Providence Blog: 11-18 Oct 2016
The second week of our season welcomed a new group of friends hosted by Travis and Rance from Patagonia River Guides. Also joining the group from PRG were Alex and Ernst who have fished St Brandon’s with us previously. Considering many of the group had done very little saltwater flats fishing before, especially in the Indian Ocean we could not wait to get them out onto the vast array of flats, channels, lagoons and offshore options Providence has to offer.
Carrying on from the neap tides at the end of the previous week, the flats were accessible for most of the day. These tides typically make for excellent Bonefish, Triggerfish and Bumphead Parrotfish fishing. As it turned out this is exactly what we experienced. Most groups were met with tailing Bonefish in super skinny water on the first morning; the team of Rance, Yatin and Carl taking no prisoners as they plucked fish after fish out of schools of good sized Seychelles Bones that kept moving through their allocated flat. Double ups and triple ups were not a rarity, with most of these fish coming in between the 6lb-8lb pound range. Sadly the GT’s were unusually scarce during these first three days so a move with the mother ship was made to see if they weren’t on another area of the atoll.
The Triggerfish had all the anglers fascinated with the level of skill and finesse that is required to catch them. Follow after follow eventually led to a number of fish being hooked and landed. Rance managed a two in one, one of which was an exceptional Yellow Margin. After a pinpoint cast, the fish followed with intent and just a couple of feet away from the rod tip, finally chomped down on the fly and the fish was on. Fortunately for Rance there was no coral head in sight and the beautiful fish was subdued without any complications. Yatin on the other hand hooked a Moustache Trigger that headed directly back to his home in a big coral garden. The worry in the guide’s eyes said it all, as angler and guide both feared the leader would give way at any moment. After relentlessly chasing the Trigger through the coral, Warren (the guide) managed to wrestle the fish from within its hole to bring the fish to hand. It’s moments like these that make fishing for Triggers such a valued experience!
The weather, apart from a day or two of tough light, was pretty lenient on us. With flat seas, our friends the Milkfish were seen all over the western edge with gaping mouths breaking the water surface. On the high tides when the flats were no longer wadeable, the flats skiffs were seen scattered along the drop off of the atoll in search of the mighty Milkies. Alex, Travis, Baker and Ernst all managed to fool, tussle and land big Milkfish, each with all these fights taking in the region of an hour. Furthermore, two of the fights yielded broken rods that complicated the fights to a large degree. Ernst’s fish was at the end of its fight, holding up on the surface, when a large Hammerhead Shark came in looking for an easy meal. After a few intense moments however and a little bit of excessive pressure, the fish was brought to hand before being safely released.
As mentioned, we were struggling on the GT front, the fishing very much below average for Providence standards, due we think to the high number of swimming crabs sitting offshore. That said we still managed to sneak a couple. Alex had a stand out day under the circumstances and managed to land three fish on a single day, one of which was a fish just over the 1m mark. The team of Yatin and Carl got off to a slow start but finished really strong. Yatin managed two GTs while Carl managed four. The stand out fish for the trip however was Carl’s 113cm fish. This particular fish was holding out in a large pot just on the edge of a storm ridge. A short cast and a few quick strips enticed the fish into a very calculated eat. The fish screamed off into the backing and the fight that ensued was nerve racking as the endless amount of coral bommies had to be dodged before the fish could be landed. Well done Carl!
The Bommie Bashing fired this week, with the vast array of species keeping our guests royally entertained. In total, 23 species of fish were caught (or rather manhandled!) out of the “Coral Gardens”. This hand-to-hand combat entails a hit and hold technique as anglers try to stop these fish instantly before they reach the coral heads. The Boha Snapper were the most obliging of the species and never put down an opportunity to charge and engulf the fly. The myriad of Grouper species made up a large number of the catches as well and always made for a good tussle.
So despite a slow GT week, we enjoyed the diversity the atoll has to offer and ended up with some incredible species; Bonefish, Triggers, Bumpies Milkfish, GT’s and many more all playing their part in a highly enjoyable week with a new bunch of friends, a group we would love to fish with again!
