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St. Francois Grand Slam
"...Amazing through it seems, if you manage to cast your fly (an imitation of a small piece of algae) in front of one of these fish while it cruises in circles open-mouthed, and you keep your fly high enough in the water, at some stage everything will tighten up, although there will have been no discernable take. Then you need to be in, or close to, a boat as the blistering runs of milkfish that may be twenty or thirty pounds can only be compared with fish many times their size. These fish are what large arbour reels with ridiculous amounts of backing are made for...."
Read Roddy's full report...
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New Boat for Alphonse Fly Fishers..
She's sleek, fast, modern and spacious. Being built in South Africa she should arrive on Alphonse in early 2009 and will no doubt be Jude's price and joy! The new catamaran will be capable of doing the Alphonse - St Francois run in half the time of Tam Tam, in total comfort, and also of seating upto 20 inside for lunch - cooked fresh onboard!
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ALPHONSE:
HOSTED WEEKS
Having managed the fishery on Alphonse for the past seven seasons, Aline and Vaughn decided to host a few selected weeks from this past season. They were a great success and not only allowed them to spend time with old friends, but kept them in touch with the fishery and its promotion for the future under the guidance of Jude Morel and his guide team. The extra time together after fishing and in the evenings allowed Vaughn to pass on tips and tactics for the following days fishing.
The advantage of joining a hosted week....
Vaughn is able to plan the week well in advance according to an extensive tide analysis breakdown.
Analysis includes the relation of water depth and tidal flow to species most likely to feed during certain tidal situations. This knowledge proves invaluable during week selection and more to the point - fly selection for targeted species during those weeks. On so many occasions guests have arrived with an incorrect selection of flies and while some pre-trip information advises on tackle and gear, it often provides the bare necessities of fly selection which adapt and evolve with a fishery and the knowledge of the guides.
Hosting allows Vaughn to keep his finger on the pulse of this ever changing fishery and advise guests according to their specific weeks travel. Fly Fish Seychelles will be offering guests selections of flies specifically chosen according to their weeks fishing needs. Most of these flies will be tied by Vaughn himself. A large assortment of these specific flies are carried by Vaughn on his hosted trips to ensure maximum success is achieved by all guests.
For more detailed information on hosted weeks this coming season, please contact Vaughn or Aline.
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Your Private 'Blue Planet' moments....
CLICK HERE to see some stunning footage of 100's of Pilot Whales relaxing off of Alphonse, a truely special moment for Alphonse fishers to witness.
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Dear Fly Fishing Friends
WELCOME to the Fly Fish Seychelles June 2008 e-newsletter. It is a great pleasure to keep you up to speed with events on Alphonse and hope you will enjoy reading this information.
The 2007/8 season has drawn to a close and proved to be one of the most successful seasons for many years. Week after week phenomenal flats fishing was coupled with the privilege of a private island for fishers and their non-fishing guests only, no general tourists were pemitted to visit. As always, food and hospitality were as high quality on Alphonse island as Jude's guide team were on the flats of St Francois.
We are looking forward to the 2008/9 season with great excitement and anticipation. Having met with the new owners of Alphonse please see below Aline's report on next season, detailing a few snippets of information we feel you should be aware of, the story of Roddy's big day in April 08 and also Vaughn's overview of the 2007/8 season.
I am delighted to report that the fishing package price has risen by just US$100 from the 2007/8 price of US$6,850 to US$6,950 per person ex Mahe (based on single en-suite accommodation, shared boat and guide.) Given the soaring price of fuel and therefore every item of food and equipment that is taken to Alphonse, this is a very positive gesture from the new owners who are eagar to encourage the ecologically friendly practices that Alphonse's fly fishers adhere to.
Lastly, pease also note that you can download the FLY FISHER GROUP 2008 brochure featuring Seychelles, Iceland, Yokanga and our hosted trips by clicking: FFG BROCHURE
With best wishes
Peter Rippin
Director, Fly Fish Seychelles Ltd.
Part of the FLY FISHER GROUP
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AVAILABILITY 2008/9
 Next season we will accommodate 150 fishermen during 15 weeks spread between 11th October 2008 and 2nd May 09. Our weeks were selected with care in order to always offer you the best of St Francois. Our booking schedule is already open and filling up nicely (already 5 weeks fully booked), so come back to us ASAP to reserve your rod before it is too late.
Availability Alphonse Island season 08-09
Weeks Rods available
11 - 18 October 2008.....................................10
29 November - 6 December 2008......................8
17 - 24 January 2008.....................................10
24 - 31 January 2009......................................4
14 - 21 February 2009....................................10
21 - 28 February 2009.....................................5
25 April - 2 May 2009.....................................10
Itinerary: Sat-Sat 7nights/6 days
Fishers: US$6,950 ex Mahe
Including: shared boat/guide, single accommodation
Non fishers: US$4,000 ex Mahe
Based on: shared accommodation with fisher
Not Included: International travel, beverages, incidentals (flies etc) or staff & guide tips
(Updated 6th June 2008)
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Vaughn's Report on the 2007/8 Season...
