Lures For Freshwater Fish

sceadugenga · October 29, 2009

A mate brought up a decent light saltwater spinning rig that I had left with him a few years back and we bought a cheap minnow lure at the local market and flicked it around at the local lake. Twice something largish came up and took a look. I felt that with a better lure we could have held their interest.

Some locals were bait fishing nearby without success.

It's not a stocked lake, just a large dam that I've seen produce some good gourami and catfish.

amja · October 29, 2009

A mate brought up a decent light saltwater spinning rig that I had left with him a few years back and we bought a cheap minnow lure at the local market and flicked it around at the local lake. Twice something largish came up and took a look. I felt that with a better lure we could have held their interest.
Some locals were bait fishing nearby without success.

It's not a stocked lake, just a large dam that I've seen produce some good gourami and catfish.

hi! I could not help to make a joke abuot this!

Is your bald head a lure?

Seriously, iWold like to know waht you use!

If you can make some pics I would be hAPPY!

Randell · October 29, 2009

A mate brought up a decent light saltwater spinning rig that I had left with him a few years back and we bought a cheap minnow lure at the local market and flicked it around at the local lake. Twice something largish came up and took a look. I felt that with a better lure we could have held their interest.
Some locals were bait fishing nearby without success.

It's not a stocked lake, just a large dam that I've seen produce some good gourami and catfish.

I would be interested in that information as well. I am still in Canada but will be arriving Chiang Rai soon. If there is some lures that I could pick up that aren't available or more easely procured in Canada.Any suggestions would be appreciated. Not much of a fisherman but do enjoy it. And if any body in the Chiang Rai area would like some certain lures picked up let me know I will be arriving on the Nov 26th. I look forward to doing a bit of fishing. I have never had the time befor and will be visiting for more of an externded holiday this year. Randell

sceadugenga · October 30, 2009

Thanks for the insults amja, I'm sure you'll have a long and happy career with ThaiVisa.com. However the photo is take by me, not of me but I'm sure you'll find enough pictures of bald heads on the internet to keep you satisfied.

Genuine thanks Randall, I'll be back in Australia in six weeks myself and have access to most fishing tackle then. I'm just curious to know if there are any successful lure fisherman in Thailand. I suspect Gourami will take a small lure, they have the teeth of an occasional predator. I intend to get some lures to try known as Wonder Wobblers, a small spoon. I'm not keen on the spinner type, I have too much problem with line twist.

Randell · October 30, 2009

Thanks for the insults amja, I'm sure you'll have a long and happy career with ThaiVisa.com. However the photo is take by me, not of me but I'm sure you'll find enough pictures of bald heads on the internet to keep you satisfied.
Genuine thanks Randall, I'll be back in Australia in six weeks myself and have access to most fishing tackle then. I'm just curious to know if there are any successful lure fisherman in Thailand. I suspect Gourami will take a small lure, they have the teeth of an occasional predator. I intend to get some lures to try known as Wonder Wobblers, a small spoon. I'm not keen on the spinner type, I have too much problem with line twist.

No problems Sceadugenga. Where are some of the places you enjoy fishing if I may be so bold to ask? I live out along the road to the Waterford Valley by Vien Nua but have never been fishing in the north. Spent a lot of years down in Phuket did some fresh and on the salt but nothing up north . So any pointer or sugestions would be apperciatered cheers Randell

antony77 · October 30, 2009

try Thai-a-Fly a big company in Chiangmai. But the lures may be oly for export

antony77 · October 30, 2009

A mate brought up a decent light saltwater spinning rig that I had left with him a few years back and we bought a cheap minnow lure at the local market and flicked it around at the local lake. Twice something largish came up and took a look. I felt that with a better lure we could have held their interest.
Some locals were bait fishing nearby without success.

It's not a stocked lake, just a large dam that I've seen produce some good gourami and catfish.

