The Walker’s Cay Invitational is a key part of the Bahamian recovery movement to better days ahead.
January 24, 2022
By Bill Springer
In partnership with Allen Exploration, Fly Zone Fishing has announced that it will be producing the second annual Walker’s Cay Invitational , slated for May 18-21, 2022, in Walker’s Cay, located in the northern Bahamas.
“During its heyday in the 1970s through the 90s, Walker’s was home to some of the best fishing in the southern Atlantic,” says tournament director Robert “Fly” Navarro. “In addition, the dockside hospitality was legendary. It was home to tournaments like the Bertram-Hatteras Shootout and the Bahamas Billfish Championship. The participating boats read like a Who’s Who of the sport, and you knew you were fishing against some of the best teams and anglers in the world. It’s our intent to recreate some of those great old memories while also building on a solid foundation for the future growth of the sport in the Bahamas.”
Walker's Cay is famously known for it's dockside hospitality, although teams will need to be self-sufficient aboard their own vessels as there is no lodging or restaurant on the island planned in time for this year's tournament. This year’s event will be capped at a maximum of 45 boats; according to Navarro, the top 20 from the 2021 tournament will receive invitations, with the remainder drawn at random from a waiting list. In 2021, Jr. Davis and the Wave Paver team won the inaugural Invitational, releasing two blue marlin and weighing one fish of 508 pounds to score a total of 1,008 points. The tournament format consists of three days of fishing with no lay days.
Walker’s Cay itself is squarely in the midst of a rebirth, inspired by owner Carl Allen and his team. From doubling the size of the marina—in terms of number of slips as well as overall water depth—it’s a much more accessible destination than ever before. The mean low-water depth is 12 feet, and slips are available for vessels over 100 feet in length. In terms of amenities, the marina offers superb docks as well as fuel, water and power; however, teams will need to be self-sufficient aboard their own vessels as there is no lodging or restaurant on the island planned in time for this year’s tournament.
Aerial view of a line of boats make their way into the marina during last years event. “While Hurricane Dorian was devastating for much of the northern Bahamas, it’s a bump in the road compared to the pandemic,” says Allen. “We need to do our part to help get people back to the Bahamas so we can help these people continue to recover and also move forward. The Walker’s Cay Invitational is a key part of that movement to better days ahead.”
For more information and to join the entry list, visit www.walkerscay.com/invitational
