Guide: Tap from http://www.bkkfishingguide.com/
Gear: Stella 10K w/65 braid

Did a trip to IT Monster Lake After fishing at New Bungasarman (report to follow one of these days).

Fished with my buddy Tap from Bangkok Fishing Guide.

The drive to IT Lake from Sathorn in Bangkok is 1.5 hrs. Stopped from Thai breakfast on the way. I recommend staying at Novotel Sathorn if one is fishing - $50 a night and a great value hotel and quick access to the toll highway to get out of and into Bangkok.

Fished the non predatory lake for the morning - caught a bunch of different carp but no Siamese Carp.

Switched to Predator Lake and caught some redtails.










A nice pacu




Went to lunch at world largest aquarium fish market. The place is the size of 10 Walmart supercenters. Literally drive in to the structure.




Great thai food - spicy



Came back after lunch to the predator lake and they were unloading a Toyota Hilux (Tacoma size) pickup truck full of live tilapia into the lake. I thought we were done as there were thousands of live tilapia dumped into the lake.

Tap was not worried and said he had a plan. The manager for IT brough out these Chinese Flat Head Carp that were 8-9 pounds.





The manager of IT then land lined the carp out. Within 2-5 minutes the massive Chao Phayra catfish -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_pangasius - were out in full force.

There was a massive strike. But i was told not to set the hook. These fish like to play with their food and only after line was being stripped out did I set the hook with as much force as I could. The strike and fight was crazy. Nothing I have seen in a freshwater fish.

The stella 10K drag was being burned up and the fight was real and fun. The lake staff could not figure out if I was happy or in pain as I was smiling through out the fight. I was happy.







I caught 5 Phao Phayra on 7 baits/hookups setting a record for BKK Fishing Guide. The record was shortly broken by my arch nemesis - a 13 year old local thai kid who fishes with Tap all the time and is named Vegas (his dad has to be a high roller as his brother is named Casino).









I enjoy fishing the stocked lakes of Thailand. Its great bang for the buck.

I will catch more stuff in an afternoon in Thailand than I would in a week or two in the Amazon. I am going back to the Amazon this fall.

I will be back in Thailand this year too - need to fish for barramundi.

Mike

Those are some damn nice fish, Mike!

That is certainly a nice Phao Phayra Cat fish.

Looks like an excellent days fishing, plus a leisurely lunch break with some very tasty spicy food - no soggy sandwiches in Thailand.

Holy Toledo!

The lake obviously lived up to it's name.

Awesome report Mike

Mike,

I saw those lakes on one of the river monster TV shows, it looks like they be a blast. Monster fish!

Thanks great report & pictures

quote:

Originally posted by Fjold:
Mike,

I saw those lakes on one of the river monster TV shows, it looks like they be a blast. Monster fish!

All the amazon shows about aripima end up in Thailand to catch the fish. They film in amazon and close the deal in a pond or lake in Thailand.

In their natural setting they are very difficult to catch on line and bait. Over 60 percent of their consumption is tiny river shrimp. They are normally killed via harpooning by locals.

If you have them in a controlled environment like a fish pond or acqua culture facility you can get them on bait, lure and even fly fishing.

http://www.bkkfishingguide.com/amazon-bkk

These predator ponds are crazy aggressive. Peacock bass cannot survive in them. They are not natural in that unless pickup trucks of tilapia were not unloaded, chao Phayra would eat nearly all the other fish. I belong to a few Thai fishing groups on Facebook and occasional you see them offered for sale as they have eaten the lakes empty.

Also Thailand has a massive fish breeding industry and there is a lot of trading in fishes.

IT monster lake was created by a very rich Thai Industrialist. I think he has over $2-$3 mil. invested in the lake not including the real estate he already owned. It is located between his sugar factory and his metal stamping factory. The fishing fees don’t support the upkeep, maintainace or growth of the lake, the Industrialist does it. I am glad he allows outsiders to fish it - it’s not for the $$$.

Mike