Fishing After Tuna, Sail Fish, Big Game Fish

[MZurf]

I have just bought a boat and will soon start fishing in the Trat area. What I'm looking to catch are larger fish like tuna and sail fish, or other large species. My problem is I don't know much about how to catch this type of fish.

I could go and buy some lures in the shop and start trolling doing around 4-5 knots, but is this the best way to do it? Any advice would be most welcome.

[Albacore]

Have you considered using live bait in combination with teasers? This seems to be an extremely effective way to entice sailfish. What sort of gear do you have? I've done a lot of shark and ray fishing, but my tuna (albacore) fishing experience is quite limited, and it's been a long time since I've been out to sea. Let me know if you need a first mate. I'd love any excuse to get away from filthy, crowded Bangkok and out to beautiful Trat and the sea again.

[MZurf]

Have you considered using live bait in combination with teasers? This seems to be an extremely effective way to entice sailfish. What sort of gear do you have? I've done a lot of shark and ray fishing, but my tuna (albacore) fishing experience is quite limited, and it's been a long time since I've been out to sea. Let me know if you need a first mate. I'd love any excuse to get away from filthy, crowded Bangkok and out to beautiful Trat and the sea again.

No, I haven't considered that. How would I go about setting that up - a couple of hooks through a piece of fish a few centimeters before a lure and then trolling with this?

I'll PM you if/when the missus gets bored with the whole thing:D

[sbk]

DH fishes extensively and really, from what I have seen, local knowledge trumps whatever bait or lure you choose to use. Fish will feed on different baits at different times of the year and depending on wind and waves will feed in different areas too.

Your best bet is to make friends with a local guy who knows what he is doing. And watch him closely.

[MZurf]

DH fishes extensively and really, from what I have seen, local knowledge trumps whatever bait or lure you choose to use. Fish will feed on different baits at different times of the year and depending on wind and waves will feed in different areas too.

Your best bet is to make friends with a local guy who knows what he is doing. And watch him closely.

I have had the same idea about trying to befriend some locals and trying to learn their secrets after generously refilling their glasses . Alas, their favorite fishing spots are a closely kept secret.

I talked to a fishing trip operator in Bang Bao and he was bemoaning the fact that one captain he fired had copied the positions of all the good spots and then erased it from the GPS before leaving.

Wish I knew his name!

BTW, who is DH?

[sbk]

dear hubby, sorry

he doesn't do tours or anything, just takes the occasional good friend fishing as he is quite serious about it and doesn't much respect people who view fishing as an excuse to drink beer.

[impulse]

Out of curiosity, looking at all the fishing boats plying the relatively small Gulf of Thailand, is the fishing good enough to justify the cost of taking a boat out? I can't imagine too many fish smart enough to dodge the wall to wall nets and lines.

I'm a catch and release kind of guy, so I'm not looking for a meat haul to "justify" the trip. But I've spent way too many days and dollars on offshore trips where we could have done just as well drowning worms in the little pond down the street.

[MZurf]

Out of curiosity, looking at all the fishing boats plying the relatively small Gulf of Thailand, is the fishing good enough to justify the cost of taking a boat out? I can't imagine too many fish smart enough to dodge the wall to wall nets and lines.

I'm a catch and release kind of guy, so I'm not looking for a meat haul to "justify" the trip. But I've spent way too many days and dollars on offshore trips where we could have done just as well drowning worms in the little pond down the street.

Judging by what the fishing boats bring in on a daily basis I would say that there is still fish to be caught. Luckily they're not using the kind of industrial fishing equipment that has depleted much of the world's fish stock.

[sbk]

He fishes within about 300m of the reef, which is where fish feed. There aren't nearly as many fish as there used to be, no, and you have to be smart to catch them these days. Large fishing trawlers used to come and strip the reef bare years ago but after complaints fell on deaf ears locals took it in their own hands and started shooting at the fishing trawlers, they stopped coming by so often. Fish stocks have come back a bit but nothing like it was when he was young he says.

[mogandave]

Charter the best operation you can find and take a hand-held GPS with you, but don't let them see it.

