ON MY SOAPBOX
This is something which I have been thinking of posting for some time but never did it due to the likelihood of offending some people, which i really don't want to do. In recent years, we've seen anglers going well off the beaten path in the hope of finding untouched locations. Some of these locations, however, are in extremely unstable countries. I have been of the view for a long time that it is only a matter of time before a group of anglers gets kidnapped or worse.
After very recent events in Socotra, I have decided to post about it. All is well that ends well but was it not for Ed Nicolas of No Boundaries in Oman who went out of his way to assist; a group of anglers would have been looking at a semi-permanent holiday on Socotra. For those of you who don't know where this is, it is an island group off Yemen. For the past month, every foreign country has been evacuating their nationals out of Yemen due to an escalating civil war.
The issue is simple - at the end of the day, fishing is only fishing. It is not worth taking unnecessary risks in the hope of being able to target trophy fish. Going to a location which the Department of Foreign Affairs on its Smart Traveler website classifies as "DO NOT TRAVEL" is a choice you should please re-think.
If something happens in a location like Yemen, there is next to nothing the Australian government can do to assist. You're on your own. you might have had groups before you not encounter problems but just remember, shit happens and it only needs to happen once.
At the end of the day, I expect some of you will still run the gauntlet; but please re-think and be safe!