May 2006
Greeting from Vieques.
After a decade of guiding anglers on the flats of Key West, I
found myself blessed with a great core of repeat customers.
Every year I could count on at least three dozen regulars to
book me for the four month bulk of tarpon season and beyond.
Some of these guys (and girls) had great success with me. Others
were skunked continuously but enjoyed the experience enough to
come back for more. Most anglers fell somewhere in between.
Leaving Key West (and my anglers) for Vieques meant leaving a
guaranteed income behind that had taken years to build.
My last season in South Florida was full of saying thanks to all
of my regulars and handing them off to a couple of guide friends
for their future trips to Key West. Every one of them expressed
an interest in coming down to Vieques to fish with me in the
future, and I was happy to let them know that my boat would be
waiting. I wasn’t sure what to expect when Amanda and I moved
here, but I was thrilled when my new website went up and the
e-mailbox began filling with some familiar names.
So far this year I’ve welcomed over half a dozen anglers to
Vieques who have fished with me before in Key West. Molly and
Richard from Washington, Big Al from Manhattan, Charley and
Chris from Ohio, and several others all made the trip down here
after listening to me talk up the island during my last season
in the Keys. None of them had been fishing in Puerto Rico before
and they all left with a real affection for Vieques and it’s
people that I’m sure will bring them back again and again.
These anglers all come from different backgrounds, from North
Pacific school teachers to New York City executives, but in my
book they all have one thing in common, they’re my fishing
buddies. As a guide, a first time angler is a paycheck. When
they come back year after year, they become friends. And getting
paid to go fishing with your friends is the greatest job anyone
can have.
Just this past week I welcomed two of my favorite fishing
buddies on their first trip to Puerto Rico, Jerry Buscemi and
Jerry Mallaber, along with their wives Lois and Mary Anne, from
Rochester, New York. The Jerrys, as I call them, were hooked on
flats fishing from the word go and I’ve had some of my best days
on the water in Key West with them, landing some of the biggest
barracuda I’ve ever seen. Fishing with Jerry and Jerry was just
as good on the slow days, as they seemed to appreciate being out
on the shallows more than any other anglers I’ve had as
charters.
Their first trip down here to Vieques didn’t rewrite the record
book from our Florida times, but after three days the guys
managed to go home with a couple nice bonefish under their belts
along with a handful of other great hook-ups. We put a few
tarpon in the air, had some good shots at permit, and landed
several beautiful mutton snapper. This is a rare flats species
that has almost been fished out of the shallows off Key West,
but is still abundant on the Puerto Rican flats.
More important than anything, I believe the guys and their wives
had a fantastic time in Vieques. They enjoyed the food, scenery,
and great people of this unique island, on top of the new
fishing grounds I managed to show them. This group is the exact
type of tourist I hope Vieques will embrace. They spent their
money in the usual places but never isolated themselves from the
lifelong residents. We dined at Bravos Beach Hotel and had beers
at La Nasa and Al’s in the same week and enjoyed them all
equally.
The Jerrys came to Vieques after half a dozen great years in Key
West and I‘m more than grateful for this. They were counting on
me to help land them a few fish in some new waters, which I did.
Although I’ve done better in the past, they’re trip didn’t
disappoint me at all. Vieques stepped up to the plate and made
their vacation a success just by being what it is.
The gang from Rochester will be back and this is definitely a
win-win situation for everybody. The island will see the return
of four of the most easy-going tourists anywhere, the Jerrys
will have a second crack at the tarpon of Vieques, and I’ll get
to spend some more time on the water with two of my favorite
fishing buddies. What more could we all ask for?
Capt. Gregg McKee,
WildFly Charters
