The resort located on Taveuni, the third largest of the more than 300 Fijian islands, is built on an old coconut plantation. The grounds overlook the Somosomo Straits and the Rainbow Reef, world-renowned by divers. It is a short stroll to the beach.

We arrived mid-morning spending the remainder of the day relaxing on the porch of our bure, a small tropical cabin with a thatched palm leaf roof and outdoor shower, attempting to cure jet lag with pina colodas and mai tais made with fresh local fruit. At 5 PM, the beating of the traditional log lali drum announced cocktail hour. The lali drum is also used to announce meals, which are only served for 90 minutes. Pay attention to the lali!

Over tropical drinks, we swapped stories about the day's activities with the other guests. This was followed by a five-course gourmet dinner. After dinner, like they do most nights, the Maravu Bandboys played and sang Fijian songs while sitting around the kava bowl on woven mats. Maravu guests are always welcome to partake.

Kava is the traditional Fijian intoxicant made from ground kava root. A hand-carved wooden kava bowl is filled with water and a cloth bag filled with ground kava powder is continually kneaded in the water, by the kava master. Ten to fifteen minutes later the milky looking liquid is ready to ingest.

The sharing of kava is a social ritual. The kava master dips a cup, crafted from a dried coconut shell cut in half, into the kava bowl. He then gives the cup to someone in the circle to drink. Rhythmic chanting by the others in the circle encourages the downing of the gritty beverage. This is repeated until everyone in the circle who wants a shot of kava has downed his or her shell. The kava master then takes his drink. The Bandboys play a couple of songs and the kava is passed around again. This continues well into the evening until all mosey off to, or stumble to, their bures.

The next two days of our trip were spent diving the Rainbow Reef. The reef's multi-colored soft corals provide a dramatic backdrop for parrotfish, lionfish, sea snakes, giant oysters and hundreds of other resident species. We were fortunate to see a rare fluorescent blue eel, native only to Fiji. PADI, the foremost international diving organization, rates the Rainbow Reef among the top 10 places to dive in the world.

Arriving back at Maravu after the second day's dive, I was greeted by Robert, one of the resort's drivers. "Let me take you into the village so you can meet Captain Amos," he said. The resort knew I wanted to fish during my stay but Capt. Amos didn't have a computer so all communication before we arrived in Fiji was handled through the resort. Capt. Amos knew he was fishing me but we hadn't worked out any of the details.

Capt. Amos is an old Australian sea salt who has been living and fishing Taveuni for over twenty years. We arrived at his waterfront house, the landscape featuring exotic bamboo species he has collected from all over the world, to find him working on building a twenty-five foot wooden fishing skiff with a few Fijians. I talked to him about the skiff for a while then he pointed at this boat anchored a half a mile offshore and asked, "Is that boat good enough for you?" That boat, the Lucky Strike, was a beautiful 36' twin-engine cruiser, the perfect boat for game fishing in the tropics! I just chuckled.

That evening at cocktail hour I was telling another one of the Maravu guests about the boat. The bartender, a beautiful Fijian lady named Siteri, came up to us and laughingly said, "Nobody catches fish here."

At the crack of dawn, Robert drove me into the village. Deborah, my wife, had decided to spend the day relaxing at Maravu, enjoying the sun, gentle tropical breezes and a special Fijian relaxation massage. The crew of the Lucky Strike, Capt. Jack and his deckhand Kiabu, picked me up on the beach in a skiff and we motored out to the cruiser. The two Fijians spoke little English but Captain Jack got out, "We hook fish but our customers get very few of them to the boat." We enjoyed each other's company but had minimal conversation over the course of the day.

Fiji does not have fishing licenses, there are no limits on fish and there are no tackle regulations. We ran six rods and any fish hooked was mine to fight. Having the back of the boat to yourself and a silent crew made for a surreal, almost dreamlike, experience cruising the iridescent aquamarine waters of the Somosomo.

We trolled the straights north of Taveuni. Bands of reef run for miles perpendicular to the current. The distance between the bands of reef is usually under a half mile. The fishing strategy is simple; troll the lines as close to the up-current side of a reef as possible and entice a game fish out of the reef structure to take the bait.

