KAPAL BATIK & TUAS YAN, KEDAH - 3 NOV 2012

KAPAL BATIK & TUAS YAN, KEDAH – 3 NOV 2012

3 Nov 2012 mark the first time in three years I went for an offshore fishing trip. Together with my friend Azmi Tajudin, Hafiz Azmi, Fauzan Ariffin, Hameerul Ferzdous and Averis Co. I can categorized this as a Jigging and Casting Trip. Targeting Spanish Mackerel as currently from Nov until March is Spanish Mack season. We have been planning this trip for 4 month and I can say that I am ready!

Lures, Assist Hook, Split & Solid Rings Etc

Jigs and PinTail Tune!

Kapal Batik & Tuas Yan is located in Kedah, northern part of Malaysia. Probably 400km from Kuala Lumpur. It took us 4 hours to drive to Sg Petani where we stop by to collect our baits and straight away we went to Jeti Kuala Sala.Our boat men, Pak Mat Kg Kangkung is a well known fishing guide in Kedah and the name of his boat is TOPS Gemilang. I was a long journey from Kuala Lumpur. We stop by at Sungai Petani to collect our fresh bait prepared by Azman’s friend. 20kg of Kembung or locally in Kedah they called it Ikan Temenung haha.

After another 1 hour drive finally we have reached our destination. It was already 6.00am in the morning, we should have embark on our journey at 4.00am. Since we missed the opportunity window to set sail, we are forced to stay back and wait for the tide to rise again. We want to leave port in the morning, eventually we are stuck for another 4 hours due to low tides. We took the opportunity to rest prepare all the necessary equipment.

A glimpse of light, welcoming our great journey ahead!

Me and my partner in crime, Hafiz Azmi!

Jeti LKIM Kg Kuala Sala

Gears of War!

Hafiz and Hameerul is ready to embark on our journey!

All Fired Up and ready for Spanish Mack Season

Still smiling after 4 hours hehe

10.00am, all aboard! We leave port and head to Tuas Yan our first fishing destination. Kapal Yan is a ship wreck located probably 20 Nautical miles from shore. Since the boat is moving 5 knots, we begin our fishing by trolling Halco Sorcerer 150. We manage to catch 5 Spanish Macks weighing from 4-6kg. Apparently we skip Kapal Yan and continue trolling through out the day. Such an amazing view on how spanish mackerel glides in pristine clear sea water.

Narrow-Barred Spanish Mackerel or Scomberomorus commerson, is a mackerel of the Scombridae family. It is found in a wide ranging area centering in South-east Asia but as far west as the east coast of Africa and from the Middle East and along the northern coastal areas of the Indian Ocean, and as far east as Fiji in the South West Pacific ocean. They are common down both sides of Australia as far south as Perth on the west coast and Sydney on the east coast. They are also found as far north as China and even Japan.

They are vivid blue to dark grey in colour along their backs and flanks that fades to a silvery blue grey on the belly. Spanish mackerel have scores of narrow, vertical lines down the sides. Spanish mackerel are the largest of all Australian mackerels growing to approximately 200 cm and up to 70 kg.

Around 3.00pm we change course to Kapal Batik situated another 20 nautical miles from Kapal Yan. Kapal Batik is a location where used boat will be sinked to the bottom of the sea to serve as a artificial coral. Probably by 2013, Kapal Batik will be gazetted as a National Marine Park by the fisheries department. How truthful is this information is unknown but for now we will fish in this area. We arrived at the spot around 6.00pm and continue fishing until 6.30am next morning. We were hit by rain an hour later and weather changes dramatically midnight onwards. Strong wind forces us to sleep rather than fishing due to strong currents and sea sickness.

Based on my observation, Kapal Batik probably holds a variety of species. I’ve seen people recorded whale shark in that area and during the night, we can see Barracuda and GT’s boiling on top water. It must have been a preserved ecosystem as it is able to hold a variety of species. I bet this area will be a good diving spot. I wish we could have arrived earlier but maybe next time we shall test this waters once more.

Personally, I would like to thank you all those who join in making this trip a success. TOPS Gemilang, Nur Aman, Pak Zul, Hafiz Azmi, Fauzan Ariffin, Azmi Tajudin, Hameerul Ferzdous. Man have been very helpful from the beginning until the end. Same goes to Rizal and Pak Mat Kg Kangkung who has shown and share their tips and technique. Hopefully we will meet again in the future, April 2013!!! Thank you.