Farquhar atoll, in the southern Outer Islands of Seychelles in the Indian Ocean has been at the top of our saltwater hit list since it was first fished. While Peter McLeod has returned to the atoll several times over the years, my focus has been a few degrees north, on Alphonse Island where I have been hosting groups twice a year for several years.
2017 will see me visit Farquhar for the first time and while chatting on my recent trip to Tanzania found myself being asked “why” on several occasions. Well, the easy answer is because I’ve never been to Farquhar; those of us who have itchy feet and fly rods are always looking for the next place to fish and for me, Farquhar has long been on the list. On the surface one atoll is much like the other as are the target species but the reality of it is that every atoll is unique and the experience on Farquhar will be like no other. I want to see Isle du Nord and Isle du Sud first hand. I want to fish around Goelette and to walk the Green Mile. I want to experience Deposé for myself and I dream about targeting bumphead parrotfish with their notorious coral crunching beaks. As a target species, Farquhar has the edge with bumpies as they aren’t seen in numbers on the other Indian Ocean atolls so really ….. you just have to, don’t you?
Other target species include giant trevally, Bluefin trevally, golden trevally as well as Indo-Pacific permit, triggerfish, bonefish and milkfish to target on Farquhar’s extensive white sand and coral flats. In addition to that, there a whole host of reef species and bluewater species to target.
Cyclone Fantala visited mayhem and wrath down on the atoll earlier this year so the Farquhar that I see will be visually very different to the atoll that Peter has fished for so many years. The fishery itself looks to be little different from recent satellite images but as the season has just opened on Farquhar no reports have yet made it back to the real world. What is immensely attractive about this current season is that Farquhar is only going to be fished for eight weeks in the whole 16/17 season. Using the Mayas Dugong as a fixed base for the week while the rebuilding work on Farquhar continues, and fitting in with the Providence season, the boat can’t be in two places at once so the flats of Farquhar are going to be pumping and I am going to make the most of every second that I am there.
There are still spots available and for more information please contact Charlotte Chilcott or Peter McLeod. Alternatively call our office on +44(0)1980 847389; we are always happy to talk about fishing and the pros and cons of one atoll against another.
FARQUHAR ATOLL, SEYCHELLES
11-19 March 2017 – 4 rods
21-28 April 2017 – Charlotte’s hosted week – 4 rods
28 April – 5 May 2017 – 6 rods
18-25 October 2017 – 8 rods
1-8 November 2017 – 4 rods
8-15 November 2017 – 10 rods
15-22 November 2017 – 4 rods
Last season’s trip report by Head Guide Tim Babbich is online,HERE.
