Ever since I first heard of Bassas Da India, I wanted to go there. It’s a French owned atoll that is situated 220 miles due east of Vilanculos, slightly over half way across to Madagascar. It is 10.5 km in diameter, breaks the surface at low tide, and around it is 3000 meters of deep Blue Ocean. All the ingredients for a fisherman’s paradise.
We baited a group of Brazilian Spear fishermen to charter the yacht- a 39ft Escape Catamaran, powered by twin Volvo Penta 30hps, built in Cape Town, South Africa. Needless to say they didn’t need much persuasion, and before we knew it, they were at inhambane airport on the 19th May 2014, ready to go. I had told them to come for 10 days, stay at the lodge and then we would pick the best 7 days to go. It’s better to get there with a SE wind, and try and get back with a NE. Sounds simple? Well it isn’t. Mother Nature threw a strong SE on the Friday and Saturday, with forecasts of the wind dropping over the next few days. When your guests come from the other side of the world, you got to take whatever weather comes…
We left Linga Linga, Inhambane at about 19h00 on Sunday 19th May with a strong 20 knot SE behind us, and we were sailing in high spirits. All the excitement and anticipation that precedes a trip like this we brought along for the ride. Cassinga is a beautiful yacht, with really good electronics, and we set a course up the coast to get closer to Vilanculos by morning. Our guests were jetlagged, and retired to quarters (twin double beds close to the stern) at about 11pm. I love it when you turn the diesels off and you just sail with the wind- this happened soon after we were over the sand bank which is also called the washing machine just off Linga.
We did shifts of two hours on, and four hours off, guests included, for the duration of the trip as soon as it got dark. Local boats, illegal fishing boats and ships are a problem when there is no moon and you are under the cover of darkness. It’s necessary to keep radar watch and rig the sails for max performance. It’s an expensive boat ride, and the skipper has a duty to get guests to the destination as soon as possible.
Monday 20th May (my birthday) greeted us to a brilliant sunrise that only happens out at sea, but with a dying SE. Diesels were started, and we headed due east to Bassas. I grabbed at the opportunity to put some konas out as the speed of the yacht was about 7 knots- perfect marlin speed. I wanted a Marlin or a Yellow fin Tuna over 50 kgs on this trip. I brought 4 x 50 pound Marlin rods, with stand-up fighting gear. I figured that if I got spooled with an experienced skipper, and with 600m new 50 pound line, then that would be a story in itself. We saw shoals of tuna jumping, and then we would override the auto helm and chase whatever was out there- mostly Bonnies- but you never know what is lurking beneath them. I had 4 konas out medium size, and a teaser of birds with a kona at the end. Sea was flat- too flat for my liking. I learned long ago to put a hook in the back of the teaser, and put it on a short stick- just in case. Well, that when it happened… a Blue Marlin in about 900m of water, off south of Vilanculos grabbed the teaser, and then the fun started… It jumped a couple of times so that we could get a good look at it, and then went down! I picked up the kite rod, which was attached to the teaser, with braid of about 80 pounds on a Penn senator 12 star drag. You know what they say- the biggest fish will always test your lightest rod. Well I had a Marlin on a kite rod no longer than 2 feet in length. We fought the marlin down current so that it had to swim into the current and had it subdued about 30 minutes later. By the tape it measured 2.2 meters from the fork in its tail to the bottom lip- about 120 kgs. It was well hooked through the top of the mouth, and was not happy being manhandled on the bottom step of the yacht. We decided to cut the leader as close to the hook as what we could, and released it. My first marlin on a kite rod! I will never forget that experience, on my birthday, for as long as I live.
Wind died completely and we chugged on at 7 knots. There is a hell of a current that comes from the north, and we fought this and no wind for the next 2 days. Just before you get to Bassas da India, you get Hall Banks, which is an undersea mountain that comes up to about 400m below the surface- not much to write home about, except that then we were in 3000 m of water. We circled a few times and had no luck. Jaguar Seamount is slightly south of this and although it looked better, coming up to 100m, we decided to head straight to Bassas, about 50 miles from there. Guests were getting uncomfortable and were keen to start spearfishing! This is what they had come from the other side off the world for, and my fishing would have to wait.
