ASTOVE FISHING REPORT
This past week, we had four keen anglers join us on the beautiful little atoll of Astove. The weather was predicted to be picture-perfect, and it certainly delivered throughout the week, with only one day of temperamental conditions consisting of downpours that kept Joshua, William, Antonio, and Alexander off the flats for half a day. Despite the few hours of bad weather, we had an exceptional week of fishing, with 72 bonefish, one Moustache Triggerfish, 15 permit, 21 giant trevally, one dogtooth tuna, and three jobfish all landed throughout the week.
On day one, Joshua, who has fished Astove before and requested Enrico Aerts as his guide based on a recommendation, started his first day off with a 74 cm and an 84 cm giant trevally. In the afternoon, he went offshore for a short dredging session, where he managed to land an impressive 84 cm jobfish. Tyron Knight guided Antonio and Alexander on the first day. Antonio finished his day with a slam, consisting of a 60 cm giant trevally, a 35 cm triggerfish, and a bonefish, while Alexander managed to catch three giant trevally during a short afternoon dredging session, with the biggest being 91 cm.
On day two, spirits were high before departing camp, but Joshua soon discovered he was suffering from ‘Salado,’ or more commonly known amongst fly fishermen as ‘the curse,’ with some unfortunate events playing out throughout the day. Nonetheless, he managed to scrape through, landing a beautiful 61 cm bluefin trevally and a 60 cm bonefish at the wreck. William from North Carolina completed a slam on the second day, consisting of a 79 cm giant trevally, three permit, and 28 bonefish, earning him both a flats slam and the 20-plus bonefish badge.
Day three turned out to be an exceptional day for Joshua, who landed a 78 cm giant trevally, two permit, and a bonefish, completing the slam for the day. William was on a permit roll once again, landing his fourth permit of the trip. Alexander and Antonio managed to get a day of fishing with Enrico after some negotiation, opting to head offshore for some dredging. It turned out to be an amazing day in the deep, with Antonio landing three giant trevally, and Alexander finishing his day with two jobfish, five giant trevally, and a magnificent 94 cm dogtooth tuna.
As the week progressed, it was decided to rotate the guide team again. Joshua managed to land an Indo-Pacific permit with guide Donovan, Alexander landed the biggest giant trevally of the week at 95 cm with guide Tyron Knight, and William landed another three permit with guide Enrico Aerts on the same day.
Day five was tough due to stormy weather conditions, but William wasn’t deterred, landing another three permit with head guide Enrico, bringing his permit count to ten for the week. Despite the challenging weather on day five, day six turned out to be stellar, with pristine weather conditions and one last day to search for some good fish. The competition between guides Enrico Aerts and Tyron Knight had been growing throughout the week, and after endless banter around the table the night before, they headed out and produced a phenomenal day on the flats. At around 9:30 am, Josh landed a 71 cm giant trevally on Enrico’s boat, followed by Alexander landing a 60 cm giant trevally at 9:40 am. Moments later, Tyron guided Alexander onto a permit just 100 meters from Enrico’s boat, who then followed up by guiding Joshua into a permit. Both Joshua and Alexander ended their last day by completing the slam by lunchtime, finishing the week in spectacular fashion. Well done to Joshua, William, Antonio, and Alexander for all the amazing achievements this week!