The conservation ethic that fly fisherman promote along with the good work being done by all the fishing staff on Alphonse permitted some fantastic catch returns during this past season. St. Francois' marine eco system is as rich as ever with the numbers of certain species on the rise. During the past 8 years, the numbers of bonefish have remained steady, proven by means of our catch register and confirmed by numerous returning guests. St. Francois still produces an average catch return of 10 bonefish per angler per day. What needs to be considered is that this figure includes the many anglers who arrive on St. Francois and never make a cast at a bonefish. The fisheries diversity allows for this and many of our guests prefer to target species other than bonefish the entire week.
One of these unique species is the milkfish. The hookup to hand ratio being 1 in 5, the milkfish made a handsome showing this past season with just over 30 guests successfully releasing what is considered a fish of a lifetime. The biggest of these tipping the scales at approximately 40lb. and most fish averaging between 20 and 25 lbs. To consider that several years ago these fish were thought to be impossible to catch on a fly. With the milkfish available to us, we have introduced a new grand slam on St. Francois including bonefish, Giant Trevally and Milkfish. Anglers who catch all three species in one day have achieved the milkfish grand slam. There were three grand slam successes this past season, well done to those anglers who have achieved what only a dozen anglers in the world would have to date.
The "Giant" in giant trevally, made itself well known this past season. There were some tremendous fish hooked, lost and landed, the biggest of these estimated at 100lbs. according to measurement. We witnessed many bigger fish being hooked and lost and fish that were not cast too for fear of the terrain, knowing that the surf is no place to try and subdue a fish over 100 lbs. The GT's average 30lbs, with many fish of 40-60lbs. landed. Fly tackle is only designed to stress to a certain level and if not used correctly will fail, this happened on many occasions with these brutes with rods, reels and flylines failing under the strain of long fights with very big fish.
Other species regularly caught throughout the season include three species of triggerfish, dozens of snapper and grouper species, permit averaging 10-12 lbs, dogtooth tuna, bluefin trevally, brassy trevally, bigeye trevally, bludger trevally, yellow dot trevally,
Please feel free to contact me with any questions: E-mail Vaughn
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THE 'SCOOP'...ON THE 2008/9 SEASON
Don't believe the hype...
Many people have heard things about Alphonse's future which simply are not true. Our role as booking agent to always provide our guests with more accurate information. Therefore we did appreciate when some of you came to us asking what the future was going to be for Alphonse. Here are some answers to two of the most common of those questions;
→ No! Our guests will NOT be relocated in the 'staff quarters' next season
→ No! our guests will not be eating in the staff canteen either!!
Let me reassure you that Alphonse's future looks as exciting as it has always been. Should any relocation take place in the future, guests will be only moved to fully refurbished, decorated and beautifully furnished structures befitting Alphonse's famous standards.
Facts on the ground...
We took the opportunity while on Alphonse in April to sit with Alphonse and Great Plains Seychelles' Senior Management and discuss some areas of the operation going forwards;
→ Yes! Alphonse is soon going to see a lot of changes but we do believe and want to reassure you that the changes will always be planned in order to make things better for you. The management is very well aware of your needs and expectations and nothing will be done to undervalue your stay.
→ Yes! There will be some construction taking place on the island next season. The 5 Deluxe villas situated on the left side of the main area (left of the reception & restaurant when looking east) and part of the guests chalets that were not being used in the past season will be knocked down and rebuilt. This does not apply to the 10 guests' chalets that were allocated to you this past season and the Senior Management on the island gave us a committment that the accommodation for the fishing guests will remain the same for at least one more season.
→ Construction work will be undertaken so as to have the least affect on the comfort and the view of our fishermen while on the island. Work on the main bar and restaurant areas will commence only after the closing of the 2008/9 season and finsihed prior to the opening of the 2009/10 season.
 
→ The construction workers will only start their daily schedule after our fishermen have boarded the mother ship and on their way to St François, and stop working on their return.
How will the construction affect our guests?
→ As far as our fishermen are concerned, the fishing shop may be moved nearer the central guest area in order to maintain the comfort and quietness of the fishermen's talks around the tackle in the mornings. As the only deeep water access to the island the existing water sports area will also be utilized to land and store the building material. Our fishermen will embark for their journey every morning from the same beach as in the past but must be aware that there will be materials stored in sight when departing the beach.
→ Although the swimming pool and the non motorized water sports activities will remain fully operational, we will not overly encourage the non fishing package for next season. Any person willing to accompany their fishing partner will be made very welcome but must be aware that the construction will be taking place during the fishing day and although the main area will not be touched during the season, the noise of the machinery will at points be an hindrance for those who are planning to sun tan and relax around the swimming pool.
Last but not least we want to reassure you that, despite the anticipated construction, the island staff & management, fishery & guides and all at Fly Fish Seychelles will commit 100% to ensuring that this little peice of paradise reamins exactly that - YOUR PARADISE!
Contact me for further information: E-mail Aline
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