KO25: 2009

Tarpon Boxing Day bout!

Saturday, 26 December 2009 Labels: Tarpon 0 comments

"In the blue corner, Berkley fireline braided line weighing in 15lbs, Biomaster spinning reel and a Berkley rod, HALCO SORCERER!! In the red corner, Power Pro braided line weighing in 20lbs, Daiwa spinning reel and a modified Lemax rod, VERRRYYY CHEAP SOFT PLASTIC LUURREEE!!" Haha!

I was hoping to get a strike on christmas day but had no luck. So today's Boxing day, I decided to try out two different methods. Today's catch was a Tarpon and caught 4 in total and lost a countless amount. It was 2 in 2, "And the winner under unanimous decision! VERRRYYY CHEAP SOFT PLASTIC LUURREEE!!" The soft plastic lure won it, not only it got the biggest catch, it also receive many thugs and misses than the Halco.

Got two strikes on a Halco Sorcerer.

Two strikes from a very cheap plastic mini shrimp lure.

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"WOOOOOOOO!!!" FINALLY A SEBARAU STRIKE!!

Monday, 21 December 2009 Labels: Sebarau 0 comments

Alhamdulillah. After a 4th trip to Labi, I finally caught a Sebarau (Hampala Barb). Today's trip accompanied by Walid and Eejat (KB-ians anglers) and my cousin Tyco Kembura (Duo Fishing) was actually a last minute plan. I gave Walid a late text message the night before, informing him that Tyco and I decided to go to Labi to test our luck. The weather in KB was part cloudy and sunny but when we got to Labi, it was dull. It rained a bit but it was good enough for us to cast for Sebarau. Judging at the water, it looked promising as we saw and heard loud "chomping" noises. We knew it was the Sebarau chasing bait fish and we never stop casting. Walid had his popper splashed by Sebarau, not close enough to get it hooked. Eejat's lure always hit the snags and was lucky to retrieve it back safely (with the help of Fuad aka. Kenapol) and Tyco had no luck (no more sunday streak). At around 5-ish pm, my Berkley Gulp got a slight hit but the fish managed to get away. I kept on casting at the same spot and it took 20+ cast until I finally striked my first Sebarau. The fish was incredibly strong that the hook from my jig bent a little. Although it wasn't that big, it was powerful enough to give me a fight and damn it was fun reeling that fish in. At first I thought it was another Knifefish but to my delight, it was a Sebarau. When I held it in my hand, I was ecstatic that I suddenly "Woooooed" (Ric Flair style). Of all the fish I caught, Sebarau has to be the most powerful fish ever. Like B.P (Duo Fishing) always say, "Jangan jara-jara ..." Haha!!

My first Sebarau and it probably weigh around 700g.

(Pic was taken by Eejat. Thanks bro!)

My Berkley Gulp done it again! Sebarau was a proudly catch and release. =)

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Knifefish@Belida Surprise

Wednesday, 16 December 2009 Labels: Knife Fish 0 comments

After a disappointing Sunday trip from Tutong, Walid (of KB-ians anglers) and I planned a Labi trip today hoping to catch Sebarau (Hampala Barb). We left KB around 1.30pm and reached our destination at 3pm. As usual, I'm still into my Berkley Gulp plastic lure and Walid used all sorts of lure from popper to a torpedo lure and so on... P.S: Recently I bought a "brand new" fishing rod (Berkley), reel (Shimano Biomaster C3000) and braid (Berkley fireline 15lbs) from Deep Blue Fishing Tutong and what a bargain!! I was using two rods, one for hardbody and one for my Berkley Gulp. As we started to cast, we could see water splashing just about everywhere. Then at around 4pm, something gave my Gulp a nudge and I was immediately thrilled. I then threw a second cast, reeling and twitching it and POW!! A STRIKE!! An adrenalin rush swept through me as my mind was thinking, "Finally I caught a Sebarau!" The fish had no chance against my Biomaster. As I reeled it out off the murky water and took it to land, to my surprise it wasn't the Sebarau I was hoping for, instead it was a Knifefish @ Belida (commonly known as featherbacks, or scientific name Chitala Chitala). Sebarau or not, I was equally ecstatic. It was one of my fishing accomplishment and I know someday I will catch the illusive Sebarau, and Barramundi. Haha! It was a tough day for Walid as he missed two strikes from the Sebarau. Don't worry buddy! We'll get 'em on our next trip.

Knifefish@Belida estimation around 1+kg.

Another Berkley Gulp strike.

Bonus pic from Tyco Kembura (Duo Fishing) using "MY" Berkley Gulp. This pic was taken last Saturday for our Tarpon hunting/ Berkley Gulp experiment (on its effectiveness) and I actually wanted to turn Tyco into a Berkley Gulp believer! In the end, he caught two and I caught five. Haha!

Only one picture of Tarpon strike would suffice (thanks to BG) because I couldn't be bothered to take five pics of Tarpon strikes of mine. Haha!

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Tarpon gulped a Berkley Gulp. Haha!

