My Seychelles Bucket List

Last week over on the other board (Dan Blanton's) I posted a question about getting old, and when is it time to quit or slow down. This evolved into a lot of how to stay fit or healthy stuff. Others, like myself still have the urge but want to proceed with caution, enjoy perhaps at least one last big adventure, and still make it home, alive.

This time we're in is forcing depression on everyone. Like John H. said below in his posts about blackbass and dealing with travel and smoky skies "Times are weird --. You're forced to limit what you can do or where you can go.

What I was hoping for was some inside information about how you dealt with going to the Seychelles, and perhaps what you'd do differently. Good healthy information about making this trip easier or better for those who have never gone.

I think I've narrowed it down to flying Air Emerites from LAX to Dubai and then on to Mahe. From Mahe the booked trip begins using FlyCastaway Travel and then on to Farquhar atoll.

Farquhar seems to be one of the least expensive atolls to visit, has a great variety of mixed gamefish, and GT's that catch birds flying low over the water. They also eat flies made out of flip-flop sandels that look like birds :) (it's on Youtube)

So how many of you guys have been there? I'd love some input and suggestions before I book anything.

Thanks ahead, Tony

I’ve been there “In the Line of Duty”. Spent most of the time in a drunken stupor but as I recall it was a nice place.

Tony,

Don't get to excited about Seychelles, Just keep in mind if you don't talk to somebody who just left there yesterday it might not be that good. I know of a group that came back pretty disappointed with the lack of fish and the guide service....just my 2 cents

Carl

I hear you Carl. But that's fishing anywhere. I'm sure a lot of these YouTube videos are showing only the absolute best of the best as to what's there.

Still, If you don't go, you'll never know ?
Tony

very true Tony..... A few of the guys I went to Australia with this past October were the ones that shot and made the video throwing the black thong they found on the beach. They have made 3 trips since then and I think they were planning of doing another one but got the set back due to the virus.
I'm not sure if I could take all that traveling, although I would jump on a plane in a heart beat and fly to Aitutaki, Australia or New Zealand.

Tony,.... Read the notes on Blanton's BB about how old is too old/fitness and believe you're not even close to being to old to travel to distant fishing destinations.

I've been checking out the Seychelles and other island nations to the north of Madagascar and found some extremely expensive resorts. One for 31,000 lbs for a one week stay (airline costs incl.). WOW!!! Some of the best scenery is in Mauritius or The Maldives but those're where the highest costs were. Also, at least one island nation was experiencing some political unrest. Are you considering a DIY trip?? Have you looked at Alphonse Island or others in the Seychelles??

Darian,

Thanks for the words of encouragement. Staying cooped up in this house with self imposed isolation puts a guy into fits of depression.

Alphonse is another good looking atoll. I'm sure they all have GT's but some seem to promote them more than others.

No DIY for me. I need some young eyes to spot fish for me and keep me from getting into trouble.
Tony

Tony,

With all due respect, I wouldn't let anybody keep me or talk me out of going to exactly where I wanted to go or how long I wanted to stay. The example would me and Loreto. This coming year I am already booked for 6 weeks. I love the place and all the fish running around there. I am 76 and feel like I am 40. I can still run the 100 yd dash and can catch fish all day in Mexico for peanuts.

Good luck to you where ever you decide to go.

Carl Blackledge

I with Carl here......

If you have the ability to go, the finances, and the OK from the powers to be (wife?) I would go until you can't.

COVID has screwed a lot of this up for many though.

After you retire you can not afford to waste any time...........just go for it.


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We had some customers who were from the Greatest Generation who were real "Outdoorsmen", they are gone now.

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One was Tak Kato who was a real gentleman, always happy and a long term, serious old fly fisher.

He went on many group fly fishing trips through the shop and some that I hosted.

Tak went on lots of trip in his 80s with us and was always a delight to be around.

He went on many trips with old Joe Shirshac and the wild bunch of old Gezzers.

On a trip to a remote island off the coast of Belize many years ago Tak roomed with Neil Hansen.

They got back to camp before us and when we arrived they were both snockered and naked on their balcony.

It was a crazy sight that I can not un-see but was so funny..........they each had a cocktail and were waving at us.

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Another great many was Dick Hume who had a clothing store for years in San Francisco.

He retired and moved to Sacramento and join the CFFU to get to know some locals.

