This suits me as I can just hop on a day charter whenever my schedule permits.
Boarded the boat at Marina South Pier. The boat seems comfortable with adequate rod holders on all sides. Live prawns were provided. The boat operates by drifting along the channels near the anchorage. They drift about 1km then motor back to the same area.
Morning started pretty good, some anglers started catching Groupers.
I used my 200g Shimano Lucanus orange jig, baited with a prawn. As we were drifting, I felt a tug. Lowered the rod a bit and the fish jumped on. Fish ON! I slowly reeled the fish up, without the pumping motion. Soon, the fish came up and it was a nice sized Grouper. 1.5kg!
+++++++++++++++TIPS++++++++++++++++
I was told that when you use madai style fishing, you should just reel without pumping. This is because when the rod is at the top of the 'lift' and you bring the rod down, the 'head' of the madai will drop faster than the hooks. This may cause the hook to dislodge from the fish if the hookset is weak.
If you just keep reeling, there's constant pressure on the hookset with less chance of the hook dislodging.
+++++++++++++++TIPS++++++++++++++++
After lunch, I switched to a sliding sinker rig. Baited up and dropped down. As soon as it touched bottom, I felt a tug. I thought I was snagged but then the fish started running. Quickly set the hook and Fish ON! Reeled back and it was another Grouper.
After 3pm, the bites reduced drastically. Only 2 more fish were brought up. Whatever fish that was caught, was given a colored zip tie and tied on the fish. The boat captain and deckie was helpful in fishing as well. They caught about 5 fish and distributed some of it to those that didn't catch a lot of fish. That was pretty admirable in my book!
Our total catch for the day.
I'm pretty satisfied fishing for the first time on FishStalker charters. Although their fishing spots may be limited, it makes up for it by catching fish in decent numbers, ease of joining the charters and the service provided on board. Thumbs up!