Monday, 7 December 2009 Labels: Tarpon 0 comments

Hola! Just another update here. I caught two Tarpon at around 5-ish pm today using a Berkley Gulp and what a BAIT!! My Berkley kept on getting nudges, getting hits, getting pulled and Tarpon just can't resist Berkley Gulp. After my second strike, I decided to use different soft bait but it wasn't as effective as compared to Berkley. So for those who are curious to try a soft bait lure, I truly recommend Berkley Gulp (I won't guarantee it, you have to try to believe it for yourself. Haha!). Happy casting!

Tarpon totally gulped my Berkley Gulp. haha!

Better view of the Tarpon.

My second strike. Slightly bigger than the first one.

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My first Barracuda @Alu-alu

Thursday, 3 December 2009 Labels: Barracuda 0 comments

When was my last post?! maybe it was a week and a half ago. haha! FYI, I did try to catch some fish especially Sebarau. We went last Sunday but what we got was heavy rain pouring all over us and a Toyota Vios got stuck in a mud. HAHA! (baik ko tukar kereta baruuuu yg bisai nya 4wd. lol) I've been using Berkley Gulp since I bought 'em and never lose faith in these fantastic lure. I had some couple or more strikes on a Berkley Gulp but always got away until last two days ago I caught a decent size Tarpon. I didn't take a picture of it, ... didn't know why but I should have. Yesterday at around 3.30pm I caught my very first Barracuda. It was still a juvenile but still, my FIRST!! I'm still targeting Jacks with Berkley Gulp and hopefully it'll come soon. hehe ...

Juvenile Barracuda with a Berkley Gulp

Better view of the Berkley Gulp and Barracuda

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Halco Sorcerer strikes a Mangrove Jack!

Thursday, 12 November 2009 Labels: Mangrove Jack 0 comments

Yesterday morning, I decided to go to Teraban "T-Junction" to test my luck in the area. The sea was calm, just a tiny wave hitting softly to the rocks. So, I decided to use a soft plastic lure hoping to catch something, but to my disappointment, there was NOTHING!! I could see hundreds of bait fish especially mullets, swimming closely to the rocks. There I knew, once there are hundreds of bait fish, it's difficult to catch some fish. Well maybe because they already had their breakfast with mullet on the menu. Sometimes when there are mullets, you could see queen fish having a feeding frenzy, with loud splashing sound. I had to go home 'cause I was desperate to use the toilet. (I blame the roti canai and teh tarik kau. haha!)

Feeling frustrated that morning, I decided to give it another go but this time at the 7th alley and the target fish was a tarpon. At first, I was using the same soft plastic lure I used that morning but it seems like the fish weren't interested so changed it to my favourite lure, the Halco Sorcerer. So I kept on casting at the brackish waters, moving from spot to spot and finally I hit a strike just near a fallen tree. From afar, I though it was a Barramundi but I guess, starring at the laptop all the time had cause some minor damage to my eyes. haha! As I gently guided it to land, surprisingly not that excited like I used to. Maybe the thought of not catching a Sebarau from our trip to Labi haunts me, making me say, "oh, okay, ... it's just a Jack ..." But syukur alhamdulillah, at least I caught something.

Me, Jack and Halco.

Hmmm, ... I think I should get a bigger Halco.

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Seberau. Hampala Macrolepidota.

Monday, 9 November 2009 Labels: Sebarau 0 comments

Yesterday my mates and I went hunting in the jungles of Labi, Kuala Belait searching for the fresh water species, known for its powerful and sudden strike, the Seberau or Hampala Macrolepidota. FKFH DuoFishing got the first strike but unfortunately the fish snagged it under a log resulting the swivel to snap in half. My guess was that fish was HUGE 'cause the fight it gave to FKFH was mind blowing. The tip of his rod bent as he tried to reel it to land but luck once again was not on his side. He was shaken up and surprisingly happily satisfied that his Yo-Zuri Hardcore got taken away by seberau. haha! Tyco Kembura DuoFishing known for his Sunday streak continues as he deservedly landed a seberau weighing at 800g. We were envious with joy when we saw the fish successfully in the hands of Tyco and let me tell you this, what a beautiful fish!! Only ONE seberau caught and we went home tired with a little bit of disappointment (especially me) and i really do feel for FKFH. (better luck next time) But at least we enjoyed the trip especially the Durian Monthong that our buddy Fami fed us. (looking forward to another Durian season. hehe!) Hopefully our next trip to Labi, we will catch more of this ever so popular seberau and come home with a pretty big smile, insya'allah ... (more pics at DuoFishing)

Our guide Cowboy Fami (left) Tyco with his Seberau and me.

Nice fishy

FKFH still feeling disappointed about the Seberau that ripped his swivel into half.

There should be a Seberau but we didn't get a single bite.

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Hardbody to Soft Plastic.

