October, 2021

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10/6-16:  Twelve days, many of which were in the air or on layovers to get in almost eight full days of fishing at Alphonse Island.

Alphonse Island - Seychelles  - 2021 Trip

This was my fifth and hopefully not last trip to this iconic fishing destination.  It's a nasty travel experience to get here and then get back home again.  I'm guessing it was about 40 total hours for the return to Arizona from this small island - first back to Mahe, then to Doha, then over the pole to Seattle, and finally to Tucson for the drive home to Green Valley.

What I love about the place the most is that I can fish by myself on my own and not have to take a guide with me.  While I have lots of friends who guide stateside, I simply prefer being by myself to fish.  This island is the ideal location since virtually all the other fisher people who come here go with guides to St. Francois daily leaving the shore of Alphonse completely abandoned.

Each returning year seems to yield more fish than the year before.  It helps to keep learning the quirks of the tides and the types of flies that appeal to the various species here.  Am guessing I released about 35 different types of fish this year.

Had zero success with giants.  Hooked a good number of them and lost them all.  Got spooled three times and had to grab the backing with my gloved hand to prevent the loss of the fly line and maybe 300 yards of backing.  Broke one rod tip but fortunately had a spare along.

Pattern selection is getting easier.  A strangely named fly called a "pillow talk" is really all one needs here.  Apparently it emulates a number of small local bait fish, and it worked well every day.  I also tied up what I ended up calling a "PT cruiser".  It was pretty much just a slightly larger streamer type version of the pillow talk with the same color scheme and an aerodynamic head shape to cut through the relentless winds.

The island is still a five star operation overall.  Will have to admit I was quite disappointed with the food operation.  The new chef can turn out well cooked fish with some decent sauces but fails to take advantage of the wonderful vegies that come from the local garden.  Meals seemed overdone and somewhat ponderous - not light and lively.  Salad dressings were awful.  Probably shouldn't say this, but maybe the style appeals to the Russians who visit here.

My video clips were unusually rotten this time around, so the following movie is short and to the point.  Maybe I can get an eyeglass camera that works better for the next trip here (at least I hope there's a next trip here).

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