Until next week
The Providence Guide Team
Joining us for the season opener was a group of familiar faces and friends from our St Brandon’s program. It would however be their first experience with us on Providence so we were eager to show them the array of species and intense sessions of fishing Providence produces….best of all we had nine days to do it in!
The trip kicked off with a pleasant surprise when we woke to large schools of feeding Milkfish at the back of the mothership on morning one. Excitement mounted even further as it was clear we had another species option for the group during the trip. After a strong cup of coffee and a solid Dugong breakfast, the skiffs shot off in different directions to get an idea which areas and flats were holding high concentrations of fish. It didn’t take long to see the GT’s were around in solid numbers, with singles, pairs and schools being encountered on day one.Father and son, Camillo and Juan capitalised early managing a nice double off the bat and Juan managing another three fish shortly thereafter. This sort of action was experienced by all the groups, most of the guests landing one if not a couple of GT’s during their first day out!
Juan’s good fortune did not end there though. After the tide pushed them off the flat they went in search of the Milkfish that had been seen feeding a current line close to the Dugong. A shoal that consisted of daisy chaining fish was located and five casts later Juan’s line went tight and a mammoth fish went greyhounding off into the sunset. Unfortunately technical issues with the fly reel meant that Juan had to battle it out for a further two hours, however with great patience and resolve a really big Milk was landed and photographed as the sun set at the end of Day 1. This set the tone for the next five days as numerous shoals of Milkfish were fished to in the morning and the afternoon sessions. Cast after cast resulted in a further dozen or so fish being hooked and lost by almost all the fisherman. Granted we didn’t we have a ton load of luck in landing the fish, but great action never to be forgotten was had by all.
The weather got progressively better throughout the week, with slick calm conditions making for very pleasant wading. All the species made regular appearances and despite our major focus aimed at GT’s, we encounterd some great Bonefish, Triggerfish, Bumphead Parrotfish sessions in between wielding the 12wt rods. On one particular afternoon Pat managed to hook and land four Moustache Triggers within an hour of wading time…incredible action for one of the most technical fish one can cast a fly to!
On the later part of the dropping tide, tailing Bones were spread unevenly across the flats. Ron took full advantage of the shots presented and managed to land a handful of fish that stretched in excess of 27 inches. Incidentally, while fishing for Triggers and Bones, the elusive Indo-Pacific Permit showed up regularly. On one particular morning, Dick had a shot at two of the biggest Permit we have seen on the atoll, both fish certainly in the 20lbs range and are now right in our cross hairs.
The GT’s were however at the forefront of our guests target species, and it is safe to say no one was left empty handed. Although everyone got great fish, special mention must go out to the following individuals and their impressive catches. Firstly to Scott who on consecutive days managed to land two fish over the metre mark. Pat who took full advantage of the opportunities that he had at bigger fish and landed a 103cm, 107cm, 110cm and a 116cm fish during his time on the atoll. And finally to Juan who landed the biggest fish of the trip, with a brute 120cm fish. This particular fish was a single fish that was seen cruising down a narrow gutter in the fading light on the second last afternoon. After a pin point cast, the fish with a very calculated approach engulfed the fly and sped off across the flat. After a solid tussle the fish of a lifetime came to hand. Congrats Juan!
All in all, an unforgettable opening week with some great friends. All the anglers adding new species, new memories and also new personal bests in their flats fishing repertoires. Species wise we landed good numbers of GT’s, Triggers, Bumpies, Bones, Bohar Snapper, Grouper, as well a Milkfish and a Sailfish and more Bluefin Trevally than one can even begin to count.
Day 1 – Anchored at midway for our first day out, the groups set out to the areas carefully chosen by the guides in terrific conditions. 8 hours later all returned back to the boat safely, with stories of great fish caught as well as a fair few lost, broken rods and fly lines, but most importantly eveyone being in very high spirits.
Day 2 – An overcast sky and a some wind greeted us on our second morning, but for those who know the atoll this is nothing to be feared…far from it in fact. Head guide Tim found some deep drainage channels full of fish life. His avid anglers got stuck into some GT’s and a mixture of reef fish which were targeted by sight casting and swinging flies down to fish holding in the current waiting to attack an easy meal which drifted down.
