Some catches are truly special, like this sailfish… one of two, from a double strike!
For this unique story, we go back to the spring of 2013, when I travelled to Nosy-Bé, north of Madagascar, for a fishing adventure. For five days I chartered a boat just for myself. My goal was clear: to catch the mighty GT. The Giant Trevally (Caranx ignobilis), king of the saltwater world — lightning fast, stunning, and almost prehistoric in appearance. I prepared meticulously for this trip, even crafting my own poppers for the fly rod. It was going to be an unbelievable adventure. On the third morning, something happened that exceeded all expectations, when the skipper suddenly shouted:“Sailfish!!!”
A massive brown shadow zigzagged behind the Williams trailer we were trolling across the surface.
For minutes the fish kept us in suspense, until it suddenly dove and I felt a heavy thump on the middle rod, where I was trolling a HALCO GT JIG.
But the sailfish had only struck with its bill, and my lure ended up tangled in the main line.
My heart was pounding as I watched the enormous brown silhouette rise again while I reeled in.
Unfortunately, it didn’t attack again, and the rest of the day remained dead quiet.
Until around 4 p.m., when the skipper shouted once more: Sailfish!!!
This time it was a Sébile Magic Swimmer in RedHead colour, and it was attacked aggressively. I barely had the fighting belt strapped on when the sailfish shot off like a dolphin, dancing across the surface for thirty metres, shaking its head wildly to throw the lure.
Then suddenly the drag on the second rod started screaming, and two sailfish were dancing across the surface from left to right!!!
"Complete chaos on the boat: two sailfish criss-crossing the ocean surface!"
But look at the photos… what an incredible creation of nature: The dorsal fin, a gigantic sail, dark brown with fluorescent blue spots. It can flare it open to herd baitfish when circling them.
Its two pectoral fins are long and powerful. It folds them downward and uses them like a rudder, allowing it to pivot on its axis even at high speed.
On its back are two long, narrow lobes where it can completely hide that sail.
And notice the notch in its belly, where it can tuck away those long pectoral fins, turning its body into a supersonic spear.
Adrenaline surged through my body.
I had never seen anything so magnificent!!!!
AN ABSOLUTE BEAUTY OF NATURE: INDIAN OCEAN SAILFISH!!!
When you witness one of the most beautiful fish Mother Nature ever created — a lightning-fast arrow, a sailfish of the Indian Ocean!
Unforgettable memories.