Operation Singhala GT… what is coming…

I am sure all our followers are eagerly awaiting this report …..

With the boat at its destination in Krinda, we set up our gear to see what fish were about waiting to take our lures. The idea was to explore the area find potential spots and see if we could hook a few geets…

The weather was perfect, the boat is all set up and off we go, do I have expectations… I always do and that is why I keep fishing!!!, its a new area for us and exploring can pay off sometimes and sometimes it does not, I am looking for areas that have the potential to hold fish

One of the areas we came to had all the characteristics required and after a few short strikes we were immediately rewarded with a bust off for Damith, I hooked up one on 80lb braid and was bricked a few seconds later… game on!! Time for pe 10 heavy drag and the big lures so I can pull back too…..

Damith with a nice GT the first one we landed on one of the new spots

I was itching to try my new Rocket after I broke the last one in the Andaman Islands, so armed with PE10 line I cast to be rewarded after 3 pops with this nice 40 kg Singhala GT, this is my first GT on day 1 of exploring and its a very positive sign, that fish are a good size

More action followed as we found new spots and great news, most of the fish are in the 20kg range average size, they pull real hard as this is probably due to the proximity of the open ocean

Some of the reefs are quite shallow and getting the GT’s out means you have to pull too.

We found GT’s in most of the spots we tried which is great as we now have a good knowledge of where to find them.

I could not resist a cast near the light house and had an immediate hook up, it makes a great picture in a wonderful location.

Now to answer the question is there anything big around, well the answer is er… YES Yes Yes

Damith poses with the big boy that nearly broke his back, no he is not smiling…. it is 53.8 kg

A regular Lankan GT comes in

I hook up with a big boy that came up like a torpedo and smacked the popper, no messing about for sure with this fish

And getting ready for the pose after a hard fight

Decoy treble opened, one of many are these fish strong or what.

Its very good fun when big fish are around as you often wonder if you will be able to handle the next one given the way they pull.

Did we catch more? Were they big? Are there many? Well you need to watch this space to know the answers to those questions.

Tight lines till next time.

The Leopards of Yala

I had to make a trip to Yala National park its only a 45 minute drive to the Sanctuary from where base is in Krinda, having heard about the Leopard population there I was keen to try and sight one, it gives a great break from the fishing and something different to see, I love being out in the open and a break from throwing big poppers was welcome.

There is something about the road the instantly makes you feel like you are getting out of civilization, its bumpy and cut up and you have drive slowly, but the 12 km drive gives you plenty of scenery to take in, peacocks and sounders of wild boar, hare and iguanas, a sanctuary must be nearby.

Once you get there you pick up your guide and pay the entry fees, and your off. Foreigners pay a different entry fee, you wonder why but then it is a developing country and you need funds to conserve and protect, tourism is one way and are they doing a good job? In my view yes.

Ever had a feeling you were being watched, or wondered how an elephant can conceal itself, the picture above gives you an idea, they just blend with their surroundings.

A heard of cows, calves and adolescents frolicking by a waterhole, do they love the mud in the heat or what.

I love this picture it has Elephant Rock in the background and a huge tusk less male elephant in focus, I learnt something that day thanks to a friend, in Sri Lanka 90% of male elephants are tusk less and only 10% have tusks, evolution or depletion of the gene pool?? Unlike the Indian elephant in which 90% males have tusks, the island pachyderms are supposedly the largest among the Asian Elephant.

20 minutes into our drive we cam upon this big male Leopard he was relaxing under a tree in the afternoon heat, conserving energy for later I suppose, he was in no hurry to get up and knowing that we could not get any closer to about seventy yards from him he just stayed put, till we moved on.

Spotted deer or Axis Axis probably the main prey for Yala’s leopards. Our guide was keen to show us a leopard close up and was taking us through some super country, rocky terrain with vantage points, big trees which could be the perfect spot for a leopard to keep a look out from and then plan an ambush.

