John Wilson - Marks nearly Tarpon

The Gambia offers fishing for everyone, says Televisions' ‘Go Fishing’ Star John Wilson

Fully eight feet long and looking the heavier side of 200lb, the massive, silver tarpon catapulted itself high into the air in a cascade of shimmering spray at the end of a blistering run which evaporated a 100 yards of line from his reel. It was trying to rid itself of Mark Longster’s size 2/0 shrimp hook.

It made all those I’d caught in the Florida Keys to over 100lb look positively small. Why use such a small hook for giant tarpon, whose expandable jaw hinges open the mouth to virtually its own diameter? Well it certainly wasn’t intentional.

It just happened that one of hundreds upon hundreds of jumbo-sized tarpon rolling and cavorting all around our anchored boat, which were totally ignoring our float fished and bottom presented live mullet and shads on proper 50lb class gear, sucked in a shrimp on Mark’s 20lb class outfit.

Such events are far from uncommon in the fertile waters of The Gambia where Mark and his partner Tracey Day offer a variety of sport fishing challenges to visiting anglers from their lodge at Denton Bridge, not too far away from the Capital of Banjul.

In the Gambian river system, which includes a fascinating network of mangrove swamps, creeks, inlets and tidal channels in addition to countless deep water marks and reefs offshore plus mile upon mile of deserted, surf stacked beaches, you can expect to catch almost anything that swims in saltwater from weird and wonderful coloured reef dwellers to huge rays, shark and of course, tarpon.

But not just ordinary tarpon. These Gambian fish are monsters even by IGFA standards. The largest landed so far weighed a staggering 385lb, but was not ratified as a world record. That a new tarpon world record will be set in The Gambia is not only inevitable, but long overdue. I have seen the proof with my own eyes.

For something like three hours I watched dumb-founded as literally hundreds of 150lb plus tarpon crashed and wallowed all around Mark’s boat. From our position off Dog Island, where The Gambian river is over four miles wide and looks more like the North Sea, except for tropical vegetation along the banks, tarpon were crashing and top and tailing across the glass-like surface and stretched for at least a couple of hundred yards in all four direction around the boat.

Until Mark’s shrimp on the wrong gear was grabbed, could we get a run? Could we hell. Although that is not strictly true because one of the live mullet had been nobbled by a 40lb hard-head catfish. Which is why we stuck with live baits on all the 50lb class outfits and this returns me to Mark’s back-breaking fight with a monstrous tarpon hooked on inadequate tackle and that tiny shrimp hook.

There was no time to lose as Mark’s fish was steadily getting further away from our anchored boat. Fortunately the tide was almost slack now and I buoyed the anchor enabling us to drift with the tarpon for however long it was going to take. Yet still all around the boat were huge tarpon showing their immensely thick flanks covered in scales the size of a beer mat, sometimes mere yards away. Following a spirited battle, Mark’s fish was – after three quarters of an hour – going slowly round and round the boat with Mark in tow. It really looked as though the impossible was actually going to happen and that Mark would be rewarded for skillfully and patiently playing such a monstrous fish on light gear.

The water was by now completely slack and we were both thinking about all sort of line class world records as the tarpon seemed to be getting larger, the closer it came to the boat. Then the inevitable happened with the sudden sound of the line parting like a pistol shot. The 20lb mono was so heavily frayed and distorted for several feet it was amazing the fight lasted as long as it did. That was the last occasion we saw those tarpon that week.

LOADS OF CHOICE

While it’s true to say that until more research about the tarpon’s whereabouts, it is very much a hit and miss affair.

There is such a choice of fishing in The Gambia. I did enjoy some marvelous reef fishing at anchor for barracuda and cubera Snapper. I lost what Mark thought was a real hefty threadfin salmon (Kujeli – local name) while trolling a Rapala CD18 Magnum plug through the mangrove creeks. But there is never enough time is there?

I could have trolled or fished cut bait at anchor around the edges of the many sandbars for the tarpon’s slimmer, much smaller cousin, the ladyfish which is called nine bones locally.

Then again a day sat in a dinghy at anchor in the creeks would have provided continual action in the way of red snappers, cassava, ray, barracuda and small jack. Alternatively, I could of packed my 12ft beachcaster and gone south of Cape Point to explore a wonderful series of rocky coves and wide sandy beaches where on top of the tide numerous species of shark, plus stingray and huge guitar fish provide unbelievable action on a standard beachcaster, multiplier and 25lb line combo. Mark has recently started beach-fishing safaris using a pair of four-wheel drive custom built Mercedes trucks, transporting guests along the Gambia’s southern coastline to many unspoiled locations.

All the fishing gear is supplied. I’m going to try that one on my next visit!