1990-1992 were interesting years. From hunting Threadfin Salmon in Muar, to catching Patin from Bishan Pond, enlisting and still fishing on weekends at Pasir Ris Pond, Toman hunting at Kranji and Pole fishing at Marina. I tried various forms of fishing just for the experience.

Left to right:

That's my first lure caught Barramundi from Pasir Ris Pond before it became a commercial fishing pond.

I used to cast net for prawns and dig for Tua Tao and Remis (La La) at the Kranji Dam area.

Sometimes at Jurong Lake, I get lots of fibre.

Even when out partying at Canto Pop in Marina South, I had time to cast a lure for big Tomans at night, because the Discotheque was next to the pond.

Catching stingrays from Bedok Jetty on weekends was always fun.

1989 The Luring Era

My favourite lures were the Abu Toby for Ikan Haruan (a type of Snakehead almost like the Toman), the Nilsmaster Invincible Deep Diver, the Rapala Shad Rap and the Rapala Original.

From left to right: An adult Ikan Haruan caught on and Abu Toby; (inset) I managed to snap this pic as I was slowly bringing the fish in; another Haruan with my trusty Daiwa reel and 4 lb line; a Ladyfish makes a final jump near my feet before giving up; a typical Ladyfish (or Giant Herring as some call it)... all fish here were released. 

By the way, do you know where these fish were caught? Marina South. I think they plan on developing this area into Gardens by the Bay.

The Ikan Haruan, a close cousin of the Toman...

... is an avid Toby eater. But small Rapalas have worked well on them too. Come to think of it, I haven't caught an Haruan (pronounced ARE-RWAN) in a long time. Aggressive fighters, but lacking in stamina, the Haruan, unlike the Toman, does not normally grow larger than 2 kg... so I took them for granted. Now, where can they be found???? 

Wanna see what Pasir Ris Pond looked like before it was turned into a commercial pond? Look at the picture where I'm releasing a Ladyfish in the bottom row... yes, those are houses in the background... are you surprised?

From left to right: Another Herring aka Ladyfish on an Abu Toby; Keeping the struggling Haruan from reaching the weeds was a challenge; Hey, the lens cover is blocking my Ladyfish!; Releasing a Ladyfish to fight another day (little did I know the tranquil pond I was fishing in was going to be turned into Pasir Ris Fishing Pond!!!!!) 

One basic key to successful lure fishing is silence...

... in fact, silence is important for success in most forms of fishing. So if you ever wonder why you don't catch many fish, check your volume.

 

The few exceptions to the silence rule are rather interesting. One form of fishing I know, Giant Catfish fishing, requires the angler to constantly beat the water with a stick. The other exception, which is even more weird but widely practiced among local fishermen, is Snapper Fishing, where the fisherman is supposed to make 'FART' sounds with his line. (I have to admit, I use this 'FART' Snapper Fishing method now and then too, in more ways than one.) Here is how the sound is made with monofilament line. With your handline in the water, wet your hands, pinch the line tightly between the fingers and slide it down the line. The friction would produce a sound and vibration which presumably travels all the way down the line to attract Snapper. Razali and my dad used to do this all the time - I'm sure there's some reason behind it.

1986-1989 The Early Days - Luring at Marina Bay

1986 How it Began

I was still in Secondary One then, the year was 1986, and I had just bought my first lightweight baitcasting outfit as well as a single Nilsmaster lure. So I made my way down to a spot where I'd been having some years of luck with Garoupas and Snappers on sawdust worms -- Marina Bay and the Esplanade Area.

 

It was a quiet morning and I had already eagerly set up my gear while walking from the bus stop to the Bay. I was going to try lure fishing for the first time because I'd read quite a lot about it in Aussie magazines and was convinced of its effectiveness.

9 AM. So, after a little fiddling with my new baitcaster, I made the first cast. Bird's Nest. My very first backlash caught me by surprise... so that's what the shopkeeper at Beach road was telling me about... so I took some time to clear the tangle (a backlash on 6 lb line is not that easy to clear you know?) and, standing at the water's edge, made my second cast. This time, although there was still a little Char Bee Hoon, the black and white Nilsie managed to land about 20 ft away (very near actually). So I quickly cleared the minor backlash and started a sink-and-draw retrieve like the one I'd been reading about (though I was using a floating lure). Anyway, only after a few cranks of the handle, I felt a distinct tug and I struck.

The fight was brief, but it still managed to attract the attention of a passing Caucasian tourist who saw me lifting a nice little Garoupa weighing around 300 grams out of the water. I was really pleased and amazed at the catch plus the way I caught it, so was the tourist, who promptly snapped my picture (the one you see above), asked for my address, and mailed me the photo... which is posted above.

By the way, I released that fish, and four more which I landed within an hour from the same spot. By 10 AM, I packed up and went home, afraid that I was pushing my luck a little too far, yet fully satisfied with my first lure-fishing cum catch & release expedition.

1988-1989

Those were the days I used to rush down to Marina Bay every Friday after school with a few of my classmates to do a spot of lure fishing. At times, the Garoupas were so abundant that we could have mini competitions among ourselves. Of course, the occasional Trevally, Queeny, Barracuda, Mangrove Jack, Barra and Snapper showed up once in a while to add variety.

Although getting stuck was already a problem back then, we had HUMAN LURE RETRIEVERS assigned for each particular day so that only one person had to get wet... no doubt swimming and diving for our lures was a messy and risky method (and I still don't know what made us do it time and time again), it made the whole experience so much more enriching. BUT DON"T ASK ME TO DO IT AGAIN!!! Nevertheless, those were damn good days man!!! 

Lures are expensive...

... and in the past, although my cousin Justin did tell me about the lure retriever back in the 80's, we had to dive for our lures.

Of course the risks were there. Many a time I had cuts on my feet so long and deep that I thought I would never survive; and sometimes our fingers got poked and cut by the hooks on our lures as we groped in the murky water.

Once you dive beneath the surface, visibility is reduced to less than an arm's length and you have nothing to guide you except the thin monofilament. You just have to keep going down and down, following the line till you reach the lure.

Normally a simple tug would do the trick. But the key point would be to get a firm hold on the body of the lure, and then you pull hard. Sometimes the hooks would straighten, sometimes the hooks would be so deeply embedded in thick ropes that you had to bring the whole snagpile up, but the method ALWAYS worked.

$10 was a lot to me as a schoolboy back in the 80's and losing a lure often meant we had to go without lunch during recess for a whole week so save up for another lure. Maybe in retrospect, diving for lures was not such a bad idea after all, it provided some excitement in itself and helped our machismo (to some extent). So tell me, who do you know has taken the plunge in the Singapore River or Marina Bay? 

1988 - William, Boon Chee and Simon... with our Rapalas and Nilsmasters, and Raymond at Hock Heng telling us jokes... ah, those were the days!