Topwater Caranx Ignobilis: Giant Trevally (GT) > Reports & Expeditions

Taveuni Fiji - Jan 2015

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Rob Powell:
I have just finished up a 7 day trip in Taveuni, Fiji fishing with John Llanes.

I'll let the pictures do the talking, however suffice to say the reefs are healthy and the fish are there but most predators had lock jaw and we were unable to crack a consistent feeding pattern for the week. John is an absolute legend of a skipper and knows these waters and their reefs and pinnacles incredibly well, including favourable tides and conditions for each. This was the difference between really struggling and having some awesome sessions!

We finished the week with 50-60 GTs to 60lb and 35 Dogtooth to 80lb. Plenty of bycatch also, red bass, coral trout to 20lb, bluefin trevs etc. We were smoked by at least two GTs in the 80-100lb+ range (John calls the big girls 'Pamela'!). We also lost a couple of large doggies.

We jigged for Dogtooth with PE8-10. Standout lures were the shimano butterfly's. For GTs we used PE6 and 8, standout lures were Sebile StickShadds, GT Icecreams and Orion Big Foot and Nambas.

We stayed at Makaira Resort run by John and his wife Roberta. The accomodation is fantastic, comfortable and clean with million dollars views and hospitality Hawaii/Taveuni style that can't be beaten! John is a great cook also and we had a couple of unforgettable meals of sashimi and lobster. Lots of banter at the dinner table and on the boat with the boys, John and crewman James. A few 'cane toad wars' occurred after some beers also..

John's boat is a new 28ft Islander which He has modified for sport and gamefishing. When casting we fished one angler up the front and another two in the cockpit. When jigging we all fished the cockpit with ample room to operate. The boat is powered by a 150hp Yamaha 4 stroke, so it runs quietly and with no fumes. A comfortable and practical rig for these waters. John has a removable game hair and outriggers if fishing for marlin takes your fancy (there are big fish lurking here!).

In summary this is a great operation and the fishery here is incredible, we just picked an off week for the fish! Taveuni has produced many big 100lb+ GTs for John, along with dogtooth to 150lb and plenty of big marlin. If you want a 150lb class yellowfin on a stickbait then look no further also, Taveuni is pretty well untapped!!! We'll be back for round 2!!!

Rob Powell:
Pictures to follow soon.

Saltywater Tackle:
Hi Rob,

I fished with John in Taveuni long ago and the guy is definitely sharp and know his water, however at that time the boat was small and lacks all sort of electronic, is that issue been solved now and does the new boat have the right electronic to mark depth and structure ??

  Tight lines
    Sami

Rob Powell:
Hi Sami,

The boat is better setup now. 28ft with a cabin and very comfortable for conditions there. One caster on the bow and two in the cockpit worked well.

The new boat has a sounder which did the job for us marking pinnacles and drop offs to around 200m which was as deep as we fished. The doggies and bait showed up on the unit when schooled up below. John is upgrading the sounder very shortly also to a Furuno unit, the boat has a few more modifications to complete in the next couple of months.

Rob Powell:

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