Malaysia Fishing Trip: Fishing Expedition 2011, East Coast of Malaysia | FishingAdvNHF

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    Many years ago when I was still schooling, I joined the school organized holiday trip to the Langkawi Island. We were told that we would have the chance to meet the Greenback Turtles which would come on shore to lay eggs. Too bad it didn't happen although we spent the whole night staring on the beach.

Toll Ticket of East Coast Highway Malaysia

    As times passed, I had my own family and two lovely children, the Greenback Turtles somehow came across my mind when I brought my family onto a holiday trip in Malaysia. It was a free & easy trip and we didn't really had any plan of going anywhere. We started off from Johor Bahru to Malacca, visited a few museums and continued to Kuala Lumpur, we spent the Christmas inside the Time Square Theme Park. The journey continued further north to Ipoh, where we visited caves and old temples. At Perak, We heard about the Tsunami disaster while we on our way towards Penang, many people were killed. That was in the year of 2004 Christmas day. We crossed the West Malaysia Peninsular horizontally from Penang via Kedah, visited Alor Star and entering Kelantan & Terengganu, the two Muslim populated states. I suggested visiting Rantau Abang, which is located in the state of Terengganu and it is the breeding ground of the famous Greenback Turtles. I was left with disappointment yet again due to the monsoon season, the area was closed as the high wave was not over yet and we were told that the Greenback Turtles wouldn't be there as well. 

    The following year we went on for yet another family holiday trip and we listed Rantau Abang as our first destination. That trip didn't fulfill my wish of meeting the Greenback Turtles either, so I guessed we were not fated to meet each other. I was so fascinated by the clear blue sea of this northern east coast beach during the trip and since then the idea of fishing here slowly overtook the wishes of meeting the Greenback Turtle. 

    I've been telling myself that one of this day, I should come here for fishing. However I was held back by other commitment and was not able to travel. It was not until six years later. On the 13th of March 2011, I finally made the long awaited fishing trip to the North-Eastern Coast of Malaysia. I planed to make Air Papan beach at Mersing my first destination and followed by Cherating beach at Pahang, lastly I would visit Rantau Abang beach at Terengganu. It would be a cross-state expedition which covered some 1000km in total distance.

    As this would be my first ever long journey fishing trip, I spent nearly one whole day to decide which gear to bring along. In the end, five pieces of fishing rods ranging from six feet to thirteen feet were selected, three Spinning reels and two multiplier drum reels to pair with them. I brought as many different sizes sinkers as I could and a tackle box full of hooks and swivels, a twelve feet Gaff and a ten feet nets were added. I even had a sleeping bag and a portable gas stove to tag along. 

   

 

    After the packing was done I went to take a nap and woke up at around 2am, as soon as I finished loading all the gears into my car I set off to Johor Bahru, it was already 3am in the morning. I went to the Pandan wet market which was still operating and bought some small fishes and prawns as baits. I began my journey towards my first destination Mersing, which is some 140km away from Johor Bahru. I reached Mersing at around 6am and decided to have my breakfast here, a bowl of Mee Soto was ordered at this Indian Eating house near to the Mersing round-about.

    The initial idea of making the Air Papan beach my first fishing destination was abandoned, I decided to head straight to Kuantan instead. Had a short break at Endau before I continued the journey. On my way I passed by Rompin and Pekan, two famous fishing ground for Sailfish. And finally after almost three hours of non-stop driving, I reached my first spot the Cherating, it is also where the Club Med is located.

    Stopped by at this Malay Eating House along the main road here for my second breakfast, I ordered the traditional local breakfast, Nasi Lemak. (Coconut milk rice with chili paste) 

     After the breakfast I went on to explore the Cherating beach and found the Club Med. Too bad they don't entertain walk-in guest, I couldn't get inside to have a look. I drove off from the place and came upon this spot, it is situated along the same stretch of the beach where the Club Med is.

