Big Ladyfish caught in the Bedong C&R Pond, SP

Last week a big lady fish was caught and release in the SP pond. Impressive indeed! Time for another competition there again!

Bedong Angling Park,Sungai Petani is now officially Open

The pond where we had our family fishing competition is now officially open! Here is more information from MFN Forums :

Dear fellow fishos & forumers,

Just to announce that Bedong Angling Park which is located at the outskirts of Sungai Petani is now officially Open! Bedong Angling Park is also the first catch & release sportfishing pond in Northern Region. It's also on group booking basis only.

Bedong Angling Park has 3 retention ponds which caters to private commercial Tigerprawn farm and now the 3 retention ponds also serve as a fishing paradise for sportfishing anglers with it's semi-wild habitat and species. A couple of lunker Barramundi above 10kg are still lurking within one of these ponds which have yet to be landed.

The nearest hook-up of that lunker was yours truly... I was fishing for Brackish Tilapia few months back and while I was fighting the fish halfway on ultra-light, from no-where the 10kg+ Barramundi swam from the side and swallowed the approximately 400g Tilapia WHOLE and sped off! Yup, and you are right, my 4lb mainline burst without giving me any chance to even fight the Lunker! It has been my nightmare ever since and it also has been my dream to ever have a fair fight with it again if given a chance.

Ok, enuff of true story telling and back to more details of Bedong Angling Park.

Species of fish: Barramundi, Golden Snapper, Tarpon, Ladyfish and Brackish Tilapia.

Rules & Regulations:
1) Strictly on lures, soft plastic or flies with barbless/debarbed hook and berleying is forbidden. 2) Only 1 barbless/debarbed treble hook are allowed on the lure. You have to remove either the belly treble hook or the tail treble hook. Or you can also change all the trebles hooks to barless/debarbed single hooks.
3) Any fish above 1kg(your discretion) advisable to use landing net to land it.
4) Shock leaders advisable to use minimum of 25lb and above.
5) Fish has to be gently released into the water and if fish is over stressed after the fight, kindly recuperate it in the water before letting go.For any enquiries or booking, you can call either

Culky 012-4821105 or Jeymatt 012-4090596.

Even More Pictures from the Family Competition

Once again a big thank you to Albert, our abused photographer for taking great pictures of the event. Click on the pictures to enlarge them. If you want a higher resolution picture to print, do contact me for it.

The Happy PMPP Family Fishing Competition Participants

The 1,2,3 winners and a Certificate of Appreciation to Francis (bottom right) for organising the event

1. Mohd Zambri Mohd Akhir (Sild)(bottom left piture)- 19 Fish Caught & Released

2. Daud Khariree (top right picture)- 15 fish

3. Payrolnisyam (top left picture)- 13 fish

Our PMPP Chaiman Mr Arumugam, the winners and Mr Tan, the pond owner

Mr Arumugam presenting a certificate of appreciation to Mr. Tan Boon Thye, the owner of the Aqua Culture Farm ,Bidong ,Sungei Petani, Kedah .

Mr HT Kuan and Miss Kuan Wei Ping receiving certificates of appreciation from the PMPP President Mr Arumugam.
A nice evening shot of Paul Heah Fly Fishing Action

Roslan Fly Fishing
A Whopper Siakap!

Enjoying the Fishing...company!

This young man had more action than me!

Fishing First Aid : Dengue Fever

"In 2005, dengue is the most important mosquito-borne viral disease affecting humans; its global distribution is comparable to that of malaria, and an estimated 2.5 billion people live in areas at risk for epidemic transmission. Each year, tens of millions of cases of Dengue Fever occur and, depending on the year, up to hundreds of thousands of cases of Dengue Haemorhagic Fever. The case-fatality rate of DHF in most countries is about 5%, but this can be reduced to less than 1% with proper treatment. Most fatal cases are among children and young adults."
Source : CDC

Every year there is an outbreak of Dengue Fever here in Malaysia. This year it is a particularly bad strain, having caused about 7 deaths already. You can get Dengue twice, as there are different strains of the Dengue Flavivirus. I thought this might be relevant for Fishermen as we are exposed to mosquitoes especially in the evening. This article is on how to avoid dengue, not to go into the medical details of it.

TIPS for Avoiding Mosquito Bites

• Mosquitoes are attracted to things that remind them of nectar or mammal flesh. When outdoors, wear light clothing that covers most of the body, keeping as much skin and hair covered as practical. Avoid bright, floral colors. Khaki, beige, and olive have no particular attraction for mosquitoes. Wear light colors during the daytime, as dark clothing during daylight hours actually attracts the little buggers.
• They are also attracted by some body odors, and for this reason they choose some individuals over others in a crowd. Avoid fragrances in soaps, shampoos, and lotions.
• Many species of mosquito prefer biting from dusk until dawn. The problem is worse when the weather is hot or humid. Avoid playing outdoors during the peak biting times in your area.
• Try to stay away from still water. (hahaha for fishermen!)
• Use Insect Repellent on exposed skin when you go outdoors. Use an EPA-registered insect repellent such as those with DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus. Even a short time being outdoors can be long enough to get a mosquito bite.
• Clothing Can Help Reduce Mosquito BitesWhen weather permits, wear long-sleeves, long pants and socks when outdoors. Mosquitoes may bite through thin clothing, so spraying clothes with repellent containing permethrin or another EPA-registered repellent will give extra protection. Don't apply repellents containing permethrin directly to skin. Do not spray repellent on the skin under your clothing.
• Pediatric insect repellents with only 6-10% DEET are available.
• Some studies suggest that taking thiamine (vitamin B1) 25mg to 50 mg three times per day is effective in reducing mosquito bites. This safe vitamin apparently produces a skin odor that is not detectable by humans, but is disagreeable to pregnant mosquitoes (Pediatric Clinics of North America, 16:191, 1969). It seems to be especially effective for those people with large allergic reactions. Thiamine takes about 2 weeks before the odor fully saturates the skin.
• Garlic may work in the same way (except, of course, the odor is detectable by humans), but I have seen no scientific studies supporting this.
• Avoid perfumes when outside. Using hand creams and lotions with a sweet scent can also increase your risk of attracting mosquitoes, so go for the unscented varieties during mosquito season. Try using unscented soaps when showering, too. Even though they're rinsed off, the scent remains on your skin and attracts bugs.
• Mosquitoes are attracted to perspiration, heat, carbon dioxide, and lactic acid. All of these are produced after exercising, so avoid outdoor exercise during peak mosquito hours (at dawn and dusk). Our bodies also release lactic acid after eating certain foods, so avoiding outdoor dining during those hours is helpful, as well. Commonly believed mosquito-attracting foods include bananas (or other potassium-rich food items), and salty foods.
• What does not work?
  Vitamin B, garlic, thiamine, and "ultrasonic" devices are NOT effective in preventing mosquito bites. (Means you can try la, but don't put too much trust in them)

Source