Tuesday 7 October 2014

No Boundaries Oman - Reef Raiders 2014



Reef Raiders 2014 – a return to No Boundaries Oman
By John Cahill

I was delighted beyond words to get the invitation to join the Reef Raiders crew to fish the season opener at No Boundaries Oman.  Many would not be aware, that from roughly late April / May through until late September the seasonal Kareef (Monsoon) makes fishing impossible in Southern Oman waters so the first stable weather means find the fish – that’s the job of the crew and it’s the job of the Reef Raiders to catch them; enviable work.
The crew this year consisted of Andre Van Wyk from JigStar South Africa, Sam Colvin from Temple Reef Australia, Stewart Newnham from the UK, myself and Ed Nicholas the owner / operator of No Boundaries Oman.  We were joined for a few days at the end by Ed’s good mate from Dubai Chris Caley. 
We were pleased to be met with excellent stable weather, perhaps almost too stable as several days were glass out conditions and incredibly hot on the water, I am always in favour of at least some small wave movement on the surface of the water for top water fishing.
The trip was not devoted to GT fishing but a cross section of fishing styles, locations and species.  This called for an extensive array of rods, reels, lures and jigs, yes I ended up being hopelessly overweight again even with more refined camera equipment.  Arriving at the No Boundaries lodges in Shuwaymiyah it was again great to catch up with the super friendly and accommodating crew Mo, Yassir, Boy and Saiful   I feel incredibly welcome at this place and it was so refreshing to see how these guys were keen as us to kick the season off as well.  
5 am starts were the order of the day and we were on the water by 6 heading to either the inshore grounds or the hallowed waters around the Al Hallaniyat Islands usually with both boats on a similar agenda.  I and the others were incredibly keen to tick off a large list of species, many I had missed out on last visit because of a single minded desire to tangle with big GT’s.  Day one saw 11 different species boated and hundreds of them, the light tackle casting and jigging was simply off-tap.    As the trip grew on the tally only rose in terms of species encountered and tackle busted off on marauding fish.  I had simple objectives surrounding this trip; have a great time with friends, test some new tackle, catch a monster bream (they eluded me last time), catch a top water amberjack and of course find more monster GT’s.  All I can say on all that is mission accomplished. 
Southern Oman has a massive reputation as THE global location for oversized GT’s.  What is not understood so much is the vast array of other incredible options, seriously in the same day you can experience 4 or 5 different styles of fishing and more than 10 species of record sizes – marlin on stick baits? Yes Ed and Andre managed several hook ups on billfish on the last day however could not stay connected.  The day we departed back home Ed got his redemption however but that is another story.
If you are scratching your chin wondering where to next in your sport fishing adventure I endorse No Boundaries Oman; it will be an experience you will never forget.  Enjoy the photos - they tell the story.


Bluefish anyone?  Strategic Angler Mikros

Sam getting a workout on the Temple Reef Ronin PE10

All GT's weighed, tagged, released

Sam's big girl

Got my bream - Adhek Baby Gecko popper

And back she goes

Sam v's Bluefish - Strategic Angler Mikros again

Never had I seen tailor this big!

Stu in on the bluefish action - Mikros again

Sometimes it's fun to take the hooks off and watch the show

Spangled Emperor on Strategic Frantic

Double trouble

More geet's for Sam and the first for the season for No Boundaries

Dre enjoys the Sam show

Sam's big girl on Hitter Aurora Star

Dre tucked into a GT in the morning sun

My biggest bluefin trevally - Strategic Walker

Donkey sized amberjack for Ed on BCS Wavewalker

Impressive top water fish Ed!

Humpbacks

Hot bite

Now THAT is a rainbow runner!

Dream come true - top water AJ - Strategic Walker

My first Geet for the trip, came late but very appreciated!

And back she goes!

The numbers of gold spot defies logic - Stewart with a hefty version!


My big girl - hell yes!  Walker again!!!

Dre and one of the stump pulling emperors!

Stud mac tuna

Take a rest friend

Chris with a noisy grunter on jig

The boys enjoyed endless bluefish madness


Goldspots galore - Hitter Zager popper

More emperor on Mikros

Insane action on bait balls

Sam again!

No end to this fun