Belize Fishing Lodge & Fly Fishing

Good evening Misha, we had a blast on our visit to BRL!!!!We can not thank you enough for helping us put together a trip of a lifetime. Mike and Marguerite are the greatest of hosts and the staff are always on point with whatever we needed or answered our questions without a blink. The guides are phenomenal, with spent the trip with Jamal. He was Lisa’s best friend, took care of her the whole trip. Dennis was with 2 young guys from Florida and he was always around in the mornings with a quick Hello and need anything. Pedro was a trip! I spent a little time with him in the early AM and he is cool guy to listen to. We are still thinking about the 13th of March for another trip. Thank you again and Happy Holidays,

Writer and photographer David Mailland and Nick from France each landed Grand Slams of Bonefish, Tarpon and Snook their first time fishing in Belize. We are looking forward to their fishing articles and photos. They enjoyed our waters and especially several very nice Snook. On their very first day up the Belize River they lost a big Tarpon estimated at about 100 pounds to a broken line. For published articles on David and Nick’s trip, please see the below pdf files for article and photos. Article Published in Cyrus Article Published in Holland Article Published in Malaysia Article Published in Romania Catch and Release – Tarpon, Bonefish & Permit

Mark & Patty visited us again this year and wrote a lovely newsletter of their trip. November 12-18 was our second stay at Belize River Lodge, on the Belize River. This is the oldest continuous guide service in Belize. They have entertained all the rich, famous and infamous anglers that frequent saltwater flats, and the lodge has become an annual destination for us. They just do the best job of any lodge we have visited anywhere. They are also the most convenient. They are very secluded, but only fifteen minutes (10-minutes by SUV and 5-minutes by boat) from the Belize City International Airport. Our air-flight was from Portland to Houston and back again.

“Jean and I had a great time. Aaron and Mick were easy going traveling companions. Mike, Marguerite, and the staff at Belize River Lodge were just great. The service, attention, and food were all top notch. And of course our guide Pedro and the fishing were great as well – it did not hurt that I caught my first grand slam on the first day! We saw a crocodile out on the flats, another first for me. In addition to my first snook we caught many bonefish, lost a nice tarpon after multiple jumps, caught a small tarpon and visited several Mayan sites. That doesn’t cover the rejections we had on other tarpon and permit, which just makes me want to go back! It was a fantastic trip. Jean and I send our sincerest appreciation to everyone involved, both for this trip and for the work BTT is doing. We learned a bunch on this trip with Aaron and Mick” With a follow-up: “Really great trip, especially when you get back to the real world and start daydreaming about clear water and the open mouth of a snook inhaling your E P Everglades or the full body wiggle that a bonefish does when he turns down on your fly!”

“Good evening to the folks at BRL, I wanted to say thank you to the entire staff for making my stay and first fly fishing experiences in Belize so memorable. The incredible Tarpon fishing I was so fortunate to experience will be etched into my memory banks forever. The fishery is absolutely beautiful and clearly prolific. The attention to detail from all of you at the lodge was remarkable. The folks at BRL have every right to beam with pride as you all have gone the extra mile to provide we, your customers, with a 5 star example of customer service and attention to detail. Thank you for providing me an incredibly positive experience from the first time I contacted you for information until the time you took me to the airport and saw me off on my flight back to L.A. The only word I can think of is “Exceptional”. With the utmost respect and very best regards"

“Long Caye is also known as one of the most productive tarpon fisheries in the entire Caribbean, and the area is home to resident fish that range in size from 20 to over 150 pounds. We love the permit fishing in this area as well, and feel that Long Caye is home to some of the largest permit in all of Belize.”

“Patty & I had a great time at your place. I can say without reservation, it is the best run operation of its type we have ever been involved with. Your attention to detail is commendable. The fishing was exciting. If this was your off-season we gotta’ come back and see what the good stuff is like.” The Fly Fishing Shop, Inc.

“Our week stay at Belize River Lodge met all our expectations; it was enjoyed by all members of our family. We especially appreciated the pre-trip planning assistance, the gracious atmosphere of the lodge, and the owner’s love and knowlege of Belize that informed our excursions. Our daily explorations were delightful, with each day bringing a new adventure customized to our needs and interests. We loved every activity we did and would highly recommend Belize River Lodge as a base site for diverse eco and adventure touring.”

