# GT's in the South Pacific



## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)




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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

Last summer, I spent a week chasing bonefish and GTâ€™s in Christmas island. It was an incredible adventure.August is not a great month for bonefish in many other destinations. Since Xmas island is close to the equator it offers some of the most consistant year round bonefishing in the world. Virtually all of the fishing is done on foot on hard sandy flats and the edges of coral reefs. The advantage of wading is that you donâ€™t have to share any fishing time & the lodges can accommodate more angles keeping the costs down. After hours of seeing only a blue ocean from the airplane window, the coral atoll finally came into view. The Christmas island Lagoon is an amazing sight. The tan and white sand flats are flooded by every shade of blue and green imaginable. The thought of huge schools of bonefish made the view and the growing anticipation that much better.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)




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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

Most of the passengers on my flight were heading onto Fiji. A handful of people got off the plane. Most were Americans, one group had made the trip from France, another Poland. All were wearing Simms, Orvis, or Patagonia gear, the universal insignia of a fellow flyfisherman. It looked like the entire village had come out to greet the new arrivals. We loaded our gear, piled into an old diesel truck and drove to our home for the week called the Villages motel. The head guide greeted us with cold beers and a tuna sushi appetizer. He explained the different fishing options we would have during the week. There are basically 4 areas to fish: the Lagoon, Offshore, the Korean Wreck,& the Milkfish farms.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)




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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

*Day 1 - The Lagoon*

Day 1- The Lagoon
In the Lagoon, the fishing is done wading massive sand flats and the reefs which are exposed at a low tide. Each fisherman is accompanied by a guide, who spots the bonefish and carries a second fly rod. 
Once the tide floods over the sand, bonefish move onto the flats. The smaller fish typically travel in schools, the bigger bonefish are frequently alone or in groups of two or three. GTâ€™s patrol the deeper the edges of the coral reefs waiting for the tide to rise high enough so they follow the bonefish onto the flats. 
My guide, Eru, position us on a flat bordered on either sides by coral. We had an incomming tide and bonefish were moving up onto the flat from deeper water. The first group came straight at us. I gave them a long lead and let the fly sink onto to sand. As the group moved closer, I gave it one short strip. A puff of sand shot up when I moved the fly. One bonefish turned its body towards the fly & then all three fish raced to chase down the gotcha. I set the hook & sent the lamson reel screaming. Within a few minutes I had already landed my first Christmas Island bonefish. We stayed in same spot for an hour casting to new groups of fish. There is just an unbelievable amount of bonefish in that area. After a few hours we started to ignore the bonefish to catch other species, such as Trevally, Trigger fish, Puffer fish & Goat fish.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)




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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

The most exciting fishing on Christmas Island is sightcasting to GTâ€™s. These fish are aggressive tackle destroying beasts. They can grow upwards of 100 lbs and several in the 60-70lb range were caught by anglers during my trip. Most of the ones I saw were around 20-40lb . Catching a GT on a fly while wading bonefish flats is difficult, because they are constantly on the move . On the vast flats, they are few and far between. When one does make an appearance, usually the angler is holding an 8wt with small bonefish fly on a light tippit, and is completely outgunned for a fight with a GT. Unless you are specifically targeting GTâ€™s with a 12wt rod ready, you will lose the few opportunities you run across. 
This is one reason why each fisherman is accompanied by their own guide who caries a second rod. IF a GT is spotted the guide hands you a 10 wt. To land one you need to have the drag set down about as tight is it can go. Otherwise there is no stopping a big GT. Being able to quickly switch out rods & pull out line on a heavy drag before the GT has moved out of casting range proved difficult. I did not have a stripping basket, but I did bring a stout 3 piece TFO spinning rod and a couple Corkies.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