A memorable session indeed, which included some great double ups on GT’s for his group. Warren went on the long run north and got his guests into some world-class size Bonefish, along with
Day 4 and 5 – This is where the proverbial “%$#%^%$^ ” hit the fan. Warren found good numbers of GT’s in some surf, his guests casting at them as they rode in on waves. Wesley and his guests soon joined in and fun was had by all even in the deeper water. Plenty of double hook-ups and even a triple hook–up ensued. Guide Matthew and his team hit it big too, fishing on the eastern side with Dave Pienaar and Dan Heiser. Both guests accomplished “Slams” consisting of a GT, a Bumpy and a Triggerfish. Dave Pienaar had a stand out Day 5 landing eight GT’s, the total just for his team on the day reaching seventeen GT’s. Matthew once again headed to a favoured spot on the atoll On Day 5 were they found some very nice GT’s on stingrays during the pushing tide. Basil Yelverton and Robert Tjian landing a double up on GT’s, which was later, followed by another double-up with Basil Yelverton landing another GT and Michael Collins a fantastic Napoleon Wrasse.
Day 6 – Our last day was spent in the South where some fantastic fishing was had. Guide Tim and his team found some big GTs in the coral and deep water, with Dave Goeddel getting a 98cm GT and Basil Yelverton a 95cm amongst the seven fish landed. Matthew and his group ran into one of Providence’s infamous ‘super shoals’, a pack of fifty plus fish marauding their way across the flats. Needless to say they got some really good fish! Wesley and his team took full advantage of the myriad of coral bommies in the area, landing 9 different species including a 20lb Green Job fish.
This week on Farquhar atoll we welcomed a group of eight guests from Russia, one from Scotland and one from the US. It would be a momentous week for everyone on the trip, firstly this would be the first saltwater fly fishing experience for our new friends from Russia, whilst it would be Alex and Brandon’s first time with us on Farquhar. All would catch some truly memorable fish thanks to a bit of wind and the ensuing cold water that has thankfully arrived.
On arriving at the atoll, we quickly set about setting up our guests tackle, following which we spent the rest of the afternoon giving our Russian guests some casting, line management and other essential instruction. Needless to say spirits were high as a delicious dinner and a few ‘cold ones’ were enjoyed by all. As the week went by it became very clear to us our new friends were completely overwhelmed with the fishery and the atoll as a whole. The sheer numbers of fish species and general marine life encountered no doubt changing their perception about a fishing holiday.
The GT’s are still around in good numbers with multiple casting opportunities occurring on a daily basis. This iconic species impresses all fortunate to tussle with it, non more so than Alex who landed three fine fish during his trip which no doubt has given him highly contagious “GT fever”. These were his first three fever GT’s and to cap it off he earned the covered red GT cap with a monster 119 cm fish.
The Bumpies were around in solid numbers this week, with shoals frequently followed by eager anglers throughout the trip. Despite hooking ten of 10 of these blue/green giants luck was against as all ten escaped thanks to their astonishing power. We also managed to get into some really solid Bonefish for the week, the biggest a very respectable fish with a fork length of 64 cm. A big mission was made by all on the species front, to give you an idea of what is possible when visiting Farquhar, Alex managed to rack up 20 different species during the 6 days out on the flats with. Congrats once again Alex!
The guys were also very keen on doing some offshore during the week. All manor of species lurk just off the flats and we got stuck into Yellowfin Tuna, Wahoo, Skipjack Tuna, Jobfish and a variety of other species, not to mention the Dogtooth Tuna that proceeded to give us a serious hiding. The result 7 hooked and 0 landed. There still some Sailfish around which is very unusual, but despite hooking into one good specimen, luck was against us the fly popped out.
We experienced some tough conditions during the third week of the season, the extremely flat conditions and warm temperatures heating up large parts of the lagoon. These conditions stifle the influx of cold and clear water pouring onto the flats, which prohibits certain species frequently encountered from spending time on the atoll’s food rich areas. We were therefore forced to work extremely hard with limited areas available to us, however despite this we still managed to hook into some real trophies.