Dick told me stories of casting plugs off the rocks for Stripers near Pacifica in the 1950s.

He went to the wonderful Tsiu river in Alaska with a group hosted by Joe Shirshac some years ago.

Dick was about 85 then and pretty frail so in the morning Shirshac would help him put on his waders.

They took Dick down to the mouth of the river which is very sandy and shallow.

They put him in one of those white plastic yard chairs in a foot of water near the fish.

He would stand up, make a cast, start stripping and usually hook a fresh wild Silver salmon.

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Over the years we have many fine men of the Great Generation, many who were in World War II.

It was a pleasure to be able to spend time with these good men........most are gone now.

.

Reminds me of the story attached to the "George Bush" Bonefish Fly....it's named for a long-time serial Christmas Island offender and not the former President of your great country. George had a prosthetic leg and one time they propped him up in one of those white plastic chairs at the water's edge at Huff Dam, down the back of the Lagoon. In no time George hooked a nice GT that promptly pulled him off his perch and into the water. When the Guides finished pissing themselves they dragged the hapless (and legless) George onto terra firma. I'm not able to say whether he landed the fish (story told to me by respected Guide English).

Starting about the second year it was opened in 1986 we went the a lot. Our entire staff got to host many trips there.

I did hear about the famous George Bush of Christmas Island too.

Florida guide Steve Huff went there a lot to asses the flats and teach all the guides.



I was invited on the infamous "Sage Trip" to Christmas Island along with Bill Fitzsimons because we had gone there so many times.

This was one of the greatest trips of my lifetime because of all the cool folks that were on the trip like Lefty.

Attachment 16070

A good representation of the Who's Who of American saltwater fly fishing at the time in that pic Bill.The Guide I mentioned in my previous post (English) was taught to cast by Lefty Kreh and is an accomplished ambidextrous caster,and apart from him the only Guides still around from that era that I know of are Simon and Tyrone.

Many of our wonderful guides at Christmas Island are gone now. Their life expectancy is much shorter than ours.


Tyrone came here to California to the ISE show one year and stayed with us afterwards.

One of our good customers, a dentist, offered to do free work on Tyrone's teeth and he said "Yes".


Simon was my wife's favorite guide and use to always fish with him. He was one of Big Eddie's brothers and quite hansom.


My wife and I had a 'girl friend' on the island, Retira Mann, who we watched grow up from a teenager to a woman with children.

My wife brought her a good old Singer sewing machine and lots of sewing supplies over the years.

Alan Barnard and I went together on a big group trip and we bought her a Japanese kerosene stove.

We brought them CB radios which they used to communicated all over the island.

John Sullivan brought them all kinds of baseball equipment on a return trip.

We brought over sport shoes, sandals and nylon shorts when we came too.



Bob Nauheim and Frank Bertaina of Fishing International helped pioneer this fisheries along with Frontier Travel Company.


Hopefully you can all go there at least once in your lifetime, I wet 13 times and have it deep inside me.


I could write a novel of all our wonderful days on that specials island with the lovely people.

Bill, like you said us baby boomers have lost a lot of friends. I just found out this past week, two guys I use to fish with on the Smith river passed and even had one of my younger friends pass from Covid 19. He was only 47.

I retired 16 years ago and have never looked back. I have fished most of the places I thought about many years ago. But now, I have one favorite place to go and that is Aitutaki. I'm looking forward to next years trip, in late Oct/Nov 2021 to continue the battle with those mean ass GT's on the reef.

I fished Baja for nearly 33 years and hosted trips for 26 years. I gave it up this year and the Corona Virus really put the lid on the Baja retirement. Although, I will still make a trip or two every year.

Working at the Sportsman's Warehouse here in Fresno, I've been getting a lot of the younger generation interested in fly fishing, even some of the older gray hair generation (like us) are getting into the game. Prior to the virus, I was doing fly fishing classes, and fly tying classes almost every month. I still have a list of people, (probably 60 or more signed up) to take the beginning class. The fly tying classes are always filled but with our fly tying section, it's tough to get good products, thanks to the corporate office. I really don't think anyone up there knows any thing about fly fishing and really don't care. All they see is the bottom dollar. The old saying. "keep moving and don't let the grass grow under your feet".

Keep going Jay and good luck to you man.Hope to see you in Aitutaki one day!