INDIANANGLER

Greetings,

Landed a couple of cudas from the rocks in Chennai. Details coming soon.



Thanks,
Maruthu

Machan too good....We'll meet up this weekend

fantastic mate.
you seemed to have attracted a lot of attention

regards

I badly wanted to do some pencil popping and hence took an old fiber carbon (whippy) spinning rod and loaded my shimano stradic 5000 with 20 lb mono and went to the fishing harbour in Chennai. That Gibb's pencil popper was dancing like a charm, but couldn't do this for more than a minute or so as I was a total noob to pencils.

After the usual issue that I have with mono on spinning reels, I took the other spool with 30 lb pp braid and was popping for a while until a bunch of tangled line came out on a cast. I was about to call it a day and quit, but by then it was cuda time (dusk).

Cut the tangled braid and attached the mono and then wire leader and started plugging for barracudas in my usual GT hole. After trying several lures I switched to a Yozuri mag minnow in Sardine pattern. I felt a bit nervous before I made a cast (is that called confidence?). On the first cast ...... bang a fish takes the lure in half a dozen cranks. A lightining fast run with a screaming drag. But then he was done and I landed him in the next couple of minutes.

As per a friend's advice I unhooked the fish and soon made the next cast in the same place and there comes his buddy.

Cheers,
Maruthu

Nice fish mate. Got to get me some of those.

nice fish mate

nice show

Very nice.

Hi Maruthu,

Nice job.


Jeen

Hi Maruthu,

Looks like you've grown taller..nice fish

Bobby

Hi Maruthu,

Nice catch mate.

Cheers,
Apoo

Hi Mate,
Well done and nice report. Keep it up.
Regards,
Ali..

Thanks everyone for the encouragement.

Bobby, I believe I am still 5' 8" tall
The fish weighed 3.9 Kg and 4.74 Kg on a digital scale.

Maruthu

Then you must have put on weight mate, look a lot more grown up since I saw you in your last picture.

Lovely looking fish, well done.
I'm very envious.

Well done Muthu,

Nice report and good catch.

Regards,

Arun

Hi Maruthu,

Fantastic fish... The Barracuda is an awesome looking fish and I wish they fought that way too. They make for excellent photographs that always have people in awe.

I caught my first 'big' Barracuda while trolling a small Halco a couple of years ago. I was very lucky to have landed that fish as it took to the air half a dozen times. When I landed the fish I could see through and through my plug.

We later started catching them on popper and even on stick bait. They're an interesting fish to catch on popper as they have the most spectacular strikes. We also loose a lot of poppers when they're around as they often bite clean through the leaders.

The fish you have in your pictures will definitely take a small Halco Roosta fished on 30 to 50lb braid with a leader. Remember to use barbless hooks because if you get bitten off you'll ofetn see your popper surface near the strike area, so you can retrive it.

Regards,

Mighty Marlin.

Hi MM,

Thanks for the info. I had my first hit by a barracuda on a 1.5 ounce Gibb's polaris popper when I reeled it very slow (I was actually testing the lure to see if it wiggles on a slow retrieve). The fish leaped entirely out of the water just within 10 foot from me, but didn't hookup.

Can you please let me know on how to work poppers for Barracudas? I assume that the popper should be reeled in slowly with occational small splashing?

I shall switch to barbless hooks, as I do not keep all that I catch. With barbed hooks it was nearly impossible to unhook the fish (with pliers) so that it remains in a good condition to be released.

Thanks,
Maruthu

Here are some pics of the terrain









Maruthu

how did you land the fish? gaff? hands?
was there lots of thrashing around?

I landed the fish with my hands. Wasn't that comfortable with a toothy critter though.
I have a gaff at home but never carried it, because I usually don't catch fish

Maruthu

yo man nice fish
which is the place you went to?
and by the way know any goods spots as in mangrove like areas in and around madras

bonefisher,

That is from the filthy fishing harbour in Royapuram, Chennai. For Mangrove like places I think you might have to go to Pondicherry and further south (from google maps). I had plans to explore the southern beaches this weekend, but gave up as there was no one to accompany. Didn't want to risk myself by going alone in the dark to an unknown place.

Maruthu

The terrain looks very similar to where I used to fish for GT's in Hong Kong.

Hi Mapla, Nice catch. Is rayapuram a better than Kovalam for fishing, cos mostly i,ve seen you having good times at kovalam.

Hi g s b,

Royapuram is better place when river mouth is closed in kovalam. Royapuram is very good for bottom fishing.

Binu lost a lure with steel leader in royapuram yesterday. Not in the rocks, but to the fish.

Another angler's rod got broken in a hit.

I have seen people landing around 7kgs barramundi. Lures dont work much here in royapuram. You need live prawns for bigger catch.

Mani

You forgot to mention that he lost his plug to a Barracuda that was about 4 to 5 feet

Maruthu

HI, Maruthu,

the photos that you have posted are mostly taken in evenings or at night, is there any specific reason for you to fish at these times.

REGARDS

g s b.

I fish all the time, but the fish are in the pictures taken during the evening. I think that says it all

Maruthu