    Decided to do some fishing here with three fishing rods set up, a Bottom Feeder rig was used on the Loomis & Franklin ten footer. A half cut small fish was hooked up and it was tossed into the South China Sea. The other two rods were on standby and I proceeded on to make my favorite beverage, the "Renggit White Coffee"

    

    Gentle sea breeze from the South China Sea made me sleepy, the swinging tree branches seems like singing "lullaby" to my ear...

     I would have to agree that this is definitely a fantastic place to relax, not for fishing. It is so peaceful and I was half asleep over the past three hours here, nothing was produced and I decided to move on.

    I continued the journey up north and followed the signboard which lead me to this stunning place, Kemasik Beach. The breath taking clear blue sky and the fine clean sand make the place a popular choice for professional photographers. 

    It's landscape seems like a carefully crafted master piece, huge rocks scattered along the shore line with some unknown greenery planted on it. The white cloud that hovering over the sky looked soft and gentle. As I walked towards the beach I was caressing by the warm sea breezes, it seems like delivering a message of welcome to me. 

    It was so peaceful here that I didn't even had the thought for fishing, I chose to relax myself at a shaded spot and lazying for the whole afternoon. Reluctantly I left the place in the evening and headed to town for dinner, I was too tired to continue after my dinner and I decided to spent a night here in my car.

    The next morning after my breakfast I drove up further north and came to this town, Kijal. Throughout my journey of fishing trip over the past years I always love to explore new places, this has become a routine for me whenever I travel and I had been doing this since 2006. I always look out for signboards for beaches and I did discover many beautiful places through this way. 

    Certain time I seek out on small roads or lanes which it's direction are leading towards the sea side, it could be a no-through road or just leading to a village, but I never stop trying. Places like the Punggai, Batu Layar and Kampung Gambu were all discovered in this way, my all time favorite fishing spot, the Air Papan beach was spotted when I travelling from Endau back to Mersing. 

    In this long journey fishing trip cum expedition I found this fascinating spot when I made a wrong turn, while doing the U-turn back I saw this narrow lane towards the sea side. Without hesitating me and my car bashed into this small lane and after a couples of turns I encounter it, the Kijal Star Cruise Abandoned Jetty. 

    P.S. Some updates on the Kijal Star Cruise Jetty, in 2012 I was told by the locals that this jetty was now belongs to the Awana Kijal Resort and was renamed Kijal Awana Jetty. In 2015 I made a returned visit and found out that the Awana kijal Resort was bought over by the mighty Genting Group, it was renamed as Resort World Kijal. Not sure if the jetty was renamed too, is it called Resort World Jetty now? 

    Another breath taking spot that I discovered and this is the spot that I revisited in 2012 and 2013. (Click on the highlighted link for the trips) I didn't make it on 2014 but I returned to the place in 2015. The Jetty is about two hundred meters long and it stretches out towards the South China Sea. 

    I was stunned by the beautiful crystal clear sea water and the strong wave that was pounding hard onto the jetty constantly. As I stepped onto the jetty slight tremble could be felt from my feet, the roaring of the huge wave was kind of scary and intimidating.

   

    From this angle the sea might looked calm, but deep down under the strong current was creating a turbulence which pushed up the sea water, eventually huge strong wave was formed. As it swept closer towards the beach it gather more momentum and finally smashed onto the beach as hard as it could. 

    I walked towards the end of the jetty to get the up close encounter with the Almighty Mother Nature creation. A larger platform was built here and two staircases were found on the both side, looking at it I wondered how the passengers managed to use it.  

    A huge but corroded warning signboard was found here at the edge of the jetty, it stood tall and lonely to deliver the message, PRIVATE PROPERTY, ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK. In 2015 when I returned to the place, this signboard was nowhere to be found.

    An extension platform from the jetty looked idea to fish from there, in fact I spotted a few huge shadows right underneath it. The thought of walking over to that platform was abandoned as the pipe was wet and slippery, not worth to take the risk.

  

  The Loomis & Franklin 10 footer was set up and paired with the Shimano Aero Symetre 4000, I set up another six footer to jig for some bait fish. I didn't have to wait long for some action, a Diamond Trevally a.k.a. Chermin or Ebek was hooked up on the six footer. It was weighed around 500 gram but it gave some fierce fight and gave some excitement.  

