Providence Blog: 17 – 26 March 2019
Providence Blog: 17 – 26 March 2019
Welcome to our opening trip report for the March – April 2019 Providence Atoll season. This particular trip being of the extended sort including 8 fishing days enjoyed by a closed group of friends. The weather for the most part was extremely warm and sunny, with almost no wind to speak of. We experienced neap tides to start with which progressed to spring tides with larger tidal ranges during the middle of period of the trip. This allowed us to access different areas of the atoll and provide our guests with a variety of fishing scenarios.
Day 1 – The GTs were around in good numbers today with Kelly breaking the ice and landing our first of the season. Ivan, Scott and Kelvin also managed to land their first for the trip, Kelvin’s fish a very special one in that it was his first ever GT on fly. Kyle started his trip off with a bang landing 2 for the day, whilst Ryan had a superb day landing 3 fish. On the species front Scott landed a beautiful Yellow Margin Triggerfish but it was the late afternoon Milkfishing that stole the show. We found large shoals feeding just beneath the surface and not far from the Dugong’s anchorage. Ivan, Ryan and Kelly all capitalized on the action, each of them landing their first ever Milkfish. Well done guys! A great first day of the season and exciting signs for the remaining days of week 1 on Providence Atoll.
Day 2 – We started our day on the flats with a couple hours of a small neap dropping tide, followed later by a slow rising tide at midday. The GTs greeted us in decent numbers with Mike and Dick both landing their first for the trip. Kyle, Kelly, Ryan and Kelvin all landed good quality fish but it was Ivan and Scott who stole the show with two fish each. Well done guys. We experienced some great Bonefishing today with Kelvin’s 22-inch fish the nicest of the bunch. Good numbers of Triggerfish and Bumphead Parrotfish were encountered during periods of the day. However it was the late afternoon Milkfishing that once again grabbed our attention. Multiple hook ups were experienced, sadly however Ryan’s second fish for the week was the only one that made it to the net. The group is clearly having a blast and we are looking forward to what the rest of the week has in store.
Day 3 – We began the day with a good dropping tide in the morning and a solid push in the afternoon. As expected, the GTs continued to present us with great opportunities. Kelly landed a bunch whilst Mike enjoyed a stellar day by getting three to hand. A couple larger fish were encountered today, Scott’s beautiful 99cm fish and Ryan’s 113cm brute rounding off yet another very successful day. The Milkfish continued to provide some really exciting fishing, however we were unable to land the numerous fish that were hooked.
Day 4 – The GT fishing impressed again, providing our guests with numerous opportunities as well as a couple shots at some real giants. The highlights today included Ivan’s 104cm trophy and Kyle’s absolute monster which stretched the tape to 115cm. Congratulations Kyle, certainly a fish of a lifetime! The Milkfish continued to provide exciting late afternoon sessions, Dick showed great composure and landed his 1st ever Milkfish on fly after losing a couple earlier in the week. Congrats Dick!
Day 5 – The GTs continued to steal the spotlight and as expected there were no complaints from our anglers. Mike landed three but it was Kyle’s seven fish day that really stole the show. Well done sir! So far we have been treated to every kind of GT fishing with good numbers of fish seen on stingrays, fish caught while pushing bow wakes on the turtle grass flats and others picked up in the surf. Super exciting signs for the coming days!
Day 6 – No changes here and some great fish coming to hand during our 6th day out. A huge congrats to Kelly on an unforgettable fish which measured 109cm and to Kelvin who celebrated his birthday by landing an awesome 104cm fish. Another great day out on the wild flats of Providence Atoll.
Day 7 – We crossed paths with some enormous fish on the flats today, with multiple sightings of fish in the range of 100 – 130cm. The boat was a buzz with stories shared on the back deck over a few cocktails in the early evening. Big fish don’t come easy though and so most incidents included some misfortune or stage fright at the wrong time. Although we weren’t able to get any of these massive fish to hand our guests still managed to put a few on the board before the days end. Last but not least, our friend Ivan landed his first ever Milkfish on fly. Congrats Ivan!
Day 8 – For the first time this week we experienced heavy cloud cover which resulted in bad light and thus made spotting the fish a whole lot more difficult.
All in all, it was a fantastic week. Sure, the GT fishing took up much of our time and rightly so. The huge diversity of species the atoll has to offer is certainly worth mention – Napoleon Wrasse, Bohar Snappers, Groupers, Bluefin Trevally, Sailfish, Dogtooth Tuna, Permit, Triggers, Bones and Bumpies all made appearances. The catch stats below will keep all who fish Providence coming back for more:
- GTs – 101 (5 over 100cm)
- Milkfish – 6
- Triggerfish – 1
- Bonefish- 9
- Species – 151
Lastly, thank you to our group for another fantastic week of fishing. We’re already looking forward to our next adventure together in the coming seasons.
