Providence Blog: 2 – 9 April 2024
Welcome to the 5th week of the Providence blog. This week we welcomed a mixed group of anglers from the United States and South Africa, most of whom, regulars to the Providence fly fishing experience.
The first day of the fishing week was warm with little wind. Due to the tiny tidal range and calm conditions, we experienced warm water throughout the atoll. Despite the tricky conditions we still managed to get a few good catches to hand. Rick, 1 of our few newcomers managed to open his GT account early in the day when he intercepted a GT that was following a shark. Peter W struck gold when a large school of tailing GTs crossed his path, a quick cast into the shoal resulted in a beautiful 96cm GT landed. He later added to his tally with a smaller fish that he convinced to jump on a crab fly on his 9wt. On the tailing species front, Kevin and Carlos each managed to get colourful Triggerfish to hand while Taylor managed to pick up a Bonefish late in the day to close of the catch tally.
The second day was bright and with a slight breeze from the southeast. The day started particularly well for Taylor who managed to land her first ever GT early on when she spotted 2 fish cruising along the edge of a large sand flat. She later added to her tally in a similar fashion while her brother, Colby, wasn’t going to be outdone and landed his first and later another. Well done guys! Nico add his name to the score board with a powerful GT while Peter found himself in the action yet again, landing an energetic GT. It was however Kevin W’s Day, when he spotted 3 large fishing swimming along a turtle grass finger. His fly went down and 3 strips later he found himself attached to an turbocharged GT that pulled loads of backing off the reel. After some fancy boat work by his guide his fish was eventually landed. A trophy of 118cm! Awesome job, Kev! Jeremy, Carlos, and Scott chipped in on the tailing fish front with each of the landing large Yellow Margin Triggerfish.
The third day was warm, and so was a lot of the water in the atoll. Nico found himself in the action on the GT front again, he landed a fin perfect fish off a stingray. Father and son duo, Peter & Kev got it done, 3 and 2 GTs landed respectively while Colby closed off the GT tally with a single decent GT. Kevin landed yet another Triggerfish while Taylor found a Bonefish, which is miraculous considering the conditions. Great job, Taylor!
The fourth day saw a sudden change in the swell around the atoll with large waves breaking onto the outer banks of Providence. The highlight of the day was the exceptional fishing our group experienced for Group and Snapper with loads of large fish brought to hand. Noteworthy catches were Carlos’s 108cm and Kevin’s 95cm Napoleon Wrasse caught within minutes of each other. GTs were part of the returns too, with Carlos and Jeremy both landing GTs amongst the Group and Snapper chaos! Colby landed the only other GT for the day.
The fifth day saw a slight change
in weather conditions with rolling squalls and patchy light. Rick found himself in the right place, at the right time when he stumbled upon some 20 GTs on 3 large stingrays. After a couple of near misses, he eventually got 1 to stick, a proud moment, well done Rick. Carlos managed to complete a flats slam with a GT, Triggerfish, and Bumphead Parrotfish, congrats and well-deserved Carlos. Jeremy however had bigger fish to fry, literary, and landed a bus 116cm GT, way to go Jeremy! Nico chipped in with a GT that was found while it patrolled the edge of the beach and Gerhard managed to get 1 to hand too, encountered while holding in the current near a small depression.
The last day of the week saw us experience a mix of bright sunshine, cloud, and wind with flat calm moments thrown into the mix too – very strange for us on the weather front at the moment. Craig left it late, but got it done nonetheless early on the morning of the 6th day when he found a GT tailing on a stingray in very shallow water. His fly went down and the magic moment happened, he was connected to his first GT. A few nervy moments later his prize was in his hands, well done Craig. He later added another that encountered when a school of GTs arrived during lunch. 2 in 1 day, great work Craig! Jeremy also enjoyed good fishing landing 3 himself, the biggest 81cm. Carlos, Kevin, Peter, and Nico each landed a single GT to add to the tally. Colby landed a colour Triggerfish to put a full stop on the tailing fish species catch report for the week. Kev, left his best for last, while waiting in large surf a large GT happened to swim right at him. He made a fantastic cast and hooked yet another giant. This time, there was no boat to help him with the fight of the fish and he had to make due with a little luck and good gear… Both happened to be on his side this time. His fish, a beautiful 126cm GT was the perfect way to end a enjoyable weeks fishing! Great job, boys!
That brings us to the end of yet another week of fly fishing the pristine flats of Providence Atoll. This week was 1 of laughter, smiles, adventure, ups and downs. We thoroughly enjoyed it and hope to see all of those who joined us again in the near future!