I would be interested in that information as well. I am still in Canada but will be arriving Chiang Rai soon. If there is some lures that I could pick up that aren't available or more easely procured in Canada.Any suggestions would be appreciated. Not much of a fisherman but do enjoy it. And if any body in the Chiang Rai area would like some certain lures picked up let me know I will be arriving on the Nov 26th. I look forward to doing a bit of fishing. I have never had the time befor and will be visiting for more of an externded holiday this year. Randell

just thought I'd mention that chiang saen lake looked pretty productive. its not far from chiangrai. as for lures i would buy a selection and try each one. I prefer trying different kinds of bait. I think gouramis prefer bait.

sceadugenga · October 30, 2009

No problems Sceadugenga. Where are some of the places you enjoy fishing if I may be so bold to ask? I live out along the road to the Waterford Valley by Vien Nua but have never been fishing in the north. Spent a lot of years down in Phuket did some fresh and on the salt but nothing up north . So any pointer or sugestions would be apperciatered cheers Randell

To my shame I must admit until last week I hadn't wet a line in Thailand. My wife has been the fisherman of the family and prefers stocked ponds. She goes regularly and catches gourami quite successfully. The best bait is live small shrimp which is hard to get and harder to keep alive.

There are a few local dams and a lot of interesting looking streams in the mountains.

try Thai-a-Fly a big company in Chiangmai. But the lures may be oly for export

Thanks 'Tony, I'll make inquiries.

just thought I'd mention that chiang saen lake looked pretty productive. its not far from chiangrai. as for lures i would buy a selection and try each one. I prefer trying different kinds of bait. I think gouramis prefer bait.

Chiang Saen is a fair way away from my place, I'm about 20km south of Chiang Rai but the whole area between us and the Mekong and west to the Burma border is full of small rivers and lakes. The Mae Kok, which runs between Chiang Rai and Thaton on the border looks particularly promising.

quiksilva · October 30, 2009

The best lures I have used in freshwater are simple gold or silver spoons fixed with trebles.

If you are after snakeheads then the surface fished frog shaped lures, that float with a prop at the front, work great too, creating lots of bubbles and noise on the surface, which can annoy these territorial fish into striking

GarryP · October 30, 2009

The tackle shops here stock all the lures you will need for Thailand and I am pretty sure that they are a lot cheaper than back in your home country. The spoon QS has posted above can be had for between 45-65 Baht, or ones that at least look the same. There is so much choice, but I tend to go with spoons on large open water but pop for spinners in smaller environments or sometimes rubber worm jigs. The surface poppers also work great. You'll notice that the above frog only uses a double and this is so it can skip over suface plants without getting fouled. I have used frogs a few times but I have more luck with spoons and spinners.

sceadugenga · October 30, 2009

Thanks guys, the top spoon looks interesting. I'll have a run down to Chiang Mai next week and see if I can find a tackle shop there.

IanForbes · October 31, 2009

The choice of lure depends on where you are fishing and what species you are fishing for. In the dammed reservoirs that are open to the public there is competition between the locals who fish for food with nets and the occasional angler who is out for sport. The problem with the reservoirs is most were never cleared of brush and trees before they were flooded. That means anything used below the murky surface is questionable. Any sunken lure is likely to get snagged. Spoons and sunken lures are okay out in the middle of the lake but not so good close to shore where all the brush is. When the reservoirs start to dry up in February there can sometimes be sunken islands without brush, but you can never be sure where they are without a sounder.

The local anglers use a variety of wooden or plastic popper type plugs. Most Thai fishing shops have a selection. Sometimes the anglers add a big spinner in front of the lure to add more "noise". One of the spinners is in front of the frog lure illustrated above. They are purchased separately from the lures.

The two most common species for anglers fishing reservoirs are Giant snakeheads and Jungle perch. Both species hang close to shore and in brushy areas... but Snakeheads even more so. Accurate casting is a must and you have to get as tight to the brush as possible. Snakeheads are extremely fast swimmers and it's almost impossible to retrieve a lure fast enough to keep it from them if they actually want it. The best retrieve is very fast and smooth, and not chug-chug-chug like you might for bass in North America. The moment the lure lands you have to start retrieving immediately or the snakehead will ignore it. Very often you can see one or two following the lure before they turn away.

The pay for play ponds are entirely different. The bottom of the ponds are usually clear of brush and the fish are stocked and numerous. But, they have been fished for very often and are more wary. Live bait or dough bait are the two most common methods of fishing. Live bait is used for the imported exotic species like arapaima or Peacock bass. The dough bait is used for for large, Mekong catfish. Other species will eat shrimp or grubs suspended just off the bottom. And, there is seldom any room for the fly casting that I like to do.

