Astove Atoll is famous for big GTs. They don’t come along often but when they do, they can be big. Very big. Astove’s shallow lagoon, with one small entrance surrounded by sheer drop-offs, is a sanctuary for juvenile fish and it’s this that makes it one of the most extraordinary fly fishing destinations on the planet. Along with big GTs, Astove is also frequented by bonefish, permit, barracuda, milkfish, bluefin trevally, triggerfish, yellowfin tuna, dogtooth tuna, wahoo, sailfish and marlin. Great fishing can be had on both spring and neap tides with each cycle giving a host of different opportunities.
Keep an eye on these pages where we will update all the news from the Astove Atoll 2024 fishing season.
Astove Atoll Fishing News 2025 season – 24th February to 3rd March
As a new week of fishing dawned on the gorgeous heart shaped atoll known as Astove, we were joined by four anglers, Toby and Alexander from Montana, Gary from South Africa and return guest Christopher from the United Kingdom. Toby and Alexander had a splendid days fishing on day one with Astove guide Don, where Toby caught two giant trevally measuring in at 70cm and 78cm while Alexander went on to completing his first slam for the week with an Indo-Pacific permit, milkfish and bonefish. Christopher went out with head guide Enrico on his first day and had a good amount of shots at giant trevally, even witnessing an amazing sighting of 12 giant trevally following about 18 rays on the turtle grass around the iconic Paulie’s island just situated off the south western corner flats of Astove, even though Christopher had a tough days angling, he managed to finish his first day out on the flats with a 61cm giant trevally.
On day two Christopher was determined to correct the mistakes made on day one, he headed out with guide Gary de Klerk doing the long trek from Paulie’s all the way to the mouth and up the lagoon system towards south mooring where lunch was only going to get served at about 14:30. Despite the long walk and late lunch Christopher was focused on the goal at hand and managed to complete a slam for the day catching an 82cm giant trevally, 34cm permit and respectable sized bonefish to complete his slam. Toby and Alexander spent day two fishing with head guide Enrico and even though there were fish around, things didn’t seem to be going as well as on day one with a few missed opportunities and getting rinsed by a few big bone fish in the surf zone around north point. The guys managed to catch a couple of good sized surf zone bonefish and Alexander eventually managed to pin and land a 36cm moustache triggerfish, one of the species he was most interested in catching during his trip to the Seychelles.
Day three and four were tough days with very little shots being presented on the flats, even though the weather was prime and the visibility was great the dropping tide wasn’t fishing as well as it had been the previous two days and the pushing tides were just as slow and tedious. Some guides opted to fish the lagoon, which was also slow when it came to trevally’s, but did hold a few permit circulating the system. Christopher managed to scratch it out the bag on day three catching one 74cm giant trevally with guide Don.
Day five and six the fishing picked up again and there were definitely fish around. Although most of the guys struggled to land fish on day five, Toby and Alexander had an incredible days fishing with Astove head guide Enrico Aerts where Toby landed a 70cm giant trevally out of a pack of 6 sitting on about 14 rays pushing up a cut on the eastern side of the atoll between the dune and the pole, while Enrico stood with a moustache triggerfish already in the net that Alexander had just caught and landed moments earlier, Toby was tussling the 70cm giant trevally with another trying to eat the fly out of the fishes mouth, Alexander was instructed to take his 12 wt and make a cast to try catch the second trevally, where things didn’t go as planned. Once the chaos settled and Enrico could finally take his camera out of this backpack, after landing the giant trevally they snapped a couple shots of father and son with the trevally and moustache triggerfish, absolutely epic memory for the father and son duo. Already buzzing from the days events, Alex wasn’t done with his favourite species to target out there, Alex managed to land three moustache triggerfish that day with the biggest being 41cm, landing two giant trevally’s (biggest being 72cm), a respectable 61cm bonefish and later completing the super slam in the lagoon once the water had pushed them out the surf to complete the super slam.
Day six was another great day on the flats of Astove with Toby catching a 65cm giant trevally, while Alex managed a giant trevally and three more moustache triggerfish with guide Gary, declaring him the triggerfish king for the week. After a tough week of searching for trophy sized trevally during the course of the week, Gary managed to complete a slam with head guide Enrico on the last day of his trip consisting of two giant trevally (biggest being 70cm), a moustache triggerfish and bonefish. Well done to all the gents for their amazing catches and we hope to see you out here again for another session.
Astove Atoll Fishing News 2025 season – 17th to 24th February
This week, we had the pleasure of hosting the lovely McKellar family on Astove, where they enjoyed a perfect blend of diving and fishing throughout their stay. While Mrs. McKellar spent her time exploring the calm and vibrant waters off the Astove Wall, she encountered an impressive array of marine life, including permit, dogtooth tuna, giant trevally, and bumphead parrotfish. On the other hand, Mr. McKellar was out on the flats for a week of exciting saltwater fly fishing.
