After 40 hours of flight travel that ended Friday afternoon, I still wasn’t at St Brandon’s Atoll. Port Louis, Mauritius was simply a stopover before a 26-hour boat ride to the Atoll. It’s a dreaded boat ride for those who get seasick. It’s frightening for those who aren’t sure if they get sick. And thank god I don’t, however this boat ride has been known to sicken even those that don’t!
After a welcome night sleep at the Address Boutique Hotel, I and my South African friends that own the St Brandon’s Atoll fishing headed for the dock at Port Louis. There we met the other guests on the trip and captains of two 50-foot Sportfishers then loaded our luggage.
There was paperwork to be done with our passports but soon we were on our way. Just like last year, the ride starts out fun. Its scenic as you leave main-island Mauritius. It’s a good time to meet the other guests. But one hour, two hours, three hours go by and finally the last glimpse of land disappears. I thought last year I’d work on my blog but no – there’s too much rocking. I don’t even read.
Once the sight of land leaves, the bottom line is you’re bored out of your mind. You nap for an hour then wake up and look around. If you’re lucky you’ll catch a glimpse of a flying fish but usually not. Every time it looks the same. It’s another four hours till sunset.
Sunset is beautiful but you have only seven of the 26 hours behind you. How long the ride is really going to take starts to sink in. At 8 pm I climbed into the bow and took a bunk. It rocks you to sleep but for me not a sound sleep. I knocked back an Ambien but for some reason it only helped me for three hours. From midnight until the 6 am sunrise I was bored and miserable. I wasn’t the only one.
Sunrise greeted us to rougher seas. It wasn’t bad but the waves crashed on us from the side giving the boat a side jerk. The jerk took a toll on my back and the last eight hours was an uncomfortable hell. To the pleasure of everyone on board, we arrived at St. Brandon’s Atoll at 2 pm to a calm and pleasant sea. We all realized how much we love solid ground!
It’s a weary group as the guides of St. Brandon’s greet us. They lead us to our rooms then some snacks and a welcome drink. A few of us set up our gear first thing. I headed for a walk around our tiny island with my 8-weight Winston. I got one cast at a tailing bonefish larger than most bones found in the Caribbean. I never saw him again after my cast.
We’re here. This long-awaited return to St Brandon’s Atoll is finally underway. My main goal this trip is to catch the Indo-Pacific permit (yellow permit) once and for all. If I fail here, my second dream would be my first 10lb plus bonefish. Either will do. Time to sleep in a real bed!
If you want to go to St Brandon’s Atoll feel free to contact me or my friends at Yellow Dog Flyfishing Adventures.
Haha great read….wow, long boat ride….good luck on the permit and…. do it!!