There were good numbers of GT’s around considering the conditions, some of which were hugging the back sting rays ready to ambush their prey, whilst others were paired up with sharks looking for an easy meal. Congratulations to John on his 110 cm fish, JT for his fish of 108 cm and Pietro on his 105 cm fish. Pietro in fact had a great double when he landed the big one as well as very respectable fish of 86cm on the same day. Kirk landed his first GT ever of 86 cm, so too Paris from 
The Bonefish in particular are affected by the warm water to the point where on some occasions 8lb tippet was needed to get the result. If one considers we generally fish 15lb – 17lb for this species on the atoll, one gets any idea of the sort of conditions we were faced with. Nonetheless we stuck at it and caught some really good fish. Paris in particular again enjoyed a very special 3 hour period on one day where he landed ten fish of between 6-8 pounds.
The Bumphead Parrots were however still around in decent numbers and provided some exciting opportunities. That said, you still need a fair bit of luck when landing the fish and subsequently we had quite a few break-offs. Steve however managed to get one for us for the week so a hearty congratulations to him on this special achievement. Triggers too were still around in good numbers and provided some very exciting skinny water fishing. Congratulations to Brian Hodges 
The calm weather does however produce some excellent Milkfish opportunities and many of our guests had the opportunity cast at shoals of fish feeding on the surface. JT hooked into three fish, while Steve had a solid fish right at the boat that sadly broke free after an epic tussle. Other exciting species included some Saddle Back Groupers and Napoleon Wrasse just to mention a few.
There was no doubt it was a tougher than average week, but thanks to our guests effort we still managed experience some incredible fishing and walk away with a few very special fish!
The week started off with some very stable conditions with not a drop of wind on the first morning. There are a lot of GT’s around on the flats at the moment and we managed to bend some of the 12 weight rods to the max. Congratulations to Cliff, Michael, Christopher, Martin and Paulus on landing their first ever GT’s sight fished on the flats.
A special mention however must go out to Adrianus who successfully landed our biggest GT for the season so far with a prime specimen of 120 cm. A fish of a lifetime for sure and considering it was his first GT on the flats, a very special moment indeed. The fish was lying in a deep hole on a turtle grass flat holding against the tide waiting for any baitfish choosing the wrong path when guide and angler came across it. The cast went out, landing in the perfect spot and the GT charged and ate the fly without any hesitation. It attacked the fly with such ferocity it almost launched itself clear out of the water. The hook was driven home and the fish screamed off, the backing peeling off at a frightening speed. Thankfully everything went to plan and after a solid 15-minute battle his prize was tailed, photographed and set free to fight another day. Another truly epic moment on Farquhar! All in all 9 GT’s were landed during the week, not to mention a further 8 of which were hooked but came off earlier than hoped.
The fair weather continued throughout the week that definitely showed in the fishing. The Triggerfish were therefore around in good numbers, allowing us to hook 7 of the wily critters. Sadly not all were landed but credit goes out to John Giles for making it happen on a real solid Giant Triggerfish, as well as to Paulus who achieved his Grand Slam for the day by landing his Picasso Triggerfish.
The calm offshore conditions provided us with the much-anticipated Milkfish feeding sessions during certain tides. 4 fish were hooked throughout the week, 2 of which sadly came off right at the end. Nonetheless, these sessions and the experience of fishing to these immensely powerful fish will not be easily forgotten by the guests who came into contact with the Chanos Chanos.
The Bones were full up this week and provided constant action when sought out. We managed to get some really good sized fish, so together with these iconic fish and Martin’s flats caught Golden Trevally Farquhar produced a great week of diversity once again. Thank you to all our guests for sharing this incredible place with us. We now look forward to days and weeks ahead!
After a productive week of preparations we welcomed our first group of anglers for the season, a party of 10 guests from France. The group, who has fished with us multiple times, was obviously eager to get stuck into the incredible fishing Farquhar has to offer and so were we.