The FlyCastaway Providence Guide Team
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We enjoyed good Tiggerfishing this week with 3 coming to hand. 1 each for Sandro , Jaromir and David. Our Bumpie fishing provided us with numerous opportunities and hookups. Despite the constant action we only managed to get 2 to hand, A 58cm fish for Nadim and a monster 105cm fish for Steve.
The outstanding fishing continued with 20 Triggerfish hooked, sadly only 6 coming to hand but still some truly exciting skinny water fishing. Of the 11 Bumpies hooked our first of the season was landed by Olafur, well done Oli!
The Species fishing was good with our first Yellowfin Tuna of the season landed by angler Matt. A couple of Dogtooth Tuna and Jobfish added to the bluewater tally. The numerous Grouper species caught throughout the duration of the week such as Bohar Snapper, African Marbled Grouper and
This week we enjoyed generally calm conditions throughout the week, with blue bird skies and very little wind. Visibility was good and the days heated up quickly. On the last day of fishing we did however experience a morning squall but it passed by 9:30am and it was back to fishing as usual shortly after. Early on during the week we had neap tides with early morning lows, whilst towards the end of the week we experienced midday lows as we moved into spring tides.
14 GTs were landed this week out of the 36 fish we hooked. Angler Brian landed the largest fish with a specimen of 92cm, he also landed the most with a tally of 4 to his name. Brothers Wes and George landed their first GTs, whilst Mike completed a Slam with a GT, a Trigger and a Bonefish all successfully landed in the same day.
The Bonefish fishing this week was great with all anglers landing multiple Bones. Large schools of fish were seen cruising the flats with one school of up to 2000 fish seen! Anglers Brian, Gary, Geoffrey, Joe and George all landed Bonefish over 60cm with the largest measuring just under 70cm.
Our species fishing was great! 3 Triggerfish were brought to hand this week out of the 12 we hooked, and despite us hooking 5 Bumpies sadly none were landed. Anthony landed a Napoleon Wrasse whilst Alex landed a very special Farquhar Permit. Congratulations! 4 Dogtooth tuna were landed (the biggest 20kg), several Rainbow Runners as well as Grouper up to 81cm. Out of the ordinary Jonathan also managed to land a 9 foot Nurse Shark after it ate his grouper!
Day 3 – The GTs were around in really good numbers. Saul landed his first GT for the trip. A short while later he landed a second, this fish charging off a stingray and ate the fly so close to him that the fish just about bit the end of his fly rod! A lovely 92cm GT, well done Saul. Dale also managed to hook and land an awesome fish that was sitting stationery just off the edge of a sand bank. This fished missed the fly twice before eventually engulfing the whole thing. Allan and Mike enjoyed the good fishing too by landing a GT each. Mike added a lively Sailfish to his list whilst Jim also landed his first ever Sailfish on fly. Well done Jim!
Day 4 – Although we had a number of shots at some really special fish today, we unfortunately didn’t make the most of these opportunities. Mike and Allen, however kept their good run going by landing a couple GTs each. The species fishing however continued to impress. Amongst others there were good catches of various Groupers, Emperors, Snappers and Bluefin Trevally which always bring a smile to those interested in the lesser known species of Providence Atoll.
Day 5 – Dale and Mike landed two GTs each for the day while Allan almost broke the meter mark with a beautiful GT of 98cm. This fish launched out of the water to eat his fly and then tore off into a channel that was full of coral heads. After some quick boat work, the fly line was freed from the snags and the fish was landed, photographed and sent back to see another day. Jim also managed to get a GT to his name whilst Pat chipped in with a fine GT to end the day. We hooked and lost quite a few fish today, but it was encouraging to see good numbers of fish on the flats.
Day 6 – Both Mark and Pat started their final day on the flats in style by landing a GT each. Team Mike and Allen enjoyed fine fishing with the pair landing two GTs each as well. The species fishing too was great, with loads of big Groupers and Snappers coming to hand. This was a fun week which was definitely enjoyed by all. With that we concluded our final week of the 2018 season. It was a memorable one and we look forward to our next stint in March 2019 on the atoll. Our fish tally for the week was as follows:
Day 1 – The GTs were seen in good numbers on the flats with some really great fish coming to hand. Dick who had fished the Seychelles before but hadn’t landed a GT yet managed to get it done within the first 20 mins after hooking an awesome fish cruising on the back of a stingray. Skip managed to get a fish of a lifetime in the deep south dungeons of the atoll, his beautiful GT measuring 117cm. The action continued with a second fish of a meter plus landed by Bjorn. At 103cm, it was his new personal best. There were also some Triggerfish and Bonefish seen moving around the flats, but we looked forward to fishing to them later in the week.
