FISHING CUBA
Traveling to Cuba is much easier than most people realize. Getting to the string of uninhabited islands knows as the Jardines de la Reina, however, is not.
Spanish for “Gardens of the Queen” this chain of isles have not changed much since Christopher Columbus named them more than 500 years ago.
The archipelago is made up of more than 600 cays and islands and the undisturbed flats run on for miles and miles, resembling the Florida Keys in both size and fishing action. The big difference between the two being the amount of people there.
The Jardines represent one of the largest marine-protected reserves in the Caribbean and tourism is tightly regulated. The Keys, on the other hand, sees nearly 3 million visitors each year. Only 1,500 people are allowed to visit the Jardines annually 500 fishermen and 1,000 divers.
And, I was lucky enough to be one of those people for seven full days.
Worlds Away
Getting to the Jardines is not exactly easy. The islands, after all, are 50 miles off the southern coast of Cuba. And to get there you must first travel to Havana, which is usually done through Cancun, Mexico, or another city outside of the United States. Some travelers take advantage of a loophole that allows American missionaries to fly direct from Miami to Havana. To make that happen, you need a document signed by a church dignitary, which you can get, even if you're an atheist who only wants to fish. It just takes the right connections and a checkbook.
I took the first option and flew through Cancun where I met the rest of my group. Jim Klug, who owns and operates Yellow Dog Fly Fishing Adventures, put the trip together. Jim has been to Cuba several times and appeased all of our worries about traveling to this communist nation. From Cancun we boarded an Air Cubana flight to Havana where we'd spend the night at the super-swank Hotel Parque Central.
If you envision Havana as a poor, destitute city, think again. Havana is alive with hip-shaking music, late-night parties, incredible artwork, cobblestone streets, colorful colonial buildings, museums, and it's chock full of tourists. There is definitely poverty present on nearly every street corner, but the city has an eclectic feel and gorgeous architecture. But everything could use a good pressure wash.
After a late night at the Café de la Musica, we boarded a bus at 4 a.m. to take us to Jucaro, a small town on the southern central portion of Cuba. The bus ride took five-plus hours, rolling through Cuba's inland farm towns on small, sometimes unpaved roads. The bus had air-conditioning and comfortable seats but that's about all I can tell you. We “played through” the night before and went right from the party to the bus. Our group slept the entire way to Jucaro which turned out to be a blessing that I wouldn't realize until it was time to take the bus back to Havana.
Once in Jucaro, we boarded a gutted motor yacht that was converted into a ferry to run us through the crystal-blue waters, finally ending at the Tortuga, a houseboat that would serve as home base for our crew over the next six nights. The boat ride took an additional five or six hours.
The total travel time to get to the Jardines de la Reina from U.S. soil took more than 48 hours and we were less than 150 miles from Florida but world's away from civilization.
Your Own Playground
The Tortuga houseboat operation is owned and operated by Avalon Cuban Fishing Centers. For some 20 years, this Italian-owned company has held the exclusive rights to fish in the Jardines, which are protected as a national refuge. Avalon is the only operation in the entire archipelago. I don't know how they did it, but they hold the keys to one of the most incredible fisheries left on Earth.
The first time we pulled up to the Tortuga was like discovering an oasis in a vast watery desert. The Tortuga itself is an updated 110-foot steel vessel that once housed workers in the Gulf of Mexico's oil industry. It's two stories high, with seven staterooms, large decks both fore and aft and a massive dining room and kitchen. Each stateroom has its own head with shower and cold-blowing A/C. These were unbelievable accommodations considering how far removed we were. We even had wi-fi.
The staff feeds you a never-ending supply of fresh seafood and lobster each day and the abundant supply of ice-cold Cristal beers and Havana Club mojitos kept us up well past curfew most every night. But we didn't come all this way to eat and drink… We came to catch fish.
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