Fishing advice

[samuttodd]

Hey everybody, recently I bought a surf ski and spend a lot of time on a river near the Chao Phraya.

The nice thing about the surfski,   is that I can cover 20-30 km easily in a day.

 

It is heavily tidal influenced and has areas of the mangrove Forest that flood during the higher tides offering lots of places for fish to hide in the tangles of the roots. I thought it might be fun to see if I can catch anything with my small spinning rod and some top water imitation frogs and spinner baits like I could use for bass back in the USA.

 

I'm wondering if anybody has any ideas of what kind of fish Live in those areas that are salty and fresh   The tidal estuaries.   

 

 

There are also numerous canals that are appx 10-40 meters across, and many of them are full of good cover for fish... Lilipad type stuff and reed beds etc.

 

Would those be good with topwater baits,  crankbaits or even floating flies?    I am not certain if there are snakehead in the canals nearby,  since they are salt and fresh depending on the tides.

 

 

 

I also considered trolling silver spoons in the gulf near where the chao phraya and Tha Jin enter it.

Is there anything out there that might hit it?  

 

 

 

Seemed worth a try.

 

Any advice?

 

[impulse]

Rock up in front of any temple on the Chao Phraya and you can catch thousands of catfish on topwater.  But be ready to scoot, because the locals won't take kindly.

 

I'd suggest a visit to one or more of the local fishing parks and talk about it with the well equipped guys you find there.  My favorite was Pilot 111 where I could always find some local guys who know a lot about fishing for snakehead.  I've never seen it done on the Chao Phraya, but that doesn't mean much.   A lot of guys fish for them on the river near the Death Railway Bridge in K-Buri.  I call it the River Kwai, but apparently that's just the name they gave it to match the movie and draw tourists...

 

[samuttodd]

I'm going to the mouth of the river this morning on a high tide.    Going to hit the areas in the mangroves with a topwater frog.... maybe I'll catch something.    I'll give you a full report

 

[melvinmelvin]

should be plenty to catch, don't know what kind of fish though

 

catch and release should be safe, but mind you Chao Praya and associated klongs are quite polluted,

doubt that its healthy to regularly consume fish from these waters

 

as far as tidal and salt water is concerned,

when the water level is relatively high in the gulf the tidal and salt water

reaches all the way up and into Pathum Thani,

ie through Samuth Prakan - Bangkok - Nonthaburi and well into Pathum

 

Ayudaya should be all fresh

 

The guy who used to deliver water/beer and so to my house is very keen on fishing,

he uses a bare hook with a big dash of boiled rice on as bait,

and he gets a lot of fish

 

 

 

[Lee4Life]

I have tried off and on for years to catch fish up here in NongKhai, both in the Mekong and local lakes. I have used worms, ant eggs, grubs, and all kinds of trout, panfish and bass lures from back home. The only thing I seem to be able to catch are the locals fishing nets (they are supposed to mark them but usually don't).

    I haven't tried the fishing tip that a local gave me the other day for the Mekong. He said to use a long strip of Talapia skin with a small bit of meat on it near the hook and put it under a bobber.

[rickudon]

In freshwater, in Thailand, about the only common predator you are likely to catch is a snakehead. And they are not that easy to catch - my total is one in 10 years! Admittedly i do not lure fish often, maybe just a couple of times a year - because it isn't that easy. Most common freshwater fish are mainly vegetarians.

 

In brackish/saltwater probably more likely to get something, but I do not live near the sea.

[mrwebb8825]

On 2/7/2020 at 12:56 AM, impulse said:

I'd suggest a visit to one or more of the local fishing parks and talk about it with the well equipped guys you find there. 

Really? ???? Think he has his own rod but...

Saltwater:pick up some saltwater prawns or small cuttlefish for bait. Steel leaders and slip weights above the leader. Deep water fish don't usually strike the surface. Make sure you have 120 lb test line and your pole can handle it. No, you probably won't catch a 120+lb fish but the water and depth make a 20lb fish pull like they weight 10x that.