Day 6 – We were treated to some awesome Bonefishing with shots at large single fish tailing in skinny water. The GTs were around in decent numbers as well, however the overcast conditions made it tricky to spot them in time. Mike did not let anything stop him on the last day and managed to get a couple GTs to hand. Dick also made the most of his last day on the flats by landing an incredible Moustache Triggerfish and finally he added a beautiful Sailfish to his catch list for the week. This meant two new species for Dick on the last day, well done! Thank you to everyone who joined us this week, we had loads of fun on the flats and look forward to catching more great fish together in the future. Our fish tally for the week was:
Day 1 – We started the day with mid morning low tide which allowed a short period of time to fish the dropping tide as well as a full pushing tide as the day continued. Chris, a first time visitor to the Seychelles took full advantage of the good numbers of GTs seen on the flats by opening his account for the week early into Day One. He later hooked and got a second to hand, good job Chris! John and Tom also managed to get a GT each for the day, whilst Christiaan who wasn’t letting opportunities swim by, set the hook on a great fish and eventually got it to hand. Our first meter plus fish had arrived on the first day. Congratulations Christiaan! Nick also managed to get an awesome Yellow Margin Triggerfish while Mike fooled a great Moustache Triggerfish, which he landed after a spirited fight. The Sailfish also showed up to the party, which resulted in a hooked and landed Sailfish on fly for Chris G. With the flats looking as good as they were the excitement levels were high as we ended Day One!
Day 2 – The GTs were showing up all over the place, which kept everyone focused and scanning the flats for any movement or wakes. Nick, keeping calm and collected managed to fool a beautiful GT as it slowly swam up the flat on the incoming tide. A special note here for Christiaan who came to Providence Atoll with the hope of getting a Bumphead Parrotfish on fly. He managed to tick this one off the list on Day Two by landing a real beauty, well done Christiaan! Shilo, Joe and Mike all got into some Sailfish action. These special fish should be on everyone’s ‘must catch’ list as their acrobatic jumps and blistering runs are just incredible to experience!
Day 3 – Another great day on Providence, Dick and Bruce managing to land their first GTs, both fish measuring around 80cm. John meanwhile managed to break the magical meter mark with a great GT picked out of a school of around 30 which were marauding across the flats. The coral heads were full of life, which provided great fun for everyone landing a bunch of Snappers, Groupers and Emperors. The diversity on the flats of this atoll is certainly unlike any other place in the Indian Ocean.
Day 4 – Chris G managed to land his first GT for the week, an episode which wasn’t without drama. A knot in the fly line after hooking the fish resulted in three sections of his rod going for a swim. Fortunately, he was able to land the fish and retrieve the rest of his fly rod! Bruce and Chris after a display of jumps and hard runs got their first Sailfish each to the boat, Christiaan also managing to hook and land a lively Sailfish before the day came to an end. The Milkfish were around in good numbers daisy chaining in the blue water, Christiaan, who was focused on getting one this trip unfortunately lost his fish after getting it near the boat. We win some and we lose some and unfortunately the Milkfish won this battle.
Day 6 – The fishing was again on top form, Randy managed to get a massive Barracuda and 5 GTs for the day. Christiaan made the most of his last day on the flats by landing two fish over the meter mark, a 101cm and 105cm. Great job! Bruce, Shilo and John all managed to get two GTs to hand, Shilo who was making the most of the final day got our second Bumphead Parrotfish for the week. Mike landed a fine GT on the last day whilst Nick landed an awesome Napoleon Wrasse which is a special catch anywhere in the world! Joe ended his Providence fishing experience with a beautiful Moustache Triggerfish. This was a great week with lots of fun and laughter enjoyed by all. Thank you to all of the guests for joining us…we look forward to seeing you again soon. Our fish tally for the week was:
The 7thweek of our September – December season on Farquhar saw the return of the prevailing South East wind and with it a few heavy downpour. For the most part however, the weather was fair with good light , elements essential for spotting fish. Tidal wise we started on neap tides heading into the early stages of springs as the week progressed. All of our guests enjoyed some solid Bonefishing with everyone landing good numbers, sizes ranging from 45 – 65cm. As 6 of our guests this week were new to salt water fly fishing getting their first Bonefish on fly was really special and enjoyed by all.
