カテゴリ: Expeditions

GT Fishers Maldives team took another expedition for the first time to reach Most Northern part of Maldives -  Iharandhippolhu, & Haa Alifu Atolls.  You can take a domestic flight from Male to Hanimaadhoo International Airport.  Guesthouse is ready to pick you up and smoothly transport to to your rooms in very timely fashion.  We this time negotiated to have best rates for our customers going forward.

Islands in this northern area apparently look very different from the rest of Maldives.  They are large and long; Outer Reef along those long islands make very beautiful fishing area of endless casting.  It consumes a bit more fuels due to longer distance transfer to cover major reefs along the 2 atolls but those are dynamic points with full of potentials.  Our expedition was from September 2nd through 6th – around New Moon time for 5 days.  Though these are very popular fishing points, but just after dhoni fishing safari offseasons in June-July due to more winds and rough seas slow dhonis can do very little for effective fishing, several months no fishermen entered those areas so that conditions were just so great.  Speedboat, we could maneuver in anyways we can despite some winds or high waves in some day but managed to have overwhelming fishing results everyday.

Between Capt. Mohamed’s half time fishing and myself daily around 8-10 hours without any rest even for lunch, we landed over 40 fishes daily – majority GTs.  Over 40kg was 3 catches and double digits for over 30kg.  We lost a couple of apparently larger GTs due to line cut and Lure break (wire cut inside the stckbait!). Those regretful events make us want to come back for revenge then we get another loss – endless cycle of fishing madness we all are deep trapped.

We wish we could stay a bit longer in this area but September 7th was Presidential Election Day so that our crews needed to go back to their home island in Lhaviyani Atoll to vote.  Second Democratic Presidential Election after 2008, 85% of Maldivians vote with full consciousness of democratic participation to choose their own leader.  Some are a bit over enthusiastic that some dead people’s votes and multiple votes by same person in different islands were found that High Court now orders the investigation…  Let us see how this democratic process will proceed with check and balance in this new democratic country of Maldives.  First candidate – ex-President attained 45% of votes but shy of majority so that September 28 will be final round between 1st and 2nd candidates unless 1st round of election will be order to re-do.

P1010059P1010066P1010144P1010254P1010282P1010193

Can someone do anything about Global Warming?  Malidives is no exception to big impact of estranged weather conditions happenning worldwide.

Our 11 day expedition first in Lhaviyani and then Vaavu Atoll were in the middle of 3 week continous storm rain, 20mph+ winds, and Thunder storm.  Old men in Maldives with full of weather and nature knowledge have no more understanding of this new weather.  Maldives's monsoon seasons typically spot storm with mild winds just for a few hours - not a few weeks!  We can even go to areas a few kilometers away to avoid those spot rains whereas this time clouds and rain together with rain covered the entire Malidves territory...  What the Hell is Going on?!

Regardless of weather conditions, we invested to go to fishing so we need to manage the optimum results under the severest conditions and we managed to do well.  Here is how:

7 days in Lhaviyani Atoll, we managed to go to fishing everyday.  Strong winds.  So we could cover only a half of Atoll behind the winds throughout 7 days.  Our initial plan was to cover all plus extend to Baa and Nuunu Atolls.  Thus, very limited points we could go in this weather.  However, speedboat was a great mean to effectively approach those limited points we can try.  Our Captain Mohamed deployed his utmost experiences and knowledge to daily design our routes and points to hunt GTs. 

Results were more than encouraging.  My motto is to land over 10 fishes including several GTs hopefully more than half.  Not only we could do that everyday but 1 day we capture over 50 fishes and next day over 30, topped with 30kg GT (measured).  This explosive fishing dates were 3rd and 4th day; 3rd day morning suddenly stopped all strong winds but again started in afternoon around 1pm.  Then weather started worsening again that later we hit to worst in the following week in Vaavu Atoll...

Overall throughtout Lhaviyani and Vaavu, we could catch fairly good numbrer of fishes every day but size of GTs were not very good, highly influenced with limited points we could go due to 20mph+ winds.  In fact, 1 day in Vaavu we could not go to fishing for the first time in this weather.  20kg+ GTs were less than 10 throughout 11 days while we landed well over 100 fishes.

Vaavu Atoll 4 days were joined by our new exclusive agent GetAway Tours (http://www.getawaytours.eu/) from Denmark who will represent us for 4 countries - Denmark, Sweden, Norwey, and Germany.  GetAway Tours' President organize the trips frequently to Maldives going forward so that if you are interested in joininig the trip to share the cost, please contact Thomas.  Of course we can do individual charter anytime whenever available. 

Throughout this terrible weather, especially the winds!, superiority of speedboat for fishing had been well proven.  In Vaavu atoll, there was Dhoni based Japanese customers were fishing around in Vaavu and saw us in Eastern outter reef one day (that is basically only parts we could fish in Vaavu though we initially wanted to go to Meemu Atoll's long reef with full of big GTs!).  Dhoni with 5 knot speed with large body under 20mph winds, they cannot do anything.  4 days tour on Dhoni they could capture only 3 fishes by 5 people...  They wanted to charter us to begin us but not available so that they took an old dhoni (not Hariyana), we felt bad...