Sadly however the weather did not seem to get memo and we battled some very overcast conditions and the odd rainsquall throughout. This made sight fishing tougher than normal, which was frustrating indeed as there were clearly some good fish around. There was however some really good Triggerfish fishing to be had, the fact that they were tailing in ankle deep-water allowing the classic walk and stalk we love so dearly. A special mention must go out to Alberto Cafferi for landing his first ever Giant Triggerfish and ours for the season. Certainly one of the toughest fish to land on the flats, it will certainly not be forgot in a hurry.
There were good numbers of GT’s prowling the flats this week, unfortunately the conditions making it difficult for us to capitalize. Nonetheless we stuck at it and were rewarded with some great fish, including Jean Louis Stoffel’s first ever GT on the flats as well as Louis Boutros massive 118 cm fish (sadly no image of this special fish)! The benchmark has therefore been set very high and it’s going to take a special fish to match or top this brute of animal during the next 3 months. Congratulations Louis!
The cool weather did allow for some pretty spectacular Bonefishing, with shoals of these iconic game fish tailing over both the turtle grass and pure white sand flats. Our group took full advantage and we racked up some really good fish as well as numbers throughout their trip. These in addition with some great Snapper, Grouper and a highly prized Napoleon Wrasse made up the bulk of the flats species landed.
Farquhar does however some great offshore fishing at its disposal and so with the tough conditions on the flats we opted to go offshore during certain periods and were rewarded. Two Sailfish came out which is terrific considering it’s not really the season, both fish being tagged before swimming away strongly. In addition to these fine fish, good offshore catches of GT’s, Yellowfin Tuna, Wahoo, Barracuda, together with a 35kg Dogtooth Tuna rounded up the action.
The FlyCastaway Farquhar guide team is back on location and ready to deliver some world class flats fishing and serious fish during the Feb – May 2016 season. Before we could welcome our first group of guests onto the atoll we had some serious work to get through to ensure the level of operation remains at an extremely high standard. We departed the IDC hanger on the 23rd of Feb to allow us 8 full days to work on servicing boats and to scout out the current movements of the different fish species. We were welcomed by K.K and Mona after landing on the atoll and taken directly to the guesthouse and guide house. These two individuals run and manage the guesthouse in fine form and so it was no surprise after inspecting the guesthouse to find everything looking top notch.
Once settled into the guide house, we along with our proficient Yamaha outboard motor mechanic Marcel began servicing the engines for the tenders. First up were the carburettors! We stripped each one in clock work fashion until all were left in mint condition. Working as a team, we then replaced all the battery terminals that were rusted and then cleaned and greased the ones that were still in good shape. Next on the list were the bilge pumps and GPS’s. If there was any damage to the wiring it was replaced immediately. We then started to install all the gearboxes which had recently been refurbished on Mahe, finally attaching the propeller’s to each of them.
We then installed all the steering arms, following which we changed all the spark plugs, checked the wiring and fuel lines, at the same time replacing any small parts which looked they had taken some wear and tear. Last on the list was some fibreglassing (in true island style) on Cerf’s hull. Once dry all 6 boats were launched and moored ready for testing. The following day all boats were run in and we are happy to report all boats are in great working condition for the season ahead! It was now time for some scouting!
We ran all over the atoll, stopping here and there for brief periods to get into the groove and rhythm of the atoll. The good news is the fish are around and the water looks great. Bumpies, GT’s, Triggers and Bones all were seen in positive numbers. In addition there were large schools of Milkfish offshore during periods of warm weather and flat sea conditions. During a brief stint Gerry and Nick both got stuck into fish, sadly Nick’s fish coming off prematurely. Gerry however landed a cracking fish on one of our Wade Chanos fly reels which performed flawlessly! Congrats Gerry!
An added bonus is that it seems there are still good numbers of Sailfish, Wahoo and some Tuna around which no doubt will add to our guests experience during the season. So in closing, all the boats are running smoothly, the guesthouse is ready and waiting, spirits are high and the team is focused. Its time to smash some fish!
