He’s back already, but Jim Klug of Yellow Dog Fly Fishing Adventures just went to St. Brandon’s Atoll in the Indian Ocean and it looks AWESOME.
That is beautiful. (photo by Jim Klug)
Nice, nice bone from the Indian Ocean.
Yeah… the obligatory GT. I need to catch one of these.
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Yeah… I wouldn’t mind going here at some point. Ya know. Just for giggles.
Fantastic looking teaser for the video. I’ll be on the look-out for this.
That liberal rag the New York Times, ran a story by Chris Santella about ole’ Christmas Island. Bloody lamestream media!
As a non-fish-eater, I was taken aback when Peter Kairaoi, the lead guide for Christmas Island Outfitters, took a healthy bite from a dead and rather pungent milkfish he was shredding and tossing into the water for chum.
via Giant Trevally Give Anglers a Fight on Christmas Island – NYTimes.com.
That’s a pretty good opening. Bravo Chris… bravo.
I love the “liberal press.” No, really. I do.
Brian Gies is the business manager and CFO at Fly Water Travel, a company located in Ashland, Oregon, that sends anglers out all over the world for life changing angling experiences. As a kid I used to go to Ashland for their fantastic Shakespeare Festival, little did I know the city was also the gateway to Argentina, Mongolia and Christmas Island.
The subject of this interview was about Christmas Island, one of those “ultimate” destinations.
Merry Christmas indeed.
Flywater Travel offers trips to Christmas Island. Christmas is one of those places that is seen as an ultimate destination. What is it that makes Christmas Island so special?
The answer sounds a bit cliché but besides that fact that year in and year out the place just flat out produces some of the most consistent flats fishing anywhere in the world, it is the people. Of all the destinations we sent people Christmas Island ranks number one in client response about the guides, lodging staff. I think a lot of this has to do with the fact that the people of the island are truly kind generous people who are easy to laugh and eager to help.
What are the challenges that a place like Christmas Island presents that you might not encounter other places?
The bottom line is this is a tiny island in the middle of the pacific so just getting basic goods and services there can be a challenge. The accommodations and meals anglers receive are nothing to write home about but they are far above what the vast majority of the islanders have. Imagine this: At least once or twice a year this island runs out of rice and sugar. Out….Totally.
Xmas GT
I’ve heard that netting has been impacting bonefish. How is the state of the fishery there?
Over the years netting as well as angler pressure has impacted the fishing. To be honest you would be hard pressed to confirm which has been harder. Over the years the island has been almost loved to death with as many as 50 + anglers on the flats a week. The flats can handle a lot of pressure but this number of anglers and a growing island population was starting to take a toll.
However, as of late there have been two major developments. First, just over a year ago the government passed a regulation that prohibits netting bonefish in the lagoon. Second for the past year and a half the charter flight to the island has only had the capacity to take 18 people a week to and from the island. The result has been truly spectacular fishing. I honestly think if we can keep the numbers of anglers to a minimum(Max 30 a week) and the island can keep the nets out of the lagoon the place will keep on producing great fishing long into the future.
What can one expect in terms of weather and wind in a place like Christmas Island?
Air temperatures are usually in the upper 80’s to low 90’s and water temperatures average 75°. Wind is typically constant between 5-10mph.
What are the unique gear considerations for Christmas?
Gear is quite typical of other flats destinations. 7 or 8wt rods for bonefish and 12wt for giant trevally. The big thing is that as it is 100% wade fishing good flats boots are a must.
If you had to bring one bonefish fly for Xmas, what would that be?
No doubt it would be a orange Christmas Island special size #6
What does a good day’s fishing on Xmas look like?
A good day means different things to different people and numbers of fishing landed is often just one piece of the pie. For the average angler on Christmas it would be learning the subtleties of casting in the wind on the flats, learning how to strip set on a bonefish, learning how to cast to a tailing vs a cruising fish, catching between 10 and 20 bonefish that average 3 lbs, getting one or two shots at trevally, and having a great conversations with the guides in between the fishing.
Trigger... crazy looking Christmas fish
Thanks Brian. Hope to see you in Christmas some day.
The Google Alert brought up an interesting story about a fishing exploration trip to the Andaman Islands in the Bay of Bengal. Yeah… I had never heard of them either. The blog is saltwaterflyfisher.com. Not sure if it is my browser or what, but the blog comes out all crazy looking and doesn’t load well.
They didn’t even go bonefishing… but here’s what he said:
Bonefish??The first time I wondered down to the beach on Havelock , my jaw dropped. I was greeted with miles of electric blue flats. I actually said out loud ‘’ Theres got to be’. I had a brief chance to wade the flats before the fever and temperature had me limping back to base to lie down. I made enquires and it was confirmed to me that divers see bonefish close to Havelock all the time. The Andamans are 11 degrees north of the equator and well within the Bonefish band that circles the globe. The flats on Havelock do become rather deep on the high tide with that in mind I would be inclined to fish early into flooding spring tides. I found this fascinating and sufficient reason to return. Anyone visiting Havelock would do well to pack an 8 weight rod and wade those flats. There must be a couple of big shoals of Bonefish that visit those flats most days. Im not saying that this is a new bonefish mecca as yet undiscovered but I would gladly take a bet and devote a few days out of a trip to investigate further.
So… that sounds interesting enough.
Looks nice enough too.
Looking for stories on Christmas Island, where a friend will be fishing in three weeks, I came across this little story about Christmas Island on, of all places, the ESPN.com site. Worth a read to wet your Christmas appetite. Story by Bill Becher.
Bill Becher photo
