The 2023/2024 season on Farquhar showed true to form and lived up to its reputation of being the best atoll to catch multiple species and some of the biggest GTs in the Seychelles. This season’s anglers had an absolute blast, which resulted in some phenomenal catches as well as some notably rare catches. The diversity and allure of this atoll keeps anglers and guides coming back every year. Leaving the pet GTs in the morning leaves you wondering what you might see or catch that day.
The catch stats from the season proved why Farquhar is the place to be, with an impressive 10 flats slams. The giant trevally stole the show this season, though, with 302 GTs landed, of which 27 were greater than a meter and the remaining 60%, all greater than 80cm; of the 22 weeks, only four weeks did not have a meter plus GT landed. The permit also showed face this season, with 10 being landed. The general shift towards targeting the massive GTs Farquhar has to offer, meant the triggerfish had a rest, but when targeted, some brutes were caught, often stretching the tape measure past 50cm. The ever-present Bumphead parrot fish were also caught in abundance this season, with a total of 35, many of which measured greater than 90cm. Farquhar’s thick-shouldered, hard-fighting bonefish also put up a great fight, doubling the figure from last season and coming in at 697 fish for the season. The big five species often steal the show, but a good few notable species were landed this season with multiple African Marbled groupers, Saddleback grouper, Sailfish, dogtooth tuna, golden trevally and last but not least, 4, African Pompano.
Gigantic Giant Trevally
While we congratulate every angler who joined us and caught their first species or added many more to their tallies, we had some extremely special catches from the season we thought were important to mention. The race for GT of the season was on from the get-go, but in the end, Chris S took the honours for landing the season’s fish, coming in at a phenomenal 126cm. Noah came in close behind with a phenomenal week, landing 3 meter plus GTs, the biggest of which was an impressive 122cm. Moving onto a very similar looking trevally species, the African Pompano, or diamond Trevally as it is known in the Seychelles, made an appearance this season with Brian B catching the fish of the season, coming in at 97cm. The golden trevally is equally a highly sought-after species and well underrated on Farquhar. Emily set her sights on landing one of the unique fish, and she did, landing a lovely fish of 90cm, the largest of the season.
Plentiful Indo-Pacific Permit
Catching a permit is an incredible feat to start with, but catching a fish over 50cm is truly the catch of a lifetime. Chris, Nikita and Richard Snr all did so this season with Richard taking the fish of the season, measuring an incredible 68cm.
Nikita’s permit resulted in bringing his life tally to 20 fish, a phenomenal achievement. A season report without the mention of one of the best species to target on fly wouldn’t be a report. Igor took to targeting the impressive bonefish Farquhar has to offer and landed an astounding 35 fish in a single day, with a large majority being over 60cm, setting a record on Farquhar.
Tricky Triggerfish
The triggerfish lived true to their form and tested many anglers’ skills, with a select few guests enticing some of the larger specimens to eat their flies. The race for biggest triggerfish was on, with Ian landing the first notable fish, a first for him, with a hefty 53cm Yellowmargin.
Later in the season, Justin rose to the challenge and tipped Ian with a fantastic 56cm specimen; closer to the end of the season, Dennis matched Justin with another impressive fish of 56cm. Nick took the cake, though, in the last week of the season, landing an incredible 57 cm fish.
Spectacular Special Catches
It wouldn’t be a Farquhar season summary without mentioning some other special or unique catches. Makoto landed the bumphead parrot fish of the season measuring an astounding 105cm. Saddleback groupers can be some of the prettiest fish in the ocean and James took to targeting them landing a phenomenal specimen, showcasing its magnificent yellow colours. John C took to the bluewater one of the days and while fishing for a sailfish ended up catching a 100lb dogtooth tuna on fly. An impressive feat on a fly rod and quiet easily the fish of the season.
Cheers to another unforgettable season on Farquhar. Well done, and thank you to all our phenomenal guests. The team had an absolute blast and can’t wait to see you all and the many new faces next season. There are only a couple of rods remaining, so don’t hesitate to reach out if you don’t want to miss out.
Until next time, tightlines and many happy days of fishing from the Blue Safari Fly Fishing team.
