Top Choice may be the best value in Saltwater Fly Fishing
Bain’s Top Choice Bonefish Lodge, Acklins Island, Bahamas is positioned at (22°32’13.41” N | 73°52’34.00” W), four hundred and fifty four miles south east of Miami. With Crooked Island forming the northern rim of the atoll, and Acklins the easterly rim, the interior covers better than two hundred and thirty square miles. Acklins Island itself offers more than fifty miles of flats and shorelines; ideal bonefish habitat.
This is one of the least-visited fisheries in the Bahamas, and about as far south as you can go without landing on the Turks and Caicos. The southerly location is significant when you consider the weather patterns that bring winters chill and harsh winds to the northern Bahamas. If you enjoy wading into position to make a precise presentation up close and personal, then this fishery should not be overlooked. It’s a wade fisherman’s dream, with shallow hard sand, crushed coral, and solid marl flats extending for miles.
Acklins Island is a multi-species destination, similar to what you would find at Christmas Island or the Indian Ocean fisheries. In addition to bonefish, there are healthy populations of permit, trigger fish, snapper, jacks and barracuda to pursue. This is an ideal location for anglers looking to check off some flats fishing species from their bucket list.
Reservations & Rates
Seasons at Top Choice
The weather & seasons Acklins island lies south of the Tropic of Cancer, with a moderate temperature range throughout the year. Summer daytime highs are in the high eighties, with winter highs in the low eighties. The island has a tropical climate, with light rain possible year-round. Due to its southerly location, Acklins island records half the annual rainfall that the northern Bahamian islands receive. The lodge fishes nearly year-round, with a short closure during the summer.
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January & February
A wide variety of fish can be caught early in the year. These are some of the best months for large bonefish and massive barracuda. There is the occasional cold front that passes to the north, but the southerly position of the atoll protects the flats from the cold north winds that move through the northern Bahamas.
March, April & May
These are peak months for hunting bonefish. The cold fronts of winter are gone and the tropical disturbances of summer are still months away. Days are long and filled with sunshine, the water is warm, and the air is comfortable.
Fall and early winter
If you are looking to stalk some of the biggest bones of the year and maybe of your life, plan a trip during the fall and early winter when the water temps of summer begin to cool. Fall air temperatures are very comfortable, with warm days and cool nights, making this time of year an excellent choice for serious
Getting to Top Choice
There are numerous daily commercial flights to Nassau from many U.S. cities. From Nassau, you fly via Bahamasair to the Spring Point Airport on Acklins Island (AXP).
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You will be greeted at the airport by the lodge staff for the ten minute drive to the lodge.
Wednesdays and Saturdays are designated arrival and departure days for the island via scheduled commercial service on Bahamasair.
Lodging at Top Choice
This tropical beachfront lodge is tranquil and quiet, hosting up to eight anglers in a comfortable and friendly atmosphere. Located on a pristine beach and shrouded in palm trees, this is the perfect retreat to relax with your friends after a day on the flats while you watch the sun sink into the west.
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Each spacious, air conditioned, double occupancy guest room has a private bathroom, two queen size beds, lounge area with a television, mini fridge, ceiling fans, cold purified water, all overlooking a dazzling white sand beach. Cell phone service functions throughout the island, wi-fi. is available in the lodge, and electricity functions twenty-four hours a day.
The dining room is well appointed and spacious, featuring regional Bahamian specialties for dinner, including fresh fillet of grouper, conch salad, and lobster from their local waters. Your breakfast and dinner may also be served at your preference, either in the dining room, or in the screened veranda overlooking the water.
Fishing at Top Choice
Acklins Island and several outer cays surround a perfect shallow water flats complex, home to an uncountable number of bonefish, and a variety of other species. The huge sand flats can be waded all day, unlike many destinations that flood the flats on high tide. Acklins bonefish are known to feed in extremely shallow water, especially at low tide, and approaching them on foot is typically the best method. Few moments in a fly fisher’s life are more focused than stalking and presenting to a lifetime best bonefish in ten inches of water.
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Permit are also present on the flats, along the channels, or feeding around mudding rays, and add a highlight to a week’s fishing. Triggerfish are found tailing on coral flats, and readily eat a well presented shrimp or small crab fly. Barracuda typically wait in ambush positions along the deeper channels that funnel water and food through the flats. Some of them are big, forty pounds and more. Several species of hard-fighting jacks inhabit area, including horse eye jacks, yellow jacks, and bar jacks. A trip to the tide channels to fish for mutton snapper, gray snapper, yellowtail snapper as well as cubera snapper, shark and grouper is an exciting option.
Wahoo, yellowfin tuna and dorado are target species for those anglers venturing offshore, with blue water depths just a few miles to the east of the island. The lodge has offshore center console boats available for anglers interested in targeting reef and offshore species. The center console vessels are also available to access other remote flats fisheries, providing a safe and comfortable ride.
A typical fishing day
Your morning’s coffee is available about sun-up. Breakfast is served in the dining room or in the screened-in veranda overlooking the water between 6:30 AM and 7:00 AM. The guides depart from the beach in front of the lodge around 8:00 AM, with the option of driving to distant locations on the island. An interesting alternative is to reserve one of their larger center console boats and motor to some distant cays to stalk fish that seldom see an angler. Lunch is packed in a cooler, including sandwiches, chips, cookies, fruit and beverages, and typically served on the boat. Cold Bahamian beers are always waiting to welcome thirsty anglers returning from the flats in the afternoon. Dinner is served around 7:00 PM, but can be scheduled earlier or later depending on group preferences.
What Makes This Destination Special and Unique?
● Acklins has easy and quick access to mile after mile of firm, light bottom flats, perfect for classic wade fishing for skinny water bones. If you like bonefishing on foot, this is one of the best. There are flats here that stretch to the horizon and you can wade and fish as far as your legs will take you.
● Acklins is a multi-species destination, similar to what you would find at Christmas Island or the Indian Ocean fisheries. In addition to bonefish, there are healthy populations of permit, trigger fish, snapper, jacks and barracuda to pursue. This is an ideal location for anglers looking to check off some flats fishing species from their bucket list.
● Top Choice Bonefish Lodge offers remote angling opportunities, at a small and intimate beachfront lodge. Accommodating only eight anglers at one time, you can be assured you will be well looked after.
● Acklins is an ideal location for late winter and early spring trips, as you are well south of most weather systems that move over the northern Bahamas. If you need a break from winter weather, Acklins is your “go to” flats fishing destination.
● Top Choice Bonefish Lodge is extremely affordable, one of the best values in the entire Bahamas and the saltwater fly fishing world. Don't expect anything fancy here, the emphasis at Top Choice is on hard-core flats fishing, in a remote location with comfortable lodging and hard working guides.
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