Our catch tally for the 5th week of the season was as follows:
- GTs – 39 (3 of 100cm & biggest 126cm)
- Bumphead Parrotfish – 2
- Triggerfish – 8
- Bonefish – 3
- Napoleon Wrasse – 11 (108cm)
-
Till next week,
The FlyCastaway Team
The first day of the fishing week was 1 of education. A new marine environment, with new species resulted in us having to spend a few hours couching and tweaking technique before we could get into the action proper. Pat managed to get his first Yellow Margin Triggerfish while Bob, convinced not 1 but 2 Yellow Margin Triggers to his fly as well as a feisty GT. What a way to start, Bob, well done! Evert, meanwhile, got stuck into the Bonefish landing his biggest ever of 9 lbs. and a little while later, he added a colourful Yellow Margin Triggerfish. Dick closed off the catch report with a single Bone. 
The third day brought with it tricky conditions in the way of dark cloud and little wind. The diminished visibility on the flats really made the fishing tough and only a single GT was caught for the day. Evert, the man of the moment caught a brute 93cm fish that was spotted sitting in ambush position in a small drainage channel. Evert made a great cast and before he could get through his first strip the GT rushed forward and engulfed his fly. Following an epic battle and with a bit of luck going his way, the fish was eventually landed! Great job, Evert! 
Day 5 was an absolute scorcher. No wind and incredible heat made fishing conditions difficult to say the least. Despite this we soldiered on and managed a handful of decent catches with both Bob and Mike managing to fool a GT each. Dennis added a splash of colour to the day’s catch report with the only Triggerfish brought to hand for the day. Though we experienced difficult fishing the seascapes we were treated too were exceptional… As has been said many times before, a day’s fishing sure does beat a day in the office! 
All in all, the third week our season proved to be exceptionally challenging on the fishing front. A mix of hot water and difficult weather conditions culminated to produce the perfect storm so to speak… Nevertheless, we still thoroughly enjoyed exploring our favourite Seychelles fishery with our new friends and hope that they get a better set of circumstances the next time they visit us out here. As for our catch tally, we landed the following fish for the week:
Ominous cloud banks and showers on the eastern horizon set the tone, weather wise, for the entire week. The first day nevertheless delivered exciting fly fishing for several of Providence’s iconic species… The GTs were out in full force, and we managed to land 11 for the day with the standout catch going to Joern when he was visited by a lunch time GT that wasted no time in grabbing a bit of lunch itself, charging the fly twice before eventually smashing the little brush fly. Joern’s beauty measured an impressive 102 cm, and was a wonderful way to get things going. Brummy, Steve, and James also enjoyed some hardcore action landing 6 between themselves when a large school of GTs were found with several sharks. Piers chipped in with a colourful Triggerfish and Peter M finally, after several years of fishing Providence, managed to land his first Bumphead Parrotfish, great job and well-deserved Peter! 
Day 3 and the weather took a turn for the worse. With little light and no wind, visibility on the flats was especially limited. Despite this we managed to catch a couple fish. Piers, Steve, James, and Peter M all landed a couple GTs. Fred, managed to land a feisty Triggerfish as well as a large Bumphead Parrotfish. Peter O added a GT and Triggerfish to the tally while his son, Jack, chipped in with a colourful Triggerfish to bring an exciting close to the day. 
The fifth day of the week delivered scratchy fishing with little returns. Peter M landed 2 GTs, Joern a single fish, while Peter O got stuck into the action on the Triggerfish front, this time landing a beautiful Yellow Margin. It was however Peter Mcleod’s day. As he waited on the edge of the atoll on the slack tide, he noticed a slight disturbance and the caught sight of the tip of a fin protruding just above the surface of the water. He quickly sent out a prospecting cast and before he could get through the third strip of his retrieve there was a massive explosion on his fly and he was tight. With line ripping off his reel in a blur and by the size of the wake caused by the fish as it tried with desperate determination to reach the open ocean everyone knew it was a giant. After a long battle the fish was eventually landed and pulled the measuring tape all the way to 113cm. A beautiful fish, and a deserved catch for Mr. Mcleod. Well done to everyone involved! 
The final day of the fishing week saw the weather continue in the same manor that had abused us for the entire week. The dark conditions and subsequent cool water on the flats however delivered incredible Bonefish fishing for the team of Peter Mcleod, Peter O, and Jack. The trio landed 23 large Bones between them for the day with the largest going to Jack when landed a massive 29-inch fish which put it in the region of 10 lbs.! A great catch for the young man! James, also landed a real beast of Bone, which was close to the 10 lb. mark while Gerry, Piers, and Joren landed the only GTs for the day. Piers, as you probably guessed it, landed another Triggerfish, this time an absolute bus of a Yellow Margin to close off the fishing for the week. 
