Fishing set-up (Updated 08th Jan 2011)

Post by **Pearly** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 6:23 am

I went out with a new kayak buddy yesterday. Set out at 7:30am and returned at 4pm!- paddled out from Changi Ferry Terminal all the way to the southern tip of Singapore - about 4.5km one way. Coming back was tough though - against the current so effectively doubled the paddling distance. I guess with the current flow as it was, we must have paddled at least 15km!

We did catch a few fish though, so it was a successful mission. All the fish were released to grow bigger as all were under 1kg. First up were Tamban - the fish finder showed groups of fish so I tried to jig for tamban - each time I dropped, bang - up came a full line of Tamban! Next up were small Grouper and Johnsons. I was trolling a red/white Eupro lure on the way back and had a take. I thought I was stuck on a rock at first, but when I grabbed the rod, could feel a fish on the end. A beautifully marked Grouper about 800g came up.

Once again, paddling was great though tiring with a head-current!

Baby grouper likes the look of my new yak! He was particularly impressed with the fishfinder!!

Sea anchor in action - thanks Ikea!

Daddy-O · Post by **Daddy-O** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 5:53 pm

Way to go Pearly! It's great to see those pictures of the fish you caught. I am glad to hear that your fishfinder is working so well for you also. It looks like a great setup you've go there. How did you rod holders do? The Expedition really is a good looking kayak, isn't it. Congratulations!
Daddy-O
**EDIT** I just looked over your pictures again and noticed you IKEA sea anchor. Don't tell me that it is one of those IKEA shopping bags that you have dragging behind your kayak!

It sure does look like it. I've got a couple of those same bags. Hmmmm!

Post by **Pearly** » Mon Apr 13, 2009 7:10 pm

It is an IKEA bag! Just tie each end of about 10 to 12 feet of 100lb mono to each handle, cut a 1inch hole in the centre of the bottom panel and voila - DIY sea anchor! Works a treat. 2 would slow you down even more, but I'm OK with just 1. Just tie it to a convenient place on the yak (I just pass the line behind the seat strap), push it into the water and let it drag. To retrieve it, just pull on the top line and it comes in easy.

I'm going to mount the rod holders differently. Probably a little more vertically, but also a little lower down to give them more strength. I'm also going to try and mount the transducer inside the yak and go thru-hull. One guy has done it with Vaseline under the transducer and held it down with Duck Tape! Says he has had it like that for 5 years without any problem. The transducer will only work with no air bubbles between it and the water.

As for the fishing, Singapore is totally over-fished as they don't have any bag limits or size restrictions in place. A lot of people fish around this small island and take everything they catch, no matter how small, so it is increasingly difficult to get a decent fish. We are surrounded by netters and long-liners with no limits. A group of us are trying to promote catch and release, but it is an uphill struggle!

Post by **Pearly** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:01 pm

Busy plumbing again last night...

They now sit lower down. The original ones were too high making me into a contortionist trying to get the rods in and out.

The originals did make some groaning noises when I leaned back too far. Due to their size, I didn't glue the bottom elbows in and they came apart while fishing. The new ones are more compact so I've glued them all together with super-strong Araldite!

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Daddy-O · Post by **Daddy-O** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:35 pm

I think those rod holders look better now. How long are they now? BTW, I bet you could reach those things a lot better than my fat carcass could.

I will be taking a trip back to the states in about a month. I am planning on picking up some rods and reels at that time. I get some lures also. I can get my milk crate, rod holder setup fixed up before hand, though, if I can find some time to do it. How did you like your fish finder? I don't know if you should use duct tape on these kayaks (for your fishfinder). I seem to remeber reading that something in the tape is not good for the kayak material. Maybe you should send a pm to the site administrator to ask him about it. I'd hate to hear that the duct tape ate a hole through your new kayak.

Daddy-O

Post by **Pearly** » Tue Apr 14, 2009 8:04 pm

The holders are 11 inches long - they would have been 12, but I only had one piece of tube left - and it was 22 inches long! Shop shut, impatient, what to do??

The fish-finder is great for showing structure on the bottom. It keeps showing fish, but they didn't take my live prawn! They are either smart or vegetarian!

Good idea about the tape - better check first.

I know it's safe with babies..

FYI: The original use was to keep moisture out of the ammunition cases. Because it was waterproof, people referred to the tape as "Duck Tape." Also, the tape was made using cotton duck - similar to what was used in their cloth medical tapes. Military personnel quickly discovered that the tape was very versatile and used it to fix their guns, jeeps, aircraft, etc. After the war, the tape was used in the booming housing industry to connect heating and air conditioning duct work together. Soon, the color was changed from Army green to silver to match the ductwork and people started to refer to duck tape as "Duct Tape."