    My first ever long distance fishing cum expedition trip ended here at the Jetty. Although I didn't manage to land any monster fish at this fascinating spot, but I was excited for the discovering of this spot and the sightseeing along the journey would definitely worth for the effort here.

 

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DIY Fishing Rod Guides Wrapping Jig | FishingAdvNHF

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    A DIY project that I had made in 2009, the Fishing Rod Building Jig or Fishing Rod Guide Wrapping Jig. Back then whenever my rod guide broken I needed to send it to the tackle shop for repair which is a distance away from where I lived. Most of the time it also took quite a while to repair and I was forced to stay dry (no fishing) during the wait. Besides the long wait, the repairing cost of the rod guide is quite expensive too, I once broke the rod tip and it cost me $50 to had it replaced.

Broken guide

    I decided to do some researches on how to repair the fishing rod guide on my own. When I realized that it isn't that difficult to do it I began to practice on one of my fishing rod which suffered broken rod guide. Very soon after I found out that the wrapping work was quite a tedious job and I figured that a fishing rod guide wrapping jig might be helpful, it would also make the wrapping job faster.

Commercial Jig

Pro DIY Jig

Complicated DIY Jig

     Again more studies and researches was made, the ridiculous price tag for a commercial rod building jig forced me to start another DIY project, which was the Fishing Rod Guide Wrapping Jig. I went through the junk collection of mine and came out with a prototype of this fishing rod guide wrapping jig. It was made from a pair of Shower Sprinkler holders, a small AC fan motor and some other miscellaneous items. 

Shower Sprinkle Holder

Small AC Fan Motor

Push Button Control Switch

The Prototype

     After some test on the prototype I began to build the jig using some plywood, the end result was satisfying and I managed to increase the wrapping speed by ten fold! I started to proceed onto the next project as soon as I done the repair.

Groove was cut

Fan Motor Mounted

Rubber Band as Belt

The First Model of Completed Jig

     A Pioneer thirteen footer surf casting fishing rod was bought some time ago during the sales promotion at this tackle shop, it was a impulsive purchase and it was meant for the spinning reel. The rod was under utilized as most of the time I would prefer my old pal, the Loomis & Franklin, another reason was I began to fall in love with the multiplier reel. When I received my newly acquired toy, the Abu Garcia 6600 C4, which is a multiplier reel, I tried pairing it with the Pioneer thirteen footer, the result was bad. I couldn't really cast far and I spent most of the time clearing the "Bird Nest" on the Abu during fishing. 

Abu Garcia 6600 C4 with Upgraded Mono Mag and CT Cage

    The thought of buying a new fishing rod couldn't materialize as I was out of budget after buying the Abu. After some thought I decided to convert the Pioneer fishing rod to suit for multiplier reel. I had read about some anglers converting it and it's workable. So the new project began, I downloaded the data sheet for rod guide placement from a famous UK Rod Builder and I had learnt on how to determine the backbone of the blank. The Pioneer was striped naked and new coating of paintwork was given. But as I started the rod guide wrapping, another issues surfaced. I found that the jig that I had made was limited to the smaller size rod, it couldn't fit in the thick long surf casting rod like the Pioneer.

    I had to halt the Pioneer rebuilding project and switching to yet another project, the Upgrading of the Fishing Rod Guide Wrapping Jig. The old jig was given a complete makeover and my daughter's old stroller was dismantled. (When I found it covering with dust in the store room) It's wheels were made into good use, three wheels were grouped to form as the blank holder, the top wheel was fitted with a arm made out of wood, it was then fitted with a small spring to give some strength for it to claim down the blank. The AC fan motor had a speed controller added, with that speed controller I could set the pace according to my need, it was extremely helpful on the Epoxy drying process too. 

The Stroller's Wheels with Wooden Arms

Constructing the Jig Table

Added Speed Control

Three Wheels Clamp 

The Blank

New Position New Wrapping

It was Converted from a Spinning Reel Rod

Almost Complete

    And there you have it! The new fishing rod guide wrapping jig was born, as you can see in the video, it spun smoothly and silently, which also gave me an advantage to work into the late night. I continued on the Pioneer rebuilding and two weeks later the Pioneer was reborn!

