This week we welcomed Bryan, Rene, Don, Vincent and Duke, continued his stay with us.Conditions throughout the week were moderate and ever-changing, rainy mornings gave way to sunny afternoons, keeping our guides on their toes, with almost all four seasons experienced in a single week.
Bryan was the first of our guests to come tight, landing a 69cm GT off the back of a ray in the early hours of the morning. That afternoon, Bryan and his guide came across a group of free swimming GTs cruising the sandy flats. There, Bryan landed his personal best GT, a stunning 94cm brute of the flats. On the same day, Duke also had luck on his hands, continuing his GT hat-trick from the previous week. Duke and his guide found a GT cruising the sandy edge of One Palm Island. The silver fish wasted no time inhaling Duke’s beast fly and measured in at a healthy 91cm, also a personal best for Duke. Vincent landed his firstGT on the same day while dredging a shallow reef on the outer atoll. The 60cm fish had loads of energy and brought much excitement to Captain Vinnie once it was safely secured in the net. Well done, Vinnie! As the week progressed, the GTs began showing up in smaller groups and lower numbers. Rene landed two healthy GTs during the week, measuring 68cm and a larger 83cm.
The following day, Duke landed his first Seychelles Indo-Pacific Permit, spotted in the same area off One Palm Island. Duke and his guide watched the fish cruising ghost like through the shallow waters. Fishing a light coloured Flexo, Duke strategically placed his fly in the path of the hungry bottom feeder and came tight. Well done on your 40cm permit, Duke!
Bonefish continued to provide steady sport throughout the week, with 53 landed across the flats. As our guests began targeting other species such as batfish and triggerfish, Rene was one of two guests to land one of these tricky devils. While it wasn’t the biggest trigger we’ve seen, it was a rewarding fish that Rene had hoped to land all week. Bryan also tried his luck at triggers and landed a respectable 43cm Moustache Triggerfish on the western grass line.
We also saw a surprising number of Blue Water trips head out this week. While tuna and sailfish were relatively slow, the wahoo brought plenty of action and excitement for our guests. Nine wahoo, one tuna, and a sailfish were landed throughout the week.
A big thank you to Bryan, Rene, Don and Vincent for their energy out on the flats, and to Duke for another memorable week extending his stay with us, his GT hat-trick and first Indo-Pacific Permit were real highlights to watch. From personal bests to hard earned triggerfish, it was a week that reminded us why these flats keep bringing anglers back year after year. We hope you all left with stories worth retelling and tight lines still fresh in the memory. We look forward to welcoming you back to Alphonse soon.