jackinbkk

I started fishing on summer holidays to Ireland at my grand parents about 25 years ago. Just spinning for mackerel but I loved it. It used to make me want the summer to come quickly. Anyway from there I got a few rods and used similar methods spinning for Pike as a teenager.
Up until last year I pretty much never went fishing unless I was in Thailand but this year I decided to get a ticket for UK carp fishing.

So today I picked up 20kg of wheat bran. It's used as horse feed, and cost me 400 baht.(£8) I havent opened it up yet but i'm expecting it to be just like lam (rice bran). I am going to see if I can catch an English carp using the same method as you would for a siamese carp but with maybe a bread/corn hook bait. (Maybe on a hair rig) Using some 12lb line. Probably adding fishy flavours rather than sweet flavours.

What do you guys think? Anyone experienced with catching carp back in Europe, US or Aus etc?

It's going to be a challenge and anglers here will think i'm mad but I can't wait.

I tried massage bread a few times but the weather was still cold. No results yet.

I have spent the past 2 weeks fishing Gnao nam. Not every day. Mainly one day fishing, oneday off. The last time I was here was 12 months ago. The flooding at the end of 2011 has certainly taken it's toll. The average size of the fish is much lower. There has also been far more young fish put into the lake. It also seems the fishing is far more difficult.

On my 1st day I caught a single pla buek. This was the day I tried braid and I don't think I will ever use it again for fishing busy Thai lakes. You can see the other thread for why. On the 2nd day I caught nothing but lost 2 or 3 hooked fish. The third day was slightly better. 5 hooked fish and 3 landed. Still the size of the fish was disappointing. I am still sure however that the fish I hooked on the 2nd day was one of the biggest I have hooked to date. The reasons why. It was hooked at long range near the wall with houses behind it. I have often found big fish there. It never changed speed or direction. It just didn't care it was hooked. This is usually the sign of a monster. It also didn't care that I was running a lot of drag. The reel I used was dual drag with 50lb line, more than enough for most fish.

By the end of the first 5 days of fishing I was pretty annoyed. I was going to try some other venues. I tried one other venue in ratchaburi but it also proved disappointing. I decided in the end to stick with it at gnao nam. On many days I had nearly the whole place to myself which I prefer to busy places. The price is great too.

The introduction of new fish seems to mean that many do not now favour lam as they did in the past. Bread seems the most productive method and fishing on the bottom seems to be the preferred method now. I still think however that lam has the best potential for the biggest fish. The unbaited hook seems to catch bigger fish as they create a bigger flow of water when they do eat lam. The remaining big residents will still remember feeding on lam. The down side is bread will catch you 3,4 or 5 times as many fish in the same time period. Big Fish are not averse to bread but small fish find it just as easy to eat and get hooked by. So I feel bread results in many fish but often smaller fish.

Anyway after 2 weeks my catches have improved. On my last 3 trips I caught 7, 12 and finally 26 fish in a single sessions of 6 to 7 hours. 10+ fish is pretty good for gnao nam.

I do feel now that I would recommend bung samran over gnao nam to tourists, otherwise they will probably go home disappointed. This is the first time I have ever felt this way. Gnao nam still has the ability to throw up some massive catches. I still see people getting spooled by leviathans. It is just that it has gotten much more difficult. There is still a huge amount of bait going into the water on a daily basis so I hope gnao nam will recover soon.

-Jack

Hi does anyone know of any hotels in the Bang khae area? Cheap is fine as i'll be out most hours. I just need a double bed to sleep in. Something close to a fishing venue.

http://maps.google.c...h&z=17&vpsrc=0>

Thanks

-Jack

I like to make this bait myself when it is not available.

Here is a great demonstration by a Thai angler:

http://www.youtube.c...OyLJp2LI#t=152s

When I made mine I would mix coconut milk, water, bread and sometimes lam in a big bowl. I would then walk on it until it turned like thick mud.

Hi,
I have some questions that I hope some of you can help me with. My girlfriend of about 5 years has just recently got UK residence. We are often travelling between UK and Thailand. Right now RBS are getting away with daylight robbery whenever I send money to my girlfriends bangkok bank account from England. My income is from the UK.

Can she now open an account with the London branch of Bangkok bank? Can I open one? (I am a UK and Irish citizen).
Will this make it cheaper to transfer money back to Thailand?

I have read that Halifax do good rates. If this is the best method I could open an account with them instead.

Thanks

-Jack