I mostly fly fish, but it is much more difficult and the results are not as good. Even with spinning tackle you have to make hundreds of casts before catching anything. The biggest problem with a fly is making the hundreds of casts necessary before finding a willing fish, and then retrieving the fly quickly enough to get a strike. It can be very arm tiring.

These are some of the flies we use for snakeheads and Jungle perch, but you can't buy them in Thailand. I tie all my own flies. In fact it is next to impossible to find ANY fly tackle in Thailand. YOu must bring your own. But, spinning tackle, lures and various baits are available in many fishing shops.

A small snakehead with one of my home tied "flures"

A small pacu with a similar "flure" that swims right in the surface. Sometimes I put plastic popper heads ahead of the flure to make more disturbance on the surface.

An underwater shot of a Jungle perch taken on a home made "flure" fished with a fly rod.

This is snakehead territory in a big reservoir...

The retrieve across the surface after casting right into the brush...

The strike...

sceadugenga · October 31, 2009

Thank you Ian, that is a GREAT post.

IanForbes · October 31, 2009

This is Dream Park private lake outside of Chiang Mai. I forget the cost, but it's reasonable. I think most fishing stores in Chiang Mai would have brochures and they could instruct a taxi how to get there. The pay for play ponds are almost all catch and release fishing. The owners will instruct you what species might be kept. All exotic species must be released.

Anglers fish from shore or one of the little shanties for rent. You can easily walk right around the pond.

They have 6 or 7 "pet" arapaimas that "Sometimes" take live bait... usually goldfish. The arapaimas are about 5 feet long.

They also have common snakeheads that sometimes strike lures. Snakeheads have a rudamentary lung and can actually breath out of water. The common snakehead is similar to a Giant snakehead and has similar habits, but adapt better to small ponds. Giant snakeheads do better in large reservoirs.

Dream Park also has a number of Peacock bass that will sometimes take a fly or lure, but are not an easy target. They refuse more lures than they bite.

The silver barb and breem are more commonly caught on bait.

The most common catch and release species are the giant Mekong catfish that can reach weights of over 200 Kg (400 pounds). Most are caught on a dough bait pressed into a steel coil with hooks hanging around the outside. You can buy them in any fishing shop. We catch them with a white rabbit fur fly that looks like bread. We chum the water with bait before casting the fly into the school of feeding fish.

Edited October 31, 2009 by IanForbes

Randell · November 1, 2009

Wonderful pictures and great information Ian very informative. thanks Randell

IanForbes · November 3, 2009

These are a few of the "flures" I use with my fly rod. The ones without hooks are tubeflies fastened around a hollow plastic tube. The leader threads through the tube and a hook is then tied on at the rear of the flure. The tubeflies have foam inside their mylar bodies and they float on the surface. There is a plastic popper head to create more disturbance on the surface. There are also a couple of frog lures made of hard foam. They skid across the surface when retrieved.

These are small plastic plugs that swim near the surface and can be cast with a spinning rod. They work well for Jungle perch and snakeheads.

neverdie · November 3, 2009

Some great info there Ian, thankyou. I especially enjoy the great photographs.

quiksilva · November 4, 2009

Great shots of the snakehead catch well done,

Ps how on earth did you get that underwater shot?

IanForbes · November 4, 2009

Great shots of the snakehead catch well done,
Ps how on earth did you get that underwater shot?

I used to use an underwater housing for my little Pentax point and shoot. It did quite well until the camera got stolen. Every housing is dedicated to each specific camera and cost almost as much as the camera itself. Now I use a Pentax W30 that is good down to about 10 feet. I mostly shoot underwater nearer the surface because of lighting problems. After Pentax came out with their waterproof cameras the other manufacturers started doing so. The Canon D10 is a good one that MIGHT be better than the Pentax. However, for any DEEP diving it is recommended to use a proper underwater housing.

The problem with point and shoot cameras taking pictures underwater is lighting and focusing. When the subject is moving quickly (like swimming fish) a point and shoot camera can't focus quickly enough and won't fire. To bipass that problem I prefocus the camera at a set distance I expect the fish to be... and then just hope for the best. I have better luck with stationary fish, or very slowly moving fish. Another problem is most point and shoot cameras have a little delay between the time you press the shutter and when the picture is actually taken. The better SLR cameras do not have that problem.