My first encounter with a GT is a memory that I keep replaying in my mind. I was stalking bonefish on a flat near a drop off. We had been wading & the guide suddenly stopped in his tracks, pointed his rod tip and said â€œGTâ€. About 40 feet away was a Giant Trevally slowly cruising past the edge of a coral reef. He had not seen us. I was the biggest Trevally that I would see during my stay on Xmas Island. I handed the guide the 8wt and grabbed the spinning rod. The lure hit the water with a little splash. The GT traversed those 40 feet in an instant and threw himself on the lure. I set the hook & held clamped down on the rod with both hands as braided line flew off the reel and the GT headed towards Fiji. The fight did not last long. Once the GT got past the edge of the reef he dived down and broke me off on the sharp coral. I stood as the edge of that reef, looking at my torn braided line and looking into the deep blue water where the GT had disappeared into. That was the first of many 10$ lures and shredded lines I would experience while picking fights with GTâ€™s. 
 Then the guide came by and pulled on the braided line to see if the drag had been set hard enough. He struggled to pull line out. He then told me I should have run to the reef and held the rod tip up high to keep the line from abrading against the coral. That would have been useful information to have heard a few moments earlier. It was a disappointment to lose that fish, but even being hooked up for a few seconds with that GT was an adrenaline rush.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

*Day 2 - The Korean Wreck*

Day 2: The Korean Wreck
Decades ago a ship had run aground on a reef, which later became known as the Korean Wreck. Now, only a submerged metal skeleton of a hull remains. The reef runs parallel to shore creating a wall from offshore currents and waves. There is long stretch of calm water between the reef and shore to fish in. The bonefish here are ocean fish and typically larger and stronger than the ones you see on the flats. 
I started off walking along the edge of the water looking for shadows. The higher vantage point made sightcasting easy. I caught a few bonefish and then grabbed my spincasting rod. Few things are as fun as tossing a big plug in the south pacific ocean and waiting for the eventual blow up. Most of the fish were hanging close to the reef a little out of reach. I waded about knee deep until I was able to put a topwater into the deeper holes near the coral rocks. The first blow up looked like a bomb had dropped into the ocean. Something big grabbed the plug and took it down hole in the corals until breaking me off again. A few minutes later I sent another plug sailing through the air. I kept this one further away from the reef so I had a fighting chance to pull the fish away from the sharp edges of the corals. This one resulted in another blow up. I had the drag set down hard. After setting the hook and putting some pressure on the fish I walked back to shore and pulled him away from the rocks. A few minutes later I beached a marbled white snapper with huge pink lips. This fish was called a Sweetlips. I caught a couple a few Trevally and grouper until I saw pair of large shark fins cutting through the water a couple hundred feet ahead and decided to it would be best to out of the water.


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## Joe T (Dec 13, 2012)

looks like it was an successful and awesome trip even with the missed GT that place looks amazing. ive always thought the rush of seeing a fish and making the cast and seeing a fish eat is the best part of fishing.


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## Meadowlark (Jul 19, 2008)

*Post of the year award*

You get my vote. Excellent!! Great Post. 

Can you comment on the probability of daily chances at the GT's....if one were just looking for GT's how many shots per day could you reasonably expect? I wonder if the outfitter be game for just a GT trip? Might need a boat to be able to maneuver around the coral. 

I've got two fish left on my bucket list...hope to get one of them in the next couple of months, roosterfish on the fly, and GT on the fly is the other.


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## jesco (Jun 23, 2013)

One of the greatest posts I have ever read! What an adventure! Great pics too. Thanks for sharing! I need to gather some info on fishing Christmas Island. Perhaps one day soon...


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## Wildside31T (Feb 13, 2013)

What kind of set up as far as flies, where GT's hammering?


