While we out fishing with Xavier and Thierry on our catamaran Halcyon III we had an English group arrive as well. We fished with Bob, James and Stuart from Halcyon II from Port Blair and Havelock. It was an interesting trip as it was their first trip out in the tropics chasing GT. The fishing was to be mixed and we broke the days up into sections where we'd pop, jig or troll based on sea conditions. It was great as they were open to trying anything and were keen to try out any method we suggested or thought best to catch fish.
The trip was interrupted by unseasonal winds and rain which made conditions for us very trying. On some days we had a lot of chop that made popping virtually impossible as the sea surface was too disturbed and their poppers were getting lost in all the commotion. We had no choice but to troll or jig. Our jigging was restricted to the leeward side of the islands and we were stuck for choice. We still did fish every chance we got and did pretty well going by the conditions.
Our trip to Havelock went off pretty well with us managing GT on popper, a nice Barracuda and Spanish Mackerel trolling. Typically the rain picked up in the afternoons and the heavens opened above us. It's Okay fishing in the rain as long as there's no wind but when it rains so hard that you literally can't see your popper when it lands makes the going really hard.
Worried as hell we wondered if we'd have another group give up and head back beaten, but it wasn't to be so. What Bob, James and Stuart realised is that they'd just scratched the surface. They'd got a taste, an appetizer or a peek at what the fishing is like when conditions are favourable here in the Andaman Islands.
We have them already hooked, booked, confirmed and heading back our way next season. We're super keen to have them on our boats again and to take them out and get them into some big fish.
Bob above, with his first GT of the trip.
Stuart proudly looking down at his Spanish Mackerel probably thinking " Damn! I wish Barbel pulled that hard!!"
Bob with a 'puppy'.
Ominous rain clouds laden with tons of rain creep up behind us to stop us from having too much of a good time.
Double Hookup on popper for the team.
Bob with a nice Red Bass.
Bob again with a big Barracuda that hammered a trolled Rapala on our way back to port before the rain caught up with us.
Rain and an electrical storm headed our way, luckily we were back and safe on land by then.
James with one of his first popper caught GT as well.
Above the group enjoy Kingfishers and a seafood meal back at the resort. Most resorts on Havelock cater to a wide variety of clients who visit them. One of the great parts about fishing from boats like ours is that we're back on land by dark and one gets to see a bit of Island life and meet other travelers. Also one gets to have a hot shower and have a warm meal in a restaurant that isn't rocking all the time!
Below is the link to Bob Roberts beautifully written blog post on the trip, which brings out the real feel of the situations we were in and our best part of the blog is his take on the 'divers' ;-)
Stuart and Bob also made a small film of their trip in the Andaman Islands while fishing with us and it can be watched at the link below:
A small word of thanks to Bob, James and Stuart for sending us these excellent photographs of their trip.
More to come soon about our fishing adventures from the Andaman Islands.
Darran & Akshay.
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