St Brandon Blog: 30 Sept – 10 Oct 2019
St Brandon Blog: 30 Sept – 10 Oct 2019
Our third week of the season and the second week of our group from WorldCast Anglers stay with on St Brandon’s Atoll was full of highlights and special fishing.
We experienced springs into neaps which allowed us a little more time on the flats due to the smaller tidal ranges. The favorable water conditions allowed for periods of incredible Bonefishing with hungry tailing fish being the norm. The average size fish landed was in the range of 6lbs with the odd 8 lb, exceptional by any standards.
The Permit were around in good numbers this week with a variety of different opportunities presenting themselves. From tailing fish on the flats and around islands, to schooling fish cruising the edge of sand bars and lagoon systems. Even though we managed to hook a few of these difficult fish we were unfortunately unable to get any to hand.
The neap tides allowed us to spend more time on the reef hunting the different Trevally species that frequent these waters. Our focus was on finding these predators either riding on the backs of sharks and stingrays or free swimming in schools. We managed to feed some giants this week, unfortunately most of these fish got the better of us. Tom however had better ideas and made the most of his opportunities by landing a trophy GT measuring 103cm. George followed Tom’s example and went on to land a trophy himself, measuring 102cm. Both were amazing fish that these anglers will remember for a long time to come. Seeing these fish speed up to eat a fly with their eyes and head exposed out of the water while engulfing a baitfish pattern is one of the most exciting moments in saltwater fly fishing!
The great Bluefin Trevally fishing continued this week with a couple special fish coming to hand. John landed a monster specimen that stretched the measuring tape to 72cm! We were also lucky enough to see the odd Golden Trevally tailing on some of the flats this week, George and Tom both added this special fish to their list of species caught for the week. Well done guys!
That concludes a memorable two weeks with a great bunch of guys from WorldCast Anglers. We experienced the highs and lows of targeting some of the most sought-after Indian Ocean flats species and made memories that we’ll all keep for a long time. We look forward to what the atoll has in store for us in the coming weeks.
Till next time,
The FlyCastaway St Brandon’s Guide team
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The Bonefishing began in a sluggish manor due to the large tidal ranges we experienced over the spring tides. As the week continued our group enjoyed exceptional Bonefishing in super skinny water which our guests took full advantage of. The various landmasses scattered throughout the atoll produced good numbers of large schools from which we were able to get a couple great fish to hand with our biggest of the week weighing in at 7.5 lbs.
We enjoyed incredible fishing on the Permit front with opportunities at tailing fish presenting themselves on the flats as well as around the islands. Congratulations is in order for George as he, on his first trip to the Indian Ocean landed a trophy Indo-Pacific Permit of 13.5lb! Chris also managed to pick a solid fish from of a school of high riding Permit that were found cruising along the edge of a lagoon which pulled the scale to the 10lb mark. He later added to his first ever Indo with another beautiful fish of 8lbs which brought his tally to two in one day, well done Chris! Zak got into the action too by landing a fin perfect 8 lber which was fooled into eating a fly as it tailed along a coral ridge near one of the major landmasses. Finally, Steve, on his first trip to the Indian Ocean and after losing 4 Permit this week managed to get the hook to stick properly with his last cast of the week and landed a fin perfect fish of 8 lbs, what a way to end his stay with us. Unbelievable action on the Permit front this week!
The Trevally fishing proved to be full of action this week with the larger tides bringing in some massive GTs and Bluefin Trevally. Subsequently our guests enjoyed great opportunities in front of these fish in just about every shallow water GT scenario; from finding fish on the storm ridges, islands and the shallow flats. Zak didn’t stop with the Permit and went on to land an awesome GT of 96cm that was found riding on the back of a stingray. The fishing gods were clearly looking kindly at George as he landed yet another fish of a lifetime, a trophy Giant Trevally that was found holding stationery in the current near a small island. All it took was a well presented cast and this fish exploded on the fly, giving a good tussle before eventually coming to hand and pulling the measuring tape all the way to 114cm! Well done Chris. As mentioned the Bluefin Trevally were encountered in good numbers and the largest measured close to 70cm. Other than these 2 iconic species we also managed to add 2 Island Trevally to to the species list which are always a bonus fish on the flats, Chris caught a monster of the species that measured 72cm.
