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Fishing trip to the Similan Islands
By John Smith

On 26 September, 2002, the day started early for me. I cannot get enough of the great nightlife of Patong Beach, and with only a few hours sleep, it was hard to get up. After two cups of coffee and some scrambled eggs with bacon at Club Bamboo I was feeling much better and ready to go. The car from the fishing company picked me up at exactly 08:30 a.m.

I chartered a boat for a two day fishing trip and was planning to catch some big ones. I was very impressed with the boat and after offloading my personal supplies, we headed out from Patong Bay, northwest to Similan. With the outriggers down, 2 triple lures running shallow off the transom and 2 doubles off the outriggers we were in the fish! Unfortunately, it was black fin tuna. Although good eating of a fish it may be, I like and was after the sweet taste of a yellow fin or the fight from a tropical water sailfish.

We continued into the deeper waters making speed for the islands. Top speed was around 12 knots, but the tuna kept me constantly reeling. No lack of action on the start of this trip - a goodly-sized black fin can put up one hell of a fight. Not to mention the hard action when you have 3 fish on the shallow lines at once.

We continued to trawl to the islands, picking up a few fish here and there. As night fell, we anchored on the leeward side of the islands, outside of the refuge area, and sat down to a good dinner and wine, whilst the deck hands rigged up for bottom fishing.

In our position, we were over a reef 70 feet below the surface. This made the hits hard to notice. More than one time I had not hit bottom before the bait and line was being pulled with the rushing current. The captain had been successful many times in this area on large sharks. With the calm water, he felt sure that we were in the right spot to hook a large hammerhead or white tip shark. Unfortunately, this was not to be the night as the full moon and fast running currents had pushed the larger sport fish into the island coves or further into the depths. During the next 4 hours we landed various types and sizes of reef fish, including snapper and grouper.

Around 09:00 p.m., the long boat ride and the tropical sun, along with the wine, had taken its full effect and I decided to go up top for a nap, whilst the deck crew watched the shark lines for a good hit. If the bottom rigs screamed out, I would be up and in the fighting chair in a matter of seconds. Unfortunately this was not to be for this night. The gentle-rocking swell compounded with a cool breeze blowing through the open canopy was enough to put anyone in a deep slumber. So, sleep I did and without dreams or disturbance.

Through the first day and that night, I had boated approximately 40 fish. Not a bad start for the first day out. Out of habit, I awoke at 04:00 a.m. and turned on the back deck lights to rig down for a chance at some early risers in the slow current. The fishing was slow, but the groupers I boated were big enough to awake the sleeping crew. The cook had started his morning breakfast, whilst the deck crew continued to clean and ice the previous day's catch and assist me in gaffing the larger reef fish.

As the sun started to rise, we pulled anchor and set up the outriggers in search of sailfish. In less than 30 minutes, one of the deeper rigs screamed out and I grabbed it knowing that I had hit an early rising sailfish! The line played out as faster than I could take it in! We came to a dead stop to start to back down on the fish, who had the advantage on speed and manoeuvrability. The short stout rod was bent to what seemed to be its breaking point. We backed down on the fish in hope to gain line and hope that it would surface. As the fight continued over the next 40 minutes, my arms started to ache and I could only hope that the fish was starting to tire as well. I caught my second wind and pumped the rod in an attempt to gain line.

Reeling closer to the boat, the captain pulled ahead to avoid the fish from going under us. As we did, the sailfish decided to go deeper and take more line. All I could do was to hope that I could play him down, before he took the line. The effort was paying off, or so I thought, as I was able to reel in the line that had been taken on the last five runs.

Without any idea of what was going to happen next, the sailfish decided to surface and danced sideways about 15 feet across the waters surface! With this once-in-a-lifetime sight, and while admiring such, I neglected to notice that I had 50 yard of line or more to take in. I reeled as hard as I could and finally felt a strong tug at the line's end. The fish decided to surface again less than 30 yards from the boat. I could clearly see his battle-scarred fin and dark blue markings. I can only wonder if this fish was attempting to free himself, or coming to the surface to size up its captor. With the final dive, it seemed almost like I was trying to pull the reef from the sea bottom itself! Then as quickly as it all started over an hour before, the fish played to the boat as if he had surrendered. I cannot put in words or honestly know what this fish was feeling, but I knew he had earned my respect as a fighter! And if he was as tired as I was, he was indeed a worthy opponent.

What seemed to be little effort, I reeled the fish to the side of the boat and yelled to the cook to bring out the camera. As the cook fumbled with my camera, the captain stopped the engines to come to the back deck and to help land the fish for some pictures before its release. I had already advised the crew that, if we were to catch a marlin or sailfish, I did not want to use a gaff and would release him after taking pictures. This was unusual to the crew, as the thought of releasing any fish that was caught was something the Thais are not accustomed to do. Regardless, this was my request and they respected my decision. As the deck hand grabbed his bill in an attempt to lift him, the lure slipped from the corner of the fish’s mouth. Everyone on the boat, including myself, attempted an all-out effort to get this fish aboard without using a gaff. Although every attempt was made to land the fish for a quick photo shoot, it all ended with one quick whip of his body. This was all it took to earn his freedom. All we could do was watch as he slowly returned to the depths from where he came. My only regret was not landing him for photographs. But then again - he left me with the memory of a great fight, that will remain in my mind's eye for the rest of my life.

This had indeed been a very eventful day for both the fish and myself. I had not noticed, but my fingers were bleeding in various places from contact with the line. The rush from the fight had dulled my senses to the point that I did not feel any pain. My only hope was that the fish was strong enough to live and fight another day.

We continued to trawl around the seven islands that make up the Similan chain. We picked up the occasional yellow fin and a few barracuda. But a second sailfish was not to be found. At midday we anchored with other fishing and dive boats in a protected cove. The emerald blue water was crystal clear, with visibility of the bottom down to 40 feet.

While waiting for lunch, I donned snorkel gear and slowly swam around the reef to the shore. I was truly amazed at the variety and various sizes of the fish living on this beautiful reef. I dove down to a deeper part of the reef to come in arms reach of a huge grouper. These fish are accustomed to contact with humans, as divers come to this protected reef on a daily basis. The underwater world around the reef is indeed a sight that everyone should experience at least once in his life. I can see why this area was chosen to film the movie “The Beach". I snorkeled back to the boat, took a quick fresh water shower and ate lunch. I watched the fish swarm in to consume the scraps from the meal. Seeing this many fish, I was ready to head out to start trawling again.

We changed our course and headed back to the mainland. With the cool breeze easing the burning of my sun-baked skin, I stretched out on the upper deck and fell into a deep slumber. When I went ashore at Chalong Bay my appetite had grown. I surprised the crew by giving them most of the catch and the remainder was cleaned and iced down for me to take back. The little lady in the kitchen of Club Bamboo stared at my and said "you hab many fish". She prepared it with some garlic and pepper; I enjoyed a great meal and had some beers at the bar. Afterwards I went back to my room; it was a lot better than the cabin at the boat. I slid into my jacuzzi and relived all again - one of the best fishing trips of my life!