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View Full Version : Ko Samui, Thailand - TopCats


gavin310
09-25-2011, 06:48 AM
I moved to Thailand a couple weeks ago. For now I'm living on an island called Samui, which is around the same area as Phuket. I hit up a local "pay lake" here on Samui called TopCats. You may have seen it on the show River Monsters with Jeremy Wade. This lake ain't no Corona or Irvine. The fish in here are big and exotic. Most of them come from South America, but the climate here in Thailand is suitable for them. I had a good time fighting these fish. Me and one other guy were the only ones fishing that day.

Phenix Black Diamond 15-40 lb. Spinning Rod w/ Shimano Thunnus Ci4 8000:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/1.jpg

I was using my Phenix Black Diamond rod. They're lighter and thinner than rods with the same specs. You'd actually think they were bass rods if it wasn't for the saltwater style rear ends. The owner and staff told me my rods wouldn't hold up... said they'd break on these fish. I told them these rods are deceiving and are very strong. They still were very skeptical:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/2.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/3.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/4.jpg

Giant Siamese Carp:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/5.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/6.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/7.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/8.jpg

Mekong Giant Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/9.jpg

Mekong Giant Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/10.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/11.jpg

Fighting a Redtail:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/12.jpg

Redtail Catfish:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/13.jpg

Arapaima:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/14.jpg

Arapaima:
http://i33.photobucket.com/albums/d52/gavin310/TopCats/15.jpg

My total fish count was 8 redtail, a Mekong giant catfish, an arapaima, and a giant Siamese carp.

I REALLY wanted to catch an arapaima. The lake closes at 8:00pm and it was getting close to that time and I hadn't caught one. It was 7:50 when I threw my bait (a chunk of a local fish, not sure what it's called) near some brush in the water. At 7:55pm the line starts screaming off the reel. Set the hook and the fish made a loooong drag peeling run. After the initial run it was pretty easy getting him in, unlike the other fish I caught that day which kept ripping drag through the whole fight. I was pretty excited when I saw that it was an arapaima.

Anyway, it was a good time fishing there. These fish are definitely hungry because the action was pretty much non-stop, except for about a 2 hour period of time in the afternoon where I only got a couple bites and no takers.

All the fish were CPR'd and the guides at the lake even squirt iodine on the hook wound before releasing them so that it doesn't become infected.
DocSpotty
09-25-2011, 10:31 AM
Great pics.....looks like a blast. Those are some really big fish....would be fun to catch all those exotics.
Greg Madrigal
09-25-2011, 07:52 PM
WOW! Exciting! You got a "River Monsters" trifecta! I have seeen wade catch all but the carp, and I definitely remeber that episode. WTG man. That is sick. The red tails fight like mad huh?


How much (US $$s) did it cost to fish. I can't believe there were only 2 fishermen on the lake!
Which Way Out
09-25-2011, 08:35 PM
Nice! That's 4 fish I may never check off my list.

So what do they think of your rods now?
Ifishtoolittle
09-25-2011, 10:36 PM
So it doesn't look like you'll be coming back to Socal anytime soon. :LOL:
DockRat
09-25-2011, 11:16 PM
:UDaMan:

DR :Bawling:
gavin310
09-26-2011, 08:12 AM
WOW! Exciting! You got a "River Monsters" trifecta! I have seeen wade catch all but the carp, and I definitely remeber that episode. WTG man. That is sick. The red tails fight like mad huh?


How much (US $$s) did it cost to fish. I can't believe there were only 2 fishermen on the lake!

Yeah the redtail put up a great fight. Really fun. The mekong was actually the hardest fighter. It was a smaller one (compared to what they can grow to) and it took me all over the lake, pulling drag like it was nothing.

It costs about $58 for 6 hours of fishing, and $112 for 12 hours of fishing... based on the current value of the dollar. I did the 12 hour fishing and caught 11 fish, so not too bad. It's a bit pricey, but these fish are pricey to buy or raise. I know they raise arapaima at the lake, but I think they buy the other fish.

I'm actually planning a trip soon to fish for the Mekong catfish in the wild. Not sure when but hopefully soon!
gavin310
09-26-2011, 08:15 AM
So what do they think of your rods now?

They definitely stopped commenting about their size ;) They didn't speak a whole lot of English so they just kept going over and looking at them. I actually brought a smaller setup too, since I didn't know exactly what to expect when I got there. My smaller reel was a Shimano Stradic Ci4 and the lady was most interested in that. She asked if she could have it to give to her son. I said no...
gavin310
09-26-2011, 08:16 AM
So it doesn't look like you'll be coming back to Socal anytime soon. :LOL:

I'm thinking after Thailand maybe heading to Vietnam. Not sure yet. My plans are wide open at the moment :Cool:
reservoir dog
09-26-2011, 12:20 PM
Are you following in the footsteps of Jeremy Wade, you definitely got yourself some monsters there. How was the fight with the Arapaima? Great catch gavin!!!
carpanglerdude
09-26-2011, 04:55 PM
Great report. Looking forward to seeing how hunting them in the wild goes!
Wingnut
09-26-2011, 09:59 PM
You really did it! You packed up just like that and left... good luck Gavin. :Cool:
Those are some crazy looking fish... :Shocked:
Too cool, keep us updated on all your wild expedition over there okay bud? :Wink:
gavin310
09-28-2011, 04:47 AM
You really did it! You packed up just like that and left... good luck Gavin. :Cool:
Those are some crazy looking fish... :Shocked:
Too cool, keep us updated on all your wild expedition over there okay bud? :Wink:

I'm a bit surprised myself! :Wink: This catfish lake was an exception, but fishing around where I live isn't great. The sea is fished out and there's no decent freshwater bodies of water. I'm looking at places to move to right now. Thinking of heading up north to where there are more national forests and less-raped seas. My next trip will hopefully be a 5 day backpacking, camping and primitive fishing trip in the jungle. I'll definitely be documenting it...
JESSEJAMES
09-28-2011, 11:55 PM
Those redtail catfish are spectacular
Hog Caller
09-29-2011, 12:44 PM
Great report Gavin.
I'll look forward to more great adventure reports.

That Mekong looks a lot like the carp that are invading the Mississippi River. Look at the photos. Crazy looking things. Looks like fun.

Brent
Troutman65
10-22-2011, 07:53 PM
WOW !!!! Totally awesome !!! I guess you need a heavy duty rod stand like you were using . Never seen a rod stand like that before . Nice going on those fish . You ROCK !!! Thanks for sharing ..
ToadsToadsOnly
10-24-2011, 08:12 PM
That is AWESOME! Great job out there that would be a dream trip for me to catch all three species.
smokehound
10-25-2011, 01:43 AM
Those redtails are no joke, they're known for preying on small children!
fishinone
11-04-2011, 04:55 PM
I'm looking forward to more of your posts. I found this post because of your Snakehead post.

Your doing pretty good for fishing in a place that's fished out.