Sweet Moments from Kuala Gula 12th July

Out of the blues,I received an SMS from Lannun whether I was interested in going for a recce trip to Kuala Gula whereby our target species will be the Sembilang(we nicknamed it The Ninth Fish) or the Jenahak(I first thought it was as big as Loban's but was told it was not afterwards ).As I was on a tight budget,I did ask on how much will the trip cost.Knowing it will not be that expensive,I then agreed to go for it since this place's fishing pressure was not that high which equates to greater catch rates.

We had breakfast together before heading towards the jetty as we were all starving having left Penang at 5.30a.m.We were supposed to leave Penang at 5a.m but yours truly could not wake up on time(actually my first time late for Lannun's trip) which certainly made the rest of the fishing crew a bit pissed.It turned out to be some sort of a blessing in disguise as Nasir himself came late for breakfast so time were not lost.The anglers were 2-Lan,Come-Lan,Roslan(it's the same person actually),Eddie a.k.a. Hairtail(Star Editor based in KL),Choo the Kerbau and Nasir(the famous boatman for Kuala Trong).

When we reached the jetty where will be boarding the boat,we were pretty surprised that it was not an ordinary jetty.

They even had a restaurant and it is situated across the mini bridge.

The jetty where we will hop onto the boat.Misai doing bottom fishing for Saiseng while waiting for the boat to arrive.Hehe.

Chalets were also available if you wish to stay over.You can actually fish right from the balcony as seen here by the resident of the chalet.Better be careful of where you were casting to if you were to fish from the balcony as boats will always be cruising here and there.

There were even stairs for you to board the boat which really helped us to load us the heavy stuffs.

The place was something like a fishing village with fishermen unloading can be seen unloading their catches to their designated unloading bay.I would estimate around 30 boats or more were parked there at that time.

During our journey to our fishing spot,we had to go through all these stilts that were constructed every now and then.I was puzzled on why these stilts were built and after few explanations from the guys,I finally knew why it were built.These stilts were built to function like the unjams in Yan to attract fishes to breed and gather around it.

The sky was pretty clear which means a really hot day ahead awaits us.Note that we had no shed or canopy to hide ourselves from the heat and sun as the boat was not equipped with it and to make things worst,there were no patches of clouds to be seen.

Choo with the customary Longkang Gang sign which signalled the start of the trip.

Seen here Nasir was performing his prayers for a good day of fishing.

He was opening the durians actually and not performing prayers.Hehe.

Misai tried to hide the durian in his mouth from the camera.

It accidentally came out from his mouth when I asked him to blow Choo a kiss.

After an hour of ear deafening boat ride(from the loud noise coming from the engine),we finally reached our fishing spot.OK...now which stilts should we start with?

The stilts that were constructed stretched to a few miles long.A really magnificent sight to behold.

The deckhand of the boat seen here tying the boat to the stilt so that we can begin our fishing.To my surprise,he was using a Berkeley Cherrywood as well unlike most boatman which will use lesser known brand products.

The weapon of choice for the day was the umpun-umpun.According to Nasir,this umpun-umpun were regarded as "drumsticks" to Sembilang and Jenahak.Just in case you were wondering how much would these slimy creatures cost,it was at a bargain price of RM40.BARGAIN?!If you don't know the price of these effective bait,let me give you a rough idea.In Penang,buying 4(ONLY FOUR) long umpuns will cost you RM10!Look at the amount that we had.Wasn't it a bargain?Hehe.

Choo again with the LKG sign with a bit of style incorporated.The umpun as his "accesories".

He caught the first fish(Gelama) of the day not long after he dropped his bait into the water.He was posing the Kurauking(fellow MFN forummer who always poses like this when he displays his fish) style.

It took me a little while(was not familiar with the use of Circle Hook.The way to use the Circle Hook is to not striking the fish but to let the fish hook onto it itself) before I landed my first fish(Gelama) of the day.Yahoo!I won't be going home fishless.Hahaha!

Me setting a good example to the fellow anglers out there.Please practice Catch and Release whenever possible.Hehe.

Nasir who was at the front of the boat,was quitely trying out the possible hideouts of the Sembilang.His efforts were then rewarded with the first Sembilang of the trip.By any means,it was a very good size to consume.We asked him where he landed the Sembilang and he stated that it was near the stilts.*Hints*

During my Millionaire Mind Intensive seminar with the great T.Harv Eker,I could remember him saying,"copy success from successful people".I followed suit of what Nasir did and so did Choo.Soon afterwards Choo had a Sembilang for his efforts in getting his bait presented near the stilts.In the picture above,Choo was removing the spikes of the Sembilang.You wouldn't want to get stung by this venomous species.Not only they are excruciatingly painful but they can also cause serious illness.