Seychelles April 2007 - Providence Atoll

[Mike]

Here are some photos from my recent trip to the Providence atoll in the Seychelles.

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/007.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/011SeaPearlsaftdeck.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/012.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/013.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/014.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/015.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/016.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/017.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/018MikeGT.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/019DenisGT.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/020MikeGTB.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/021DenisMikeGT.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/022IMG_0240.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/024IMG_0232.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/025IMG_0257.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/027.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/028.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/029JimandLongNosedEmperor.jpg

http://i130.photobucket.com/albums/p253/freshcasts/030BFT.jpg

[ak_powder_monkey]

that pretty much looks awesome

[papafsh]

iagree

[rockymountain_brown]

Nice fish!! Are those big ones Trevally?
RMB

[Mike]

Yes, the large oblong fish are Giant Trevally.

Mike

Nice fish!! Are those big ones Trevally?
RMB

[Zen Piscator]

Damn!!! Those are some huge GT's, Alpine will be down there once he sees that. Amazing....soooo porny.

[Diehard]

Awesome fish and great photos! That looks like a blast!

[Coach Duff]

I just printed those off and it looks like another long shower for the Coach tonight.:p Nothing like some real XXX fish porn. Great looking trip brother! Coach

[Stan Wright]

Great Pictures, how in the world were you able to land those big ulua (GT) I'm impressed.

Aloha,
Stan

[alpinetrout]

It's pretty crazy how the mix of species is almost identical to what's found in the Coral Sea, 7000 miles away. Do they have a local name for the Bohar Snappers (2nd to last photo)? In Australia, they call them Red Bass.

[Stan Wright]

I've seen those fish in Christmas Island, but never caught one in Hawaii. The first fish at the top is an Uku (gray snapper) Those we have. Then the Papio, (blue fin travelli) and then the Ulua, (GT.) Probably the most soughtafter fish in Hawaii.

Recently in China, I was surprised to find that most of their fish are imported from Australia and SE Asia. We have got to go fishing there too.

Fishing the Seychelles is a dream trip that everyone should take before they die.

[alpinetrout]

The first fish at the top is an Uku (gray snapper) Those we have.

Those are both common names. The proper name is Green Jobfish. I've caught a ton of them on flies, but never seen one that pale before. They seem to adapt to their colors to the surroundings, so it may be a result of the bottom coloration where this one was living.

[Mike]

In order the fish are:

Green Job Fish caught on a popper
Blue Fin Trevally
Giant Trevally, 21# Caranx ignobilis – I love that name
Giant Trevally, 35# caught on a popper
Giant Trevally, 27#
The same fish as above
Yellow Fin - Note the kink in the tail.
Cuda – He was about 4’ long. He put the kink in the Yellowtail’s tail when we boating it. He then hit a fly that was hanging in the water.
What was left of a Rainbow Runner. He hit the fly and then something hit him.
Blue Fin Trevally
Sweet Lip Emperor Fish
Dog Tooth Tuna – 30kg and I’m the laughing fool holding the fish.

Answering the question on landing the GT’s. You tail them. As you bring them in, they circle around you like a bonefish. You change the direction of the circle to keep them off balance. Once you get them close enough you reach down and grab the tail and hold on tight. The section between the tail and body is hard and bony with some sharp protrusions so you need to wear a glove when tailing them. I wore a Mangrove casting glove on both hands for that reason. This was my 3rd non guided trip to the Sey. and the 2nd year that I targeted GT. Last year I did not do well with them, but I watched the guys that did and learned.

Mike

[alpinetrout]

It's hard to tell at that angle, but are you sure that's a sweetlip emperor? It looks more like a bohar snapper to me.

Good ID photos here:
Sweetlip Emperor - http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/fishguide/15792.html
Bohar Snapper (Red Bass) - http://www2.dpi.qld.gov.au/fishguide/15844.html

[Mike]

They had a longer snout then the snapper. Also note the orange colorization around the mouth, eyes and pectoral fins. The locals have some name for it in Creole, but I don't recall it.

Mike

[littleron]

mike, could you please recomend cheap places to stay and eat? also how do you get there? thanks, ron

[Jason Baker]

Thanks for the porn. I am touching my 12 wt right now!!!