The first takedown happened mid-morning. The South Pacific pompano ran out some line but was quickly outclassed by the gear and boated. As we were trolling the very next reef, there was a violent strike and the reel started screaming. The crew had the boat stopped and all the other lines in the boat before that fish stopped running. Then, what looked like a wahoo cleared the water a good 300 yards behind the boat. A classic battle ensued with the fish making numerous powerful runs leaping and taildancing constantly. It took nearly a half an hour to subdue the 50 pound wahoo.

Jack and Kiabu, who both had big smiles on their faces, were slapping me on the back and shouting, "Fish in boat, fish in boat!" I celebrated by savoring a bottle of Fijian lager while waiting for the next piscatorial encounter.

The wahoo was soon followed by a mahi. The neon bright chartreuse-aqua-yellow colored fish cleared the surface by at least six feet and somersaulted back into the water. The mahi was much faster and more aerobatic than the wahoo and it didn't give up much in the strength department! After a couple drag burning runs straight at the reef, Capt. Jack gently maneuvered the Lucky Strike into deeper water where we had the advantage. The mahi put on spectacular show before we managed to boat it.

That was it for the day. The two world-class battles made for a day on the water I'll never forget. Back on shore, while Capt. Jack and Kiabu cleaned the fish, Capt. Amos told me, "The crew really likes you, you catch fish." Capt. Amos drove me and the mahi back to Maravu and the crew headed into the heart of the village with the wahoo.

Lunch was still being served as I strutted through the dining room proudly holding my mahi high. "Nobody ever catches fish here!" I exclaimed. As all the staff and guests were aware of the "no catch" challenge by this time, the dining room erupted in laughter. The Maravu staff was as enthusiastic about the fish as the Lucky Strike crew. I was escorted into the kitchen where I presented the fish to a smiling chef Kai who served up Mahi Kokoda, a Fijian coconut milk Ceviche, with dinner for all of Maravu's guests.

The following morning we were back on the water at first light. The day produced another pompano and a wahoo, and then it happened. The trolling array had one plug running directly behind the boat about twenty-five feet off the stern. Sitting in the fighting chair, all I see was a huge wide open mouth, nothing but teeth, big sharp teeth, and more teeth, instantly followed by a violent eruption of white water as the fish crashed the plug. In all my years of fishing, I've never seen a hit like that! Another memorable battle followed. When we got Moby on board, the shattered plug fell out of his mouth in pieces. All that was left was the hook in his jaw! The walu, a shorter stockier relative of the wahoo, weighed in at 58 pounds.

I was sent back to Maravu with half of the walu again giving the remainder of the catch to the crew. Chef Kai produced delicate deep-fried mahi and walu fish nibbles for everyone, including the staff, at cocktail hour. Rumor had it the village and the Maravu staff enjoyed fresh fish for a few days.

Deborah and I wrapped up our vacation with another day of diving, a day celebrating Fijian Independence Day with the natives, and a day at Tavorro Falls. The falls and pools are an unimaginably beautiful tropical garden (Scenes from the movie Blue Lagoon were shot there).

One visiting couple got married at Tavorro Falls the day before we left. All the Maravu guests were invited to the reception, hosted at Maravu. Half the village showed up in traditional dress for the magiti; an evening of feasting, dancing, singing, and of course drinking kava, that continued late into the night.

It was time for us to depart. All the guests not pursuing some adventure were there to send us off. Hugs, handshakes and a few tears shared with the new friends we had made over the last ten days were accompanied by gentle strumming of guitars and the Maravu staff and guests singing the traditional Fijian farewell song. Festooned with frangipani leis, we climbed into the Land Rover and cruised off into the sunrise to catch our plane home.

We will return to Maravu for it certainly was the best vacation we've ever enjoyed!

For pictures of Fiji, see the Taveuni Photo Album

You can contact Maravu Plantation Resort through their Website

More Articles By Richard Alves a.k.a. steelhead -->