Our opening week of the 2019/2020 St Brandon’s season welcomed a small group of guests to this remote and pristine environment as two of the original group unfortunately had to cancel at the last minute (they were sorely missed). After a quick tackle setup ensuring all our guest’s gear was in good order for the next morning, we settled in for the night with an overwhelming feeling of excitement for the start of the season.
The abundance of Indo-Pacific Permit that this atoll hosts is of special proportions and often delivers an opportunity to cast to trophy fish on any given day. From skinny water tailing fish on the flats and storm ridges to schools of fish cruising along lagoon edges and islands, the numbers often encountered is mind blowing. This week we managed to craft a couple great opportunities which resulted in hook-ups; however, we were dealt with some bad luck at inopportune moments which resulted in these notoriously difficult fish evading our eager hands. The sight of exposed golden sickles gives even the most experienced of anglers a few sleepless nights, these fish are certainly the holy grail of saltwater fly fishing.
The various Trevally species of St Brandon’s were encountered in decent numbers which resulted in Igor managing to land a good Bluefin and Greenspot Trevally. Unfortunately, the brutish large GTs that frequent St Brandon’s flats managed get the better of us as well and although we weren’t able to get any to hand we had shots at some real monsters. Encouraging still was the numbers seen and we hope to get a few to hand in the coming weeks.
Our guests were treated to phenomenal Bonefishing during the week with loads of larger fish landed. Some days the average size of the fish landed was as big as 6.5lbs. Many fish in the 7-8lbs range were caught with Tristan landing 2 large 8lbers this week. Terry, who was completing his third back-to-back week with us landed a solid 9.5lb Bone. Charles also landed a 9.5lb Bone but he landed an even larger fish when he hooked and landed a 10.5lb fish on the first morning of the week! An absolute monster of a fish and a fine way to end the season on the Bonefishing front.
We experienced excellent Trevally fishing on the last week of the season which is no surprise as we have encountered big numbers of Golden, Bluefin and Giant Trevally around the atoll this season. We were able to hook a couple Goldens this week with the standout fish caught by Jarod, who landed a strong 10lb Golden on the first morning of the trip. The Bluefin Trevally fishing picked up this week too with shots at many larger specimens. Charles landed a solid 72cm fish while Jarod kept his good fortune going and landed a 77cm Bluefin that was found while it was riding the back of 2 large Nurse sharks along with a bunch of other Bluefin and GTs.
Our GT fishing this week turned out to be fantastic with just about everyone in the group getting quality shots at these apex predators. 4 were landed in total for the week, 2 by Tristan with the aforementioned 90cm fish that led to his Grand Slam and a few days later he landed an even larger fish of 92cm; to land 2 GTs on St Brandons and pull off a Grand Slam is no mean feat! Well done Triston. Justin also got stuck into the atoll’s large GTs and managed to land 2 large fish in as many days. First, he landed a 110cm fish that was giving a school of Bones a seriously hard time and the next day he went one better and landed a 111cm fish that was caught while it was holding in the current just below a coral ridge.
We were treated to incredible Bonefishing this past week on St Brandons with our guests enjoying a wide range of different Bonefishing scenarios; large single fish in skinny water right through to big schools of fish in slightly deeper water. Of the larger fish that we were able to land this week, John landed Bones of 7, 7.5 and 8lbs during his stay on the atoll with us. Ed and Terry both landed 8lb Bones while Sidney came up trumps and landed the biggest of the week, an 8.5lb fish that ate the fly before an even bigger one could get to it! In total our group managed to land 331 Bonefish between 6 anglers with a solid 5lb average which is an impressive feat and once again shows that St Brandon is a premier Bonefishing destinatioin.
