Garoupas and Grunters galore -Oct to Nov 1999

Here are some pics of the catches in Oct-Nov 1999. 

The two Kennys and Vivien were regulars on the Ranger 17. We landed Garoupas from the Snagpile and Grunters from the Club Spot. Big Congers also entertained us at night while we waited at the Club Spot. That's where I lost a Gaff that was ripped out of my hands by a huge Conger Eel - which we call Malong.

At the Club Spot, Grunters and Stingrays were a common feature at night which never failed to entertain us with their hard pulling. We also ran into a school of Threadfin Salmon which disappeared when a big ray came to give me a fight on 8 lb line.

1999 Sep to Oct Ubin's Three Kings: Barra, Snapper and Garoupa

From left to right: A nice Red Emperor before a storm; Healthy Golden Snapper; Golden twins; Desmond with a Queeny; Releasing the Queeny. 

Here's a quick summary of the recent trips...

Although the 8 kilo Barra was the highlight of the past two weeks, there have been other significant catches as well.
  4/9/99- morning trip... Desmond, Linus and me went around Ubin and I hit two large Snapper while Desmond C&R a Queeny. Linus hit a Garoupa and there were other small stuff.

5/9/99- 2 hr trip. Me and my gal went out and caught some Garoupas for dinner.

10/9/99- day trip... Boon Liang (Snow), Hong Neng, Davis, Weng and I went half way around Ubin and caught some Grunters, Garoupas, a Sweetlip, a Blue-spotted Ray and some other stuff.

10/9/99- night trip... Sau Pin and gang from NUS and NTU came with me but the water was cold and all kinds of Catfish were the order of the day. I caught a decent Snapper somewhere among the Catfish though. Sad night.

11/9/99- day trip... when the sun rose, Des, Krista and me hung around Ubin in the morning where I caught a decent Grunter and we caught some Soapies (young Jewfish). Then we zoomed off at high speed to Tekong where the Chermin were (supposed to be), but ended up flying kites instead.

19/9/99- day trip... after a hard week at work I was back at sea again to de-stress. What a day it turned out to be!!! An 8 kilo Barra showed up! For the full story, go to the Barra Story Post 19 Sep 1999. I've put up the pic of Wong with the special 'sign of Barra' Tanda in this Gallery. Never look down on the Tanda... those who have read my 9 kilo Garoupa story will understand.

Overall, the fishing was great... except for the day the water was cold. I'm looking forward to the next few weeks.

From left to right: Jes with a dinner Garoupa; Grunter and me; Davis with a Garoupa on lure; Garoupa with a 65kg Hong Neng. 

From left to right: Weng with a nice Grunter; a bunch of buddies with their catch; THE SUPER TANDA thanks to Wong 

Here's a further update:

260999: Jengwe and gang came on board for a night trip, went through some rough weather, and came back to shore in the morning with a decent catch of Barras, Snappers and Garoupas. (Biggest fish during the trip was a 2 kg+ Barra caught by yours truly)We even got a bonus of 2 nice flower crabs which were entangled on a piece of broken net I hooked up.

021099: Winston and his friends came for a day trip and went back with the usual three types... Barra, Snapper and Garoupa. Winston caught the biggie of the day ... a 2.5kg Garoupa. Terrible weather again... we got sunburned and drenched.

091099: Alex, Haoming, Sean and Ghee came for a day trip which was marred by highly polluted water in the morning. It was a wet day but we still managed the usual three of Barra, Snapper and Garoupa (and some other stuff as well). Haoming bagged Gold with a Barra of 2.4kg.

Well, it seems the baitfish are coming in and this should signal the start of a good wet season ahead... just be prepared to get drenched. 

From left to right: A healthy 2 kilo plus Barra; Winston with a 2.5kg Garoupa; Roland with small Barra. 

From left to right: Haoming with a nice 2.4kg Barra on 091099; later that evening, I caught this small but feisty Snapper just before going back
So far, Barramundi, Snapper and Garoupas are showing up with in good numbers. These are Ubin's Three Kings.

8 Kilo Barra Story 1999 Sep 19

For a whole week, I'd been thinking of nothing but Barra... strangely, I had a strong feeling I was gonna land a Barra soon...