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

Day 3- Milkfish farms
Milkfish are similar to mullet expect they grow up to 5 feet in length. They are a staple in the Kiritimati islanderâ€™s diet. The locals have caught and relocated large schools of Milkfish in saltwater ponds in the interior of the island for future harvesting. There are narrow pipes that connect the milkfish ponds to the lagoon which allow fresh saltwater to with the tide. Huge schools of Milkfish stack up at the entrance of the pipe; most are too big to fit through the narrow pipes but occasionally a smaller one will push his way and enter the main lagoon. The GTâ€™s patrol this area and looking for escaped milkfish. I doubt many of them make it past the gauntlet of hungry GTâ€™s. 
The first place we stopped had several canals. There was a gate separating the milkfish pond from another canal leading into the Lagoon. There were a few larger posts and concrete blocks. The guide made a slow approach and hid behind one of the posts. He told me to crouch down low and come over to the post. I looked into the water and saw a Trevally about 10 feet away in the canal. From a crouching position, I made a cast into the canal. Before the fly landed into the water he had already seen the shadow from me casting and took off. The larger GTâ€™s ones were extremely cautious. We waited about 30 minutes hoping another GT would return and then decided to move on to another spot. 
The second area had a small jetty and a wall overlooking a small cove. From the wall you could see several GTâ€™s swimming around. I tossed out a Corky that resembled a small milkfish. I hooked up and this time he did not have a reef to cut me off. After an exhausting tug of war I finally landed a GT. 
At one point a guide went over to the side of the wall where a school of milkfish was stacked up by a pipe. He caught one in his hands and tossed it over the wall into the lagoon. A few moments later the water exploded. The guide tosses a couple more Milkfish into the Lagoon. GTâ€™s were going nuts and hammering the fleeing Milkfish. Once the GTâ€™s got fired up they lost any sense of caution and began taking poppers.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

*Day 4- Triggerfish on the reefs*

Day 4- Triggerfish in the Lagoon
The day started off a little overcast, which made seeing bonefish almost impossible. My guide knew of a deep hole on a flat that usually held fish. I tossed out a gotcha into the deeper water and dregged the fly up towards the flat. Just about every cast resulted in either a bonefish or a small snapper. 
Once the sun came up, he suggested we try for Triggerfish. The Triggerfish are often seen tailing around corals. These fish are similar to Sheepshead. They have horrible looking teeth made for chomping on coral and crabs and they can be very cautious of flies. I felt like home when I saw a big red tail flopping around in the shallow water. There was a group of three Trigger fish in one area. I had to keep my distance to keep them from spooking. It took me a couple casts, but I got one really close to the biggest Triggerfish without spooking him. There is nothing like a little competition to get cautious fish fighting over a fly. The big Trigger fish looked like a orange balloon chasing down my fly. The Triggerfish know every sinkhole among the corals and if you donâ€™t pull them out onto the flats quickly they will disappear in a hole among the coral and cut you off, but here is one that did not get away.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

*Can you comment on the probability of daily chances at the GT's....if one were just looking for GT's how many shots per day could you reasonably expect? I wonder if the outfitter be game for just a GT trip? Might need a boat to be able to maneuver around the coral. *

If you go to the Milkfish farm area, you will definitely get shots at GT's. Most were the size in the picture.
There is a big debate about the effects of chumming for GT's on Xmas island. Some return clients have said that it is hurting the chances of catching one on a fly while wading the flats. The Lodge I stayed at did not want their guides to chum. I know our guide was hoping for a bigger tip and tossing a couple live milkfish ended up getting everyone in our group hooked up.
We later went exploring around Xmas island. We met another group of flyfisherman staying a different lodge. They had pictures of several huge 70-90-lb GT's that they had caught on flies. They said their guides took them to a reef and would set out a chum slick. 
*What kind of set up as far as flies, where GT's hammering?*
Mainly poppers. big streamers would probably work, but they liked the surface action of a moving popper.


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## Mason m (Aug 7, 2011)

That trigger is AWESOME!!! That is one fish that is deffinately at the top of my list! I caught a grey trigger in POC. But one like the one you caught is what I really want. Are they called peach triggerfish?


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## smokinguntoo (Mar 28, 2012)

What an enjoyable posting. Thank you. You have some storytelling talent.

SG2


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## Boboe (Feb 11, 2009)

Mason M: Those triggers are commonly called "peach face triggerfish," but their proper name is "yellow margin triggerfish."

Meadowlark: If you're serious about doing Christmas and Baja, let me know. I know a great guide who does both locations through the year.


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## Demeter (Apr 13, 2006)

This is an amazing video that captures the essence flyfishing in Xmas island.


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## Crow's Nest (Dec 4, 2009)

Jeremy, that was an epic trip and story!

Now you have me looking on line on going to the Xmas Islands.

What a beautiful setting.

Thanks for the great read.


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