Mauritius Beach Spinning

[DanBlueMarlin]

Hi

I have booked my hols and am going to Mauritius late November.

I have already booked my blue water fishing.

I want to do a bit of spinning off the beach though and wondered if any of you guys had experience of this? I need advice on what sort of lures etc what time is best and what I can expect to catch?

Also if anyone can recomend a good travel rod that would be great!

Cheers
Dan

[PanamaJack]

Dan
You may wish to pick up on the comments on this particular thread - http://www.worldseafishing.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22957&highlight=Mauritius - regarding the shore fishing. There's a particular shore (and inshore) guide who's referred to that several of my friends have similarly fished with. His web site is http://www.fishingandhuntingsafaris.com/.

Just bear in mind that some of those swells on the reef edge can be quite dangerous if you're considering self-guiding.
Dave

[DanBlueMarlin]

Cheers Dave a very interesting read! The boats booked and I have specified that I DO NOT want to trolling for Marlin but do want the light tackle pelagic experience which they have said they can do so fingers crossed. As to the beach stuff I had planned to do it from the Hotel beach early mornings and possible evenings. I may well give this guy a call though and get a guided trip as well. Once again Mucho Gracias for the helpful link.

[bigfish]

Contact forum member Jackyboy as he lives in Mauritius.

[PanamaJack]

The boats booked and I have specified that I DO NOT want to trolling for Marlin but do want the light tackle pelagic experience which they have said they can do so fingers crossed.

Hi Dan
Trolling for Marlin can be a boring 'old' game - lots of starring at an apparently empty ocean and then the adrenalin rush. Unfortunately in Mauritius, since their government enabled access to the Japanese longliners, those adrenalin rushes are less and less frequent. (I guess though it's sometimes difficult for developing nations not to accept the 'short term' gain, the 'big money'. Whilst, at the same time, conveniently forgetting their local artisan fishermen and also its impact on their not insubstantial tourist industry.) In fact this for me summed it up - a note from one of our Club members resident on the island.


My fishing in last 12 months in Mauritius has been very poor, despite lots of trips. The fishing has sadly been decimated by longliners and the few Marlin around are few and far between, as are other species. Top boats, once catching @ 120 marlin per year, are down in the 20's and 30's, and that fishing 200 days of the year or more. I managed just one small Blue - circa 120lb, in Jan. No major run of Yellowfin this year. In these circs, I am now planning to travel out from Mauritius to go fishing.

I'll have to start weekending in Rodrigues


Although the conventional target for the longliners are Yellowfin Tuna they also catch considerable numbers of Sailfish and Marlin in particular as a by-catch.

So in terms of the smaller pelagics you're planning to target I think there're still reasonable numbers of Skipjack (including some really big ones) and Dorado in particular. And the Dorado are quite capable of taking the big Marlin lures, although not much sport on 80s and 130s.

From what I've heard, and bear in mind that I've never fished there, apart from the Marlin tackle the boats will only, as backup, carry 50lb sets of gear for bait fishing. Worth checking? But if you have your own lighter tackle I'd certainly take it along.

If you were targeting Skipjacks, and you'll often see them harassing small 'tight' balls of bait, I'd be inclined to fish perhaps a small spoon on a planer, fished on a 20lb set of gear (although in UK terms you're really looking at a 30lb boat rod) with perhaps an even lighter set of gear fished 'shotgun' style, long, on the surface. Any disturbance near Skipjacks and they'll tend to go down but they'll readily take those planer-fished lures 20' down or come up for the 'shotgun'.

As to the Dorado they obviously will turn up just about anywhere but, if you can find, drifting debris, either on a current line or just solitary pieces, target there. They're usually in small schools and the bull will normally strike first, but the others will follow him in looking for a 'meal'. If you leave that one in the water initially it's possible to get strikes from the others just dropping chunks of bait or small livebaits, or even casting a fly or small lure at them. A use for the spin rod you intend to take for shore fishing? Remember though they have exceptional keen eyesight and, after one or two are taken, are not easy to fool.

Any rate apart from those you may also encounter species like Wahoo and Sailfish, again great fun on lightish tackle. Remember the wire though for the Wahoo!

Please make sure, good or bad, you update us on the results of your trip.
Best wishes
Dave