Cheers,

Ian

Daddy-O · Post by **Daddy-O** » Wed Apr 15, 2009 2:10 am

Post by **Pearly** » Wed Apr 15, 2009 7:04 am

Post by **Pearly** » Thu Apr 16, 2009 8:03 pm

As for the Duck Tape (Duct Tape) - not recommended.

Found some Apollo Gaffer Tape - doesn't leave a sticky residue, so I can place the transponder each time I go out.

Post by **Pearly** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 4:33 am

Decided to try the East Coast today. Set off from the Fort Road end, but had a bit of bad luck. As I was setting up, I noticed a black mark on my pump. Now where did that come from? Oh no! Looked down at my feet and they had black crude oil between the toes and on the sides of my feet! After wiping that off, I noticed small balls of oil scattered on the beach and in the water! That was a bad start, but what to do? Keep fishing.

I trolled a couple of lures along for about 1km, but with no takes. The fish-finder was quiet, with a level bottom of around 20ft. As I passed one place, the bottom looked different. Beep, beep..beep..beeep.. FISH! I'd been seeing fish last week, but they weren't taking anything, so I thought I'd bling things up and try some flashy apollo rigs I'd had kicking around for years. On the very first drop, FISH ON!!! Ooooooooh BIG FISH, BIG FISH!! My rod is a PE2-4 and bent over nicely feeling violent shakes, but very rapid. The water was quite clear and spinning round in the water I could see fish - 3 fish!! One on each hook!!!! This has been my dream for so long - first drop and fish on!!

Thrilled to bits with these three, I tried again, over the same spot where the fish-finder showed the fish.......

BANG - FISH ON AGAIN!!!!

WOOOOHOOOOOOO!!!!

This time with a grouper!!!

Bye Master Grouper, see you again when you grow up - if I'm lucky!

After this, I tried a different rig - a normal apollo with 20lb flourocarbon hooklengths, one with squid and one with dead prawn, but no takers. Had a bite on the prawn meat, but only small.

Put on my super flasher and another take - straight away!

These fish are soooooo beautiful! I caught 9 of these, before deciding to leave them in peace and try another spot.

Paddled over to the Marina Barrage, but no takers there. The yellow bouys have a sign on them restricting boaters from going any further in. The bottom here is flat, with no fish showing, so I decided enough was enough and enjoyed the paddle back to base.

Don't need to stop at the filling station today!

HAPPY DAY!!!

Suntan · Post by **Suntan** » Fri Apr 24, 2009 4:15 am

Hi Pearly,
Thanks for sharing your adventures.
I just ordered an Advanceframe Convertible from the boat show in Singapore & shoud be getting it end May.
After the boat show, came back and Googled to see if I could get any info on advanceframe in Singapore & stumbled on your tread.
Seeing you having a great time with your kayak has affirmed my purchace and am looking foward in getting mine

I'm also into fishing, and your tread has given me some ideas of how to rig up the kayak.

Lure_Angler · Post by **Lure_Angler** » Fri Apr 24, 2009 7:08 am

Hey there!

I'm from Singapore too and i too ordered an Expedition.

For the benefit of those researching to buy one:

I ordered on Tuesday, 21 Apr. Paid about 777 SGD for it, inclusive shipping to vPost address in Oregon, USA.

It reached there this morning (1am). I should be able to make payment by 12pm tonight. vPost charges should be around 230 SGD.

With my yak, shipping, paddle (106 SGD), total cost should come up to be just over 1100.

And if vPost makes good their 5 to 8 days shipping time from US, then I should be getting it by 4th May, in time for me to haul it over to Tasmania for some

winter paddling.

We should all paddle together someday.

Cheers mate

Tian Chang.

PS: I bought everything from Air Kayaks. Fast response, fast shipping. Real great. Compared to another vendor I am now dealing with, which is like argh!

Suntan · Post by **Suntan** » Sat Apr 25, 2009 9:15 pm

Hi Tian Chang,
Lucky you, getting a new kayak & having a trip with it.

Must be cold there this time of year.
Did more googling and found this:
http://www.fishingkaki.com/forum/viewto ... sc&start=0
Pearly is also there & many more others from SG & My

Looking forward to kayaking together, with a nick like "Lure_Angler, I take it as you fish as well.
I've been boating for a long time with several boats passing through my hands but they are all powered boats, kayaking is new to me.

Post by **Pearly** » Sun Apr 26, 2009 5:49 pm

Pleased to see you made it to this forum too!

Still can't believe there's a new dealer in Singapore!! I could have saved SG$400 on the shipping!!

Anyway, I guess I've already had $400 worth of fun in it and more to come. If you guys need any help on the plumbing, let me know!

We really will have to have a kayak-fishing meet soon. I've found some really cool places to fish now. Lure fishing and bottom fishing available.

Suntan · Post by **Suntan** » Mon Apr 27, 2009 7:06 am

Canâ€™t put a price tag on having fun & being at sea.
Just like the advertisement from mastercard - â€œItâ€™s pricelessâ€