Pasir Ris Sungei Api Api catch report 4 - first trip out

this is not our most recent trip.However this trip took place just this january 2014.

This was our second trip ever to Sungei Api Api Bridge.

How did we settle at this place?back in 2012, I had caught my very first Kim Bak Lor/Barramundi at this very spot.through the 2 years,out of the 4 trips I had made here,I had managed to hook up 2 more kim bak lor/barramundi!So I thought it'll be a good idea to introduce this spot to my fellow friends!

Still lost?the nearest bus stop is just a minute's walk away!bus 403!

So our first catch was by Ghetto Fisherman Ong with his lovely huge Swamp eel that did a suicide barrel roll afterwards against the metal railings. It fought hard and even held itself on structures just below the bridge.Took roughly about 5mins to reel it up! Many who had passed by thought it was a water snake by its shear size. the rig was eventually cut off because the eel had left a slime layer that began to set into a white and opague viscous gel.First time they have ever witness this!but of course with enough experience now we have managed to find a solution of unhooking the eel before it is given the opportunity to coil itself onto the rig.

Here's our first eeltail of the night!also the first eeltail many of us have seen!so when we were removing the hook,some were alittle squirmish about the slime and smell the catfish produced. Catfishes tend to produce an anti-bacterial slime to protect the body from any injuries sustained from predator attacks or just obstacles that snag on the catfish's body.here's isaac with one of his first few "wild" fish hahahas after months of just pay pond fishing.Always an exciting experience!the first but not the last for the night!

you've probably seen this catfish many times from our previous post but this is truely our first encounter with a Marine catfish!the feeling was different from an eeltail with a more efficient tail design,it is able to swim faster and therefore, it had put up quite a struggle but of course it was of no challenge to reel up.

This is the Sagor catfish.its just a juvenile so it was promptly released.

 just a side view of this fish before releasing.this catfish is easily identified by the shiny stripes that it possesses at the side .sometimes confused with the veined catfish,this species tends to have a silver skin.the fork tail design is also an indication and method of identifying this fish!off it goes to grow and thrive!

So there was a very long pause in which we though the fishes weren't feeding anymore but we stayed though the night into the AM zone and just as we were about to call it a night,the middle rod trembled and the bell sounded repeatedly!it was the first barramundi/Kim Bak Lor we ever caught as a group! as we reeled it in,we released that there was something strange with its swimming patterns and to our surprise when it was finally brought up,the hooks were found at the side of the fish just behind the gills.It was a foul hook!talk about the odds of that happening!So our first barramundi was technically caught without bait.

but a catch is a catch and the first kims went to none other than Alphaeus! he cooked it the teochew way afterwards and shared it with his family!Recipe?most definitely!

Recipe Link: http://fishingkims.blogspot.sg/2014/06/kim-bak-lorbarramundi-recipe.html

the fish weighed a total of 800g which was a decent size.we compared it with a 1.5L water bottle next to it to give you the perspective of the length.

thank goodness there were no puffers that night either.

With that we ended our night and headed home. it was the best first trip we ever had as a group and certainly not the last.

thanks for reading!if you're interested in how the fish was cooked do access with the link below!

Recipe Link: http://fishingkims.blogspot.sg/2014/06/kim-bak-lorbarramundi-recipe.html

Cheers and peace out

-Abel