During his time fishing, Mr. McKellar was able to land a total of 72 bonefish, with the largest measuring an impressive 62cm. He also succeeded in catching two permit, with the largest reaching 33cm. Throughout his fishing adventures, he was accompanied by head guide Enrico, who offered expert guidance to help him make the most of the conditions.
It was truly a pleasure to have the McKellar family with us this week, and we are grateful for the wonderful moments shared. Thank you to the McKeller family for an unforgettable week on Astove, and we hope to welcome you back again soon for more diving and fishing adventures.
Astove Atoll Fishing News 2025 season – 10th to 17th February
This past week, we had four keen anglers join us on the beautiful little atoll of Astove. The weather was predicted to be picture-perfect, and it certainly delivered throughout the week, with only one day of temperamental conditions consisting of downpours that kept Joshua, William, Antonio, and Alexander off the flats for half a day. Despite the few hours of bad weather, we had an exceptional week of fishing, with 72 bonefish, one Moustache Triggerfish, 15 permit, 21 giant trevally, one dogtooth tuna, and three jobfish all landed throughout the week.
On day one, Joshua, who has fished Astove before and requested Enrico as his guide based on a recommendation, started his first day off with a 74cm and an 84cm giant trevally. In the afternoon, he went offshore for a short dredging session, where he managed to land an impressive 84 cm jobfish. Tyron guided Antonio and Alexander on the first day. Antonio finished his day with a slam, consisting of a 60cm giant trevally, a 35cm triggerfish, and a bonefish, while Alexander managed to catch three giant trevally during a short afternoon dredging session, with the biggest being 91cm.
On day two, spirits were high before departing camp, but Joshua soon discovered he was suffering from ‘Salado,’ or more commonly known amongst fly fishermen as ‘the curse,’ with some unfortunate events playing out throughout the day. Nonetheless, he managed to scrape through, landing a beautiful 61cm bluefin trevally and a 60cm bonefish at the wreck. William from North Carolina completed a slam on the second day, consisting of a 79cm giant trevally, three permit, and 28 bonefish, earning him both a flats slam and the 20-plus bonefish badge.
Day three turned out to be an exceptional day for Joshua, who landed a 78cm giant trevally, two permit, and a bonefish, completing the slam for the day. William was on a permit roll once again, landing his fourth permit of the trip. Alexander and Antonio managed to get a day of fishing with Enrico after some negotiation, opting to head offshore for some dredging. It turned out to be an amazing day in the deep, with Antonio landing three giant trevally, and Alexander finishing his day with two jobfish, five giant trevally, and a magnificent 94cm dogtooth tuna.
As the week progressed, it was decided to rotate the guide team again. Joshua managed to land an Indo-Pacific permit with guide Donovan, Alexander landed the biggest giant trevally of the week at 95cm with guide Tyron Knight, and William landed another three permit with guide Enrico on the same day.
Day five was tough due to stormy weather conditions, but William wasn’t deterred, landing another three permit with head guide Enrico, bringing his permit count to ten for the week. Despite the challenging weather on day five, day six turned out to be stellar, with pristine weather conditions and one last day to search for some good fish. The competition between guides Enrico and Tyron had been growing throughout the week, and after endless banter around the table the night before, they headed out and produced a phenomenal day on the flats. At around 9:30 am, Josh landed a 71cm giant trevally on Enrico’s boat, followed by Alexander landing a 60cm giant trevally at 9:40 am. Moments later, Tyron guided Alexander onto a permit just 100 metres from Enrico’s boat, who then followed up by guiding Joshua into a permit. Both Joshua and Alexander ended their last day by completing the slam by lunchtime, finishing the week in spectacular fashion.
Astove Atoll Fishing News 2025 season – 3rd to 10th February
During week two of the Astove 2025 season, we had the pleasure of welcoming two anglers, Antti and Iiro, to the island. Antti, a returning guest, was back with one goal in mind—completing his first slam. He had been working towards this elusive goal since his first trip to Astove, and this week, he was more determined than ever to accomplish it. Joining him was Iiro, who was eager to join the action. Despite the conditions at the start, the atmosphere on the atoll was electric from the moment they arrived.
The first couple of days proved challenging, with winds blowing consistently and poor visibility due to the cloud cover. These factors created glare and made sight fishing difficult, but they did little to dampen the enthusiasm of our anglers. On day one, Antti and Iiro set out with high spirits. Both anglers managed to catch giant trevally, with Iiro celebrating a significant milestone—his first-ever GT caught on fly. Antti also had a memorable moment, landing a stunning 55cm moustache triggerfish after a thrilling battle. The fish put up a good fight, with Antti and his guide, Tyron, working together to land the catch. Although Antti didn’t manage to land a bonefish to complete his slam on the first day, his determination only grew stronger.
On day two, Iiro raised the bar for himself after already landing his first GT. He managed to catch his very first Indo-pacific permit at the iconic Astove location known as Paulie’s—a small island surrounded by coral, sand spits, and turtle grass flats. After photographing and releasing the permit, Iiro continued his success, landing a giant trevally and a bonefish to complete his slam. With the pressure mounting, Antti faced some tough challenges of his own. The GTs proved elusive, with fish lazily following his fly, missing it, or hooking up only to lose the fish. Despite these setbacks, Antti managed to redeem himself, landing a 41cm permit and several big surf-zone bonefish, keeping his hopes for the slam alive.
