May’s Fishing and Dolphins

Hi once again my ofishinado friends.

Well, what a start to May. Firstly a visit to our local waters by a “super” pod of dolphins and secondly the highest tide for years.

While out with the boys (I use the term loosely) from The Dilligaf Bar, Rawai and after catching over a dozen fair sized tuna the fishing just stopped. In the distance we spotted what we thought was a Sail Fish jumping, so I headed off in chase only to be confronted by the biggest “mega” pod of Dolphins any of us have ever witnessed, conservatively estimated at 500 plus. Within a mile’s radius of the boat “Mena 2” there were these beautiful mammals leaping out of the water and coming up to the boat and playing with our bow wave. Fishing was forgotten as we spent the next few hours enjoying a spectacular display of Dolphin acrobatics. (Photos courtesy of Dave “Flob” Robers of the Walkabout Bar, Karron ) While dolphins and whales are quite common in these waters, and not too good for the fishing, this was an exceptional and very memorable experience for all who witnessed the event. So eat your heart out, all you landlubbers.

The highest tide for years coincided with a serious weather front which fortunately was mostly rain and noise and for fisheroos like myself this was very welcome, as the rain has cooled down the water and a good “stir-up” is always good for fishing when the seas calm down.

All the boats are now reporting a considerable slowdown in charters as the “low” season takes effect, which is a bit sad as we should now be looking for much better results for our efforts as the seasons change and the waters cool.

I’m off now to the AGM of the RBFC (Rawai Beach Fishing Club) which I would imagine, after the office bearers have been elected, it will be mostly concerned with the 2014 RBFC Classic Fishing Competition. You may think February next year is a long way off, but an international event of this size takes a lot of organizing. Personally it’s my favorite contest of the year although I hear rumors that the PGFC (Phuket Game Fishing Club) are considering another competition, targeting Sail Fish, so watch this space.

Tight lines to all.

Jimmy