Gabon 2018
- Thread starter EugeneC
- Start date
Prep work continues...tying assists in advance. I'm extremely fussy about my terminals; I always do whatever I can before I hit the water so I have time to adjust and re-adjust a million times until I'm 100% happy with the outcome. It also helps to keep the cabin fever at bay 
One exception is hooks. I obsess over hooks all the time - which ones to use, what size (I tend to go as large as I can get away with), what set-up etc. I always end up taking about 10 times as many hooks as I actually need and even the mention of the word rust is enough to make me throw away a hook. I also obsessively sharpen my hooks - but always at the water's edge. I have an illogical fear that the tips of my hooks will be damaged if I sharpen and store them.
Decoy Cutlass 7/0 assist and a Shout Kudako 6/0 ringed single on the tail...one of my tarpon options (thanks Frank22 for the input).
One exception is hooks. I obsess over hooks all the time - which ones to use, what size (I tend to go as large as I can get away with), what set-up etc. I always end up taking about 10 times as many hooks as I actually need and even the mention of the word rust is enough to make me throw away a hook. I also obsessively sharpen my hooks - but always at the water's edge. I have an illogical fear that the tips of my hooks will be damaged if I sharpen and store them.
Decoy Cutlass 7/0 assist and a Shout Kudako 6/0 ringed single on the tail...one of my tarpon options (thanks Frank22 for the input).
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crackerkid
Member
Hello Eugene I am having fun reading all about your tackle prep for your upcoming trip. I see you are using a Black Hole Magic Eye, how do you find this rod, would you be happy using pe4 braid and what size fish would you be happy targeting in those estuaries with it. Regards Crackerkid
Howzit mate, glad you're enjoying the read I love Black Hole rods, I have a couple of them and they are all exceptional quality for the price. The Magic Eye is a great rod with plenty of backbone and a nice responsive tip so you can cast a fair weight range and you still get a good fight out of smaller fish.
I fish PE3 and PE4 on this rod with a Stella 6000 or 8000, depending on where I'm fishing and what I'm after. I'm comfortable targeting any fish that swims the estuaries of Gabon with this rod, apart from the ineds, which is not my area of interest. If you're fishing PE4 and you don't do anything stupid (like high sticking for example), I doubt you can damage this rod in a fight.
I've caught everything from 3kg bream to 1m+ queenfish, dorado, trevally, small tuna and kob on the rod and never felt under gunned. In Oman last year I was spooled on this rod by something really big that never stopped...I was fishing the 8000 on max drag and palming the spool at the same time; the rod was fine.
Check out JignPop on YT, there are some videos of guys fighting good fish on a ME that will give you insight into the rod's capabilities.
I love Black Hole rods, I have a couple of them and they are all exceptional quality for the price. The Magic Eye is a great rod with plenty of backbone and a nice responsive tip so you can cast a fair weight range and you still get a good fight out of smaller fish.I fish PE3 and PE4 on this rod with a Stella 6000 or 8000, depending on where I'm fishing and what I'm after. I'm comfortable targeting any fish that swims the estuaries of Gabon with this rod, apart from the ineds, which is not my area of interest. If you're fishing PE4 and you don't do anything stupid (like high sticking for example), I doubt you can damage this rod in a fight.
I've caught everything from 3kg bream to 1m+ queenfish, dorado, trevally, small tuna and kob on the rod and never felt under gunned. In Oman last year I was spooled on this rod by something really big that never stopped...I was fishing the 8000 on max drag and palming the spool at the same time; the rod was fine.
Check out JignPop on YT, there are some videos of guys fighting good fish on a ME that will give you insight into the rod's capabilities.
EugeneC wrote:
anytime bud let me know anytime if you need more goodies
Prep work continues...tying assists in advance. I'm extremely fussy about my terminals; I always do whatever I can before I hit the water so I have time to adjust and re-adjust a million times until I'm 100% happy with the outcome. It also helps to keep the cabin fever at bay
One exception is hooks. I obsess over hooks all the time - which ones to use, what size (I tend to go as large as I can get away with), what set-up etc. I always end up taking about 10 times as many hooks as I actually need and even the mention of the word rust is enough to make me throw away a hook. I also obsessively sharpen my hooks - but always at the water's edge. I have an illogical fear that the tips of my hooks will be damaged if I sharpen and store them.
Decoy Cutlass 7/0 assist and a Shout Kudako 6/0 ringed single on the tail...one of my tarpon options (thanks Frank22 for the input).
anytime bud let me know anytime if you need more goodies
Thanks for the wishes mate, I’m as prepared as I can be, now I just need Neptune to smile on my quest Haven’t tried the GTX yet, but by all accounts it’s a killer. Think it was Ed that said first time out Eric told him it’s going to be better than Big Foot and it turned out to be correct?