There were loads of shots at the Indo-Pacific Permit that call the atoll home. As usual we were able to hook a few but we were only able to land one this week. Robyn, the only successful angler managed to land her first ever Indo-Pacific Permit. Her 7lb fish was seen tailing on one of our more famous Permit flats and after she made a pinpoint cast with her self-tied fly, everyone involved knew the fish was going to eat. The fish took off at speed and after a couple nervy moments threading the fish through a coral garden the fish was netted! A couple quick photos were taken of the fish and then it was released to fight another day, well done Robyn!
The Trevally action was full of ups and downs this week with our guests having a number of good shots at the atoll’s large GTs. John, Ed and Frans all hooked monster GTs but unfortunately, the fish got the better of us and managed to get loose one way or another. There were however a couple of large Greenspot Trevally landed this week which provided great fun on the 9wt for Sidney, who landed 2 Greenspots of 63cm and 67cm while Frans landed the biggest of the week with a lively 69cm fish.
The fourth week of the St Brandons season started with high winds, cloud cover and squalls. This made the conditions tough but kept the water cool for long periods of time and thus led to spectacular skinny water fishing to large bonefish. The weather did stabilize later in the week doing a full 180 degrees, it went flat calm without a cloud in the sky. There were large numbers of fish landed everyday and the average size for the week sat at a solid 6lbs. Of the larger bones landed 2 fish of 7lbs were landed by Robyn, 2 of 7.5lbs by Ian and Sean and a 8.5lb fish landed by Robyn. Finally, Ray, who experienced some of the best of what St Brandons has to offer landed 2x 8lb bones as well as 4 fish of 8.5lbs, well done Ray! A few bigger fish were hooked but unfortunately, the fish had the final say. The conditions are perfect at the moment for a double digit fish to be landed so we are looking forward to what the coming weeks have in store for us.
There were once again multiple shots at the tricky Indo-Pacific Permit that call St Brandons home. With the variety of flats fishing scenarios on offer our guests enjoyed the challenge of fishing to these beautiful fish. There were a few hooked during the week but only one was landed. Ian caught his first ever Indo-Pacific Permit on the last day of the trip after persisting the whole week. Well done Ian, the hard work paid off!
The Trevally fishing proved to be tough this week, that said there were still multiple shots at large GTs and Bluefin. We are seeing good numbers of these fish around currently so the chance of one of our guests catching a fish of a lifetime is certainly on our minds while we wade the flats. Other than the larger Trevally species that call St Brandon Atoll home a couple of the less aggressive species were landed. Terry hooked and landed a respectable Yellowdot Trevally that was tailing on one of our famous Bonefish flats while Sean added to the species list with his first Golden Trevally of his fishing career.
Our third week of the St Brandon April – May 2019 season began with heavy wind for the first couple days. This happened to compliment the fishing as loads of cold water was pushed onto the flats. The weather improved substantially as the week progressed and thus made the fishing conditions ideal with morning low tides providing our guests with shots at large Bones in super skinny water. A solid 5 – 6lbs average was enjoyed during the week with impressive numbers of fish landed in total. Charlie and Brandon both landed 7.5lb Bones while Christian, Johnny, Charlie, Mike and Brandon all managed to land impressive 8lb Bones during the course of their week on the flats.
Day 3 – We encountered good numbers of GTs patrolling the flats, these fish were found to be following sharks or on the back of stingrays. Dominic enjoyed good fishing and managed to land 2 while George also managed to get a GT to hand. Dominic then chipped in with a strong Yellow Margin Triggerfish to add to his day’s exploits. Tim, after travelling to the Seychelles previously and not having the best of luck with the Bumphead Parrotfish, managed to get one to the net, well done a beautiful fish Tim! The highlight of the day however was the amazing Bonefishing our guests were lucky enough to experience. Both Stephane and Bertrand were able to land fish over the 10lb mark, well done guys!
Due to the strong winds we couldn’t use our boats for 3 of 6 fishing days this week. Although this was certainly a difficult situation for us as well as our guests, we still managed to make the most of the situation by fishing around the north island of the atoll on foot. In total we managed to land 12 of the 19 GTs hooked this week with 2 of these fish measuring a 100cm plus! The largest was landed by angler Derrick, a monster fish that stretched the measuring tape to 107cm. It should be mentioned that 6 of our guests managed to land their first ever GTs on fly which is impressive considering the less than ideal conditions we were dealt with.
