From May – October, my friend’s parents leave the Florida Keys for the cooler climate of some Costa Rican Mountain. It’s a retirement lifestyle that many lower Keys locals dream of. A day or two after they leave, the weather stabilizes for the spring, the tarpon show up, and two dudes from Naples in an old truck towing an even older boat, pull into the driveway of a vacant stilt home, and move a bunch of crap into a “room” under it. We call that “room” Rathole Studios, and its our “base camp” for “operations”. Yeah, there is a rat or two around and it doesn’t always have power, water, a/c, internet, or tv. It ain’t much, but if you think about it, it’s probably every fly fisherman’s wet dream.Throughout the spring and summer the time we spend in the Rathole is dictated by the weather and the fishing, until July, when we “hole up” for the month, fish hard, and put together our video for the Drake Magazine Video Awards.This July, Jeff and I met up with Willy during a busy stretch in his guide schedule, and since I had already gotten a head start on the editing, we had some time to burn. By burn I mean fish. We kept Jeff’s little Whipray tied to the dock, 20 feet from the Rathole, and took advantage of the good weather and tides. The goal was to get Jeff his first permit on fly, a quest that started last year.There should have been more pressure on Jeff, since we fished hard for 30 days straight last year without catching one, but for some reason there just wasn’t. In all honesty, there wasn’t even any time to think about it. We jumped in the boat, and ran to a flat. We really didn’t know where we were, but the area had all the makings of a fishy spot. Jeff jumped up front, I poled about 100 feet, saw a tail, and made Jeff get out of the boat and sneak up on it. He made 5 false casts, each one graciously slapping the water, and found a way to get the fly to land softly 2 feet next to the fish’s head. I cringed in horror of what I just saw, as the fish hammered the fly. I looked back at Jeff, who with a look of utter panic on his face, came tight, got the fish on the reel, and climbed back up on the boat. I motored after the fish, maybe more for effect than necessity, and grabbed the camera as Jeff tailed his permit on the third attempt. We were all fired up, and back to the dock before noon. I got one too.During the next three weeks the fishing was nothing less than epic, and the video we were editing, well, I can’t wait to show it.
I’ve been fortunate enough to see and actually sleep in “Rathole Studios” for a few nights .. although, if I remember correctly there wasn’t room for me in the actual “Rathole” so I slept on a couch outside. And, you ain’t kiddin’ when you say “it ain’t much but its probably every fly fisherman’s dream” … what else do you need, really? Flats in every direction, permit and bones and tarpon in every direction too, surrounded by friends who know every inch of those flats like the back of their hands and not enough time in the day to fish as much as you’d like too .. Congrats on the permit Jeff! Can’t wait to see the World Angling film creation in this years Drake Film Festival. And can’t wait to get down there and fish with you guys again … I don’t require much just a couch on the lawn and some cheese to nibble on at night outside of “rathole studios” .. and perhaps some instant coffee and a few packs of smokes .. nice work guys!
It sounds epic…30 days straight! You certainly put in the effort. Congrats, and looking forward to the video…send us a link when you have a preview available.
Jim
Glad you are out of the rathole. Congrats to Jeff on his first permy, after 30 fishless days, grabbing that tail must have been quite a moment. looking forward to the vid you are putting together, they never dissapoint. Would love to head your direction soon, it’s been awhile.
Sounds like you’re in the groove now, Dave. Congratulations on the multi-Permit tour. Hats off to you and Jeff.
Nice work boys looking forward to seeing your short for the Drake.
How crazy is it how so many times all the prep in the world and killer casting and the perfect fly and great presentations blah, blah blah etc. and no fish caught. Then you go out to a spot with zero expectations someone struggles to get the fly out and one of the most difficult fish to catch pounces on it and the fish is landed. Great story and i have had my share of couch surfing in various ratholes chasing various species always well worth it! Hope to share a rathole with you some day Dave…