Chulla-do, Korea

My friend YM just recently got into fly fishing, and seems he’s been catch a lot of fish (He gave himself a new nick name: Fishing King). He sent some of his pictures from his recent trip to SamJin River in the Chulla province in southern Korea. I’ve been to this river and it’s a great place to fish. The surrounding areas are full of things to do (beyond fishing) and the river holds some smaller but pretty fish. There’s a lot of different types of fish, but EunUh (Silver Fish) is the one that is most abundant, and one that most people fish for (with nets). This fish is good eating, and is served at most restaurants around this area. Chulla-Do is famous for it’s great food and its stunning mountains and rivers. Keep catch friend, and let me know when you catch one that’s over 10”.

Ilisha elongata - Seoul

My friend & brother Jonathan in Seoul sent some photos of his recent catch in the Han River in Seoul. He caught a couple of nice sized herring (Ilisha elongata). [family: Pristigasteridae (Pristigasterids); Order: Clupeiformes (herrings); class: Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes)]. Although not a prized fish in terms of species, it is a good fish to catch within such close proximity to the city (he caught it at the riverbanks 15min from his home). He used small 미꾸라지 for bait. Nice catch Jonathan!







The Han River in South Korea is the confluence of the Namhan River (South Han River), which originates in Mount Daedeok, and the Bukhan River (North Han River), which originates on the slopes of Mount Geumgang in North Korea. The River flows through Seoul and then merges with the Imjin River shortly before it flows into the Yellow Sea.
The total length of the Han River is 514 km. Although it is not a long river, the lower Han is remarkably broad for such a relatively short river. Within Seoul city limits, the river is more than 1 km wide. Prior to the construction of a number of major dams, the river was known for its huge coefficient of river regime (ratio between the maximum and minimum amount of flow) of 1:390. (For comparison, The Thames and the Rhine have coefficients of 1:8 and 1:18, respectively.)
The Han River and its surrounding area played an important role in Korean history. The Three Kingdoms of Korea strove to take control of this land, where the river was used as a trade route to China (via the Yellow Sea). However, the river is no longer actively used for navigation, because its estuary is located at the borders of the two Koreas, barred for entrance by any civilian.
The Namhan meaning South Han, Gang meaning river is sometimes, but not always, referred to as the "Han" in South Korea. The term "South Han" is understood irrespective of which side of the border one stands.
Even though "Namhan" and "Bukhan" are homophones with the acronyms Namhan (South Korea) and Bukhan (North Korea), used commonly in South Korea, this is a mere coincidence. The hanja for the Han River is not "韓" ("Korea") but "漢" (the Chinese Han dynasty or "China" in general).

fat bluegills…

I took the kids out fishing this weekend. Sunny both days (yeah!) with a nice pre summer breeze. Spent Saturday on a boat for some largemouth action, then the Sunday at the banks of the lake, catching bluegills. My son caught the largest bluegill I have ever seen (about 10 inches) and he caught a nice bass on his spiderman fishing rod. My younger son had a blast with the cane rod, catching more than 15 bluegills. I was busy hooking the worms and getting the hook out of the fish for the guys, and it was great. By the end of the weekend, one of the boys was able to hook the bait himself, and release the fish as well. We spent time to discuss what the fish normally eats, how they like to stay hidden in the shades, and why it’s important to keep the waters clean for the fish. I bought my son his first fly rod & reel, and I hope to teach them to cast this season. The highlight of the weekend was when my son caught something, and I said “it must be a bass!” and he corrected me and said “I think it’s a perch, dad”. When he brought the fish up, it was a perch.

(Bluegills: from Wikipedia)

The Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) is a species of freshwater fish sometimes referred to as bream, brim, or copper nose. It is a member of the sunfish family (family Centrarchidae) of order Perciformes. It is native to a wide area of North America, from Québec to northern Mexico, and has been widely transplanted to stock game fish for anglers. It is commonly fished in Minnesota, Michigan, Wisconsin, Texas, and Louisiana, and is the state fish of the U.S. state of Illinois. It is renowned as an excellent tasting fish on par with Walleye.

Of tropical sunfish body shape, the bluegill's most notable feature is the blue or black "ear", actually an extension of the gill cover called the opercular flap. Its name, however, comes from the bright blue edging visible on its gill rakers. It can be distinguished from similar species by the (not always pronounced) vertical bars along its flanks. The bluegill grows to a maximum overall length of approximately 40 cm (16 in).

The bluegill is a schooling fish with schools of 20–30 individuals. These fish spawn in June in nests in the shallows. During this period males assume a very bold coloration, as they are guarding their nests. An interesting piece of their biology is that some males assume the coloration of the female fish so that the nest guarding males won't show aggression towards them. Then these "sneaker" males enter nests and spawn. Because of their size and the method of cooking them, bluegills are often called panfish. Bluegills are excellent fish to teach children

They are notorious for their nibbling or pecking style of feeding and commonly steal bait off a fisherman's hook. They hit hard for their size.(making it easy to tell when the angler has one on the line) Adult channel catfish, largemouth bass, and turtles prey upon bluegill.

In some locations where it has been transplanted, it is considered a pest: trade in the species is prohibited in Germany and Japan. In the case of Japan, bluegill were presented to the crown prince, Akihito in 1960 as a gift by Richard J. Daley, mayor of Chicago. The prince, in turn, donated the fish to fishery research agencies in Japan from which they escaped, becoming an invasive species which has wreaked havoc with native species. The emperor has apologized.