The Triggers were seen tailing during particular periods of the tides and of the 4 hooked 2 were successfully landed. Father and son Ferdi and Eugene got a Moustache Trigger each within a short period of each other during a surf walk. Eugene landed a solid 58cm Moustache Trigger after having seen the fish tailing hard on a turtle grass patch, he put the fly close to the fish and it crushed the fly. Ferdi’s fish was caught in the same area ,a 55cm Moustache Trigger giving them the perfect start to the day.
The diversity of this fishery ensured our guests rods remained bent throughout the week, as the species fishing was particularly good including some very large Groupers. Justin who has been coming to Farquhar for years and trying to catch a Napoleon Wrasse finally ticked his box landing a Napoleon Wrasse of 73cm. Epic fish Justin, well done!
Day 1 – We started the week on neap tides which are ideal for tailing fish, less water movement allowing the fish to spend more time on the flats feeding and feeling relaxed. The team of Vladimir, Grigori and Sergei P all of whom had fished in the Seychelles on several occasions before had come to Providence Atoll specifically to target Bumphead Parrotfish. The trio of anglers didn’t waste anytime in their quest with each of them landing a Bumphead Parrotfish on the opening day. The GTs were around in good numbers, John R enjoying his first experience in the Seychelles managed to land an amazing fish, breaking the meter mark and measuring 107cm. This GT was taken from a school of around 50 fish who were busy harassing the numerous baitfish in the area. Once hooked it tore away with incredible speed and gave his gear a seriously thorough testing. Bevan who waited all of 15 minutes into his first morning managed to hook and land his first ever GT on fly, a great way to start the week for him. The Bonefish were on the flats doing their thing in good numbers, which provided some of our guests with amazing skinny water Bonefishing. Tony who was another new face to the Seychelles was able to land a special Yellow Margin Triggerfish, not to be out done by this Mike managed to get a beautiful Moustache Triggerfish to hand, ending day one with a bang!
Day 2 – With the tides allowing us to access the flats for just about the entire day it kept those interested in chasing the Bumpies very busy. Vadim and Sergei G who were also focusing their efforts on the Bumpies this week both managed to hook a few. Sergei G managed to tick the right boxes and land his first ever Bumpy on the fly. Sergei P managed to fool a fin perfect Yellow Margin triggerfish with a well-presented cast. The GT fishing was slower than normal however we were still able to get a few to hand, John F’s GT of 92cm was the highlight from that front. The Sailfish were also around in good numbers but unfortunately we weren’t able to get any to hand.
Day 4 – Grigori who was enjoying a great week managed to get another two Bumpies to the net whilst Sergei hooked and landed his third Bumpie for the week, great job gentlemen. Vadim was also able to get an awesome Yellow Margin Triggerfish, which are always a satisfying catch. The Sailfish are still around in good numbers; both John R and Keith landed a sailfish each. John F was able to land two GTs for the day, which was good going considering that these fish had been a little difficult to come by this week.
Day 6 – With the week coming to an end our guests were keen to make the most of their final day on the flats. The Milkfish were around in good numbers during the morning period, Vadim made the most of his opportunity and managed to get one of these powerful fish to the net. The Triggerfish were seen on a number of occasions which eventually led to both Sergei G & Keith landing Yellow margin Triggerfish each on the last day. Whilst the GT fishing was challenging, we suspect the presence of easy food offshore might be the reason that the GTs were not around in their usual numbers, despite this we managed to land a huge number of Bumpies and a couple other exceptional fish. We look forward to the coming weeks on Providence Atoll. Our fish tally for the week was:
With the sudden change in weather the GTs were reluctant to come onto the flats and as a result the GT fishing was tough by Farquhar standards with only 8 fish being hooked and 5 landed. Sean managed to land 2 fish of 78cm and 82cm respectively, Ferdi and David also landed a GT each of 65cm and 77cm. The fish of the week was however a really good one, Tom’s first ever GT on fly a 115cm slab. The fish was seen cruising a turtle grass flat on the back of a Nurse shark. Tom made the cast just off the shark and a few quick strips later he got the eat. Epic fish, well done Tom! A few sizable Bluefin Trevally were also landed including Sean’s 78cm fish and Mary 72cm.
The species fishing this week continued to impress, the grouper species in particular smashing anything that came near their coral head. Jonathan landed a 55cm Napoleon Wrasse, whilst Tom’s 80cm African Marble grouper were two of the better ones landed. Unfortunately it was a tough fishing week by Farquhar’s standards but a few superb fish did come to hand and with a great bunch of people ensured good times were still had by all.
