A large Green Jobfish caught on a popper near Cape San Sebastian
May 2023
I had been wanting to go to Madagascar to fish for years, but never had the opportunity until now. The draw was not merely the quality of the fishing, but also its off the beaten path location and compelling ecosystem. The vast majority of Madagascar's plant and animal species are endemic, making it one of the most unique place on Earth. Upon landing in Nosy Be, an island to the northwest of the main island of Madagascar, I could immediately see that it looked like no other place I had been. Although it is only 250 miles from the African mainland, it is a world apart. It does not possess any of the big game animals that make East Africa famous, but it does have a vast array of chameleons and other reptiles that are unique to this country. It is also home to the famous Lemurs, relatives of the monkey that have evolved along a different path due to its geographic isolation.
Although I had made it safely there after an incredibly long journey from Texas, my luggage had not. That did not surprise me, as I had a very tight connection in Addis Abbaba due to a flight delay. I had Air Tags in my luggage that indicated they were still there, so I went to the counter, filled out the form, and headed to my hotel. I was staying at Sakatia Lodge, which was located on another small island a short boat ride from Nosy Be. Unfortunately, this island was so small that it did not have any stores to purchase any clothes or toiletries I could use while I waited for my luggage. All I had were the clothes I was wearing (which were good for the plane flights but too warm for the tropical climate in Madagascar) and all my electronics, which I always make sure to keep in my carry on. I was told that there were no other flights into Nosy Be that day or the next day, so the soonest my luggage would show up was the day after that. Fortunately, the resort (which was just a small eco lodge) had an extra toothbrush and the owner lent me two t-shirts and shorts. I would have to make do with that.
I had been wanting to go to Madagascar to fish for years, but never had the opportunity until now. The draw was not merely the quality of the fishing, but also its off the beaten path location and compelling ecosystem. The vast majority of Madagascar's plant and animal species are endemic, making it one of the most unique place on Earth. Upon landing in Nosy Be, an island to the northwest of the main island of Madagascar, I could immediately see that it looked like no other place I had been. Although it is only 250 miles from the African mainland, it is a world apart. It does not possess any of the big game animals that make East Africa famous, but it does have a vast array of chameleons and other reptiles that are unique to this country. It is also home to the famous Lemurs, relatives of the monkey that have evolved along a different path due to its geographic isolation.
Although I had made it safely there after an incredibly long journey from Texas, my luggage had not. That did not surprise me, as I had a very tight connection in Addis Abbaba due to a flight delay. I had Air Tags in my luggage that indicated they were still there, so I went to the counter, filled out the form, and headed to my hotel. I was staying at Sakatia Lodge, which was located on another small island a short boat ride from Nosy Be. Unfortunately, this island was so small that it did not have any stores to purchase any clothes or toiletries I could use while I waited for my luggage. All I had were the clothes I was wearing (which were good for the plane flights but too warm for the tropical climate in Madagascar) and all my electronics, which I always make sure to keep in my carry on. I was told that there were no other flights into Nosy Be that day or the next day, so the soonest my luggage would show up was the day after that. Fortunately, the resort (which was just a small eco lodge) had an extra toothbrush and the owner lent me two t-shirts and shorts. I would have to make do with that.
The entrance to Sakatia Lodge where I stayed the first 4 nights
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A view of the beach at Sakatia Lodge. The boat is about where the turtle sanctuary is.
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The accommodations at Sakatia were basic but comfortable. There was no AC, but I did have a fan in my room that I could have blowing on me at night to keep me comfortable. The first day I was too tired from the long journey to do much, but the hotel did organize a short snorkeling excursion to the Green Turtle reserve located about 100 yards in front of the hotel that I joined. There were well over a dozen large sea turtles lazily munching on sea grass right there in front of the hotel, and it was fun to snorkel with them. Unfortunately I did not get any footage of this, because I discovered that my GoPro had turned itself on and filled the card with footage of the inside of my backpack, and there was no way to free up space without hooking it up to a laptop or using the app on my phone that I had left at the hotel.
The next day I was feeling up to a longer trip and so I went on a trip to a reserve on the larger island of Nosy Be. It's a good thing that I was feeling better than the day before, because this trip required me to paddle around 4km in a dugout canoe in the hot sun. When the guide told me we had to paddle 4km to get there I thought he was kidding, but he handed me a paddle and off we went.
The guide fortunately spoke English, which was somewhat rare there. Malagasy is the main language, followed by French. The guide was surprisingly well educated on US geography (despite having never left Madagascar) and even knew that Chicago, where I told him my kids were born, is located on the shores of Lake Michigan. He said a lot of people in Madagascar like to wear Chicago Bulls gear even though no one knows what sport they play. He guessed it was either rugby or football (soccer), and was surprised when I told him was basketball.
