Providence Blog: 31 Oct – 7 Nov 2023

The third week of our Providence fly fishing season saw only 3 new guests arrive as 8 of last week’s group remained to complete their 12-day stay with us. Our new arrivals, Rob and Dale, both Providence regulars were joined by Julius who was about to enjoy his first-ever saltwater fly fishing experience.

This week began with extreme winds and lousy light. Despite the adverse conditions, our group enjoyed fantastic fishing for GTs. Ed, Gary, and John made quick work of their opportunities and landed an impressive total of 12 GTs for the day. The action wasn’t limited to just one boat as, Dale, Mike and Wendy shared the spoils with 7 GTs, along with the standout catch of the day going Mike’s way when a powerful 105 cm trophy jumped on his fly. Dave, Steve, and Ron also added 7 more GTs to the total tally, while over on the other side of the atoll, Julius’s introduction to the experience got off to a great start when the young man landed his first-ever GT. Well done, Julius!

We were dealt with more tricky light and several cloud bursts during the second day. Our group soldiered on and added another 13 GTs to the total tally. Wendy, Mike, and Dale managed to boat 6 while the trio of Ed, Gary, and John continued to enjoy their good fortune with 5 large GTs landed all of which stretched the measuring tape to the mid-90s. The standout catch, however, went to Steve when he landed his first ever 100 cm GT. Well done, Steve.

We finally rose to a beautiful clear morning sky and set out, eager to see what Prov had in store for us. Day 3 turned out to be one for the books for Ed, Gary, and John as the trio were treated to some of the finest fly fishing available in Seychelles. Their flat was alive with action from the moment they arrived and by the time the day was over they had managed to land a whopping 19 GTs for the day. Great work, guys! Other than the GT action the atoll’s tailing species began to show up more regularly which resulted in a slam for Mike who caught a tiggerfish, bonefish, and a GT. Dale’s primary focus on this trip had been to catch a triggerfish, and he ticked that box when he landed a cheeky moustache triggerfish. Well done, Dale!

We enjoyed more of the same weather during the fourth day with almost no wind. Julius kept the firsts coming by landing his first sailfish with a beautifully executed bait and switch. Well done, Julius! Wendy, Mike, and Dale had a fantastic day by adding 7 more GTs to the tally. Wendy landed her biggest, 85cm, and Dale landed a beautiful 90cm off a stingray. Ed, Gary, and John added another 3 GTs to the tally landing 1 apeice which brought the day GT tally to 13.

By the fifth day, our group were very well settled into the rhythm of Providence and this showed in the catches. Dale landed a lovely yellowmargin triggerfish that wasted no time in gobbling up his strong-arm crab. A few bonefish started to trickle onto the flats, something that John, Dave, and Ron capitalized on, landing a few bones each. Those who added to the GT tally were Ed, Wendy, Mike, and Dave who all landed a single fish each.

The last day of the fishing week saw us enjoy the best weather of the week with good light and little wind. The action started almost immediately when Ed and Gary both hooked into absolute monster GTs, unfortunately, both fish managed to evade our longing hands when Ed’s fish shook the hook loose during its first run and Gary’s found the only coral head within 500 meters. Heartbreaking stuff but still very exciting! The pair redeemed themselves with a GT each to end the last day of their 2 weeks with us. Ron, Steve, and Dave ended their 2 weeks with us in style by landing 11 bonefish and 1 GT each. Ron’s fish measured 101cm, a fantastic way to end his trip. Well done, Ron! Rob and Julius had another week to look forward to and calmly went about landing another sailfish and 11 bonefish. Team Wendy, Mike, and Dale finished in style, with Wendy landing her first bonefish and 18 more amongst the team. The momentum continued, with the group landing 3 triggerfish and losing another 4. Wendy had really wanted to get a trigger to hand and she managed to do that on the last day of her 2 week stay with us… Well done, Wendy!

That brings another exciting week of fishing to an end. With most of our group heading home it was a bitter-sweet goodbye. Sad to see them all go but excited to see what the next week had in store for us on the fishing front.

Our catch tally for week 3 was as follows: