Maldives on the Fly by getawaytours.eu

PRE-TRIP PLANNER

MALDIVES ON THE FLY

PLANNING YOUR TRIP FLIGHT SCHEDULES In order to have the shortest possible travel time, avoiding extra nights in Male before and/or after your fishing trip, book flights that adhere to this schedule: ON ARRIVAL DAY, PLAN TO ARRIVE IN MALE NO LATER THAN 1:00 PM ON DEPARTURE DAY (AFTER LAST DAY OF FISHING), PLAN TO DEPART FROM MALE NO EARLIER THAN 9:30 PM The schedule above allow our groups to transfer to the chosen atoll on the day of arrival, and to depart after the last day of fishing. In case you can find much cheaper flights that arrive too late in the day, or depart too early, you can consider staying in a hotel near the airport. On Hulemale, the island where the airport is located, you can find plenty of hotels in various price categories in case you need to spend a night before or after the trip.

ENTRY REQUIREMENTS - A passport valid for at least six months beyond the dates of your trip. - No pre-arrival visa is needed to enter the Maldives. On your flight to Male you will receive an entry form. - You will need to know the name and location of our chosen guest house* when you fill out your entry form. *MAKE SURE YOU HAVE RECEIVED THIS INFORMATION FROM US BEFORE YOU DEPART FOR THE MALDIVES.

ALCOHOL It is stricly forbidden to import alcohol into the Maldives. Legally, if you’re 18 and not a Muslim, you can buy and drink alcohol. However since the Maldives are an Islamic nation, alcohol is effectively banned for the local population. Since we stay in guest houses on islands where the locals live don’t expect to find any alcohol during your stay. The only place, aside from resorts, where you can buy alcohol is at the Hulhule Island Hotel, a ten minute walk from the airport. Many guest enjoy a drink there before they fly out later in the evening (or the next day).

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The view towards Male from the airport on Hulemale.

TRANSFERS IN THE MALDIVES On most of our fly fishing expeditions we will transfer our groups on GT Fishersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; 34 foot speed boat. The boat has a cabin and provides a dry and comfortable ride to our chosen atoll for the week. We recommend the group arrive in Male as early as possible so we can make the transfer on the same day. Since we arrive back in Male before dark, after the last day of fishing, it is possile to fly out later that evening. On the rare occasion that we are fishing in the extreme south or north of the Maldives, it will be necessary to fly domestic to the chosen location where the boat and crew will be waiting.

ACCOMMODATION Accommodation is at local guest houses. Nothing fancy but always clean, air conditioned rooms with private bathrooms and usually (limited) Wi-Fi. Meals are pretty basic. Typically, noodles with chicken and vegetables or rice with fresh fish. For breakfast, it is usually white toast and eggs or the local alternative: Tuna, mixed with onions and coconut, in wraps. Sometimes, the food can be pretty good but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s better not to arrive with modest expectations.

MALDIVES ON THE FLY

THE BASICS ELECTRICITY

GRATUITIES

The electric outlets are usually 220 volts, and they can vary in type. You can charge your electronics if you bring a travel adapter.

We recommend tipping the crew $20-25 per person per day of fishing. Tipping is normally given to the captain at the end of the trip. He will divide it amongst the crew.

COMMUNICATIONS

TRAVEL INSURANCE

Cell phones typically work on all inhabited islands in the Maldives.

It is the client’s responsibility to have a travel insurance. Getaway Fly Fishing and GT Fishers cannot assume any financial responsibility for consequences incurred if proper coverage has not been obtained.

Most guest houses have Wi-Fi but it will often be fairly slow and/or unstable.

CURRENCY (AND CASH) You will not find ATM machines outside Male so bring enough cash for the entire trip. Bring US dollars which will normally be accepted everywhere in the Maldives. You don’t need a lot of cash, we recommend around USD 400 per person. Most likely, you will not need that much. Some small shops on the islands (where you can buy snacks etc.) accept credit cards. Not all do, but in that case they normally accept US dollars.

We strongly recommend that your insurance will cover any costs if you miss your boat transfer due to flight delays, or your flights for any reason.

VACCINATIONS Always check your local authorities’ recommendations before departure. Unless you are flying from tropical Africa there are no required by law vaccinations for the Maldives for entry or exit.

MALDIVES CONTACT MOHAMED VISHAM +960 7 932 815 EMAIL MOHAMED_VISHAM@HOTMAIL.COM CAPT.

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MALDIVES ON THE FLY

THE FISHING A NEW FISHERY Though fly fishermen have tried their luck in the Maldives for many years, only recently did fly fishing really catch on here. Compared to bonefishing in the Caribbean it is a more demanding and a more complicated fishery. We are still learning on every trip so by the time you fish with us we might have altered some of our views since this pre-trip planner was written.

GT ON THE FLY

While we all dream about catching GTs on the fly, it’s important to understand that this isn’t an easy task. Every hooked GT on a fly rod is an achivement – and every landed one is a victory! Managing your expectations might help you enjoy your trip a lot more. If you think that you will catch GTs on the fly every day, you are on the wrong trip. More realistic expectations is to get a couple of good shots per day. More on great days and nothing on the slowest days. It’s hard to succeed wading the flats with a fly rod for these fast swimming predators – but once you do the taste of victory is much sweeter, too!

FLATS AND REEFS

Generally, we fish two kind of spots: Flats and reefs. The flats usually have a sandy bottom and the fish come in on the rising tide, and move out when the tide drops. When we find GT on the flats it doesn’t get any better: Often, they can be spotted over long distances, and if we are lucky enough to hook one we are less likely to break them off. We mainly find GT on the flats in waist deep water. Other flats can fish really well for triggerfish, smaller bluefin trevally, yellow spotted trevally or even the occasional bonefish. The most exciting

fishing for these species is when we find them in water shallow enough to spot them tailing. A triggerfish waving its big, orange tail can often be spotted from great distances, and it will often stay in the same area while you sneek up on it. Catching it is a different matter; these fish can be really tricky to fool! They are great fun and are becoming a very sought after species on a fly rod. Some trevallies will tail on the flats and they sometimes look so much like bonefish that we have fought some for a while before realizing that they weren’t. The bluefin trevallies on the flats are agressive: They usually don’t tail but the faster you strip your fly, the more they turn on. A five pound bluefin hooked on light tackle in shallow water will show you a lot of backing in no time!

WADING & CASTING

Fly fishing in the Maldives means wading. We use the boat for getting for access to the best fishing spots but we always get in the water before we do any fly fishing. Wading the shallow flats for triggerfish and smaller trevally species is pretty much like you might know it from bonefishing: Easy wading in shallow water. When we are looking for GTs it’s a different story: Most GTs will be encountered when you are wading in water that is knee to waist deep. Be aware that casting a heavy 12 weight rod in waist deep water is very different from casting the same outfit for tarpon from a boat. Sometimes, you can find a rock or coral to stand on, hopefully near an opening in a small reef or covering a channel leading onto the flat. An elevated position will make casting a lot easier. Often, current or waves will drag your fly line away and make line control and casting more difficult, at other times your (floating!) fly line might sink enough to get caught on reef or coral and seriously obstruct your casting. The only

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MALDIVES ON THE FLY

good solution to this problem is either a line basket or, as we prefer, a Flexi-Stripper (a simpler and more minimalist version of a line basket). While we will try to have enough FlexiStrippers on board for everyone to borrow one, we can’t guarantee this in case some are lost or broken prior to your arrival.

CARRYING ONE OR TWO RODS?

Whether you want to carry one or two rods is mainly a matter of personal taste. Maybe we might change our opinion in the future – for spots we haven’t discovered yet – but for the spots we have been fishing so far, we don’t recommend carrying two rods at the same time. For those of you that haven’t done this kind of fishing before: The idea with two rods is that the angler can change from targeting big fish (GT, red snapper, shark etc) with the 11 or 12 weight to smaller fish (triggerfish, smaller trevallies etc) with the 8 or 9 weight. First of all, shots at GTs occur during small windows of a few seconds, so nine out of ten times you wouldn’t have the time to drop the lighter rod in the water (forget all about reeling in the line and putting it away!) and get the heavy rod ready for a shot. If you are targeting GTs, we recommend that you focus on GTs. If a snapper, barracuda, shark or a nice bluefin comes along why not show it your GT fly and see what happens? Don’t find yourself missing the best GT shot of the trip because you are messing around with a 9 weight and a crab fly on 16 lbs tippet on spots where we might encounter GTs. It would be a shame not to fish for triggers and smaller trevallies with lighter fly tackle during your trip but the best, and most exciting, fishing for smaller species is found on shallow flats. It is pretty unlikely that you will suddenly encounter big GTs in less than two feet of water so while you can carry your heavier rod ”just in case”, we actually prefer leaving the heavy rod on the boat and have some fun wading as

shallow water as possible with the 8 or 9 weight.

TEASING

When teasing, your fishing partner or a guide will be throwing a hookless popper on a spinning rod. With this method you can cover lots of water and sometimes pull the fish within range of a fly cast. As the popper is pulled out of the water, the fly fishermen present the fly right in front of the already excited fish. On some destinations a lot of the GT, bluefin trevallies and snappers that you see on pictures are caught teasing. There is nothing wrong with that – but it might not be what you had in mind when you booked your trip. So far, we have done very little teasing in the Maldives. It’s not our preferred way of fishing – sight fishing is hard to beat – but we certainly don’t see anything wrong in doing it, to get some action if visibility is poor or the fishing is slow. We still need to discover more spots where the teasing works well but if we do, we are happy to give it a try now and then.

POPPING FOR A BIT OF FUN

Nothing beats catching a fish on a fly rod but some people might find it more fun to catch something on a spinning rod as opposed to cathing nothing on a fly rod. Don’t bring any spinning tackle on these fly fishing trips because hopefully you won’t get a chance to use it. But if the fly fishing is really hard, or there is absolute no visibility because of grey skies or rain, we suggest our guests are open for a bit of popping. With six people on the boat it won’t be too serious but we will normally carry a few rods and some poppers and our group can take turns casting and maybe catch a couple of nice fish, just for a bit of fun!

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MALDIVES ON THE FLY

THE EQUIPMENT FLY ROD AND REEL 8 OR 9 WEIGHT WITH FLOATING LINE Triggerfish, smaller trevallies, bonefish etc 11 OR 12 WEIGHT WITH FLOATING LINE GT, barracuda, shark, snapper etc

FLY RODS

We recommend 4-piece rods that travels a lot easier. Fast action saltwater models that will load your line fast, with reel seats and guides that will survive the salt. We prefer a 9 weight rod for triggerfish, smaller bluefin trevally and yellow spotted trevally. However, if you don’t own a 9 weight but already have an 8 weight that would do just fine as well. If it’s a fast rod you can consider overlining it with a 9 weight line: It will load faster and cast easier through the wind, at least on a short line. For GTs and other big fish we fish 12 weight rods but 11 weights would be fine, too. You fight a GT with the butt section of the rod and even more so on your reel, so whether it’s an 11 or 12 weight doesn’t matter much. If you need to buy one we strongly recommend one with a good warranty. Even the best of rods can break during the kind of abuse that we put them through while fishing for GTs. The best rod we have tried so far is the Scott Meridian. If you are in the market for a new rod and it’s within your budget we really recommend you visit a dealer and try it. We recommend bringing a back up rod in case of breakage.

FLY REELS (AND BACKING)

Your fly reel should be a corrosion-resistant saltwater model with a good drag. For the 8-9 weight set up, any saltwater reel with a reliable drag and 200 meters of backing should do the job. For the heavy set up it’s a different story:

If you hook a decent GT (that’s anything of more than 4-5 kilos) you will need a reel with a good drag system. For bigger fish (8-10 kilos and upwards) you need a reel with a good amount of drag pressure. The only way to stop, or at least slow down, a GT hooked in shallow water is heavy drag pressure. You will be fighting the fish on your reel, not your rod. We recommend fly reels with sealed drag systems. This is a different scene than boat fishing. Your reels with get submerged in saltwater many times and not all reels will tolerate this kind of abuse. We also prefer 80-100 lbs backing, at least for the first 100 meters, instead of the typical 30-50 lbs. The heavier backing isn’t about breaking strength but abrasion resistance. The more durable backing, the better a chance of surviving an encounter with coral or rock. Whether you have 250, 400 or more meters of backing on your reel is a matter of personal taste. Most likely, you won’t see too much of your backing, even on a nice fish, because you must do everyting to try and stop it. When you cast to a GT you should already have your reel on max drag settings. On the other hand, if you hook one of the really big GTs that sometimes come on to the flats (we are talking fish of 130 cm/45 kilo+) then you might see a lot more than your first two hundred meters of backing...

FLY LINES

For both setups, you need a floating line made for tropical saltwater. For your big fish rig, the 11-12 weight setup, make sure that you have a line with a super strong core. Don’t bring a normal tarpon line with 30-40 lbs core but one of the specialty lines with 100 lbs core. One example is Scientific Angler’s Amplitude Big Water Taper. We will try to have a few spare fly lines for sale on board but please don’t count on it: Bring a spare fly line as back up, as your heavy fly line

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MALDIVES ON THE FLY

THE EQUIPMENT might brake on coral during the fight with a big fish.

LEADER MATERIAL

We use flourocarbon for our heavy setup. Not because it is less visible under water but because it is more abrasion resistant. (Others prefer monofilament because it is less expensive and easier to tie knots with). On the reef we recommend 125-130 lbs (approx. 1,05 mm) flourocarbon but if you are on the flats in calm conditions it might result in more takes if you step down to 80 lbs flourocarbon. Forget about bite and shock tippets, we are always fishing the heavy leader straight through. For the lighter setup use a 9 ft tapered leader and three feet of tippet (around 16-20 lbs/0,310,33 mm).

WADING BOOTS AND SOCKS

Make sure you bring a pair of sturdy wading boots with maximum foot and ankle protection. Sometimes, we fish nice sandy bottoms but a lot of the fishing will be on coral rubble or rock. Forget about light neoprene shoes, you need real boots. This environment is really hard on your footwear. Some prefer Simms Flats Sneakers, they are sturdy but less expensive – then you don’t feel so bad when they look pretty well worn after just a single week in the Maldives. Others go for the more sophisticated, and more comfortable, models like the Simms Intruder Boot. We always use a pair of Simms wet wading socks with our boots but whether you add gravel guards is a matter of personal taste.

POLARIZED SUNGLASSES

A great pair of sunglasses can’t be underrated. It’s sight fishing and you won’t catch anything if you can’t see the fish.

We love the ChromaPop lenses on the Smith optics. Great lenses bring more clarity to your vision. More clarity means more detail – and more detail means you spot more fish. Generally, amber or cobber lenses are great for this kind of fishing but yellow lenses can be better in low light conditions. Bring more than one pair of sunglasses, a cloth and cleaning spray. Also, we always carry lots of cleaning tissues/lens wipes: The packaging is airtight so the alcohol inside doesn’t evoparate. Airtight means waterproof – so they still work when you are on the flats and fish them out of a pocket soaked from wading.

SUN PROTECTION

The tropical sun is very strong – even on cloudy days – so don’t risk ruining your trip by getting a sunburn. Carry plenty of sun block with a minimum of 30SPF. Don’t forget lib balm with sun block. We never go to the tropics without Buffs. This silky headwear protect us against the blazing sun, and especially in the afternoon, when the sun can really start to sting, the High UV Coolmax models are a blessing.

RAIN GEAR

Make sure to pack a lightweight quality rain jacket for the trip, you never know what the weather will do. If you have a piece of lightweight rain pants bring them, too. Hopefully, you won’t use them much and obviously not at all while you are in the water, fly fishing the flats.

CLOTHING

Simms’ thin Solarflex Crewneck shirts offer silk-like comfort and UPF50 sun protection, and they are quick drying after deep wading. They don’t weigh much and pack down to practically

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nothing – we don’t use anything else. Shorts should also be made of some synthetic quick drying material. And now for the most important piece of clothing: Tights! Yes, we mean the kind that you would normally use for sports. When you are up to your waist in saltwater for most of the day, you really need to protect your inner thighs and crotch area from getting sore. You can get tights as shorts but we also use the longer 3/4 model as they also give a little protection against coral. Just wear the tights under your shorts – or try to find a pair with leopard print, skip the shorts and look like Rod Stewart in his prime.