Haven’t tried the GTX yet, but by all accounts it’s a killer. Think it was Ed that said first time out Eric told him it’s going to be better than Big Foot and it turned out to be correct?EugeneC wrote:
hey bud if there are big poons rolling and porposing around yes go heavy leader upto 150lb floro , do not go to heavy poons are fussy bastards and can spot line a mile away.
i have caught poons upto 90lb on 60lb floro leaders and PE3 line , FG knot and 2 metre leader. just remember a poon decides how he hooks himself , you just along for the ride.
hey bud if there are big poons rolling and porposing around yes go heavy leader upto 150lb floro , do not go to heavy poons are fussy bastards and can spot line a mile away.
i have caught poons upto 90lb on 60lb floro leaders and PE3 line , FG knot and 2 metre leader. just remember a poon decides how he hooks himself , you just along for the ride.
Garethld802
New member
Your trip must be imminent?
safe travels and tight lines.
Thank you for your insight- will be booking by month end.
Please give us feedback on your success.
Holding thumbs for your elusive Tarpon!
safe travels and tight lines.
Thank you for your insight- will be booking by month end.
Please give us feedback on your success.
Holding thumbs for your elusive Tarpon!
Garethld802
New member
I am emailing Tourettes over the weekend.
Just been finding my feet back in the office this week.
As fit and healthy as I am, I had some health challenges in 2017, and my Cardiologist is only happy for me to travel the into Africa the tail of of 2018.
I have been advised that January/ early Feb is the best times to hit Gabon- would that be your advise as well? Want to book for early 2019- then, like you, I will be counting the days!
Just been finding my feet back in the office this week.
As fit and healthy as I am, I had some health challenges in 2017, and my Cardiologist is only happy for me to travel the into Africa the tail of of 2018.
I have been advised that January/ early Feb is the best times to hit Gabon- would that be your advise as well? Want to book for early 2019- then, like you, I will be counting the days!
Im also going to hit the gym before i go, rowing and general back, legs and arm exercise, to make the trip more pleasurable. Angola a few years ago, the bronzies killed me. Lesson learned.Be fit and ready for some big scraps and throwing plugs and stickbaits for hours takes it toll the next day.
Eugene enjoy bru, im still scrathing my head on lure selections. Nice problem to have and think about.
I like sticking out a livey, and pop in a pensioner pipe on a 2nd rod, when things are quiete. Swap rods when the ratchet goes bos.....
Eugene enjoy bru, im still scrathing my head on lure selections. Nice problem to have and think about.
I like sticking out a livey, and pop in a pensioner pipe on a 2nd rod, when things are quiete. Swap rods when the ratchet goes bos.....
Gareth, chat to Rob and Mark; both great guys that truly know their stuff. Let them know what your targets are and they can advise best. The season runs from October to end of March/early April with a break in between for the rainy season.
Generally speaking, what you want is rain, lots of it, at the start of your week(s) there, that switches the fishing on big time. Oct - Mar is actually "dry season", but being very close to the equator in the second largest rain forest in the world, rain falls throughout the year, just less predictably during this period.
My last visit was in November 2016, the first couple of days there it hadn't rained for a week or so and the fishing was not that amazing. Then one morning we stayed put and watched a massive thunderstorm unfold...after half a day of rain all hell broke loose and I had the best surf fishing I've ever experienced; by miles.
I want to target tarpon, if I only caught one fish all week and it was a tarpon, that would be a success in my book. So I chose my dates accordingly - it'll be new moon when I arrive, which means good tidal movement, but not as extreme as on the full moon and, being relatively late in the season, the odds are in my favour for some heavy rain. Tarpon in Sette want a bit of current and dark stained river water washing into the surf, so hopefully that's what I'm going to get.
Generally speaking, what you want is rain, lots of it, at the start of your week(s) there, that switches the fishing on big time. Oct - Mar is actually "dry season", but being very close to the equator in the second largest rain forest in the world, rain falls throughout the year, just less predictably during this period.
My last visit was in November 2016, the first couple of days there it hadn't rained for a week or so and the fishing was not that amazing. Then one morning we stayed put and watched a massive thunderstorm unfold...after half a day of rain all hell broke loose and I had the best surf fishing I've ever experienced; by miles.
I want to target tarpon, if I only caught one fish all week and it was a tarpon, that would be a success in my book. So I chose my dates accordingly - it'll be new moon when I arrive, which means good tidal movement, but not as extreme as on the full moon and, being relatively late in the season, the odds are in my favour for some heavy rain. Tarpon in Sette want a bit of current and dark stained river water washing into the surf, so hopefully that's what I'm going to get.