UP THE JUNGLE TRAIL FOR HARUANS

This article was published in the March 2003 issue of Rod and Line fishing magazine.

The place where Mong and Azhar were standing will be a haven for sebaraus during the rainy seasons.

Have you ever had the feeling that you were going to get the whopper of your life while on the way to your fishing ground?

Well that how I felt, while sitting next to Khairul Azhar, skidding and sliding our ways along the logging track. Leading the way were Mong and Lai in another 4 wheel. The way we were heading was thick jungle just opened up for logging (more man-eaters will be on the way). All along the way, we kept seeing tractors pushing down trees and clearing up roads for the ‘san tai wongs’ (timber carrying lorries). Any sane fisho would dream of the catch of his life in this type of situation.

Lai was the one who told us about this spot. His stories of jungle ponds, streams and waterlogged valleys fired us up. Due to our busy schedules we had to squirm in our pants for a few more weeks before we could finally put together a trip. Our plan was to have Lai leading us to the fishing ground before leaving for his logging camp to oversee his logging operations, as he was very busy.

Breakfast in Parit was a hurried affair, after which our convoy of two 4X4 would bump and roll slowly up the jungle track. Being in the logging trade for a long, long time, Lai was literally driving his 4 wheeler like a formula 1 in the jungle. Khairul Azhar and I had a tough time keeping up with him.

This jungle river is worth exploring in the rainy seasons. My spinners were not even nudged here.

Every time, after we had maneuvered round a band, we would lose sight of Lai’s vehicle. Many a times Khairul Azhar had to shift gear stick to L4 before we could extricate ourselves out of the mud holes left by those ‘King of the jungle’. Any fallen trees across our track would be cleared in no time by Lai and his trusty parang.

Once in a while struggling up a slope, a ‘san tai wong’ would come bearing down on us. Quick evasive action by my friend saved us from been pushed off the track down the ravine below. That logging truck was just skidding and sliding as though out of control. I did not know about Khairul Azhar, but I detected some dampness in my underwear after that incident.

Somehow we made it to our destination in one piece. Standing there we realized that we were just at the foot of Menglembu Hill of the Kledang Range. The transmission towers and buildings could be seen clearly bathe in the morning sun. This area could only be reached from Parit.

Surprise was written all over our faces for right here in the middle of the jungle was an old abandoned palong. Scattered all over the place were mined out ponds with sparse vegetation. After warning us to be careful as pug marks had been seen around here, Lai left for his logging camp.

Fanning out in different directions, we went looking for our quarries. I headed in the direction of a jungle stream to try my luck. Lady luck was not with me as my spinner and lures was not even nudged. Azhar had just landed a ‘cheroot’ when I met him again. According to him, he had failed to hookup on a few occasions. As the taps were light and the subsequent patch of bubbles that floated up was small, he deduced that the haruans had yet to develop their full sets of dentures. These incidents were played over and over again.

Feeling frustrated, we headed deeper into the jungle where Lai had told us about a few ponds that were much more promising. These two older looking ponds lifted our spirits. The banks were covered with rises and shrubs. The jungle grew right up to the water edges at the far banks.

Out flew three frogs and back came the same amphibians looking as good as new. We were at a lost as to how ponds in the middle of no-man’s land could be so deprived of fish? Chopping my way through the shrubs, I found a promising spot.  When my frog was reeled pass a clump of grass, a dark torpedo shot out and stole the frog right under my nose. If that haruan could understand those #?!+& that I was mumbling under my breath, it would have thought that I lacked proper upbringing. My second legless frog was the downfall of that crafty critter. I nearly yanked its jaws out of its skull. Only 600 gm. and it was such a sly fellow.

We were not the first people here.

The jungle around me was suddenly became conspicuously quiet. My hairs were standing on their ends. Gripping my parang harder, I made a hasty retreat from there. By the time I met up with them, Azhar had caught another haruan of about 500gms. After relating my concern to them, we decided to move to some other ponds where the surrounding was more open. At least we could see what was coming for lunch.

A series of interconnecting ponds were our next hunting ground. There was a jungle stream flowing into one end. Here Mong caught a haruan of almost the same size as Azhar’s. I lost a few more frogs to those hungry creatures. Have to increase my twice weekly session of exercise to sharpen up my reflexes later on, I guessed.

Lai came back to make sure that we did not end up as lunches for some striped monsters. He pointed out to us a place where water was cascading from one pond to another. “Come back during the rainy season and you will catch sebaraus by the dozen,” he said.