    On the 10th of October 2009 the All New Thirteen Footer Surf Casting Fishing Rod which paired with the Abu Garcia 6600 C4 made it's debut at the Air Papan Beach, Malaysia, since then the rod roamed together with me until today.

In Action at Air Papan Beach, Mersing, Malaysia

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Malaysia Fishing Trip: 8kg Stingray Caught Surf Casting at Air Papan Beach, Mersing | FishingAdvNHF

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    It was 8th of March 2009, Colin rang me and asked if there's any fishing activity over the weekend, he told me that Kiat Hong was interested to find out the fishing spot we went previously. They were talking about the spot that I frequent the most, the Air Papan Beach. I wasn't that keen initially as I needed to work on the next day, I told him I would get back to him later. My workday continued with the images of the Air Papan Beach flooded my mind. That evening minutes before I knock off from work Colin received my reply and the rest was history.

    As always they came to my place and we left Singapore at around 2am. I always prefer to travel during late hour, other than avoiding traffic jam at the custom, the traffic will be lighter along the journey in Malaysia. One has to be careful though when traveling on the Malaysia road at night, especially on the Jalan Kota Tinggi, you would be greeted by long trailers and timber trucks. At night they are the biggest gangster on the road, handle them with extra precaution.

The Air Papan Beach

    It was around 150km for the journey towards Air Papan Beach. We en-routed Jalan Kota Tinggi and after about 100km we reached this town called Jemaluang. Turned right at the junction into Jalan Mersing for around 40km and we arrived at Mersing town. Upon reaching Mersing town we took the second exit at the Mersing Roundabout and continued into Jalan Endau-Mersing for another 11km. A signboard written "Pantai Air Papan" told us to turn right into Jalan Air Papan for 5.5km and at last, we met this beautiful Air Papan Beach.

Sunrise at Air Papan Beach

    The time was around 5:30am nearing dawn. We wasted no time and quickly set up our gears and as soon as it was done, we cast the bait out as far as we could into the South China Sea. 

    An interesting tip I learned from some anglers sometimes ago. I was told that fishes are more active during the first light of the day so you will have a better chance to hook up a fish during that period of time. On numerous occasions I tried to focus on that specific timing but so far I never landed any fish. Anyway, as the Sun gradually appeared at the far east horizon, we enjoyed this magnificent Sun rising scene while waiting for the bite.

    The baits that we were using were the left over from the previous trip, they were loosing their freshness and they were tasteless. They remained fully intact when we reeled back to check on them, it was obvious that fishes were not attracted by them and we expected this. Thus, short fishing rods were brought here to hunt for bait fish. We were targeting the Whitting aka Swa Chiam. 

The Whitting aka Swa Chiam

    These fishes are very greedy and you can find them at most parts of the sandy seaside. The Sabiki hook set of size 3 was used and for quicker result a tiny piece of bait was added. They took anything from prawn meat, fish meat, worms or squid. The Whitting is one of the best bait to catch a Stingray, another tip that I learned from a fellow angler. 

The Sabiki Rig

   This rig is easily available at any fishing tackle shop for the price of $0.90, some anglers made their own but I would rather save the time as it didn't cost a bomb. 

    The first light of the day didn't bring us any fish and our activities slowed as the Sun rose high above us. We hung on and endured the blazing heat with the hope of landing a trophy for this trip. Colin and I were almost on the verge of giving up, Kiat Hong as the new comer didn't. He made full use of the remaining bait fishes caught over the night and he even took over Colin's fishing rod.

    It was around 10am, Colin and I were hiding underneath this huge shadow under some trees. Somewhere far, around fifty meter Kiat Hong was busy replacing fresher bait on to the hook. My rod has been left unattended for the past thirty minutes, I was about to bring it back and call it a day. I highlighted my intention to Kiat Hong and he requested for one last cast. As he walked up to the shoreline with his fishing rod both Colin and I sarcastically wished him good luck. Kiat Hong didn't respond, he raise up his arm and show us a V sign. 

