Ragged Island Lodge

Stretching southwest in a great semicircle from the west point of Long Island, lies a chain of beautiful and deserted cays. The Jumento Cays arc south some ninety miles, until they terminate at Ragged Island. Ragged Island has only one town, a remote settlement of 60 people who meagerly live on what the surrounding ocean provides. There are no scheduled commercial flights to Ragged Island and the pace of life is measured by the lunar tides and the ocean's bounty. Only a few of the local islanders own cars and with good reason... on Ragged there are only a couple of poorly maintained roads that form a loop through "town". The ocean provides a simple life for these natives and the big event each week is when the mail boat arrives on Thursday. With only an occasional sailboat ever reaching these cays, the extensive flats, patch reefs and sandy pockets sit waiting, untouched and absolutely pristine. This is truly an untapped paradise for the light tackle sport fisherman.

The club was built on a hill to take advantage of cooling breezes and to provide a scenic view. The rooms are clean and comfortable with air-conditioning, tile floors and private baths. The lounge area includes a full bar where you can enjoy conch fritters and a cold Kalik beer while you watch the flat screen satellite TV or tie flies at the tying bench. Meals will include chicken, steaks and local seafood prepared in the Bahamian out-island style. All the water for the lodge is produced and filtered by two reverse osmosis systems, allowing guests to have bottled quality water right from their bathroom taps.

Our American lodge manager, has the necessary experience to ensure that your visit to Ragged Island is great. Our manager knows Ragged Island’s secrets: from how the tides govern the fish to tying the correct flies. We feel confident that his expertise will help pave the way for great fishing. Our manager works well with the local boatmen (who take you to the fishing grounds) and his easy going nature will put you at ease.

As most savvy anglers know, tides govern the movements of the bonefish and permit. Ragged Island boatmen know their habitat really well and can find fish on almost all stages of the tide. However, sometimes it’s best to break up your fishing day by either getting up early or staying out late. Our manager is prepared for this sort of event and is happy to accommodate anglers during unusual tide profiles or if unexpected winds play havoc with your tides during your stay on the island. Shifting your fishing day can mean the difference between bust and bonanza.

Our boatmen use well-maintained, brand-new, state-of-the-art Beavertail skiffs to take you to the various flats. If you have never spent a day hunting silvertails out of one of these 18-foot gems you are in for a treat! These high-tech 495 lb. boats are able to silently approach tailing fish in 6-7” of water! Better yet, when it’s time to leave, the hydraulic jack plate on the boat allows the guide to get up on plane in depths as skinny as 11 to 14 inches. These features translate into more fishing time during your day since you won’t spend so much time idling off the flats! In addition, the lodge has a 20-foot Albury center console that sports a brand new Yamaha 200 h.p. engine. This gives anglers on Ragged Island the ability to successfully pursue, weather permitting, all of the marquee gamefish that ply the local waters, both inshore and offshore.

Of course, the main target is Ragged’s bonefish. Bonefish are abundant and uneducated here. Most of the fishing in the Ragged Islands is done by wading the many beautiful and firmly compacted white sand flats. The softer flats can be poled by the boatmen, as will many of the deeper permit flats. Permit are often seen on these deeper flats sometimes cruising on the backs of rays looking for leftovers. As mentioned earlier, interested fishermen, can also fish the many patch reefs for snapper, ‘cudas and jacks or explore the blue water searching for tuna, dolphin, kingfish and wahoo. Off-road golf carts will be available to cruise to local flats or explore areas during the golden evening hours. These options give guests the ability to fully enjoy this small island paradise. So if you’ve ever dreamed of remote, rarely fished islands, this is your chance! One final note: angling on Ragged Island is not fully “guided” in the conventional sense. The boatmen know how to find fish and where the best flats are, but if you are expecting Andros quality guides, this is not the destination for you.

We are really excited about Ragged Island Lodge and think it offers superb fishing for adventuresome anglers who love wild and untamed locations and don’t mind a few rough edges. Bonefish, ‘cuda, permit on the flats and the possibility of kingfish, tuna, dorado, wahoo and a host of other great gamefish in the ‘big blue” await fishermen who make the journey to tiny Ragged Island.


PACKAGE RATES/ PERSON    2009
Double Occupancy Single Occupancy Days / Nights
$2,395.00 $3,495.00 4 / 5
$2,995.00 $3,995.00 6 / 7

Ragged Island Lodge weeks run Friday to Friday. The above price includes the private charter to and from Ragged Island from Georgetown in the Exuma Islands. The Friday charter flight leaves from Georgetown, Exuma at 9:30 AM and arrives into Ragged Island at about 10:00 AM. Anglers should plan on departing Ragged Island the following Friday at about 10:30 am, returning into Gerogetown, Exuma at about 11:00 PM. Make sure you leave plenty of connection time in Exuma prior to boarding your flight home to the states. There are flights into Georgetown in the Exumas from Ft. Lauderdale (Gulfstream owned by Continental Airlines), Miami (American Eagle) and Nassau (Bahamasair).

Terms and Conditions
A deposit of 50% is required within 15 days of booking to confirm a reservation. The balance is due 60 days prior to arrival.  Credit cards are accepted; however, there will be a 4% service charge for the use of a credit card. Deposit is refundable, less a $100 per person processing fee, if written cancellation is received at least 90 days prior to the trip. A 50% refund will be made to client if written cancellation is received 31-89 days prior to the trip, and no refund will be made if written cancellation is received 30 days or less prior to the trip, unless a substitute angler is found, in which case a full refund will be made less a $100 processing fee.    Receipt of deposit is acknowledgment that registrant has read and accepts the cancellation/refund and responsibility clauses.

Because many deposits and final payments for trip packages may be non-refundable (see above,) it is highly recommended that you purchase trip insurance in the event that you have to cancel, postpone or reschedule your trip for any reason. This is the only way that we can assist you with compensation for a cancelled trip. For more information or for assistance in purchasing trip insurance, please contact CCO Fly Fishing/Cattaraugus Creek Outfitters

Cattaraugus Creek Outfitters acts only as agents for contractors or owners and outfitters, airlines, charter air, and ground transportation carriers or other services. Payment of funds for fishing and other Cattaraugus Creek Outfitters trips shall be deemed acceptance and consent of the following conditions. Cattaraugus Creek Outfitters or any of its affiliates or associated companies shall not be held liable for any loss or damages howsoever caused or arising from services provided by hotels or lodges, outfitters, guides, means of transportation or other services. Baggage and personal effects are the sole responsibility of the traveling client at all times.