Day 1 – We started our week heading towards full moon spring tides, with clear skies and little wind. The GTs were around in decent numbers today and our guests managed to get some great fish to hand with Terry and Brian opening the week with solid GTs measuring 97cm each. Alejandro enjoyed a cracking opening day and landed 3 GTs, a Yellow Margin Triggerfish and a Bonefish; completing a flats Slam! David added to the GT tally by landing 2 decent GTs. The Triggers were seen tailing away on the shallow flats of the atoll. Patrick and Rob both managed to take full advantage of the favorable conditions and landed a Moustache Triggerfish each while Chris also tailed an awesome Yellow Margin Triggerfish.
Day 3 – The challenging weather conditions continued with dark skies, rain and strong winds. Despite this, we were all still excited to get onto the water and see what the atoll had in store for us. The fish were around in good numbers with Pete getting a solid GT, hitting the mark at 96cm, it had been holding in a big lagoon drainage, when the fish saw the fly it did not hesitate to eat his baitfish pattern. Warwick also landed a great fish today breaking the metre mark with a 102cm specimen, well done! Mike had been waiting in anticipation for a big fish to cross his path, while wading a flat in the southern part of the atoll he noticed a decent fish slowly cruising by, with a well presented cast he got the fish’s attention. The fish slowly changed direction and moved toward the fly only to charge at the last second and eventually eat the fly at the rod tip. The fish then proceeded to make a long run towards the ocean side, after a good tussle he managed to tail the fish on the coral head he hooked it from, well done on a great fish measuring 107cm, his second GT for the day. David enjoyed a solid day by landing both a GT and a Yellow Margin Triggerfish. Rob, Terry, Andre and Brian also got stuck into solid GTs for the day. The Triggers were also around in good numbers hugging the edges of the lagoon, tailing happily. Alejandro and Chris did a great job with both landing a Yellow Margin and Moustache Triggerfish.
Day 4 – We had reached the middle of our full moon spring tides, with us still experiencing bad weather. Determined as always we were still able to get some great fish to hand. Some of those catches included Mike’s 2 GTs, the biggest being 98cm. David also did a great job by getting 2 to hand while Pete, Brian and Rob also tailed GTs for the day. After losing a couple earlier in the week, Chris was rewarded with a great birthday present, his first GT on fly! Pete made the most of day 4 and landed 2 Yellow Margin Triggerfish while David added another Yellow Margin Triggerfish to his name for the week. To top it all off, Brian did a great job by hooking and landing a Milkfish in some seriously bad sea conditions.
Day 5 – The weather continued to deteriorate with strong winds and buckets of rain, this all made things difficult from a sight fishing perspective. We did not let this dampen our spirits and still had a great day with Andre, Warwick and Jarod capitalizing on a school of fish dropping off the flats by tripling up with each of them managing to land their fish. Warwick got the biggest out of the bunch with a fin perfect GT measuring 107cm, Andre was not too far behind with a fish of 101cm while Jarod also came close to the metre mark with an awesome fish of 96cm, what an amazing experience, great job guys! Warwick then added another GT to his tally hitting the mark at 90cm while Peter also tailed a GT for the day. The action didn’t end with the GT fishing with our guests adding several Emperors, Snappers and Grouper to the species list. Patrick and Jarod also caught their first Milkfish today after some epic battles in big seas they eventually got their fish to the net, great job guys.
Day 6 – We woke up to the worst weather we have experienced this week with huge swells, heavy rain and strong winds which delayed our fishing until around midday. We eventually got a little break in the weather and quickly shot out to the flats to catch the pushing tide. Alejandro and Brian got to experience some classic GT fishing with fish tailing hard on the back of stingrays and pushing bow wakes in super skinny water. Alejandro landed 4 GTs while Brian, Pete, David and Mike each managed to get a GT to hand before the weather closed in on us.