Three 'Granders' in a day

[PanamaJack]

Let me start by assuring you that there're not too many places in the world where you can catch BIG Blue Marlin and 1000lb plus Sharks together with countless Tuna, and then pay for the celebratory drinks in the bar in Sterling. That's of course unless we, with global warming, 'fast forward' 50 or so years and we starting catching them in the Channel.

Anyway, until four short years ago Ascension Island, 'sitting' in the South Atlantic midway between Angola and Northern Brazil, was a restricted military area. The only practical way down there was by RAF transport - it was a refuelling stop on the way down to the Falklands - and, apart from military personnel and contractors, the only ones permitted to land - and they were closely marshalled - were 'locals' and those transfering to the ferry to St Helena. St Helena is its 'bigger neighbour' some 800 miles to the South East. And technically, although part of the Commonwealth, Ascensions a Dependency of St Helena.

Back at the time of the Falklands conflict I remember reading reports of squaddies, on R & R, catching huge numbers of Tuna there from the backs of landing craft literally a few hundred yards offshore. But for the rest of us it was to remain a 'pipe dream' until a slight 'change of heart' by the MoD pushed along, I'm sure, by the Foreign Office.

Enough of that though. You can now get to fish down there on one of just two resident game boats - Shy 3 and Harmattan - but, 'no bones', given its remoteness it's expensive to get to and expensive to charter. But they've certainly had some results - several World records have been established from there and the biggest Marlin I've heard of being weighed was one of 1337lbs.

That's the 'gloss' though. What is it really like?

Roddy Hays, lure maker extraordinaire, who subscribes to our forum has kindly allowed me to attach this extract from his diary, from March 2003 - http://www.legendlures.com/RoddyInAscension.html. It's written in Roddy's own inimitable style and there're some great photographs. Importantly though make sure you read the account for Sunday 30th March, that really does illustrate its potential. I can't think of anywhere else in the world, apart from perhaps the Great Barrier Reef in its heyday, where you'd possibly encounter that number of BIG Marlin in a single day.

My Thanks to Roddy.

Kindest regards
Dave