Small Fish Afternoons

I went out to a couple of my favorite lakes this weekend. I fished with my 4wt fly rod, catching mostly small striped bass, blue gills, and a baby largemouth bass. It was good practice to find my casting rhythm again, and the sense of fish at the end of my line. The striped bass are always a joy to catch as they give a good tug for their size, and the blue gills were fat and healthy. There was a little rain over the weekend, but it was short and there was enough clear weather for some fun local action. I also tried out my $5 cane rod I picked up, just for the hell of it. It was surprisingly refreshing fishing without a reel, just simple rod, line, and a cheap foam billy boy bobber. I don’t think I’d be able to catch anything sizeable on it without snapping it in half, but then again it will be a fun challenge to see what is the largest fish I can bring up on this simple rig. I can feel summer around the bend, and it’s time for some good warm water bass action. It’s nice being able to go out fishing without 3 layers of pants.

* the turtle was not part of my fishing, it was just sitting there enjoying the sun.

damn, Charles!

I think my friend has won the lottery and forgot to tell me. Here he is, fishing again at Turks & Caicos and on his boat in NYC. Does this guy ever have to work? I still wish I was with him, fishing. Beautiful fish Charles! Keep reeling them in, and don't forget to take me with you next time.

The Old Favorite Lake…

I went out to my favorite spot around where I live. This is the “regular” spot, where I will go without plan, a place to stop for a couple of hours when driving by. The day was a nice spring day, with a slight breeze, and a warm sunset about to brew. The lake greeted me well the first day out in 2008, with lots of fish at the end of my line. Like the season, the fish that were getting caught were young, small, and full of curiosity. Basically they were biting on everything I threw in the lake, including some fish biting at my extended line. A few small largemouth bass, a few croppies, and a few blue gills were to be seen. The very first fish from this special lake was a blue gill, caught on a tiny dry fly. I too extra caution to handle the fish minimally to quickly return them to the water. Some of these fish might greet me later in the summer, bigger and stronger. I took a lazy walk around the premise, cleaned up a few cans people left from last year, and was pleased to be back my my old familiar lake.

Aloha! Oio (bone fish)

A large portion of my family was getting together in Hawaii for my father in laws 70th birthday, and I could not pass on this chance to sneak away for a day (or two) to try my luck with meeting some Oio in the Hawaiian flats (Hawaiian word for bonefish: Oio). Many do not know that there are flats in Hawaii, and some are so unbelievably close that it’s wonderful once you discover where they are.

Wasn’t sure where or how to fish Hawaii, but fortunately, I hooked up with the friendly crew at Nervous Water Flyfishers (www.nervouswaterhawaii.com) and they pretty much provided all the information I needed. If you intend on fly fishing for bonefish in Hawaii, I strongly recommend setting up for a guided service with Nervous Waters, and to visit the shop for some locally relevant gear & flies. (believe me, I took a lot of flies I had bought and tied, but to my surprise the bonefish here seemed to be attracted to a very particular color & pattern). I stopped by the Nervous Water shop a day before my guided trip, and met with the owner Sean to hear about flyfishing in Hawaii, as well as get some help picking up a few of those Hawaiian patterns. Sean was both friendly and informative, and I look forward to seeing him again during my next trip out to Hawaii.

The day started with my guide Ed Tiamai, picking me up at the hotel about 7:30am, then we headed over to the flats meeting up with Nao Toyama, a super hardcore bonefish angler from Japan. Nao’s been flyfishing since he was eight, and he’s also an expert in Kyudo, Japanese Traditional Archery. I could tell he was hardcore about fishing as soon as I met him, and when he geared up ninja style to fish, there was a sense of seriousness in the air. Ed’s been fishing all his life in Hawaii and really does know the waters like the back of his hands. Ed’s been fishing big game Tuna, Marlin, and that sort but picked up fly fishing several years ago. Ed fishes hard and perhaps because of this, he proved to be an excellent guide. We went to two different spots throughout the day, and he taught me to cast in heavy Hawaiian winds to spotting bonefish in different settings/ times. It wasn’t easy casting accurately with the heavy winds, and even according to Ed he considered the winds that day a 8,9 out of 10max. It was pretty cool walking and spotting fish with Ed, and talking about different things in our lives.

Once in a while, Nao will show up from the waters to show us the picture of the barracuda he just caught, or to let us know about the bonefish that got away. Bonefish get spooked easy, but with the winds and noise on the water surface, I was hoping to get the fly close enough for the bonefish to notice. The morning passed on without much luck for me, and although I was finally starting to see all the fish Ed was spotting for me, I had trouble getting the fly accurately in front of it. We moved to a slightly more sheltered spot after lunch, and here is where I first met my first bone fish. I’ve fished different species of fish for some years now, but when the first bonefish took my fly, I understood exactly why people consider this one of the top sporting fish. Ed told me to not “cup the reel” in concern about running out of backing, and I experienced why people do that. The strike was somewhat blunt, but when bonefish started to run, it ran hard and long. Even with the firm drag, it took out all of the fly line and I was into the backing after the 3rd run. That sweet sound of the reel cranking… I brought the fish in and was surprised at the size. From the fight, I thought it would have been slightly larger. It was about a 3.5 pounder, and I was happy to catch my first bonefish ever. After that I had a few takes, but when the fish ran and took the line into the rocks, I lost them. After a few I could tell which ones were the larger fish, with the scream of the reel. All in all, it was a perfect day for me. The next day, Ed broke his 9wt rod on a 8 pounder, and still managed to land the fish. I think it is certain that bonefish will become a regular on the list of fish I seek each year.

The bonefish is the type species of the Albulidae, or bonefishes. It is amphidromous, living in inshore tropical waters, moving onto shallow tidal flats to feed with the incoming tide, and retreating to deeper water as the tide ebbs. Juvenile bonefish may be observed in large shoals of like-sized individuals with large mature fish swimming in smaller groups or in pairs. Bonefish are considered to be among the world's premier game fish and are highly sought after by anglers. Although it is caught for sport its flesh is not considered particularly good to eat.