Pasir Ris beach catch report(4.3kg Catfish on the line)-28/7/14

A warm welcome to everyone reading this post!

We've got lots to share with you once again as we embark on a new type of fishing;kayak fishing.

So before we begin,updates!

recently we have managed to acquire a cheap inflatable kayak for only $140 in which we all shared the cost of purchasing the boat for the group! we took extra long to find a cheap and good kayak cause that's the way we roll ya'll....

Ghetto as much as possible huehuehuehue!

here's a picture that the seller initially sent to us. 

INTEX EXPLORER K2 (2 man kayak)

Setup?today we were using running ball sinker rigs and bottom feeder rigs in hopes to catch bottom feeders such as Groupers and Catfish! 50lb clear line leader,size 3 ball sinker, with size 1/0# circle hooks by Mustad.

I was quite reluctant to drag and set up 2 boats due to it being quite troublesome to tow back and wash but thankfully transport was provided!

So the weather was quite good with a slight drizzle in the morning and a cloudy overcast in Pasir Ris. the air was cool and so was the water temperature. calm current was a good sign that we should go ahead with our plans despite the rain earlier in the day!

of course Ghetto us will rather wake up early in the morning to get prawns from the wet market then go to a supermarket and spend $5 more... but then again....it's a public holiday and a good time to sleep in especially after a long day of work the previous day.

But lucky for us,we were able to get cheap prawns from NTUC!how much?$10/kg because it was on some special offer for Hari Raya!

We managed to come at a good time around 3pm and started to launch the boats at 3:30pm from the Army base end of the beach.why?because we are using inflatable kayaks which are more buoyant and without good tracking fins.so the shorter the distance to paddle the better.

Here's Ghetto Fisherman Ong with Jerome who had decided to tag along for the trip!All good company and lots of fun!

it was another quiet afternoon with small nibbles on the line but nothing significant taking the whole bait.

So instead of casting just down below the blue barrels we cast out towards deeper waters in hopes of getting better bites. a few minutes had gone when suddenly there was a tug on the line and something weighing the line down!upon reeling up the line,we were greeted by water jets being squirt at us by our surprise catch which was a decent sized cuttlefish!hahahas 

first thoughts were to bring it up onto the boat but we remembered about the inking issue and decided to shake it off the line!no pics sorry!couldnt risk my phone getting wet by the cuttlefish water squirts. for those who dont know what a cuttlefish looks like,here's a googled image for your reference.

after hooking up the same cuttlefish again,I decided to drop my line down below the blue barrels again!

As we go for more kayak trips, we have a theory as to why there are so many fishes just below the blue barrels.Simply because of the mussels present on the barrels that tend to drop and provide food for the fishes below providing a food source for most fishes that dwell at the bottom.In some instances,we had actually hooked up empty mussel shells!

It sounds like a legit reason as to why the barrels are always a recommended distance to stop at.

an hour had gone by with a few small hookups such as the striped sea perch and annoying small eels and more striped perch.

see that small little silver fish of lies which tugged the line pretty hard for a small fella.

it was about 5pm when I felt a small but consistent vibration on the line and decided "oh what the heck..just strike for the sake" in which almost instantaneously, some line was being taken out and the rod tilted slightly down!but the fight was short and lasted no more than a minute!It was Ghetto fisherman Ong and jerome's first glance at a mozambique catfish but certainly not their last as you'll find out as you continue reading this post!

Pasir Ris always seems to be a catfish paradise with a very sustainable amount of catfish of all species found in Singapore.It is the most common fish caught here above any other types of fishes and for that it is certainly a blessing to have them here.

this fella probably weighs under 1kg and was released to grow and thrive!

looking at the time,there was probably a chance of getting a second catfish before the light fades.

we started playing some music and talking our usual nonsense(which again I'll say is not recommended cause it scares away fishes)

it was half an hour later when I decided to try and get a fish which I've seen swimming just under the blue barrels!my initial aim was to get a spotted scat that were feeding on the mussels but instead I caught this aggressive little Goby(mud reef goby).It was so angry that it got hooked by me and decided to bite my hand when trying to release it...(didnt hurt obviously).

the time was about 6:15pm and still no fish hookups but plenty of eels and eels and EELS!!!!

after releasing the last eel on my line I hooked up the whole prawn and decided to give it a shot just slightly away from the blue barrels!that's when it all changed and there was this consistent tug on the line so I decided to give it a strike(circle hooks are auto striking hooks but force of habit for me to yank the line up).

ZEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

that's what I've been waiting for the whole day.once again my favourite song..the reel spool spinning!

the line moved sideways and was rubbing against the barrels which had mussels and barnacles all over.There was a moment of panic for a second.

I was using braided line so that was bad news and the line could have snapped any moment.

each time I had the chance to reel in some line,it only took out more for about 4 times before it stopped dashing!But after the first catfish on a separate day,I've learnt to handle the fish well and gave it time to tire itself out.

it began to drag the boat slightly forward and the only reason why I hadn't gone for a ride was because I was anchored down and strapped onto the chains connecting the blue barrels.

after 10 minutes of fighting with this fish,it finally gave in and began to surface!

video screenshots are blur unfortunately

It started to swim inbetween the boats so we quickly pushed away both kayaks to a safe distance so that the large spikes do not pierce the kayaks!just look at the size of that!

with no proper equipment to land a big fish we were left with no choice but to slowly slide the fish on board on the kayak's spray skirt and boy,was it heavy.

I am quite thankful for how the kayak is designed which makes landing fish easier and safer as well. the anti-bacterial slime started to go all over the kayak and just made a mess of the outer polyester fabric layer!

minutes later the slime began to set and it could be peeled off.

I've got to admit i did not expect such a big catfish to be on the line more of expecting a 1-2kg fish the very most but nope nope nope this guy weighed a whoping 4.3kg!not the biggest one and I've seen this particular species being caught which weighed over 7kg!what a fight that must have been!

No ragrets.Not a single letter.

Post by Fishing Kims.

lost for words and just in shock at what I just brought up,I sat there and began to disassemble my rod and reel and sat back to chill while enjoying the sunset.

the last fish hookup went to Jerome!with his first fish today not counting the eels!

just Ghetto Ong being himself!

according to the guys who shared the kayak,it was really comfortable and despite being packed with lots of stuff,it still had sufficient space.

unexpected catch of the day or more of unexpected size of the target catch of the day

Since we had time,we loaded up all our gear unto the kayak and slowly paddled towards Beach Culture restaurant

tired from all that paddling we decided to take a rest and have dinner at Beach Culture@WaterCross.

if you have a budget of $15 you can always give here a shot.The food is good and so is the ambiance.

fishing tip of the day?

know your fish feeding times well and you'll be able to get consistent catches.

Cheers and peace out

-Abel