A mixed group of Finns and Swedes arrived in Hallaniyat in early February to target the big Yellowfin Tunas and Giant Trevallys of Southern Oman. Upon arrival we geared up, had dinner and got briefed about the coming days of fishing by the captains Swabir and Dylan. The forecast for the first day was quite windy, so it was decided that we would do a soft start with inshore fishing, targeting species like Bream, Emperor Fish, Wolf Herring and Blacktip Trevally on light tackle. Everyone was eager to get up early in the morning and exhausted from the travelling so we called it a night early.
Day 1
We divided the boats into a Swedish and a Finnish boat. The Finns had a great first day of fishing, catching a wide variety of fish including some good size Breams, Emperors and some Blacktip Trevallys. The Swedes were fishing another area and had to struggle a bit more, but in the end Stefan managed to land a really nice top water Amberjack.
Well done, Stefan!
Day 2
The second day was still quite windy so we settled for the nearby Hallaniyat Islands where we could get some shelter from the wind, in hopes for some Giant Trevally, Black Tip Trevally and Queenfish. Our boat (the Finns) only managed to land one Emperor while losing a few fish and trying to chase down some tricky Milkfish on the fly. We also saw a couple of Sailfish within casting distance but didn’t get any bites from them.
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The Swedes experienced some slow fishing too, which is typical for the GT areas of Oman: you go all in for that one big fish and they are seldom around in numbers. Daniel managed, however, to catch an impressive, really girthy, GT of 124 centimeters that was estimated to weigh 40+ kilos and Peter caught a nice Queenfish so the Swedes were all cheers when we met up at the lodge in the evening, Team Finland being a bit more on the quiet side.
Day 3
On the third day the Swedes went GT fishing while me and Kim were dropped off at Sawdah Island for some fishing from the shore and Karl-Erik and Pekka went looking for Tunas with the boat. Everyone had kind of a slow day but I managed to catch an Emperor on the fly and had some shots on reluctant Parrot Fish. The Swedes caught a nice Blacktip Trevally and a small Mahi Mahi.
Day 4
The fourth day the wind settled enough so that we could go Tuna fishing. That means a long drive out on the open sea in search of Dolphins and birds that feed on baitfish. Often you find the Tunas working together with the Dolphins, driving the baitfish up from the deep. Everyone caught Tuna but the size was not as big as we had hoped for. Peter caught a 40 kg Tuna though and Daniel lost a big one, estimated to be 80 kg+, just between the boat, so it was clear that revenge was needed.
Day 5
In the morning of the fifth day Captain Swabir told us that the wind was way too hard to go Tuna fishing, actually we couldn’t go out with the boats at all. So instead we went fishing from the shore for a while and did some sightseeing. Maybe some rest wasn’t wrong after four hard days of fishing.
Day 6
On the sixth and last day the sea calmed down so it was all in for Tuna! Except for me, I was yet again dropped off at Sawdah with fly rod in hand and Dhofar Parrotfish on my mind. I had a really nice day sightcasting on the reefs: I didn’t manage to land anything except for some Triggerfish but the Parrotfish were showing a lot of interest to my flies and I actually hooked two big ones: one destroyed my hook and the other one reefed me. Both fish took off like crazy after the bite, taking me out on my backing line in an instant. Great fun, next time I’ll bring a #10 rod for the Parrots.
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It turned out that both boats had a really good day of Tuna fishing: A total of 10 Tunas landed and they were all BIG. The two heaviest fish landed by Karl-Erik and Peter weighed 80 and 82 kilos! Congratulations guys, what an end to our trip!
Already missing Oman, the fishing, Sawdah Island, the good company, the competent Captains and the food. We will be back for sure!
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Mikey
Thanks Mikey for a great trip report and if you are looking to join a trip to Oman or one of our other destinations please take a look into our UPCOMING TRIPS. Here you will find all dates for upcoming mixed group trips for single angler but we are also happy to arrange individual trips if you are already a small group of anglers that want to travel on their own.
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Just get in touch with us.
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SEA you soon!