Bozeman Magazine

On a whim, and during a particularly challenging time in his life, fly-fishing guide and author Chris Dombrowski accepted an invitation to the Bahamas—a trip that would alter his life’s trajectory.

In the Bahamas, Dombrowski is introduced to the country’s most elusive and highly prized creature, the bonefish; and to David Pinder, the legendary fisherman who helped build the bonefishing industry. Bonefish are prized not for their taste or beauty, but for their speed and elusiveness. No one was better at hunting them than Pinder, whose vision, perception, accuracy, and patience were virtuosic. Pinder’s gifts, combined with the appeal of the bonefish, turned the Bahamas into one of the world’s great fishing destinations. In 1958 the cost of a guided fishing trip was five dollars; by 2012, that price had risen at three times the rate of inflation to six hundred dollars.

But, as Dombrowski shows, it is possible to love a place to death. Masterfully weaving together the ecological destruction of overfishing and Pinder’s post-guiding life, which had left him with cataracts and a modest severance package after forty years of service, Dombrowski unravels a story of clarity, humor, and spirit, one that is “destined to be a classic” (Jim Harrison).

Chris Dombrowski is a poet and a fly-fishing guide. Born in Michigan, he earned his MFA from the University of Montana, and his publications include two collections of poems, most recently . His poetry and nonfiction have also been published in leading journals and magazines. He lives in Missoula, Montana.