We had just rounded a corner and were driving by when I saw something move that broke the silhouette of the undergrowth, stop, stop, stop quick…. and then there was spots coming through the undergrowth.

 

This young male leopard put on a display for us as he gave us photo opportunity after photo opportunity before he decided to do some more posing by climbing up a tree for us.

Amazing how the cat can just melt into any surrounding, see how his rosettes blend with the bark of the tree.

 

And finally found a comfortable branch from where he could keep a look out, totally relaxed, it was a surreal experience with the apex predator of Sri Lanka.

With the exhilaration of the leopard sighting still very much present and just when I though I could not get any luckier we run into a very rare tusker, what a super way to end the evening of taking in the fauna.

Till next time.

Darran can…. fish light only in Lanka

 

What can you do fishing wise from the centre of the city, most times you have to travel to get away from it all, to the open space, the water, the forest, the silence and peace, the sense of calmness that being outdoors brings.

Not here really you can be fishing an hour out of Colombo if the traffic lets you that is!! One of the largest inland brackish water systems in the country is close and does it have fish, the answer is yes, from Mangrove Jack to Ox-eye Tarpon and of course it is a heaven for Barramundi, with its numerous fish locks. Light tackle heaven… for sure, imagine pulling one of these feisty fish on a fly rod.

Another nice Mangrove jack taken near structure on light tackle, and they make a super fillet too.

Damith with another Barramundi, I do have something to learn, I did get the solid hit a couple of times but it did not materialize into the Barramundi, I will be back… for another go, not revenge but another try, I do feel that this is fishing and you learn as you go along, its not about catching but the art of deceiving a fish with a lure that keeps me coming back for more.

And if you do not want to cast all day, you could also troll for Barramundi in the huge expanse of water as the picture below shows some friends having fun with Barramundi caught trolling.

Lets try the river-mouth says Damith to me one day there is fish to be had, what kind I ask and he says all kinds but mainly Barramundi, GT and Barracuda, hectic packing and we set off in convoy loaded up to spend the night out (camping style), I am happy to give light tackle a go after ages so my Smith KGS and Twinpower with PE 3 are the go to today

All set up on the river mouth.. waiting…. for signs of fish the tide will signal.

Life… feeding, the mullet are jumping, there is a threadfin too.., pulse is racing, take a deep breath and cast, twitch, twitch, on, again and again furious action

The action last as long as the mullet try to enter the river mouth then tapers off only to start again the next morning

Timing the waves and making sure you have good footwear that will grip well on the jagged barnacles is essential, this is great fun especially trying to get your lure into the action that is always just further than it needs to be.

Dusk is Barramundi time and soon Damith play and lands a nice one, super eating they are too, few places are left today that offer such a variety of fishing options, inshore, offshore, lagoon and river.

Knackered after casting all day, where we landed small GT’s, threadfin and Barramaundi, we set down to dine on fresh fish, Lanka style…. spicy yes yes YES, but super delicious and exchange stories, discuss life and generally have a good time as the Brits say “taking the piss”

Memories and stories to cherish for always…. back again soon.

The road to Krinda

 

We packed up the land-cruiser full, the boat was already on its way it had left Colombo earlier with the crew and headed for the Southern Expressway to Galle, this is a super highway, a scenic drive that almost puts you to sleep if it were not for the scenery of rubber and palm oil plantations that border most of the 100 plus km drive, look out for Iguanas, star tortoises and peacocks as they abound here.

Once off the expressway you are in Galle the, if were not time strapped you could take in a look around the fort or just keep driving as there is so much to see, the pretty beachside town of Unawatuna. I get numerous glimpses of the sea as we drive along, there is no evidence of the devastating tsunami that destroyed the tows all along the coast in Dec 2004, towns like like Tangalle and Matara are back to normal, so different from my last visit here in 2007.