... Kenny had been corresponding with me via email throughout the week and he had booked a trip for 4 with me on 19/9/99. As the day drew nearer, I remember saying in an email 'Frankly speaking, I'm quite confident of getting a Barra on Sunday.' I don't know what made me say that, but it just came out. Those words came true alright, but in a way I never expected.

Sunday finally came, we met at Pasir Ris MRT Station and I drove the four of them down to the boat. They were Kenny (The Lureman), Kenny (Vivken), Wong (who loves to eat fish) and Vivian.

After getting my special live prawns from the usual fishfarm, we headed for the Big Grunter spot where I had brought some other chaps a week ago. The previous Friday we hit 2 there and on Saturday I hit another one there. Sadly, this week, the Grunters were not cooperating.

So we went to a couple of my other spots where all we could manage were smallish Garoupas, Snappers, a Queeny and even a Leatherjacket. Then a storm came and we took shelter in Ketam.

After the storm, we headed back to a spot which I had known for seven years. Seven years ago, we used to land Barras, Snappers and Chermins at this spot, but about two years ago, man-made changes to the sea-scape made me think that the spot had outlived its glory days. So I stopped going to this spot. Once in a while however, I would visit the spot for old times' sake but only for a few minutes. This time, however, I realized that my two-year absence had simply made the fish Bigger, Better and Stronger.

We were anchored almost over the spot and Kenny was getting snagged on the structure below although he knew it was there. It was a good approach he was using... the 'no risk no gain' approach.

In order not to compete with Kenny, I cast my line to the other side of the structure and waited. After about 5 minutes, Wong, who had been keeping himself busy pulling up baby Grunters and catching tiny fish with little chunks of prawn meat, pulled up a Tanda.

Those familiar with my 9 kilo Garoupa story will know the significance of a Tanda. So when I saw the fish, my hopes were raised and I was clearly saying, 'Wow Tanda, that's the sign of the Barra's presence!' when an explosion made us all turn around.

I turned around just fast enough to see a half-hearted jump of a HUGE BARRAMUNDI. I saw that my line was limp and I knew that it had taken my bait.

Screaaaaaaaaaaaaaaam!!! went my tiny reel newly filled with 8 lb line. Jump! Another Jump! With each jump, my heart skipped a beat... I had lost so many such Barras when they jumped like that... I lost count. So all I could do was hope that my hook stayed firmly in place.

After about 5 minutes, the fish seemed to have tired itself out and I started to gain line. What a naive angler I was. This fish was a fighter... and it was just swimming towards me to get to the other side of the boat.

It easily swam under the boat and headed for deeper water. This time, the drag seemed to go on forever. I had half a mind to raise the anchor and follow the fish, but a quick check on my spool assured me that I should have enough line to play the fish till it tired itself out.

After another 10 minutes of more giving than taking, I was demoralized. The fish seemed to know this and fought in a wide circle around the boat, using its weight to its own advantage, making me clamber wildly all around the boat while the other guys started speculating. Although they were half joking about whether the fish felt the hook at all, I could almost believe them. Every time the fish took off on a run, I would look worriedly at the amount of line I had left in my small spool.

Mind you, trying to pull in a HUGE BARRA like that on spiderweb was no easy task. Eventually, as the circle around the boat grew smaller, I knew I had him. After a few anxious moments with the anchor rope at the front of the boat, the fish had made its way to the rear of the boat. A few more half jumps and weight-guessing attempts later, the fish was almost within net reach. Kenny had put its weight around the 4-5 kg region while I had earlier estimated it to be around the 8-10 kg region. Eventually, we settled on 6 kg. But as the fish drew nearer, we saw the thickness of its shoulders and immediately revised our estimation.

Finally, after almost half an hour of sweaty battle, it came within reach and Kenny, with a clean swoop, managed to get the head of the fish into the landing net... and the battle was over.

Vivken took out his brass weighing scale and we weighed the bugger... exactly 8 kg. What a fish! As the fish lay there glistening in the sunlight exhausted, I too rubbed my cramped right arm and in that brief moment, my eyes were re-opened to the beauty of the Barra... and the beauty of fishing.

All it takes is a fish like this, which fought like there was no tomorrow, to keep an angler going. Though I have fought countless big Barras before, this, I would say, was the BEST BARRA FIGHT I EVER HAD!!!!!! Thanks Kenny, Wong, Kenny and Vivian for the encouragement and assistance during the fight. 

1999 Aug Queenfish Festival

From left to right: Howie was in this position very often... fighting Queenies... why else do you think his avatar is called Queeny?; that's me netting one of Howie's bigger Queenies; a quick pic with a healthy Queenfish; and a quick release. We release all Queenies.



From left to right: Colin looks cool as he pumps in his Queeny; a quick pose before the Queeny is released; Alvin and Edmund with a decent Flathead; sunburned Francis with a small Snapper; a decent catch of Snapper, Garoupa, Barra and a 2.5 kg Kurau. 

Do Not Use Cheap Swivels, or Cute Ones...

... either, as both Colin and me learnt that day as we each lost big Queenies due to Swivel failure. Colin's 'cute' swivel broke during a highly acrobatic fight, while my cheap swivel 'opened up' during a trememdous Queeny leap. 

1999 July Ubin Snapper Schools

From left to right: That's Robert with a nice kilo plus Snapper; an 'artistic' arrangement of a decent haul of Snapper, Garoupa and a Barra; that's me putting some serious bend in my rod to keep my line from touching the propeller while Desmond stands by with the landing net.

Silence is Golden...

... Snapper. Here's an important point to note if you're keen on catching more than one Snapper per trip... bring the fish in quickly, absolutely DO NOT let the fish thrash around the boat, and stay as quiet as possible.

  These fish normally feed in schools and experienced fishermen will stay extremely silent when they chance upon a school of Snapper. This gives them a chance to pull in a good number of Snapper before the bites 'turn off'.

Inexperienced fishermen, on the other hand, would not be able to handle a fish properly, letting it flop around the boat, or they would talk very loudly, turn on a radio (or even a portable TV), do a victory dance, and do everything to prevent anyone else, including themselves, from catching any more fish. (I have to admit that I too, have been guilty of some of the above crimes... heehee... but numerous hard lessons have taught me well.)

As we all know, Snapper are highly sensitive to sound and even the smallest lead weight dropped carelessly in a boat might ruin a whole day's fishing as these fish are only 'turned on' for brief moments in a day. Thus, turning them off the moment they start biting could be disastrous, not only for you, but also for everyone else on the boat.

From left to right: Kelly plays tug of war, nearly cutting his hand because of the speed of the fish, while an Aussie couple observes the battle; well what do you know?... a frisky 2 kg Kurau; Henry with an Octopus ... we had great fun with it, throwing it at each other's face and letting it stick; Howie with a White Spotted Ray off Tekong. 

Jun 1999 Ubin Lobster and MJ

From left to right: George with a last-minute Spotted Sicklefish; Thim Choy and a famous restaurant fish... Sek Ban or Garoupa; Bajin and me enjoyed a beautiful calm sunset where we were accompanied by our friends Mr Snapper and Madam Javelin; Daniel never fails to surprise, this time with a lobster (can you believe it???) and a Snapper.

Careful!!! It's a Stingray, Daniel exclaimed...

... as he quickly dumped whatever he had caught a glimpse of back overboard. According to him, he had seen the long, whip-like tail of a Stingray after reeling in something heavy.

 
We were anchored off Changi at about 1 am in the morning when the fish started biting. I'd just had a brief struggle with a huge eel-tailed Cattie and was trying to unhook it safely when Daniel said he was stuck on something.

I didn't pay him much attention as I was very much focused on risky task of unhooking the frisky 2 kilo plus Catfish. (One such fish had sent me painfully to the hospital sometime in 1998 where, out of complacency, I'd let a big wave swing the fish towards me and onto my knee... sigh... what a painful lesson.)

Anyway, after a couple of minutes, I had just unhooked the Catfish when Daniel exclaimed about catching a Stingray and quickly let whatever he had brought up fall back into the water. "Stingray?" I wondered as I peered over the edge of the boat to try to catch a glimpse of the creature Daniel had caught and ALMOST released. Nothing. So I pulled in his line slowly using my hand till I saw a long whip-like thingy slowly emerge from the water. Then I realized there were two whip-like thingies and heard a snapping sound as the creature curled and uncurled its body in a frantic struggle to free itself. The silhouette of the creature as well as the sound seemed vaguely familiar and it suddenly dawned upon me... "LOBSTER!!!!!!! QUICK, PULL IT IN!!!"

So that was how Daniel caught the lobster. For those of you who want to know what his lobster formula was, it was a whole Australian Pilchard double hooked on Big-mouth hooks.

Some people say that it was probably an escapee while others say that they used to catch them there. Personally, that was the third time I'd seen someone pull up a lobster in the wild on a hook in all my years of fishing, so lobsters can indeed be found in the wild. Whatever it was, escapee or wild-child, it tasted GREAT... right, Daniel?

From left to right: A true brawler... the wild Mangrove Jack, caught just after sunset with my Godson Reuben; Felip with a similar MJ caught earlier that day; A box of Snapper, Red Emperor, Garoupa and Sweetlip... all in a day's work; Garoupa galore (we released the small buggers, these are the table-sized ones) with a few Snapper, a Batfish, a Stinger, and even a Jewfish.

Fishing Ponds Have Done a Great Injustice to the Awesome Mangrove Jack...

... because when I was a small boy following my dad and his Pawang out in our Western waters, The Mangrove Jack, or Onga Api (Api means fire) was highly prized both for its eating as well as its fighting qualities. I'll never forget the expression of great pride on Razali's face as he hauled in a gleaming reddish brown MJ around 1.5 kg and how he kept talking about the eating qualities of the fish. I'd known Razali (a really experienced guy who lived off the sea) for some time and I had never seen him so thrilled by any other fish before. It not only looked magnificent, but when we cooked and ate it, its flesh was sublime. So, deep down in my heart, the notion that the MJ was a great fish got firmly implanted.

Then one day I had the opportunity to tangle with a wild MJ (during those times, Pasir Ris "Fishing Pond" was still a swampy ox-bow lake with children playing with toy boats along its banks). I'll never forget that fight.

I was using 6 lb line on a Daiwa reel with a Nilsmaster lure and reeling in slowly when something almost wrenched my rod out of my hand. The shock of the strike left me stunned for a moment as the Daiwa's drag screamed and howled while my rod was bent into a complete U-shape.

The fish never really gave me a chance to calm my shaking legs as it created havoc all over the place, even at times swimming towards me and then suddenly bursting off in a different direction at speeds that would put the Barra to shame. I tried really hard to get a glimpse of the fish but all I saw were huge boils, explosions and swirls in the water.

After participating in about 5-10 minutes of tug-of-war, with the fish still keeping out of sight, I decided that this fish was gonna be a whopper. 3 kg? 5 kg even?

But then, just when I thought that my fish was gonna break all previous weight records, it literally "popped" out of the water and landed at my feet. I felt really humiliated yet amused at the size of the fish, it was a Mangrove Jack barely hitting the One kilo mark. From then on, my respect for the MJ grew tremendously and I remember a couple of heart-stopping fights similar to that first one.

Then one day, Pasir Ris Fishing Pond was born and many other commercial ponds sprouted up all over Singapore. These ponds started stocking mostly Barras at first but suddenly the MJs started turning up in epidemic proportions. What made things worse was that most of these MJs were bred in brackish water ponds in our neighbouring countries and did not have the same amount of exercise and muscles as the wild ones. So, many of the new anglers in Singapore who appeared along with the fishing pond trend started catching these weakened, captivity-bred MJs and they probably started wondering what the hell these black coloured fish were.

And, of course, along came the "pond pro" who, after catching hundreds of such undernourished MJs, would 'educate' everyone else by telling them that these were Michael Jacksons or Chia Chors which tasted far inferior to the nicer-looking Kim Buk Lor or Barra. This was not hard to believe, if you'd seen a pond-reared MJ before. Thus, the MJ started earning a bad reputation at commercial ponds and people even started swearing when they caught one of these poor MJs. Deprived of any real experience with a wild MJ, the masses started looking down on the MJ. They don't know what they're missing.

So, before you jump to any conclusions about a fish, whether about its fighting qualities or about its taste, know that the wild MJ, in terms of strength, speed and taste, has very few peers. Also ask yourself, the next time you catch one in a pond, whether you see the fish you catch through the eyes of someone else who doesn't know as much as he thinks he does, or through your own eyes.

Whatever it is, to me, the Mangrove Jack will always be a SUPERB fish.

9 kg Garoupa Story Jun 1999

9 KG GAROUPA FROM 15ft of WATER OFF PASIR RIS.  

I looked up worriedly to the West...

... for that was where the storm was coming from. After all, there were two girls on the boat together with Neng Siu, Jason (my brother) and me, and it didn't seem wise to sit there waiting for the storm to hit. Reluctantly, I reeled in my girlfriend's line, for she was already starting to take cover beneath the boat's modest shelter. The day hadn't gone according to plan... strangely, the current was dead for very long periods and the spots I thought would produce fish didn't even produce a bite.

Now, as the storm drew nearer and we started to feel the first few drops of rain on our faces, Murphy's law decided that it was time for the current to pick up. By that time, the boat had started to swing with the ever-strengthening wind and not the current, but Neng Siu began pulling up small Tanda.

Although I knew it was a good sign, as many past encounters with Tanda schools had resulted in one or two monster fish such as Barras and Garoupas, I decided that the chance was not worth taking so I picked up my own rod, which had been lying motionless in the rod stand for at least half an hour, and started reeling in the slack. Stuck!!!

"What a time to get stuck!!!", I thought to myself. The storm was almost on top of us and I was the only one left with the line in the water while my brother was about to raise the anchor.

So I tugged hard at the line in order to snap it. My 12 lb line was pretty new so it managed to put up with quite a lot of tugging and guitar-string plucking. I couldn't waste anymore time so I gave it a really hard tug this time. But something tugged back... strongly.

I managed to shout, "Big fish!" while trying to untangle the line from my hands but I got slightly 'burnt' by the line anyway. Grabbing the rod just as the drag started to scream, what came to my mind was "Stingray". But somehow, the full scream never came. Instead, there was a low groan from the reel as the fish moved off slowly but purposefully into deeper water.

By then, the rain had started to pour and the wind was pushing the boat strongly against the frail anchor. Nevertheless, all of us were oblivious to the raging elements and standing in the rain, wondering when the fish would turn.

We waited for what seemed like ages as the fish took line as though it was a machine, grinding away slowly but surely. I looked down at my spool and gained some confidence from the fact that the fish, due to it's slowness, had only pulled out about half a spool of 12 lb line. We all knew that there was no real cause for worry unless I could see the back of my spool.

Finally, while I was still pondering about the 'mechanical' pulling motion of the fish, it turned, not because I made it turn, but it turned on it's own decision. It was the fish's big mistake. I started gathering the slack as the fish swam towards me. By the time it realized it was swimming in the wrong direction, it was quite near the boat and I tried for about 5 minutes to get a glimpse of the fish. But everytime it got closer, it somehow had the strength, or weight, to stay out of sight.

It was just a matter of time before the fish would rear its head, we guessed, and we were right. I thought I had snagged a log while fighting the fish as I saw a huge brown object surface near where my line met the water. Then the brown object started moving its tail and I gasped as I realized that it was a Garoupa... a monstrous Garoupa.

Then, as swift as the lightning that flashed above us, my brother stretched out and netted the fish in one swoop. Bringing the fish onto the boat and gazing into its huge eyes, my brother let out a scream of victory. I decided, "Why not?" and let out a yell too. Neng Siu and his girlfriend, however, seemed taken aback by our screaming in the rain, or maybe it was because of the fish?

Anyway, we made it back safely to the boatel and it was still pouring so I had to dump the fish into the boot of my car and take photographs of it in my kitchen. Since my brother was more decently dressed than me, as all my clothes were soaked, it's his photo that I've decided to put up for you guys to see.

So whoever said that there are no huge fish in Singapore? ... well, then there's the GT story too, but I guess I'll leave that for another day.

April-May 1999 Update

From left to right: That's Clarence happily holding two decent-sized Snapper caught within seconds of each other; John with a table-sized Barra at night; Yup, that's Chris Soule with what's probably his last Singaporean fish to date, a Garoupa; Clarence with a hard-pulling Giant Catfish (tastes like Tenggiri too!!) and some Snapper; Desmond with a solid 2 kilo plus Garoupa, many seasoned fishos' favourite fish; Guek Fa with a nice pre-dawn Barra. JUST LOOK AT THOSE SMILES!!!