By the way, terrible weather started 1 week before our arrival.  One party from Japan did 4 day tour in Rasdhoo/Ari Atolls.  They could land only a few fishes daily topped with 20kg GT.  Tour leader was prominent Japanese offshore fisherman with his padres.  They were a bit older than us with constrained physical strength and endurance capacity. 

What we learned again the very basics is that If you do not cast, you cannot get fishes.  More casts, more chance to capture more.  Japanese party before us were doing only 3+ hours of fishing everyday at incurrent time and they stopped fishing going back to guesthouse for nap and sight seeing.

It is true that theoretical and usually good time for fishing is "Incurrent" time from low to high tide.  Currents are inflowing into Atolls thru outter reef corners and channels.  We have had a lot of good time in this.  However, it is not only time we can score the fishes.  In this tough conditions, we kept casting and got some good and explosive results in different time...
- "Outcurrent time" in inner reef around corals"
- "High Tide" with little current activities at super shallow points.
- "Low Tide" also in both outter reef and inner reef.
Logically what we can draw the modest conclusion is that there are a lot of more factors than tides working to determine that fish's activities.  Our Capt. Mohamed has been going to seas for fishing for last nearly 10 years in all atolls in Maldives and experienced many different phenomenons.  With his compounding experiences, he does his best to try to hunt the time/spots for scoring the trophy fishes.  In other words, you just need to keep casting.  You never know when you start explosive fishing.  Tide plans a big factor but not only one single factor.  Never give up is the attitude successful fishermen need to drive the results.

We were using more Stick Bait (Pencil) than Popper under strong winds.  Stick Bait typically has faster cycle of casting probably every 1.5 minutes.  Keep casting continously except a few minutes boat transfers from one point to the next and lunch (we skipped several days! but just ate small granola crackers), you probably end up casting 3-400 for 8-10 hours.  You need your physical strength though important to manage with appropriate rests as required with close communication with Captain so that he will embed your physical factors into his course strategy and menu for the day.  If you cast only 2-3 hours, much of Captain's expertise gets wasted.  Choosing tackles to enable longer fishing is also important also.  Now I started using partial short rods around 7'9" v. 8'2" and smaller reel Stella SW 8000-10000 v. 18000. Using of Stick Bait is another offload choice. 

Above all, we have learned how to contruct our fishing in bad weather as nature throw occasional bad weather even in Maldives which probably has the most stable weather conditions throughout the world with GT fishing.  No Typhoon or Cycron with very moderate rainy seasons disregarding the global warming effects. 

DSC00970aDSC00971aDSC00974DSC00992DSC00991DSC01138DSC01187DSC01143

Some experienced GT Fishermen like to raise their own hardle. 

Shore GT Fishing - This is one form of art not everyone is equipped to succeed.

Well known Fisherman from Japan came to Maldives after many years and tried Shore GT Fishing, just a few minutes walk from the guesthouse he and his pals were staying.

In Maldives, there are many resorts - one island one resort.  All have strict regulations - Absolutely No Fishing Allowed at the Island.

Today, there are a number of cheaper guesthouses are available in local residential islands.  Most of those resident islands have no such regulations and you are free to go fishing at your own risk.  Compared to Offshore Boat Fishing with lack of mobility from point to next, Shore GT Fishing is definitely disadvantageous and less probably - that makes Shore Fishing very dramatic if you score one like this!!

Especially remote atolls such as Gaafu Dhaalu/ Alif Atolls, I do not think anyone has ever tried till just last week...

Well Photos speak more than million words!

223436_4911563265341_308480241_n (2)
72961_4911566105412_1248592608_n (2)
480169_4911568305467_1030410767_n (2)
223591_4902380035766_1753183002_n

We have extensive list of guesthouses we can arrange booking.  So who will catch next monster GTs from the Shore?!

We have probably served around 10 newly wed couples on honeymoon to try their first GT fishing.  Amazingly no couple ended without catch though they are all very first time to try out.  Many of them start with casting lesson for the first half hour or so.  They typically come in packaged tour staying in resorts in North or South Male Atoll, pretty close from airport by speedboat transfer.  Husband, being able show off to his newly married wife with unseen giant fish must be quite an experience while she is so proud of him.  However, when wife happens to catch bigger GTs, would it indicate who will be in charge?!  In any case, Honeymooners always come with luck!

Mr. & Mrs. Onodera from Japan on November 20-21, 2012 in North Male Atoll; catching a beutiful gal and GT!!:

1
2
DSC00278

We GT Fishers Maldives Team is taking another expedition to Gaafu Dhaalu Atoll for 7 day fishing from September 16. We are going to test a number of new lures and areas, particularly very Northern Tip of Gaafu Alif Atoll where we could not reach last time for distance. After Last June's expedition, we have received significant feedback and inquiries about this part of Maldives. World's leading Offshore Fisherman Yoichi Mogi san also decided to make a tour with his Grouper Boys members to Gaafu Dhaalu next April-May while many others are now planning. If you are also interested in, any parts of Maldives, feel free to contact us at info@gtfishers.com. Thanks.

 

続きを読む

↑このページのトップヘ