Darvin. He is the go to guy for property rentals and golf carts. We did a bit of catching up and he let us know that both houses were ready so we docked both boats at the Merlot Cottage and and the girls brought the carts around. After unloading and getting settled in we all hopped into the Donzi and went for a ride. The 4 boys had never been to the Abacos and all are fishing fools! I said bring some rods and light dropping tackle and we will get some groceries for the evening.

I quickly boated us to one of my hotspots and we were soon catching the nights dinner! We caught a mixed bag of triggers, groupers and small yellowtails. The boys wanted to get into something more substantial so we boated out further and dropped down. Immediately hooked up on something BIG! Then bam it went dead. There was still something on the line but no struggle. To the surface comes the head of a giant mutton! Taxman got his share on the bottom but we still got a few pounds of meat from the head.

Captain_Dave

I like this thread already. Subscribed and thanks for sharing your experience.

signmansez

The next day the boys wanted to do some trolling. It was later in the season but I ran into Ricky Sands and he said the Blackfin were thick on the reef in the morning and the afternoon. Yellowfins were 50 miles out, too far for our rental boat. Boys got us rigged for trolling and off we went early the next morning. I had brought over 4 dozen frozen ballyhoo and an assortment of plugs and lures. We put out a spread and started trolling out front of Guana in about 180'. I also brought my stabileyes binoculars and they did the trick! We spotted birds working about a mile away and ran that way. Bam, bam, bam, were hooked up to 3 nice blackfins! We got a few more and headed back for the house to get the ladies and shove off for our days adventure.

signmansez

The rest of the week was filled with trips to Pineapples on GTC. Unfortunately the day we were headed there we learned Steven the cook had passed away the night before so the folks working there were very sad. We all actually joined hands at the bar and the girls behind the bar said a prayer. It was a sobering moment and the girls behind the bar really appreciated the respect that was shown for Steven.
Little James and Emily were happy as usual to see us and we brought them some gifts including a pineapple float which they loved! They even taught one of our party to paddle board although they were hellbent on making him fall over!

signmansez

Of course no trip to the Abacos would be complete without a stop at the Albury Sail Shop to donate to the local economy. I dropped some stickers off for one of the winners of my Abaco sticker hunt game, Gary wasn't there but I found his cousin and she got them to him. Nippers, Treasure Sands, Cracker P's, Kandi's Island, Manjack, Treasure Cay, Hope Town and Pete's Pub were all on the itinerary for the week and we hit them all! I will post up more pics when I have a moment. Till then Enjoy!

signmansez

signmansez

signmansez

Seriously....you're gonna pee on Robert while he's floating???


When Nature calls!

signmansez

More from the Abacos.....

signmansez

If you're a Miller Lite drinker you better stock up prior to heading over! These were the treasures found on Treasure Cay! And of course it is an import! $8 a can!

signmansez

Treasure Sands...bring your wallet and your buddy's wallet too!

signmansez

Some sad news for those that frequent Guana...Milo passed away from a heart attack in June. We went to his memorial service. Sad day for the island. He will be missed.

signmansez

Had a funny thing happen while soaking at Tahiti Beach one day. Place was packed but everyone was respectful, nobody was trying to be the loudest stereo in the Abacos. Anyway my buddy had brought his little Selfly personal drone. More of an indoor type drone that snaps to the back of your iPhone case. Pretty neat little bugger. Well he was in the water with his phone and had it in a water proof case. His wife had the drone on the boat, no wind and he has it takeoff from her hand. Drone goes up about 10 feet, taking video of our group. He then tries to command it to go around the boat and the group but it heads off towards Cracker P's....and keeps going. His hands were wet and the phone wouldn't respond to his touch commands!!!! Ha, we waved goodbye as the little fella headed off for greener pastures.
I don't think I have seen my wife laugh so hard in our entire time together. We were able to capture a littler bit of video before it signed off. Here's some more pics....

signmansez

So to keep the trip interesting, I checked the weather for the plane ride home in the morning. Looked a bit sporty. Here is the view of Guana from the air, seems peaceful enough in this pic. Well about 30 minutes after this pic we were dodging a huge line of severe storms that was stacked up from the Abacos to the coast of Florida. We went around most of it but at some point the pilot had to punch through.

So for about 15 minutes I wished I was back on the boat going ten rounds with Tyson! Bumpy wasn't a strong enough word to describe the roller coaster ride we had. At one point the pilot let out a big YA HOOOO! Like he was going 8 seconds on some nasty ol' bull! Anyway we made it and none to soon as the storms closed in around the airport right after we landed.


We met THT member Vic (VC) and crew in Hope Town one day, finally! Been trying to hook up for years it seems like. Great guy and crew. He was supposed to head back the same morning as we flew out. I am betting he waited till Sunday. I am sure he will chime in here and fill in the blanks.

All in all we had a tremendous trip and have already booked for next year! I will post more pics and stories and time allows. Enjoy!

Oh and for those that want to play the Abaco Sticker game here is the link to the rules. There is still a Grizzly Soft Side cooler up for grabs!

Abaco Sticker Game...WIN A GRIZZLY COOLER!

Gator

Great stuff!

C Skip R

Nice report. Sorry we missed you in Hopetown. Victor came back on Saturday as we did as well. Friend ran the 22 Robalo back and I ran the Cabo. Long day to say the least. As with you the weather was great this year. Did catch a nice white marlin this year.