St François
Island Group : Alphonse Group
Distance from Mahé: 410km Area : 0.17 sq.km
St. François is a low-lying, v-shaped, flat reef cay with a fringe of coconut palms, separated from its larger neighbour, Alphonse, by a narrow but deep canal.
The island itself only formed relatively recently and is not mature, and its poor topsoil has placed limitations on its development.
The island once supported a population of a handful of men engaged in harvesting coconuts but the plantation was never productive.
The sand flats surrounding St. François today offer what is widely considered to be the best bone-fishing in the world, for fly-fishing guests staying at the nearby Alphonse Island Lodge.