WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
WHEN YOU GO
When a GT grabs your fly do these two things:
hold on and pray.
Seychelles,
Mauritius
SYCHELLES The Seychelles sit approximately
1,000 miles off the coast of mainland Africa in
the Indian Ocean.
• SEYCHELLES, ALPHONSE ISLAND Alphonse
Island Resort is the longest standing and most
well-rounded program in the Seychelles.
Punctuated by deluxe accommodation,
outstanding guides, all flats species and great
equipment.
• SEYCHELLES, DESROSCHES ISLAND Desroches
Island Resort is the most luxurious resort by
which to pursue giant trevally, bonefish, per-
mit and offshore species in the Seychelles.
• SEYCHELLES, ARQUHAR ATOLL The most
southerly atoll in the Seychelles chain of
islands lying just over 450 miles southwest
of Mahe. A simple fishing camp, this is a top
pick for anglers looking for extreme saltwater
variety.
• SEYCHELLES, COSMOLEDO ATOLL Located
1,030km south-west of Mahé, Cosmoledo
Atoll is unquestionably one of the best giant
trevally fisheries in the world and has become
the benchmark for anglers in search of the
epic flats fishing experience. Cosmo is a large,
untouched ecosystem whose white sand flats,
lagoons and channels are ruled by pugnacious
packs of giant trevally. However, these fish are
not the only species that can be found here
in impressive numbers. Big bonefish, bluefin
trevally, bohar snapper, barracuda, milkfish,
finicky Indo-Pacific permit and a host of trig-
gerfish species all call Cosmoledo home.
SEYCHELLES SEASON October through April
MAURITIUS Located deep within the Indian
Ocean, due east of Madagascar and 300 miles
northeast of the island of Mauritius.
• ST. BRANDON’S SHOALS is an obscure and
seldom visited atoll that may be the great-
est bonefishing destination in the world. St.
Brandon’s atoll is a wade fisherman’s paradise
blessed with enormous hard sand flats and
staggering numbers of huge bonefish. In ad-
dition to the incomparable bonefish resource,
anglers will also encounter good numbers of
Indo-Pacific permit, bluefin, golden, yellow
dot and green spot and giant trevally.
MAURITIUS SEASON October, November, De-
cember, April, May
CHRISTMAS ISLAND Christmas Island
(Kiribati) is located 1,200 miles south of
Hawaii.
• CHRISTMAS ISLAND OUTFITTERS Located only
three hours south of Honolulu by commer-
cial airline, Christmas Island is a unique and
natural masterpiece that magically combines
all the elements critical to fly fishing success.
SPECIES Giant Trevally
LOCATIONS Christmas Island,
Endless hard sand flats fishing, remarkable
numbers of cruising bonefish and giant trev-
ally, and consistent year-round weather await
all who visit this unique atoll.
CHRISTMAS ISLAND SEASON Year-round
RODS 11 or 12wt. rods are best. The most
important factor is that you choose one that
you can cast. Compared to bonefish rods
these are quite heavy and often very stiff so
take the time to cast a number of them to see
which one you like the best.
LINES We have found that the Rio Outbound
Short or the Airflo GT both work great.
BACKING We like to begin by spooling on
100 yards of 30-pound Dacron backing to
avoid “slippage” or rotation of the backing on
the arbor. Next, with back to back biminies
we attach an additional 200 yards of 80
pound Spectra. Be sure to spool this on as
tightly as humanly possible to avoid in dig-
ging into itself.
REELS This might be the most important
piece of the puzzle. If you can’t stop the fish
you will never land it. The drag should be
strong enough that you can barely, and I
mean barley pull line off when you have it all
the way tightened down.
LEADERS We prefer what we call the commit-
ment rig; straight 100- pound fluorocarbon.
FLIES AND HOOKS One of the most effective
patterns across the world for GT is a simple
drab baitfish imitation, absent of any flash
called a Brush Fly (also introduced by the
South Africans). This pattern sheds water
quickly when airborne, presents a simple
baitfish silhouette reminiscent of a mullet,
goatfish or baby milkfish and we’ve proven
time and again that trevally eat it with reck-
less abandon. When tying these patterns
we recommend using either Owner Aki or
Gamakatsu SL12S hooks in 6/0.
PASSPORTS/VISAS You will need a valid pass-
port. Make sure your passport is valid for the
duration of your stay.
FISHING LICENSES Fishing licenses are in-
cluded and issued on-site.
BOOKING OPTIONS For availability and insight
into all of these operations, contact Ken at
Fly Water Travel. [email protected] or
800-552-2729.
traveling angler
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