The next day I was feeling up to a longer trip and so I went on a trip to a reserve on the larger island of Nosy Be. It's a good thing that I was feeling better than the day before, because this trip required me to paddle around 4km in a dugout canoe in the hot sun. When the guide told me we had to paddle 4km to get there I thought he was kidding, but he handed me a paddle and off we went.
The guide fortunately spoke English, which was somewhat rare there. Malagasy is the main language, followed by French. The guide was surprisingly well educated on US geography (despite having never left Madagascar) and even knew that Chicago, where I told him my kids were born, is located on the shores of Lake Michigan. He said a lot of people in Madagascar like to wear Chicago Bulls gear even though no one knows what sport they play. He guessed it was either rugby or football (soccer), and was surprised when I told him was basketball.
A small boy bringing our dugout canoe
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My guide and I paddling to the reserve.
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A girl showing off the catch of the day from her family's nets
The paddling was actually fine, but I was glad it was a calm day because I would not have wanted to be in that rickety wooden canoe in larger ocean waves. Once we got to the reserve, we started hiking into the jungle to see what we could see. There were a lot of chameleons on the trip over, which was neat to see. The chameleons were not shy, so it was easy to get close to them.
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The jungle was quite full of life, and I saw several species of snakes. The guide informed me that, although Madagascar is full of snakes, none of them are venomous (at least in that area). That was reassuring although I still kept an eye on were I was stepping.
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Lemurs were also easy to see. They did not appear to be frightened of us at all, nor did they seem overly curious. They just kind of looked at us as we went by. We saw three different species - the Black Lemur, the tiny Mouse Lemur, and a nocturnal species that did not have an English name.
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Mouse Lemur
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Nocturnal Lemur
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After much searching, the guide was able to find the smallest chameleon species:
Easily the coolest thing I saw was a large boa constrictor climbing up a tree to try and hunt a pack of Lemurs. I doubt he had any success in broad daylight, but I'm sure those snakes are patient.
It was extremely hot and muggy in the jungle despite it being shaded, and I was still discombobulated from the long trip and time change, so I decided to head back and have some lunch. Fortunately we did not have to paddle back, as we got a tow from a small motorboat.
On the drive back, we came across quite a few chameleons crossing the road. Fortunately (and surprisingly), I did not see any that had been run over. They cross the roads very slowly, but luckily most people believe it is bad luck to hit one and so they drive carefully.
On the drive back, we came across quite a few chameleons crossing the road. Fortunately (and surprisingly), I did not see any that had been run over. They cross the roads very slowly, but luckily most people believe it is bad luck to hit one and so they drive carefully.
The next day I waited all day for my luggage to arrive and was disappointed to find out that only one of my bags had made it. I had two bags - one with rods, clothes, and toiletries, and another with reels and lures. I was REALLY hoping that the one that made it was the first one, but was sad to discover that evening that it was the other one. Fishing reels and lures are of little use without the rods, and I really could have used my clothes and toiletries. My next chance for it to arrive would not be for another two days, and I was scheduled to start fishing the next day. Fortunately, the guide said he had some gear I could borrow. At least I had my bag of lures, which probably roughly doubled the number of lures in all of Madagascar.
After the first day fishing, I transitioned from the eco resort to living on a catamaran, the Ulysse, which I had chartered for a few days. It had a captain and a mate who did not speak any English, so we had to communicate with hand gestures. I had a little berth in one of the pontoons to sleep in, but instead I mostly slept out in the open air on a mesh net spread between the two pontoons in the front. The temperature was very pleasant at night and you could see an incredible number of stars. It drizzled on me a little one night and I had to retreat inside, but other than that it was a very comfortable place to sleep.
After the first day fishing, I transitioned from the eco resort to living on a catamaran, the Ulysse, which I had chartered for a few days. It had a captain and a mate who did not speak any English, so we had to communicate with hand gestures. I had a little berth in one of the pontoons to sleep in, but instead I mostly slept out in the open air on a mesh net spread between the two pontoons in the front. The temperature was very pleasant at night and you could see an incredible number of stars. It drizzled on me a little one night and I had to retreat inside, but other than that it was a very comfortable place to sleep.
My bed for the last 5 nights
We stayed in the Nosy Be area an extra day, and finally my other bag came in and I had all my stuff. I put my rods together and we headed up north towards better fishing.
