Fishing Cuba... The report.

[Greenheart]

Totally agree mate. It's just the local beer that spoils it.... Oh & the Yorkshire natives don't speak such good English as the Cubans....

[gullyworm]

Originally Posted by Greenheart

Totally agree mate. It's just the local beer that spoils it.... Oh & the Yorkshire natives don't speak such good English as the Cubans....

LOL

[cowie]

good report mate and glad you enjoyed the holiday and the fishing,am booked for a fortnight next may and can't wait,would you go back?
the area you went to isn't really the fishing hotspot,but like you say once you get over the reefs,anything can show up,most of those fish looked like cubera snapper i think.

[biggun]

Originally Posted by gullyworm

WOW!
Ian that looked and sounded great.Ive caught lots of those orange fish in the Gulf.
Have you been to the East Yorks coast?Its very simular.

This could be Hessle beach viewed from the Humber bridge! I can just see Clive Sullivan Way winding it's way through the trees!

[Greenheart]

Originally Posted by cowie

good report mate and glad you enjoyed the holiday and the fishing,am booked for a fortnight next may and can't wait,would you go back?
the area you went to isn't really the fishing hotspot,but like you say once you get over the reefs,anything can show up,most of those fish looked like cubera snapper i think.

I'd Definately go back Cowie. The beaches, countryside & people were fantastic. The only thing that I was'nt impressed with was the food. We found it very bland. By the time we got home, we had a real craving for something with a bit of Chilli & Garlic. India & Thailand are definately tops for that. I think the next place we try will be Vietnam.

[cowie]

yea i'd agree with you about the food mate,but we had enough variety,plus the beachside grills were fab for fresh snapper and lobster so we were more than happy,what has to be remembered is that it's still pretty much a 3rd world country what with the imbargo's placed on it.

[Greenheart]

Originally Posted by cowie

yea i'd agree with you about the food mate,but we had enough variety,plus the beachside grills were fab for fresh snapper and lobster so we were more than happy,what has to be remembered is that it's still pretty much a 3rd world country what with the imbargo's placed on it.

We went there with an open mind, so we wer'nt too concerned. It's just that we saw loads of Chillie's & Garlic on the street markets, but it was conspicous by it's absence in the food that we tried. This supprised us as we were expecting to find some Spanish influence from their colonial past. The Coffee however was some of the Best i'd ever tasted. I'd put it on a Par with Jamaican Blue mountain & Kenyan Peabody.

[Vagabond]

I just can't believe I have overlooked this thread for ten days !

A fabulous place, Cuba, high on our list of "places to go back to"

First, a splendid and interesting report, and well done on the king mackerel - sizzling pace, and stamina with it - like all the mackerel and tuna family.

Now, the smaller fish.

The pink striped fish in your first photo is a Squirrelfish, but whether a Long-spined or a Common I can't say without seeing the dorsal fin (which has spines as you discovered!)

The fish on the black plastic sheet - the one with its nose just touching the RH edge is a snapper - most probably Grey Snapper. The yellow-brown fish just below and to the left of the snapper is a French Grunt - very common in the Caribbean - note the longitudinal stripes on the back and the diagonal stripes on the side. Below and to the left of the French Grunt is a Yellowhead Wrasse (greenish yellow on top of head and dark body band)

The bite-off......know the feeling.....




Food - The Cubans seem to think Europeans can't tolerate spices. All the hotel food we ate there was bland - never seen so much coleslaw in my life.

Went out with some Cubans, we stopped by a shellfish stall. They told me not to try the chillie sauce -it was "too hot".

Tried a few drops, it was fine, so put about half a fluid ounce on my clams. Raised eyebrows from the Cubans and a new respect!

Still got coleslaw back at the hotel though....

Talking of embargos - some things were in very short supply, but there was plenty of marmalade at breakfast. "Made in Belguim" it said on the label.

Outside there were orange trees as far as the eye could see. Its a queer old world !



Oh yes, and at the Bodega de Medio (Ernest Hemingway's old stamping ground) in Havana I was given a free drink because the boss thought I looked like Papa Hemingway himself.

With a free drink every fifteen minutes and one of the bar girls on my knee I could have spent the rest of my life there but Certhia thought otherwise....

[Greenheart]

Cheers for the fish I.Ds Vagabond. I think the squirrel fish was the long spined variety. I saw a lot when snorkeling. They all appeared to have long dorsal spines. They were always sat at the mouth of small caves in the coral. Only saw one small Barracuda when diving, but they were obviously close by somewhere judging by the number of fish heads we pulled in. Also saw a lot of large yellow snapper. Did'nt catch any though. Had a few Cuba Libres in the bar that you spoke of too. Havanna's a fun place.

[tommy a]

Nice one Mr Greenhart sounds like a brilliant holiday and thanks for sharing with us !