Last season we had our first trip of the Field Gate Team from Japan, led by Isao Ichinokawa. They had already fished with us in Kirinda, Sri Lanka and were coming back after the success of the last trip, to fish with us in the Andaman Islands.

Fishing with Japanese anglers is always interesting for many reasons and I will list some of them below:
1. They are extremely technical; everything has to be just right, checked and checked again.
2. They are only after GT; any other fish does not count! We did have an exasperated Rama, their skipper, come and tell us they lost a 40 kg dogtooth tuna at the boat and the clients said, “Not a GT, no problem.” Yes, guys! A 40 kg doggie on top-water too!! However, should a GT be lost it’s a different story and you can almost feel their pain… after all, they have travelled close to 8000 kilometers to fish 3 days for the Ronin Aji or Samurai Jack as the GT is fondly known in Japanese.
3. If they are fishing top-water, it’s only top-water – either popper or stick-bait, no sinking lures. How is that for being a purist?
4. They fish lighter tackle with finesse and some poppers they call huge are what some anglers from other countries call small!!

One famous Japanese angler on a past trip told me, “The fish are here, if I don’t catch, I (the angler) must be doing something wrong.” In short, they keep fishing.

Did they catch fish and do they fish well? The answers to both is YES!, with 60 GT’s boated in 3 days fishing. But we will let the pictures do the talking, as usual.

Till the next report,
Tight lines!

Tackle Used
Rods: Daiwa, Zenaq, Carpenter
Reels: Shimano Stella, Shimano Twin power, Daiwa Saltiga
Lures: Yo-Zuri, Carpenter Stick Bait, Custom Hand made, Hammer Head

Species Caught: Giant Trevally, Gold Spot Trevally, Bluefin Trevally, Grouper, Bohar Snapper, Trigger fish

 

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