As the week progressed, the neap jump tide approaching, the water temperature increased, and fish were less inclined to push onto the flats. However, we made the most of the short windows when fish would move onto the flats at the start and halfway through the tide before heading back to deeper, cooler water. Antti and Iiro rose to the challenge, with Antti landing a couple more giant trevally and Iiro catching a new personal best permit at 45cm.
To end the week on a high note, Antti and Iiro decided to head back to the lodge early, where they insisted on cooking for the entire team under the supervision of our master chefs—a generous and thoughtful gesture that capped off a great week of fishing and camaraderie. Congratulations to both Antti and Iiro for their impressive catches this week.
Astove Atoll Fishing News 2025 season – 27th January to 3rd February
Astove atoll kicked off the 2025 season with excitement levels high and everyone, including the guides buzzing to get out on the water for the very first week of the season. We started off the week with pleasant weather conditions, beautiful clear skies, accompanied by a gentle breeze which laid the foundation for favourable sight fishing over the course of the first three days. We were presented with a spring tide cycle for an incredible wading experience in the surf zone, it also opened up the doors to explore the Astove lagoon teeming with bone fish and entices species such as permit and giant trevally who enter the system during the period of these big tidal movements. The fishing turned out to be great with all the anglers ticking off an array of bucket list species despite the weather turning the last three days with a weather system bringing strong winds, rain and some lightning.
Anglers Garrison and Corrine had an incredible week with Garrison bagging GTs almost every day out on the flats and completing a slam on day three which consisted of catching five giant trevally with the biggest being 75cm, three permit caught in the surf zone, biggest being 45cm and a bone fish to complete an amazing day fishing. Corrine got off to a tough start losing a beautiful yellow margin trigger fish, commonly referred to out here as the unicorn of the flats, after the fish severed the hook in half moments before Astove head guide Enrico could get it into the net. Set on not letting these chain of events get her down, Corrine went on to land her first ever Indo-Pacific permit and tussling a good giant trevally on the last day of her trip.
After angler Christopher caught a couple of giant trevally on the flats during the week he was keen to explore deeper water around the outside of the atoll. Dredging rods set up and ready to go, Christopher headed out in search of grouper, snapper and the elusive dogtooth tuna. The morning started off chaotic, but productive catching and losing some GTs in the early hours of the session. Christopher’s main aim was to try and haul up some giant bottom reef dwellers. Fingers taped up for war, he headed for 30 – 40 metre pinnacle on the eastern side of the Astove atoll where on the second drop we went tight with a dinosaur. After a back and forth tussle and seeing the fly line touching the top two guides of the rod for the first time again, it was convincing to know that this fish had not yet found the rugged coral garden on the floor. Holding the fish in a brief moment of no give or take the drag starting sounding off another run, as the fish proceeded on another big run the drag system on Christopher’s reel ceased and the spool parted ways with the reel casing as the backing over winded into cluster commonly known to anglers as a crow’s nest. Well done Christopher on catching some memorable giant trevally!
Apart from catching some beautiful giant trevally specimens over the course of the week, angler Kurt was an absolute character both on and off the water providing ample entertainment and dedication to getting out there with a positive attitude, even on the tough days. Kurt, coming from a hunting background understood that things are not always going to go your way. Kurt managed to land a beautiful permit on the very first day in the Astove lagoon and proceeded to get humbled by the fishery on day two and three with no fish to show. Determined to change his luck, Kurt went out on day four catching a 70cm giant trevally and completed a slam on day five with another Indo-Pacific permit, trevally and some big bone fish in the surf zone.
Amanda charged into this week completing a total of two slams during her stay with the first slam consisting of a permit, moustache trigger, bone fish and the second slam later on in the week with a giant trevally, permit and 46cm moustache trigger fish. Amanda’s winning streak was far from over, managing to land more GTs as the week progressed with the biggest fish of the week measuring in at 85cm.
Mark had an incredible week and just seemed to have all the fish magic in his back pocket landing three permit the very first day he landed on Astove. Mark then went on to land one permit every day for the first three days out on the flats which just seemed too good to be true. He managed to complete the slam on one of those days setting the bar high for the rest of the week, but Mark decided he was not done there when he completed a super slam consisting of a permit, giant trevally, moustache trigger and bone fish during the early hours of the day fishing. Mark’s main aim on this trip was to break his previous personal best giant trevally in the Seychelles which he did by catching a beautiful 80cm giant trevally in the surf zone.
The week ended on a very high note with every angler catching a GT on the final day. We look forward to getting out there for week two of fishing Astove with our new group of guests, making more lifetime memories filled with wondrous fish tales!
If our Astove Atoll News 2025 has piqued your interest and you would like more information on this superb fly fishing destination or any of our other Seychelles operations please contact Peter McLeod or Olly Thompson or call us on +44 1980 847389.