Fly fishing takes you to some unique parts of the world. Over the past week a small group of us went on an exploratory to check out the fly fishing potential of the Hallaniyat Islands in Southern Oman. This location is famed for its huge GT's (50kg plus fish) that are present in these waters and targetted by popper and stickbaits. We were there to explore the shore based and milkfish population which South African angler Garth Wellman has managed to successfully target earlier in the year.
Our week began with a flight from London to Muscat and then internal flight to Salalah in Southern Oman where we spent the night waiting for the winds to die down. From there a 3 hour car journey south across the Omani desert to the small fishing village of Shuwaymiyah puts you within an hours boat ride across to the Hallaniyat islands.
Our first few days were hampered by big swells which made fly fishing from the pangas difficult so we spent some time exploring this rugged coastline. We encountered a range of species including spangled emperor, big eye and black tip trevally, parrotfish and blue trigger fish. But it was the milkfish that we spied surfing down the big swells that would be the main focus for the rest of the week as the seas calmed.
While the milkfish were present they were not around in huge numbers which made locating them difficult. Pods of 10-20 fish would be encountered sporadically. These fish would be seen feeding in the weed lines, huge forked tails giving them away. Milkfish of huge proportions, well over the 40lb mark made the hours of searching worthwhile with the knowledge that one of these fish hooked would be the fish of a lifetime. On the 3rd day Jonathan Hey managed to hook into a big milkfish. The battle with this fish was epic and lasted nearly 2 hours. With the sun setting behind the hills we had to increase the pressure and the tippet parted way. The local fish freezer had a milkfish specimen which had been landed recently. This fish is well over a meter in length and Ahmed our guide was quick to pose for a shot.
Good numbers of sailfish were also present and one of the boats went to tease in a fish. They managed to tease up a few fish but could not manage an eat from them. The popping guys also struggled to find the big GT's during this week. Only a few fish were landed by them despite thousands of casts. Billy Lorenzo did manage this monster 137cm estimated at 50kg.
The marine wildlife was superb. Large numbers of dolphins, leather back turtles, mantas and pilot whales were seen during the week. Acres of small tuna (skipjack and bonito) with the occassional yellowfin tuna shoal were feeding on tiny pinfry. Will be taking some tuna flies next time I visit.
All in all it was a fascinating place to visit. We had a slow weeks fishing, which can happen sometimes. The potential of this fishery for milkfish is there. In March April when they are there in bigger numbers I think there is every chance of hooking fish in the 40 and 50 lb class. Landing them may be a different story but we will go back to find out if its possible!!
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON FLY FISHING OR GT FISHING IN SOUTHERN OMAN'S HALLANIYAT ISLANDS PLEASE CONTACT US ON +44 (0)1621 743711 OR EMAIL: enquiries@flyodyssey.co.uk
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