Finally, my rods
The program was that I would fish on the fishing boat during the day while the catamaran moved north, and then sleep on it each night. While the fishing did improve as we went north, it never got as good as it seemed like it should have. There were certainly fish around, and I hooked some nice ones, but for whatever reason the fish just did not bite as well as I would have hoped. It certainly was not for lack of trying, as I was casting and jigging like a madman all day every day as much as I could. High speed jigging and popping are some of if not the most physically taxing forms of fishing, but I had been going to the gym to prepare and was able to keep going almost all day every day. The sun bothered me on some days, especially initially, but I did get used to it over time.
I managed to land 6 Giant Trevally, but none of them were particularly big, with the biggest going around 25lbs. Some bigger ones were hooked and lost, but no giants. On the jigs I hooked some nice reef fish, in particular some nice Green Jobfish, but again the quantity and quality were less than I was expecting. Below are some pics of the highlights.
I managed to land 6 Giant Trevally, but none of them were particularly big, with the biggest going around 25lbs. Some bigger ones were hooked and lost, but no giants. On the jigs I hooked some nice reef fish, in particular some nice Green Jobfish, but again the quantity and quality were less than I was expecting. Below are some pics of the highlights.
Largest Giant Trevally of the trip, caught on a popper
Beautiful Green Jobfish caught jigging
Giant Trevally on a jig
Big Barracuda
Big Green Jobfish caught on a popper
Giant Trevally caught on a jig
The crew fished pretty hard the whole time as well (perhaps too hard) and landed some nice fish too. Here are a few of the ones they caught.
Some fish were released, while others were kept and eaten. One mackerel in particular made an excellent ceviche. The food overall was quite good, both at the resort and on the boat. I didn't have any choices; I just ate whatever they brought but it was all good. Lots of fresh fruits and vegetables and seafood. In particular we ate quite a bit of squid. On a couple of occasions while traveling in the boat I saw squid jump out of the water, so there must have been a lot of them around.
On the last day, I hooked what was almost certainly a large Dogtooth Tuna on a jig. I survived its first long run and had it most of the way to the boat when it ran under the boat and had me pinned to the side. The captain was not able to move the boat quickly, and I was unable to do anything but hold on. During that time it took another run and broke me off on the rocks. That was really devastating; that was a huge fish and probably would have made the trip by itself. Oh well, that's fishing. The captain landed a small Dogtooth from the same spot right afterwards.
On the last day, we spent the night back off the coast of Nosy Be and I began the extremely long trip home - boat to Nosy Be, car to the airport, flight to Addis Abbaba, flight to Dublin, flight to Chicago, flight to Houston.
In summary, I would not travel to Madagascar again for the fishing. It wasn't terrible, but there is much better fishing much closer to home and better fishing for the same species that they have there in a number of other places. However, it is a unique place and I'm glad I visited. It is one of the poorest countries in the world (the 4th poorest in terms of GNI per capita), and that shows in many ways. I saw many children all over the place, but I don't think I saw a single child with a manufactured toy of any kind. They were all playing with sticks or rocks. Despite a warm tropical climate, none of the places I went had air conditioning including the airport. I can see why few Americans go there, and I did not encounter a single other American during the trip. It is not a great place to go if you like comfortable and easy. However, it is an amazing place to go for unique wildlife, and I would return for that.
On the last day, I hooked what was almost certainly a large Dogtooth Tuna on a jig. I survived its first long run and had it most of the way to the boat when it ran under the boat and had me pinned to the side. The captain was not able to move the boat quickly, and I was unable to do anything but hold on. During that time it took another run and broke me off on the rocks. That was really devastating; that was a huge fish and probably would have made the trip by itself. Oh well, that's fishing. The captain landed a small Dogtooth from the same spot right afterwards.
On the last day, we spent the night back off the coast of Nosy Be and I began the extremely long trip home - boat to Nosy Be, car to the airport, flight to Addis Abbaba, flight to Dublin, flight to Chicago, flight to Houston.
In summary, I would not travel to Madagascar again for the fishing. It wasn't terrible, but there is much better fishing much closer to home and better fishing for the same species that they have there in a number of other places. However, it is a unique place and I'm glad I visited. It is one of the poorest countries in the world (the 4th poorest in terms of GNI per capita), and that shows in many ways. I saw many children all over the place, but I don't think I saw a single child with a manufactured toy of any kind. They were all playing with sticks or rocks. Despite a warm tropical climate, none of the places I went had air conditioning including the airport. I can see why few Americans go there, and I did not encounter a single other American during the trip. It is not a great place to go if you like comfortable and easy. However, it is an amazing place to go for unique wildlife, and I would return for that.
They might get more US tourists if they worked on their branding. The main tourist area on Nosy Be is called Hell-Ville.