Much to our relief the first fishing day of the season saw us enjoy bluebird skies, brilliant sunlight, and very little wind. The tides allowed us to ease into things with a slow morning push and fly fishing opportunities for a wide variety of targets including GTs, Bonefish, Triggerfish, and Permit shared amongst the group. Charlie and brother Nick shared a fantastic day on the flats together with 3 and 4 GTs landed respectively. Nick’s 4 GTs also happened to be his first ever on the fly which is a fantastic achievement. Charlie later added a large Bonefish of the 9/10 lb. caliber, ending off a wonderful opening to their trip. Elsewhere on the atoll the rest of the group did just as well with Gerald completing a flats slam which consisted of a Bonefish, Triggerfish, and GT. His boat partners Margaret, Rob each landed a GT, however a special mention for Rob who managed to land his first 2 Triggerfish on the fly. Great job Rob! TJ and Ian also landed a Trigger 
Day 2 saw the wind do a c
Day 3 had us hopeful for more action, and that’s exactly what we got. The action started on the weather front with consistent rolling squalls and strong gusts coming from the southeast. Despite the patchy light and tricky conditions for casting our guests enjoyed a fine day of flats fishing on Providence. This time, it happened to be Ian’s turn to complete a slam of 2 GTs, 2 Triggers, and a single Bone. Dale laned as many GTs as well as 4 Bonefish, one of which dropped the scale to an impressive 9,5 lb.! It was however their third boat partner who enjoyed a personal victory, smashing his PB with a staunch 100cm GT… Our hats off to you Eric. Gerry and Nick landed a GT each while team T&T (Tim and TJ) managed 3 GTs each during a busy lunchtime session. 
The halfway point of the trip, day 4, had us endure continuous rolling squalls, high altitude clouds, and little periods of sunlight. These conditions made the fishing somewhat difficult, and our guests had to capitalize on the opportunities they got during the short windows of decent visibility. The bulk of the fishing action was shared between Nick and Charlie. The pair found themselves in the right place at the right time and had several large schools of marauding GTs at their feet at different points during the day. Charlie managed to land 3 from these schools, the largest, a respectable 96cm GT, he also pined a lively Triggerfish while Nick chipped in with 2 GTs and a single Bonefish. The rest of the group soldiered on and managed several decent catches with Margaret, Dale, Tim, and TJ all successful on the GT front. Rob, however, enjoyed a particularly special moment when he landed his personal best Giant Trevally, a brute, that measured 101cm! 
Day 5 blessed us with perfect tropical weather, bright sunshine, and a slight breeze from the southeast. The standout catch of the day went to Nick, who managed to land an absolute giant of a GT. His 119cm trophy was spotted as it slowly worked its way along an exposed turtle grass finger flat, Nick’s fly went down and the fish immediately recognized it as prey, shooting forward and engulfing it before the second strip. A mad tussle ensued and due to some luck and some fancy boat work the fish was eventually landed! Charlie added to the day’s tally with another decent fish that measured 90cm while Margaret, TJ, Ian and Rob all enjoyed catches of GTs. Dale and Eric added a splash of colour to the tally with a Yellow Margin Triggerfish and Saddle Back Grouper landed respectively. 
Day 6 dawned bright and fresh. With little wind and clear skies our team headed to the flats with great anticipation of good fishing. The action was shared between TJ, Gerry, Dale, Nick and Charlie, all of whom managed to land a couple GTs. The largest of the day went to Nick when he coaxed a beautiful 96cm fish from a large coral head in the dying moments of the day. On the species front, Rob, Margaret, and Gerry enjoyed a session of productive fishing over the atoll’s expansive coral gardens landing several Bohar Snappers, Napoleon Wrasse, Grouper, and a large Saddleback. 
Day 7 saw a continuation of the flat calm weather, with the addition of a couple degrees Celsius to the days heat. The duration and intensity of the hot weather we experienced during the days prior had finally caught up with us and we experienced warm water in large areas of the atoll which had a negative effect on the fishing. On the GT front, Ian, Dale, Nick, Charlie, and Margaret all enjoyed success. TJ managed to land a massive Barracuda as well as a Napoleon while Charlie and Nick hit it out the park during a very productive session of bommie bashing catching Saddleback Grouper, Bohar, and several other novel species that call the atoll home. 
The last day of the trip saw us endure heavy cloud, rain, and the odd rumble of thunder for duration of the time we spend on the flats. Despite the tough fishing conditions, we still managed to get the odd opportunity in front of our desired targets with Nick, Ian, Rob, and Gerry all bringing GTs to hand. Our shots were taken during brief periods of the tide where we were able to spot water disturbances created by moving stingrays and tailing fish. A tough way to end the trip but we all felt satisfied that we did everything we could to find and catch fish under trying conditions. 
