A GT AND BURRACUDA WEEK

This has been a busy week for us, with all three boats running. There were returning anglers on all boats fishing with us. On the Reef Raider we had on their 4th trip, Ian and David from Oman. On the Tropical Star we had Matteo, Viljem and David Baggio, while on the Rampage we had Arjun with his father Janakan and Suresh. All back to have another round of fishing with us. With the global outbreak of the Corona Virus we did not know if Matteo and Viljem would make it, but make it they did, and Matteo was the star of the week.

We were going to have to plan out our fishing so that we could maximise the fishing results for each group. We made a suitable plan to give each group the best chances to land fish. For us this worked, and although we had a few slower sessions, the fishing action for the week was pretty hot.

David Baggio got off to a good start on day one with a good GT and plenty of action for the guys on the Tropical Star. Matteo had some really good sessions landing fish in quick succession. He was also lucky when the biggest GT of the week took his lure to very shallow water but decided to cooperate by running into deeper water. With constant pressure, it was safely put on board for a great photograph and gave Matteo his biggest GT till date.

The guys were unlucky not to land a huge Grouper that made its way back to the safety of the rocks. The jigging action was decent with some dogtooth upto 20 kilo, as well as Rusty jobfish for the group. There were also hook ups from larger fish that resulted in bust offs after searing runs. Viljem was unlucky to miss out on a really good fish. Once when his line broke after a short run from what was a big bite on his Hammer Head popper, and in another instance when the hooks pulled.

Meanwhile on the Rampage, Arjun had set a personal goal for himself to land a 30 plus kilo GT this trip. This, he managed to do on day five with our very own Kokari 130 popper – his personal best till date! He also had another chance with a bigger GT, but it managed to pull the hooks and got away.

All the guys landed some real monster barracuda this time, and it looks like these fish will be stalking the reefs for a few weeks more. While they areS known to bite off leaders and have a penchant for expensive lures, these fish with their awesome dentition make a formidable photo opportunity, if the anglers can get over the characteristic smell. Suresh had a chance with a good-sized dogtooth on jig as well but, was again unlucky.

With Ian and David on the Reef Raider, the group was missing Aidan. Being a surgeon, he could not take the travel risk to make the trip from the UK. Having fished in Oman and on their 4th trip with us, the guys to were able to put in the hard work, to have some great action and land some awesome fish. David had a big strike close to the boat using the Jackfin Chronos, and after an awesome fight landed a GT upwards of 35 kilos. Ian hooked a big GT on his lighter PE 6 setup and fought it, exerting the maximum pressure he could put on.

After a good 5 minutes into the fight, it seemed like we would land the fish, but it then turned and manged to get to the rocks where it bust off. Ian landed a great Grouper on topwater as well. David had a big shark come close to the boat and grab a Moco Stick-bait. Thinking that the lure would surely be lost as the fish took off, he held on. Fortunately, the hooks pulled and we got the lure back.

David also had a Spanish Mackerel nearly jump into the boat with the lure in its mouth. It was so close when it took the lure, that there was nothing he could do.

With plenty of stories to tell, it was a great experience for all the guys here.

Till our next trip report enjoy the pictures from our action packed fishing week.

Tight Lines!