So what's your favourite...

...fish? Well, locally, I've got two categories of favourites: Best Fighting; and Best Eating. My favourite fighter would undoubtedly be the GT, such a pity huge specimens are so rare in our waters. However, the favourite eating fish would be the Garoupa... such tender, tasty, white flesh...mmmmmmmmm mmmm.

Amongst the rarer local species would be the Blackspot Tuskfish, Leopard Coral Trout and the Scarlet Breasted Maorii Wrasse of course... these are delicacies with tender white meet.
 
But realistically, if I had to choose a favourite fish that is reasonably abundant in our waters and has good fighting as well as eating qualities, I'd choose the Snapper. They don't only fight well and taste good, but they look good and are dependable (as in, there's a high chance of catching them) as well.

Sometimes, while fishing locally, I try to remind myself that beggars can't be choosers, so even the odd Catfish might bring a smile... and sometimes there's even a little tender spot for the much-despised Stargazer (or Kukup) too.

Whatever it is, to each his own . If you say your favourite fish is the Eel, I'd say "Good choice!" coz it's only right that we all grow to respect each other's views, be it on Favourite Fish, Catch and Release, Most Effective Rig, or Most Powerful Deodorant.

From left to right: Desmond with a highly-prized 2.5 kg Threadfin Salmon or Kurau and an assortment of fish; Just the usual overnight Northeast stuff like Barras, Mangrove Jacks, Snapper and Garoupa; Daniel with a dawn Garoupa; Chermin are rarely caught at night, but this one went against the norm; Sunset Sweetlip make a perfect calm evening; Des and me back at the boatel in the morning with plenty of good-sized Garoupa from 1 kg - 3 kg, and a Barra to top it off. 

People often ask me whether fish bite at night...

... "What do you think?" I would reply. Well they obviously do. But sometimes I have had to wait the whole night at a spot without a single bite and then suddenly, as the sun appears, WHAM WHAM WHAM, the bites start coming incessantly, at that very same spot!

 

But at other times, I have had to wait the whole hot day without a bite, and when the sun goes down, POW!!! a monster shows up.

What can I say? Well some spots do fire up at different times of the day and some spots are strictly "Day Spots" while other spots are labelled "Nightspots" not nightspots as in Boat Quay and Mohammed Sultan Road. (Stale Joke Alert!)

For variety, I go for both day and night fishing. Girls I know, on the other hand, seem to prefer night fishing as daytime fishing can get pretty hot in Singapore. Which type of fishing do you prefer?

1999 Jan to Feb

From left to right: a nice 3 kilo Garooupa landed by gaff, the usual catch at Rivermouth, Cephas, Howie and I hit a school of Golden Snapper in a heavy downpour.

Do fish bite...

during a downpour? Well, I guess the pictures answer the question. In fact, I find the onset of a downpour marvelous for fishing. However, there are a few dangers such as getting your camera wet and spoiling it (and ruining all the film inside with shots of magnificent fish). But the biggest danger lies in the weather itself. Rain by itself poses little danger, but rain with wind can be HELL !!! Here's to those tough guys who have shared cold, wet, windy, shivery nights on my boat with me!!!

From left to right: Dennis puts the pressure on his fish with a G.loomis and Calcutta 100 set; safely landed, a nice healthy Diamond Trevally; Oblivious to the rain, Francis tries to prevent his fish from diving into the rocks while Jeff looks on; it turned out to be a 2 kilo plus Garoupa; Howie and Edmund with a 10 kilo Ray, just after losing a fish which almost spooled him out on 20 lb braided line. 

Action pics are hard to take...

... you never know when a fish is gonna take the line and whether it's gonna fight long enough for you to snap a pic.

One trick is to hold on to your camera while the angler casts out his line. Then you wait. HAHAHAAAAAAAAA...

The other way is to keep a camera handy and DON'T HESITATE to take it out of the bag or case the moment somebody's rod bends. Then, of course, you've got to quickly position yourself well and hope that the fish cooperates by pulling out a little drag so that you'll have enough time to snap some award-winning photos!!!