Friday, 6 November 2009 Labels: Lures 0 comments

Whenever you go to a fishing tackle store, there are many variety of lures to choose, from hard body to soft plastic. They come in different sizes and colors like silver, the famous Red Head, fire tiger, gold and the list just goes on and on. Not forgetting the brand names play a key role to attract anglers, such as Yo-Zuri, Rapala, Halco, Duel, Ecogear, SureCatch and plenty more...in which I’m not familiar with, let alone try one. Then came in the soft plastic, where top bass anglers swear by the effectiveness of these lures. The only plastic lures I recognize are Berkley Gulp and other Japanese brands in which the type ranges from worm or stick bait to small bait fish like mullet, lizard, and frogs. Brunei anglers love to use frogs such as Scumfrog and they also come in different colors and sizes. With these lures, you’ll be able to catch different species of fish like the popular Snakehead. But unfortunately, there aren’t many soft bait brands to choose from our local tackle stores in Brunei.

Lures I’m currently using are the hard body type like Yo-Zuri, Ecogear, Halco and the Gold Bomber (not sold in Brunei). Which kind of brand should I go for? I would truly recommend Yo-Zuri crystal minnows and Ecogear top water pencil (walk the dog). Halco brands are excellent if you dare to use it. Some of my mates won’t go near it simply because the thought of getting snagged would scare them away. Haha! Until recently I decided to go for soft plastic so I bought Berkley Powerbait Realistix. The result was encouraging, as small fish had a couple of nibbles whenever I cast. The technique to cast these soft plastic are similar to how I had described in my last post (Twitch, Jerk and Pause). If you’re using a jig head, make sure you let it sink to the bottom and once it landed, twitch it up 3-4 times and pause for at least 3-5 seconds. I caught one baby spotted grouper (catch and release) and one got away due to a vulnerable knot. (I’m still bemused how it happened) So choose your lure wisely as most of the lures are designed to catch fishermen, not fish. So go out there and treat yourself with a brand new lure. Happy fishing!

Berkley Powerbait Realistix

Baby GT Yo-Zuri Hardcore

Ecogear Firetiger top water pencil

Yo-Zuri Redhead

Yo-Zuri Hardcore

Berkley Powerbait Realistix

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Twitch, jerk and pause?!

Saturday, 17 October 2009 Labels: Lures 0 comments

For the last 3 weeks I’ve been logging in on YouTube, watching UFC or MMA, PES 2009 tricks and skills and fishing for Mangrove Jack and Large Mouth Bass. What YouTube makes it useful is that some video teaches you things you don’t know. So whenever I’m not fishing and done updating my status and playing Mafia Wars on Facebook, I would log in to YouTubeand search on how to cast your lure successfully with a catch. After browsing and watched all the videos, my brain was filled with fishing knowledge and was eager to try it the next morning. To my amazed, I caught some fish (mostly Jacks) and it truly shows the technique I learnt was effective. You’d probably be wondering, “So, what’s the technique KO?” and let me tell you right now that “it’s all about the PAUSE”, yes!! PAUSE!! Haha! Some anglers would just reel their lures slow and even fast. If I was a predatory fish like a Mangrove Jack, I wouldn’t catch a prey when it zoom pass me or when it swims normally without looking injured. Predatory fish would take any opportunity to grab an easy bite when a prey look injured or swim closely to its lair. To make your lure look injured, simply jerk or twitch it 2-3 times and then pause for 3-5 seconds. After pausing, twitch it again and repeat until it reaches you. 90% of the strike comes from the pause so, be patient. Keep doing it until you get the hang of it or you successfully get a strike. If you don’t get a strike, it’s obvious that there is no fish in the estuaries or where ever you’re casting. Lol! Once you find this technique effective, you won’t look live bait fishing the same way again. Haha! I used to fish using live bait but sometimes it could be costly and not worth the money, especially when you’re not catching a single hook up. Casting using a hard or soft body lure will definitely changed the way you fish as I vow to myself that I will NOT use live bait. I hope my tips will increase your catch and remember, “It’s all about the PAUSE” On the next post, I will talk about the types of lures that I used, insya’allah.

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Mangrove Jack (Lutjanus argentimaculatus).

Friday, 16 October 2009 Labels: Mangrove Jack 0 comments

I've always got interested in fishing since I started watching Rex Hunt. So last year, I started to learn how to fish thanks to my brother Sofian who sponsored all the fishing gear including a Lemax rod, Daiwa 4000 reel and a 30lb Power Pro braided line, and also a popper lure. It was kinda tough at first as I didn't catch a fish after around 2 months when I had my first strike. It was a Tarpon, not a big one, just a juvenile but it really lifted my spirits. Another month gone by, I caught a Mangrove Jack (Lutjanus argentimaculatus). It was still a baby (around 400g) but the fight it gave me was incredible. It was there that I fell in love with the Jackaroonie. I even have one in an aquarium which I keep as a pet. MJ ranges from copper, to bronze and dark reddish-brown depending on its age and environment and what I like about 'em is the blue lining on the cheeks just below its eye. So here are some MJ pics that I caught here in Brunei, and hope you like 'em. I will post more about Mangrove Jack and how some Brunei anglers simply do not practice "Catch & Release" method.