Some places along the route scream GT, I say to my self be calm Darran and enjoy the view, lets see what it is like first.

Once you are out of busy Colombo the pace seems to get slower and more rustic, I enjoy the sights especially the numerous shrines that you pass as you drive along.

 

Mainly Buddhist in culture the peaceful atmosphere is present all around.

The view of the sea almost 270 degrees at Dondra Head

A light-house I remember well from my days of navigating oil tankers to and fro the Persian Gulf, Dondra Head, a navigation mark visible for miles out at sea.

Up goes the pulse rate again, I think of what maybe around, looking at a place like the one above, I want to fish….. like now!!!

I took this interesting picture of a local fisherman, what many may wonder is he doing so close to the shore, seated on a perch, what could he possibly catch? This friends is a secret of Sri Lanka, the sardines come close to the rocky shore, huge schools of them sometime like a moving blanket of black living mass, to escape being out in the open and thus safe from predators, they will hug the shore. So this local is picking them off expertly, sometimes hundreds a day from his perch, he sometimes also gets lucky with small GT’s or Queenies that come into the shallow chasing them.

We pass through the 3000 year old town of Tissamaharama, full of archaeological remains, what was this I wonder, but unfortunately there is nothing to tell me more about this stone structure

Or this which may have been a meeting place for discourses on religion or ……

This huge Stupa structure in Tissa built in the 3rd century BC is one on the largest and 16 most most sacred site for Buddhist pilgrims in Sri Lanka is unmistakeable as you drive by.

Our lean mean GT machine has arrived at Krinda, paperwork and off-loading, I am getting closer to a water.

Fishing boats at Krinda harbour, the boat is offloaded, paperwork done, we are almost set to wet a line.

This large peacock our morning alarm clock, one of hundreds we saw, seen mainly in the jungles of India it was bit surprising to see them all over Sri Lanka.

Tomorrow is d-day…

Sri Lanka here we come….

Sometime in June this year I received a call to come and visit Sri Lanka with the possibility to set up an operation for sport-fishing concentrating on popping and jigging, our forte.
More discussions a bit of research and the search for a suitably rigged boat and I was soon a flight to Colombo. First impressions were that getting into Sri Lanka was surprisingly simple, no hassles and well organized, getting through customs was a breeze as well although they wanted to know what was in my Bazooka rod tube….
That done I was off on my way to Colombo, a well developed and clean city with Damith who will be my host and partner with us at Sea Fishing India in this trial venture, our meeting is interesting as he likes to make his own lures and being an avid fisherman he tells me stories of big GT’s that have been caught both by local fisherman and the members of the angling club from Colombo.
A visit to see the boat and what kind of modifications it would need to make it a hunting machine. Just what is needed.

With the boat being sorted out I set off to take in some of the sights around Colombo, my base and the capital of Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka is a mainly Buddhist country although other religions do also happily co-exist, you will find many shrines around Sri Lanka including the famous Buddhist temple that contains the “tooth relic”.

 

If you like to do a little more than just fish there is great potential to explore the country that has almost everything from beaches to hill country covered with tea gardens, steeped in history from the time of the “Ramanaya”, a land inspired by Buddhism that went through the colonial era and then through almost 30 years of civil strife, to a now modern culture Sri Lanka offers the traveller a multitude of things to do.

 Oriental influence at a Buddhist Temple at Colombo

The Colombo Museum a reminder of the Colonial Era

The War Memorial for allied soldiers

Independence Square

The Modern Parliament Building in Sri Lanka

The memorial to the Singhalese Soldiers from the many years of civil strife.

I cant wait to get out fishing after meeting a few local anglers who are also friends now, we wait and wait for the boat to get ready and all of us know how long that takes, oh and I must add the cuisine available is fantastic, spicy but great, there are also a great number of options for those who do not want to try local fare, so you could have any flavour of meal you like in Colombo, as well as easily get around or enjoy the night life and have a beer.