Then there’s Ranguana Caye, a terrific place to find large bonefish schools along with barracuda, jacks and some pretty healthy snapper. Finally, there’s Gladden Caye located near Gladden Spit, a reef recently made popular by National Geographic, which discovered it’s a gathering spot for whale sharks. You won’t find the whale sharks on the flats, but you will get the chance to cast at more bonefish than you’ll care to count, along with some permit and various reef dwellers that venture up on the shallows.

The whale sharks congregate nearby because of mutton and cubera snapper spawning in the area (the whale sharks feed on the eggs floating in the current), so be ready with a stout outfit, as you are likely to find some large members of either snapper species along the edges of some bonefish flats.

There’s no doubt that southern Belize has the best permit fishing. Blue Horizon Lodge, located on Northeast Caye, a 6-acre private island off the coast of the Stann Creek District, specializes in permit, and sometimes as close as two minutes away.

The Westby brothers, Lincoln and David, own the place and do most of the guiding. They have permit fishing down to a science, and they fish long and hard to make sure anglers get a dozen or more good shots at fish while wading in one to three feet of water over limitless hard-bottomed flats bordered by deep-water troughs and channels.

Once a fish is spotted, the guide and angler slip out of the boat, and wade to within casting distance of the permit. There is also very good bonefishing, and even a few tarpon in nearby channels. Be forewarned that Blue Horizon is only for the hardcore angler willing to forego some comforts in exchange for the chance to land the fish of a lifetime. The place takes only 6 anglers, accommodations are Spartan, but clean, and there is nothing to do other than fish.

The Lillpat Sittee River Resort, located 20 miles south of Dangriga on the pristine Sittee River, has fully equipped fishing boats and its proximity to the Anderson and Boom Creek lagoons enables anglers to fish for tarpon from 10 to 70 pounds, and snook to about 25. Bonefish and permit fishing the nearby cayes is available as well.

Jaguar Reef Lodge, only one mile from the Sittee River, is a great alternative, and its newly opened riverfront Iguana Day Lodge affords you the opportunity to fish on your onn, either by wading or casting from shore.

The village of Placencia is another great place for permit-seekers. Lodging ranges from the very basic to nice beachfront bungalows, all close to productive permit flats. The Belize Guest House, Kitty’s Lodge, the Tradewinds Hotel, and The Inn at Roberts Grove are some of the best choices; all offer meals and can book the area’s best fishing guides for you. Of course, you could go at it alone if you dare.

A particularly good location to try is the channel area that divides the Placencia Peninsula and Placencia Caye, located on the beach between the main village dock and the Tradewinds Hotel. The lagoon runs the length of the peninsula (about 12 miles) and separates it from the mainland. Here, permit are joined by and jacks, tarpon, snook, bonefish, and snapper, often within casting distance of shore.

Down the coast past Rocky Point, and a 30-minute boat ride from Placencia, the Monkey River is an inviting spot for big snook and tarpon, especially in the winter and spring.

The silver kings and linesiders are joined by jacks, cubera, and farther upcurrent, the toothy machaca. A few miles south of the mouth of the Monkey River and the town of the same name, the flats off Punta Ycacos and New Haven, and the Punta Ycacos Lagoon, offer prime permit, bonefish and tarpon fishing. Located about an hour and a half south of Placencia Village, Punta Ycacos Lagoon can only be reached by boat, which can be tough in rough weather. Tent camping can be arranged to make the most of the fantastic fishing, or you could head to Punta Negra, where El Pescador (Ambergris Caye) built a new sister lodge, perched on a hilltop, nestled amidst 470 acres of coastal mountains and pristine rain forest.

While snook and tarpon are favorite targets, the lodge’s skiffs can reach the outer flats in an hour and a half, so it’s quite possible for anglers to try for a grand slam, and even a super slam! A couple of freshwater lagoons near Punta Negra are reportedly full of baby tarpon and little snook ideal for novice fly rodders to get in some valuable practice in a protected, less challenging environment.

The Blue Marlin Lodge strategically sits on South Water Caye, yet another one of Belize’s top permit fishing areas. Flats are nearby, there are good boats and experienced guides, and visiting anglers can chase permit, bonefish, tarpon, barracuda and various reef species.

Toledo is Belize’s southernmost district, extending all the way to the Guatemalan border. The town of Punta Gorda, located right smack in the middle of the Bay of Honduras, doesn’t have many places to stay or many people, for that matter. There are, however, lots of caves, rice fields and little Mayan villages that I suspect still look like they did a century ago.