Inland: Steel leader, 20-40lb line, slip weight above leader and below bobber with that 'cornmeal' style bait (not sure of the name but you can get it many places. It's what many fishing parks use) You basically mash a small ball of it around your hook like referenced above with the use of rice.

There ARE 400+lb rays in these rivers and the barb WILL do damage so take care what you reel in close on your surf ski. With some luck you'll land a nice buramundi. Great filetted on a grill wrapped in foil with garlic, butter and lemon.

Edited February 20, 2020 by mrwebb8825

[impulse]

7 hours ago, mrwebb8825 said:

On 2/6/2020 at 11:56 AM, impulse said:

I'd suggest a visit to one or more of the local fishing parks and talk about it with the well equipped guys you find there. 

Really? ???? Think he has his own rod but...

 

I love it when posters here just can't stand the fact that there are very competent Thai people who rock up in their 3 million baht SUV's with 50,000 baht worth of fishing equipment.  That's all they brought to the fishing park, because their salt water gear is of no use to them at Pilot 111.

 

I've watched some of those guys, and they'll outfish the average foreigner 5:1 at the fishing park.  I've spoken to them at the center, and they fish all over Thailand.  They're a wealth of good information for anyone who can get over their prejudice.

 

 

 

 

[GarryP]

13 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

I love it when posters here just can't stand the fact that there are very competent Thai people who rock up in their 3 million baht SUV's with 50,000 baht worth of fishing equipment.  That's all they brought to the fishing park, because their salt water gear is of no use to them at Pilot 111.

 

I've watched some of those guys, and they'll outfish the average foreigner 5:1 at the fishing park.  I've spoken to them at the center, and they fish all over Thailand.  They're a wealth of good information for anyone who can get over their prejudice.

 

 

 

 

I'd always ask a local over anyone else. They usually know what's best for the area you are fishing in. Luckily, I speak the lingo. 

[impulse]

8 minutes ago, GarryP said:

I'd always ask a local over anyone else. They usually know what's best for the area you are fishing in. Luckily, I speak the lingo. 

 

+1

 

Hard as it is for some here to believe, Thailand has fishing tournaments.  They have fishing clubs and fishing Facebook groups and lots of websites devoted to fishing.  They even have fishing celebrities.  I've met a few at some of the lakes, and when I told the guys back at work who I ran into, they knew the names.  I've even got some Thai fishing team shirts, given to me by guys that I met while fishing.

 

Edited February 20, 2020 by impulse

[GarryP]

43 minutes ago, impulse said:

 

+1

 

Hard as it is for some here to believe, Thailand has fishing tournaments.  They have fishing clubs and fishing Facebook groups and lots of websites devoted to fishing.  They even have fishing celebrities.  I've met a few at some of the lakes, and when I told the guys back at work who I ran into, they knew the names.  I've even got some Thai fishing team shirts, given to me by guys that I met while fishing.

 

I used to buy the Thai fishing magazines a long while ago. Don't know if they still publish them though.  

 

Oz Bangkokhooker has a Youtube channel and some good videos. In Thai language with Englsih subtitles.

[mrwebb8825]

9 hours ago, GarryP said:

I used to buy the Thai fishing magazines a long while ago. Don't know if they still publish them though.  

 

Oz Bangkokhooker has a Youtube channel and some good videos. In Thai language with Englsih subtitles.

sorry but "bangkokhooker" is not a search I'll be doing at work. might look from home.

[mrwebb8825]

11 hours ago, impulse said:

 

I love it when posters here just can't stand the fact that there are very competent Thai people who rock up in their 3 million baht SUV's with 50,000 baht worth of fishing equipment.  That's all they brought to the fishing park, because their salt water gear is of no use to them at Pilot 111.

 

I've watched some of those guys, and they'll outfish the average foreigner 5:1 at the fishing park.  I've spoken to them at the center, and they fish all over Thailand.  They're a wealth of good information for anyone who can get over their prejudice.

 

 

 

 

WHOOSH! Right over your head it went. ????