matava Resort Kadavu Fiji 18th dec 23rd dec 2009

We arrived at Matava after somewhat of a nightmare travel experience caused by Cyclone Mick. I wont bore you with the details but we lost a day in travel and the 2 game boats 'Bite Me' and brand new popping boat 'Tease Me' were both stuck in Suva and would not be arriving until the last day of our trip.

Once we arrived at the resort all our fears and concerns were promptly addressed by Richard one of the owners. Richard explained that due to the Cyclone situation we would not be able to fish the game boats but he could provide us with a long boat and driver whilst we wait for the other boats to arrive. (We ended up changing our flights for a couple of days later so we can experience the new popper boat and do the Sea Reef)

The Matava resort is an eco resort and the experience is one i will never forget. We had come for the fishing and the fishing alone. At first i didn't really want to meet knew people or feel like a traveller again, i just wanted to get stuck into the GT's. After all, that is all we had been thinking about for the last few months leading up to the trip. But, there is something about the Matava experience that draws you in!

We quickly got to know the other guests and owners. Everyone eats together each evening and the table makes for some interesting conversations and banter. The staff are generally made up of people from the local village and they are some of the most genuine, kind and peaceful people i've met. The food is a mix of local produce and of east and west influence. The balance is right and food is tasty!

The Great Astrolabe Reef is 5-10 minute trip from your bedroom door and that is where the GT's are! The reef is solid in structure with very few broken bits for a GT to break you off on. This allowed us to run short leaders and keep everything outside the guides. We lost one popper to an unstoppable, but other that that kept all our gear.

Adrian our skipper let us use some prototype poppers he has been asked to test, and the darker colored one's seem to work best. One of mine did get destroyed but that was after is had landed many GT's.

The fishing was great and by far exceeded our expectations. We felt like we had got the Jewel in the crown. The spot that no one else knows about! We know its not true of course and Matava is highly rated, but seriously how good is it!

We caught fish from ranging from 5kg's up to 40kg's. There are lots of big one's and a few monsters. I keep thinking about my unstoppable and wondering what that would of looked like. But hey there is always next year!

The other great thing about this trip was that i didn't have to adjust my home loan to pay for it. It goes down for me as one of the best experiences i've had and one that i will be looking to repeat. Same again please!

Going to post photos - just gotta shrink em first

matava Resort Kadavu Fiji 18th dec 23rd dec 2009

'Tease Me' Goes Into Action

Our brand new inshore popper boat 'Tease Me' just had her first popper casting bash taking visiting anglers Sam Cheadle and Dave Olson out for a couple of popper casting sessions along Kadavu Island's Great Astrolabe Barrier Reef. Sam and Dave are new to heavy tackle poppering but came well prepared with Stellas, Dogfights and Shimano GT Specials.
A couple of sessons on Tease Me followed by a day on Bite Me and some nice GTs hit the deck (gently of course !)

Dave with a GT caught on a Buffalo Prototype

Tease Me performed perfectly and proved to be an excellent platform for popper casting, despite the day being a little breezy.

Dave Christens 'Tease Me' with a beauty

Best fish of the first day aboard 'Tease Me' was this excellent 46 Inch (short length) GT above for Dave that would have weighed in around 40kg had we not released.

The next day we took Bite Me to go long range in breezy choppy conditions and headed out to work the Great Sea Reef area. Despite an awkward SE 5 foot short period wind chop and SW ground swell, both Sam and Dave landed into some nice GTs as well as a Spanish Mackerel for dinner and some Red Bass for a bit of variety.

Dave seems happy !

Dave with yet another GT - this one measuring 43" short length

Sam hooked up to a dinosaur on a black Buffalo prototype that probably would have gone 40+kg but despite upwards of 20kg of drag the fish peeled line off Sam's Dogfight and made it to the shallow breakers to bust us off.

Sam knocks off another GT - this one measuring 38" short length

Sam and Dave were a lot of fun and a pleasure to have aboard. Thanks for Christening Tease Me and hope you guys had fun with the Kadavu Island GTs.

New Inshore Popper Boat "Tease Me"

Tease Me

We have just taken delivery of our new inshore popping & jigging boat 'Tease Me' and despite the recent direct hit from Tropical Cyclone Mick, she now rests safely on her mooring at Matava Resort.


Full specs will be detailed soon on the gamefishing website but here are a couple of pics to wet your appetite.

Extended high side rails for added safety, coolboxes for chilled drinks and storage for safety equipment

Full walk-around for fighting fish and T-top for shade

Tease Me should be an ideal platform for anglers to work the inshore coral lagoons, outer barrier reef drop-offs and breakers popper casting for GTs, bluefin trevally, yellowfin tuna, Spanish Mackerel, jobfish and jigging for a whole host of species including dogtooth tuna, amberjack, giant grouper and deepwater snappers.

Matava fully operational after Cyclone MICK - Matava - Fijis Premier Eco Adventure Resort

On Monday 14th December 2009 Fiji was hit by a Tropical Cyclone, TC Mick. The cyclone passed straight over the main island and just to the East of Kadavu Island. Although the resort experienced high winds and heavy rain, no damage was done to the resort at all, apart from the loss of some thatch from the corner of the roof of the dive centre. The guests and staff spent the whole day playing cards, board games and reading books safely in the Main Bure while Maggie served breakfast, lunch and dinner as normal. Richard has said that the biggest thing he is upset about is that most of the mangoes came down out the big mango tree! No mango jam this year!

By Tuesday 15th December we were once again fishing, diving and trekking as normal, in glorious sunshine albeit with a stiff breeze!

The cyclone passed quickly and was over in less than a day, however Kadavu island, like the main island, did experiences high winds. Kadavu's main Telecom Fiji tower in Vunisea sustained damage and at the moment, all communication (including mobile services) are down on Kadavu.

Unfortunately this means that we are currently unable to communicate directly with our reservations system at the resort. A communications issue such as this would normally be repaired quickly however with the other wind damage to many systems on the main island, it may be a few days before normal communications with the resort is re-established. Please bear with us.

Furthermore, Airports Fiji Ltd was also engaged in an upgrade to Kadavu Airport last week. Although no interruptions to services were expected, the works (now delayed by the cyclone) have now caused short term interruptions to flight services. All flights to and from Kadavu from Nadi International Airport and Suva Airport are currently suspended and we have been advised that the airport will re-open on the 18th December 2009.

We appreciate your patience in these matters, and rest assured that we are all fine and 100% fully operational at Matava - Fiji's Premier Eco Adventure Resort.

May we take this opportunity to wish you and your family all the best for this festive season

Richard, Adrian, Jeanie, Stuart & The Team

Matava - Fiji's Premier Eco Adventure Resort

Matava fully operational after Cyclone MICK - Matava - Fijis Premier Eco Adventure Resort