GLOVES / FINGER GUARDS

You can consider wearing sun gloves to protect your hands from getting burned, or you can wear stripping gloves which helps you get a better grip on the line – and protect your fingers against line burn, when setting the hook. Alternatively, bring some finger guards if you don’t like wearing gloves. For handling a trevally, you need a pair of protective gloves. All trevallies has a sharp set of spines close to the tail and you will be holding on to those for landing, unhooking or posing with the fish. Your stripping gloves will protect your hands but they will also get a bit slimy. For that reason, some prefer carrying an extra set of gloves for fish handling.

ADDITIONAL CLOTHING

WATER PROOF PACKS

During your trip you will be wading deep, fishing near the surf or on reefs where you can loose your footing. Your will get wet and your gear will get submerged. The only right solution is waterproof backpacks or slings. Buy the best quality you can find, especially if you are carrying camera equipment in you bag. Even if you are only carrying fly boxes and leaders, it is still really annoying to have to dry everything after each day’s fishing.

BOAT BAG

There is no need to carry all your stuff with you at all times. You can leave most of it on the boat. Bring a boat bag for your rain gear, sunscreen, extra fly lines and flies, dry clothing, spare gloves and whatever else you might like to have with you on the boat – but not necessarily in your waterproof pack pack. While there are a number of cool boat bags on the market, anything will do here. You don’t need a waterproof bag as you can just leave it inside the boat’s cabin. We often use small duffel bags but the choice is yours.

OTHER ITEMS

It’s a matter of personal taste how much gear you need but we also pack: - Pliers (for cutting heavy leader, tightening knots and unhooking fish) - Measuring tape - Multi tool - Hook sharpener

Pack light and bring some T-shirts, shorts (also for swimming) and flip-flops, sandal or light shoes. We also recommend packing some light weight pants and a couple of long sleeved shirts, in case the bugs come out after dark.

MALDIVES ON THE FLY

THE FLIES

GT FLIES

Whether you tie your own flies or buy them, make sure the hooks are of the best quality available. Fly fishing for GT is hard work so when you finally hook that fish of your dreams, you don’t want to lower the odds of landing it because of a hook that can open or break. The most popular hook, and the one we prefer, is the Gamakatsu SL12S in size 6/0. The selection of baitfish patterns on this page is meant as inspiration. They will catch GT in the Maldives – but undoubtedly, so will many other patterns that we haven’t tried yet. GT fis-

hing in the Maldives is still a relatively new thing so there will be lots to learn about fly patterns during our next couple of seasons. Try to tie – or buy – flies that are not too heavily dressed. Bulky flies might look great in your fly box but they are harder to cast. Distance can be important, and the combination of deep wading, wind and heavy tackle isn’t helping your casting. Don’t make it even harder by casting overdressed flies. If you want to try a popper, the well known NYAP popper (pictured above) is a good place to start.

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FLIES FOR OTHER SPECIES

When fly fishing the shallow flats the go-to fly is a crab pattern. Crab flies are the best patterns for triggerfish, and most other fish on shallow flats – like spotted trevally, smaller bluefin trevally and the occasional bonefish – will eat them, too. It’s also worth bringing Clousers, Gotchas and a couple of trusted shrimp patterns. For the surf, smaller baitfish patterns will produce more hook ups from bluefin trevally and other smaller species so if GT fishing is slow, down sizing can speed up the action a bit. Make

sure smaller baitfish flies are still tied on very strong hooks. If a GT suddenly shows up, there will be no time to change back for a bigger fly. Just make the cast and hope for the best. Bigger fish, like barracuda, shark and red snapper, will eat the same flies as GTs do, so no need to bring special flies for these species. Obviously, it would be a good thing to fish wire when casting to sharks or barracudas but normally chances for these species will present themselves while you are looking for GTs, so again: Just make the cast and hope for the best!

+45 7021 8060 info@getawayflyfishing.com GETAWAY FLY FISHING DEALER WORKBOOK www.getawayflyfishing.com