Pompano Beach Oman – Day 7

by | Apr 21, 2015 | fly fishing Oman | 2 comments

blog-April-21-2015-1-jeff-currier-flyfishing-in-omanWe had a long day yesterday, another dewy night and Granny got chewed up by some sort of gnats.  We slept till sunrise for the first time.  Instead of hanging my sleeping bag to dry the dew I let it dry with me in it and watched the sun, waves and birds.

 

blog-April-21-2015-2-lobster-fishermen-in-omanWhile the coffee was brewing I went for a walk.  The terrain has changed immensely. We’ve gone from the long beaches and small rock cropping’s to the opposite.  There’s lots of lobster traps in sight and signs of local fishermen in the area.

 

blog-April-21-2015-3-sea-food-in-omanOn the way into Hasik last night we saw some fishy looking water so we decided to backtrack and check it out.  We passed through Hasik again and did a more thorough job of looking for fuel canisters.  No luck.  We did however find a few fresh tomatoes, peppers and each ended up with tall icy cold cokes which perked us up from our lousy night sleep.  Oh, and we learned there’s a fresh “See” food” restaurant in case we get skunked for the rest of the trip!

 

The fishy area we checked out was located close to a military checkpoint we went through last night.  Before I got our rods ready one of the military jeeps with the machineguns attached to the roof confronted us.  Our language barrier slowed the communication down but it was pretty easy to show we were fishing.  They smiled and told us if we needed anything to let them know.  Once again I asked to take a photo but got shut down.

 

blog-April-21-2015-4-sea-turtles-in-omanDespite being incredible looking water with huge bait balls in every direction we caught nothing more than a couple of small needlefish.  I saw a big fish that in this strangely murky milk colored water was hard to confirm but it may have been a huge milkfish.  Granny too saw something but couldn’t identify it.  The highlight was the hundreds of sea turtles swimming around us as we waded.

 

blog-April-21-2015-5-sea-habit-fly-patternWe packed it up from there around 11 AM and continued our drive south.  The rocky outcrops got better and better looking.  I stopped at several and tossed a size 3/0 blue and white Sea Habit with no results.  How could this be – great water and no fish?

 

blog-April-21-2015-6-jeff-currier-africanus-fishing-in-omanAs we continued our drive south the water continued to gleam but the amount of lobster traps and fish trap buoys grew making our confidence nosedive.  Oman was appearing to be like the rest of the world’s oceans – overfished.  I continued to try but was taking a beating navigating the rough rocky terrain under the inferno of the sun.

 

As I was mindlessly dredging I gazed left and my excitement level exploded.  On some outer rocks where the surf was pounding I spotted some aggressively feeding tailing fish.  The tails were permit like but no black color and their shapes were similar to permit but slightly narrower and longer.  They were southern pompano, better known on this side of the world as the famous Africanus (Trachinotus africanus)!

 

blog-April-21-2015-7-jeff-currier-flyfishing-for-africanus-pompanoThank goodness I trained for this trip.  After all the slow fishing today I had nothing with me but the fly I had on.  These fish eat mussels and crabs.  Without any regard for my body I sprinted across rocks back up to the car for flies and tippet.  I had no idea how long these feeding Africanus would stay in range.

 

blog-April-21-2015-8-flyfishing-for-african-pompanaI grabbed the resting Granny and we tore back down there.  They were still there.  Planning my cast was hard.  These fish were in the heart of snag central and from my point of view, if I hooked one I’d be broken off in seconds because on the run they’d pass through jagged rocks covered in razor sharp mussels.  Then there was the surf.  Even an Atlantic salmon would have trouble holding ground in the frothing surf these guys were in and I had to wade out to them.  I felt hopeless, but went for it anyway.

 

blog-April-21-2015-9-jeff-currier-flyfishing-for-southern-pompanoAs I look back I feel as though I wasn’t aggressive enough in my pursuit.  I waded out like I was afraid of getting hurt from a wave and fished my fly like I was in fear of snagging.  For those two reasons I never put my fly on their nose and eventually snagged anyhow and spooked them for good.  This is a fish that I don’t believe has been taken on fly and now I see exactly why.  They’re as finicky as permit, spooky as carp, live in an impossible place to successfully present a fly and it’s safe to assume the fight is dumbfounding!

 

blog-April-21-2015-10-flyfishing-for-bream-in-omanWe continued our drive south and came to our first good size beach in two days.  It was a welcome sight and we decided right then and there it was our home for the rest of the day and night.  We parked and I walked right out and caught two new species, this yellowfin seabream (Acanthopargus arabicus) and a fish that flopped off before I clicked a photo.

 

blog-April-21-2015-11-bait-balls-in-omanThere were some major bait balls up the beach.  As we approached I could see we finally had one on the run.  A five pack of speedy gangsters could be seen pushing the bait and breaking them apart.

 

blog-April-21-2015-12-granny-currier-flyfishing-in-omanGranny stripped my bonefish taper off my Abel and launched a perfect cast with my 9-weight.  Though these fish were chasing baitfish there was no doubt they’d crush a sinking crab.  Granny doubted me but in a split second she was hooked up and a fly line and ten feet of backing separated her from her fish.

 

Tblog-April-21-2015-13-granny-currier-flyfishing-for-largespot-pompanohe largespot pompano gave every ounce of fight he had.  You can see by permit-like shape and boomerang tail that this fish can pull.  It was all Granny could do to bring him in.

 

blog-April-21-2015-14-largespot-pompano-for-dinnerAfter some nice photos Granny gave me the nod.  We’re low on food and sick of pasta.  I conked the poor guy over the head and prepared him for dinner.  Tonight would be a scrumptious night of fresh pompano over an open fire.

 

blog-April-21-2015-15-living-off-the-landWe’re camped in a good place.  We saw numerous more largespot pompano, a few bream and yes – we have permit here.  I saw two along the beach but still can’t get one to eat.  Tomorrow hopefully will be the day.  Time for a feast!

 

Jeff Currier Global Fly Fishing

2 Comments

  1. Tom Montgomery

    Still blown away by this blog. You two rock…bigtime!!!

  2. Howie

    Beautiful!

Welcome to the Blog of Jeff Currier!

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I started fly fishing at age 7 in the lakes and ponds of New England cutting my teeth on various sunfish, bass, crappie and stocked trout. I went to Northland College in Ashland, Wisconsin, where I graduated with a Naturalist Degree while I discovered new fishing opportunities for pike, muskellunge, walleyes and various salmonids found in Lake Superior and its tributaries.

From there I headed west to work a few years in the Yellowstone region to simply work as much as most people fish and fish as much as most people work. I did just that, only it lasted over 20 years working at the Jack Dennis Fly Shop in Jackson, WY where I departed in 2009. Now it’s time to work for "The Man", working for myself that is.

I pursue my love to paint fish, lecture on every aspect of fly fishing you can imagine and host a few trips to some of the most exotic places you can think of. My ultimate goal is to catch as many species of fish on fly possible from freshwater to saltwater, throughout the world. I presently have taken over 440 species from over 60 countries!

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