Day 6
Finally the last fishing day had arrived and it is always sad you now that you are going out for the last time and that you are not sure when you would be back in such a beautiful place and the daily reality called life in the modern World would return, back to work, emails, mobile, BBM, Skype etc. But for a short while we had lived carefree and enjoyed every second, but I must admit towards the end of a long trip I always miss my family and start thinking and looking forward to see them so there is both a happiness and sadness for me usually on the last day.
I unfortunately I think I drank some water that had been contaminated in the cool box from bad ice and had a torrid night with a stomach bug and cramps which is something that usually happens very easily on a trip if you not carfeul but we were prepared and Dr Luke helped me get sorted out and some medicine from my first aid kit. But I decided not to do the morning session and build my energy back up for the afternoon and last session. Luke and Sami headed out to focus on popping and to try and look for a new area for GTs. Barry headed out to jig and see if he could get a beast in the deep that had kept on eluding us!
Luke and Sami fished the normal GT area for a while with no success and then carried on up the coast to try a few new points and shallow reefs. But unfortunately had not luck on the GTs but Sami got a nice Bohar Snapper for lunch. Barry headed for the deep and got reefed jigging by a big fish but did not managed to land any beasts. But the guys had a great morning and it was a perfect day with no wind, clear skies and nice comfortable temperature.
Good Bohar on popper. Great eating and safe to eat in Socotra
I had a good sleep and felt much better by mid morning and so ended up swimming in the shallows and relaxing till the guys came back. At almost low tide I was sitting waist deep in the clear water when I saw a big black shadow coming towards me, I initially thought shark and started to back out the water slowly, but then the dark shadow started to change into the shape of a kingfish (Spanish Mack) in about 1.5ms of water it was huge +-35kg kingfish and came into the bay. I turned and ran up the beach screaming for a rod. I picked up the RP150 and ran back down to the beach and had a long cast at the king but he was already just out of range. Totally amazing to see that fish in such shallow water and just confirmed that I think the land based and light tackle fishing around the island would be insane in the correct conditions!
The guys returned and we all had lunch and a bit of an afternoon rest. We got ready for the last and final assault on the Socotra GTs. We packed into the boats and headed back out to the GT reef. Again we arrived and were greeted by strong current. Amazing how a place can change in a few hours from looking good to looking exceptional!
Sami in action
Awesome healthy 137cm fork length fish.
Tackle to land a monster!
A lot of high fives and happiness on the boat. We got the fish into position quickly and got a few pictures and released this beauty to fight another day and hopefully maybe even get to 90kgs! A very well fought fish and would be the biggest of our trip.
After a bit of a break and a lot of excited talk of the fight and fish we got back into position. I out in a few casts and bang I had a good hit just under the surface and did not see the fish, I hit it a few times but could feel it was not a big fish. I worked the fish to the boat and up came a nice little GT which for me at this stage was perfect. I was more than happy to catch one last GT in Socotra. We got a few pics and released the fish. We were both now very happy with our trip and the results and could now leave the island trip a success and everything we had hoped for!
MH80H in action on a small fish!
Feeling the pain!
Very happy with my biggest fish of the trip.