    Kiat Hong is not really a keen angler or I should label him as a casual angler, he joined us about few months ago and he was those type of angler that always don't like to do his own baiting and rigging. We were quite annoyed by this behavior and were teasing him all the time. When we saw the Whitting that he cast out landed just somewhere thirty meter of range, we laughed and commented on this poor cast.  

    "Hey! Are you trying to hunt for Giant Whitting?" Colin was the first to make the remark.

    "Oi! Never eat ah?" I shouted

    Kiat Hong didn't reply but he showed us his finger. We laughed non-stop and continued the teasing. Suddenly Kiat Hong dashed forward to his fishing rod and grab it, he struck it with some force and the reel went screaming. We were stunned but immediately broke into laughter again as we noticed that he struck it without tightening the drag tension.

    "Wow! Hit a monster ah? So fast and so furious... Hahaha!" We just couldn't stop our laughter and when we saw Kiat Hong's silly face, it gets even louder. 

    "Bloody hell! I thought got fish. Wahahaha...." I almost went out of breath.

    "Kan Ni Na lah! Just now the fishing rod really bend down." Kiat Hong was a bit annoyed.

    "If really got fish just now, it is now on it's way home lor." Colin added.

Who has the last laugh?

    Kiat Hong was snubbed and stopped his argument, he turned his focus back on to his rod. Without any warning, his rod suddenly bend down and the reel screamed out loud again. Only for this time it is for real! We were all stunned and the reel continued the screaming until...

    "Grab the spool! Strike it!" I called out to Kiat Hong.

    Kiat Hong responded and followed my instruction. Fish On! Colin and I ran over to his side and assisted him. Colin told him to tighten the drag tension and lifted the rod high so the pressure could be applied to the fish. I asked Kiat Hong to strike the fish again as his first strike was weak. The fish was strong and it kept running even after the drag tension was tighten.

    The first two minutes was furious but the run slowed down eventually. The fishing line continued to be dragged out at a slower speed, it was almost like inching out. We were quite puzzled and began to wonder if a fish was being hooked up. I was recording the footage using my Nokia C6 and as I did the close up shooting I noticed something... 

    "Did you tighten the drag tension?" I asked Kiat Hong

    "I did! But can not too tight as the fishing line is very weak, it will burst." Kiat Hong told us.

    Then, we knew why the spool never stop spinning, the drag tension was too loose. Kiat Hong carried on by telling us that his fishing rod was too weak and it might break as well. Colin and I began to get frustrated, Kiat Hong seems to be dragging his feet to retrieve the fish while we were exposed under the scorching Sun.   

    "Shall we set up the tent and prepare for a overnight fishing? Colin." I deliberately made the comment in front of Kiat Hong.

    "I really scare it might break! Look! My fishing line is very thin." Kiat Hong refused to step up another gear and continued his bla bla bla...

    "Let me try." Colin stepped forward and took over the fishing rod.

    We were almost certain that a Stingray was being hooked up and as usual the fish started it's usual trick by buried itself into the seabed after some run. Colin held his cool and carefully pulled back the fishing rod, he was applying the pressure onto the Stingray. Bit by bit the drag tension was tighten, we have to be careful as the fishing line was weak. Brute force was not an option and the keyword was patience. This Tug of War ended when the fish panicked and began to move again. 

    "Keep the tension! Tight line!" I reminded Colin.

    The Stingray made it's first run after almost five minutes, it was resting at the seabed and regained some of it's energy. The run was not that strong though. However, it still managed to strip out some lines. The weak fishing line was given a full test but it didn't break, credit goes to the experience angler. 

8 kg Stingray

    The fight was over in around fifteen minutes and the Stingray weighed around 8kg. 

    The Air Papan beach is a very peaceful and relax place for holiday goers as well as anglers. Many Stingrays were reported caught here and I always placed it as one of the top destination to fish. Another place I visited frequently is Desaru.  A 12kg Stingray was caught there on my 2011 adventure. Check out the story here!

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Always Tight Line, Hardcore is the Spirit!

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