We arrived at Bassas at 3am in the morning- no wind- no moon. It’s an intimidating place when first light comes, as there is just a strip of dark volcanic rock in places and plenty of shipwrecks. One wreck was 100m plus in length, a 500 ton vessel, and it looked like it was at the dry dock- completely out the water, lying on its hull. What strength did it take from Mother Nature to misplace it there... We had but a fibreglass hull of 40ft, and if you get into trouble there, then you going to write a book after that with the ensuing story, if you make it. No people, no other boats, and you are on your own in the middle of the ocean!
This place is ten and a half kilometres in diameter and although we spent two days diving there- we didn’t see 90% of the place. By my calculation that means that the circumference is about 34 km. Within 50 m of the band of rocks that you are always aware of, you are in 100m of water, and a mile away you are in 1000m of water. It’s an incredible place, like nothing I have ever imagined. It was much bigger and more awesome than I ever thought.
The first day we spent the whole day in the water and had excellent weather- bright sunlight and little wind. There is a lot of everything around- except more, and the fish are not scared of you. Oceanic white tip sharks are plentiful. We shot a lot of trevally’s, job fish, rock cods (grouper), and some big red snappers. We left the potato basses alone, but they weren’t reciprocal, and would come and try steal the fish whenever we speared. Needless to say we soon filled the freezers with fillets, and then went onto trophy fish. Our problem was that the place is so big, that one has to explore and find good areas. This was done by pulling spearos behind the yacht, who would then shout mark! We would do this for about 3km at a time, and then go back to those marks and explore.
It’s a scary place at night without the light of the moon, and after a dinner of fresh snapper, we were left being in awe with memories of the day. The wind picked up from the SE, and we were left with no safe place to anchor, and had to keep the yacht on the north side of the atoll where the chop was smoother. We had to sail the yacht throughout the night.
Next morning, the 4th day, the wind grew to 25 knots. Waves appeared all around, and we had to stay on the north side. The sea changed from a duck pond to a washing machine and we carried on regardless. I took the opportunity early morning to get the lines in again- spearos are fishermen who don’t wake up early.
Soon I had some big Rapalas and Mann lures out the back. You know when you first start out fishing and you go to the store to get armed up, and you see the biggest looking lures and you have to buy them? Those lures that then become white elephants whenever you pack for a fishing trip? Yes, those ones. Well, after 20 years I finally had a use for them. I knew that this day would come…
They weren’t in for long- maybe a minute, and bang, after bang, after bang. On, on, on off, on, on off- so it went. Wahoo and whatever else was there proceeded to destroy whatever I put out there. My 20 year old Mann lure (a Red head with the longest looking bib on it) was destroyed in 15 minutes flat, to the extent that it wouldn’t swim anymore. Awesome! I was shouting so much that soon the spearos woke and spoilt my fun, and that was the end of my fishing shift.
At about 1 o’clock, the wind was still winding up, and we decided to head to Vilanculos. All the laundry was hung out, and soon we killed the engines, and we were pushed towards Vilanculos. In a speedboat when the wind comes up, we start heading off the water. On a yacht, when the wind comes up, then the skipper gets a smile on his face and the boat comes into its own. We surfed down waves, and had a brilliant thirty hour run to Vilanculos- too fast for fishing I might add…
Day 5 in and around Vilanculos, wind dropped completely, and we took on provisions, which included freshly caught calamari (Lula) which we had for lunch on the griller!
We were keen to get back in the water and soon found a reef just south of the Vilanculos bay where local fishermen were fishing. Shot a few cuta, and too soon we were without light, and spearing was over for the day.
Headed down towards a mark half way between Vilanculos and Pomene, and woke up day six there. Interesting place on the chart, but no fish there that day. Upped anchor, and continued south to Pomene, fishing whenever I could. Arrived Pomene next day, and were treated to a brilliant reef which came up to nine meters, and was full of fish. Spent the whole day there- in heaven.
All too soon it was time to head back to Linga Linga, and so we headed the last 60 miles or so back to Linga arriving at night at Silver fish Lodge. (www.silverfishlodge.co.za)
I realised a few things from this trip. You can never take too many things with- lures, fishing rods, line, spears, different spear guns, ice, freezers, food and music. Bassas Da India is the type of place you won’t ever get enough of, and will eat at you to go back again. You know that it is only a question of time that you will be in the right time and the right place, and you will land the fish of your fishing lifetime. It’s that place that all of us dream about.
For your trip of a lifetime, speak to Etienne at +258846278587, or email him at [email protected].