A flats fishing and naturalist’s paradise! The last stop on our whirlwind adventure in Belize was a visit to our friends at Belize River Lodge, located on the Old Belize River in the town of Ladyville. My colleague Barbara and I arrived mid-morning after flying up from southern Belize and were met by the ever-smiling Misha, daughter of the one of the owners of the lodge. After a convenient five minute drive from the airport and a two minute boat ride over the “no wake” zone of the Old Belize River, we arrived at one of our favorite spots in Belize. Click for more

Sent to Michael Caranci at The Fly Shop: “Hi Michael … just a quick email to say thanks for recommending Belize and setting up such a great trip … the lodge was great, Mike and Marguerite are genuinely wonderful hosts, and the fishing was incredible … got an inshore grandslam on my 1st full day … over the 3 days, I managed a 30” snook taken to the table, a few baby tarpon to keep me on my toes, and more bones than I could have hoped for … throw in repeated legit shots @ permit every day … yeah man, incredible … I will definitely go through The Flyshop for future trips – whether to Belize, or elsewhere … you guys @ the Shop, and the folks @ Belize River Lodge, are class acts … With warmest thanks...”

On October 31st, “Just got back from Belize River Lodge @ 0230 today and walked into a mountain of snow from this week’s storm- however, looked at this one picture from and all that snow just magically disappeared for a moment. Bonefishing in Belize is like an elixir that makes all your work, worries and problems melt away, just like the snow. This place in Belize is like Paradise Found, perfect water, perfect fishing, perfect ‘drift’, and just spectacular people. The place we stayed at was loaded with Tarpon, Snook, Bones and the ever elusive and hard-to-catch Permit. I scored very high on Tarpons, Bonefish and not so well on Snook and Permit, but saw a ton of them!”

“I really enjoy the surprise of the variety of fish and fishing locales I can run into in a day or a week at BRL. Small tarpon, giant tarpon, snook, snappers, permit, bones. I dig the jungle rivers and the ocean flats. I dream about the homemade food. And I love my guide Pedro!”

“Every time I come to the lodge the fishing gets better. I don’t know if it’s the fish, or me, or both. My last trip brought me a super slam, two grand slams, and a hookup with a 150 pound tarpon. That, together with the hospitality and great food, is a guarantee that I will keep coming back!”

” I recall my first visit to BRL in early 1962. The lodge and the fishing experiences were terrific and not too different from today except the country British Honduras is now independent and the new Belize has become widely known and a very popular destination. Little did I realize in 1962 that I would return to BRL over 30 times including this year with my two sons and stepson (who wants to move to Belize!). And the Lord willing, my wife and I will return next year.”

“Everything was perfect. Well almost, I forgot to bow to the 100+ lb tarpon that Raul put me on. The “big one” got away this time. I will forever remember that bout and promise to redeem myself. I fired my wife as my personal photographer, she missed every jump the fish made. She was as thrilled as I was. I landed my first bonefish and at least 15-20 more casting to groups of tails all day. I landed a dozen more smaller tarpon in the river. I still cannot figure out why you guys call fish that size a “baby tarpon”. Yes the fishing was great. Everything was great. We were treated so well at the lodge. Mike and Marguerite were wonderful. My wife just loved Mike’s stories and Belize history lessons. The food was amazing, much more than we expected. My wife got some of the recipes to take home. Raul is a true professional guide. He worked so hard to put me on the fish. I felt like when I lost that big tarpon he felt as bad as I did. He was a joy to fish with. I am coming back to be sure. I thought about the big boats, but would miss the lodge. So maybe a combo would be best. We can plan that in the near future. Thanks to all for a truly wonderful trip and making my first trip one that I will always remember.”

“Out of all my fishing trips to Belize my most favorite is fishing from the Blue Yonder. The only thing better than getting up in the morning, being on fish in about 5 minutes, fishing for about an hour and then coming back to the boat for breakfast is having to show up late for breakfast because a monster tarpon is ripping the line off your reel 15 minutes into your fishing day.”

“I have fished at the Belize River Lodge now for twenty years. Sometimes for one day and sometimes for a week. I have fished all times of the year and all kinds of weather. Sometimes there was fishing and no catching and sometimes there was fishing and catching, but I have never failed to have a great time.”