Maybe try one of the new cameras that have built in GPS!

[jackinbkk]

Charter the best operation you can find and take a hand-held GPS with you, but don't let them see it.

Maybe try one of the new cameras that have built in GPS!

GPs in many phones too...

[robblok]

Charter the best operation you can find and take a hand-held GPS with you, but don't let them see it.

Maybe try one of the new cameras that have built in GPS!

GPs in many phones too...

Problem is when your signal is gone... (and that happens out on the ocean) your gps is gone too.

[impulse]

My Android phone and GPS can be entirely independent of each other. The phone's GPS works even when I take the SIM card out.

The GPS system can use the phone's triangulation between towers to show an approximate location when satellites aren't visible, and the phone can (so I've heard) rat out my location to anyone snooping by forking over the GPS coordinates.

But neither one of them will fail if the other one goes down.

Edited January 29, 2012 by impulse

[robblok]

Ok then i learned something new. Thanks i thought it was the phones sim card that did the work

[jackinbkk]

Caught owt yet MZurf?

[valentino4665]

Hi i also live on koh chang i have been here for 6 years and i have owned various boats ,i fish here on average 3 times a week, i also am friends with thai fisherman and neither i or any of them have ever caught sailfish or tuna ,the best fishing is off an around koh kood ,my boat is too small to go that far ,

but i have caught barracuda , gourow ( fourfinger threadfin) they are a great fight and also caught spanish makeral , most of the time with live squid, i have trolled alot with a little success ,

good luck

cheers nick

[MZurf]

Hi i also live on koh chang i have been here for 6 years and i have owned various boats ,i fish here on average 3 times a week, i also am friends with thai fisherman and neither i or any of them have ever caught sailfish or tuna ,the best fishing is off an around koh kood ,my boat is too small to go that far ,

but i have caught barracuda , gourow ( fourfinger threadfin) they are a great fight and also caught spanish makeral , most of the time with live squid, i have trolled alot with a little success ,

good luck

cheers nick

I have now used my new boat for the first time and although the boat did not disappoint, the fishing did. After spending quite a lot of time talking to the locals I now know that the area has far fewer game fish/ larger fish than just a few years ago. They say the reason is the large amount of squid fishing vessels that have just emptied the waters of the most important source of food for larger fish. Huge disappointment.

Anyway, I will not give up. I still seek local info on fishing spots and methods, and the consensus seems to be that live bait is the best, followed by trolling.

Nick, you seem to be in the know about local conditions and best fishing places and methods. Maybe you could share?

Cheers,

MZurf

[jackinbkk]

You have to keep trying. I have seen pictures of sailfish and tuna. The problem is anyone who knows where to find them isnt going to want to increase his competition.

I'm sure they are very far and few between as well.

[jackinbkk]

How about this for awesome from Australia. Black marlin (Makaira indica) from shore!

[jackinbkk]

[55Jay]

dear hubby, sorry

he doesn't do tours or anything, just takes the occasional good friend fishing as he is quite serious about it and doesn't much respect people who view fishing as an excuse to drink beer.

"he is quite serious about it and doesn't much respect people who view fishing as an excuse to drink beer." Right on! Also has no place whilst operating a boat off shore.

[patongphil]

You have to keep trying. I have seen pictures of sailfish and tuna. The problem is anyone who knows where to find them isnt going to want to increase his competition.

I'm sure they are very far and few between as well.

Somebody killed a sailfish - my heart cries!!!

[rsokolowski]

You have to keep trying. I have seen pictures of sailfish and tuna. The problem is anyone who knows where to find them isnt going to want to increase his competition.

I'm sure they are very far and few between as well.

Somebody killed a sailfish - my heart cries!!!

I have fished in Hawaii since 1988. I have caught numerous Marlin (up to 532 lbs) and Yellowfin Tuna (over 150 lbs), but in this time I have only caught a handful of sailfish. Here in Hawaii billfish are considered food fish and I tried eating the first one I caught, but they are not very good table fare. If I catch a sailfish now they are released. You might be able to make smoked fish out of it, but probably better to release the sailfish to fisht another day.