According to him, the sebaraus will move upstream against the churning water. “Not big though, but they make up with their numbers,” he explained. We sure pricked up our ears to listen. Accessing this region during the raining seasons has its sets of problems. We have to use off track tires, winches and chains to move up the muddy slopes of those hills and to extricate ourselves in any eventualities. Driving during the wet season will definitely be hardcore 4X4 adventure, testing us and our vehicles to the limit. Before Lai left us again, he made us promise to call him as soon as we emerge from the jungle. We continued to fish for another two hours. Other than the light taps, we did not register any notable catches. By 4.00pm we were already exhausted from the heat and exertion. With open mouths and drooping tongues we crawled our ways under a shady tree to rest. To continue would be pushing our endurances to the limits. In the end it was a unanimous decision to leave. Azhar by now was already a veteran in semi hardcore jungle track driving. In no time we were out onto the comfort of the paved road. While having our meals in Parit, a concerned Lai called inquiring our whereabouts. We embarrassingly apologized for not informing him that we were safe and sound.

Here both my friends were holding up their catches. Not big, but ok lah.

From our inquiries, the Orang Aslis and some locals have known about the ponds for a long, long time (that explained the absence of XXL haruans). As a consolation, we spotted quite a number of marshy patches and waterlogged ravines. Our next trip there will see us chopping our ways down those ravines.

KELLIE’S CASTLE BUJUKS

This article was published in the December 2002 issue of Rod and Line fishing magazine.

Kellie’s Castle is a well-known tourist attraction near Batu Gajah in Perak. Standing majestically on top of a green lush hill with the Raya River flowing serenely in front, one somehow always feel overwhelmed, just looking at the scene. William Kellie Smith, a Scot, started the process to have it built in 1915, but never completed it as he died suddenly in 1926.

Kellie's Castle with the muddy Raya River lowing past. To us the building had lost its mystical charm after it was 'discovered' and cleaned up for tourists.

 Many moons ago when the castle had not been ‘discovered’ by the tourist trade people yet, we few young guys were already exploring this place. Back then the building was covered by the jungle. Huge trees grew on top of the roof with roots clinging to the walls all the way to the ground. The quiet shady building with its many dark passages gave credence to our ghost stories related to our not so adventurous friends. Not many people could savor the beautiful sight of this mysterious building as access to it was blocked by the muddy Raya River.

Maniam holding up two of his bujuks. From the sound emanating from the center of the pond, there should be bigger monsters in there.

Crossing the fast flowing river required us to strip right down to our underwear, holding our belongings above our heads (African style) and gingerly picking our ways across the waist deep water. Of course, fictitious crocodiles were added in to make our story more interesting. We used to laugh our heads off at the naivety of some of our friends. When they asked how is it that none of us were attack, we would show them our mud tainted underwear with the label of a reptile. Some of them would kick us playfully when they knew we were pulling their legs.

I just could not resist photographing these pitcher plants. They were endemic to this area.

During those forays to the castle, we also go trekking and fishing at the vast hinterland behind the castle. To access this area, we got to go two kilometer further down the road. Those days the place was pockmarked with ponds. And rubber estates were the usual scene. Most of the ponds were snag free and our usual method for catching bujuks was with spinners and spoons. Boy, those were the days.

This one got hungry in the late evening.

Recently  an old friend, Maniam, dropped by. He is one of my long time fishing kakis. I still remember vividly one of our trips, where we had a good laugh. One of Maniam’s friends brought along his young son on one of our toman trips. While tackling up, the small boy called out to me excitedly, “Unker, unker, see, bootfly, bootfly”. Puzzled, I looked in the direction of his pointing finger. The most beautiful Great Mormon (Papilio Memnon Agenor) I had ever seen was perched on a flower, feeding. Suddenly the boy’s father cut in, “Yanna deh, blah, blah, bootfly, bootfly. Blah, blah, betterfly.” (Translated it meant, “What heck! Bootfly, bootfly. It should be pronounced as betterfly.”) The rest of us ran behind trees and bushes to laugh our heads off.

That weekend saw Maniam and me on our trusty cub-chais slowly meandering through the oil palm estates and former mining lands. Reaching our favorite pond, we found that it is now almost totally covered with a type of plants called “shooi koong chew” in Chinese, literally meaning ‘water banana trees.’

These plants had runners as thick as my arms and they crisscrossed all over the place. While surveying the place the unmistakable sound of snakeheads gulping down their preys were heard. Along the banks were clearings cut into the vegetation. Taking advantage of these clearings, we swung out our worm baits and waited. Because the bottom had some weeds growing, the method we used was having the the bait above the weight. Camouflaging ourselves behind some trees, we made ourselves comfortable.

Maniam wading into the pond to cut a clearing for fishing.

My friend was the first to get a bite. The unlucky juvenile bujuk was kept for my daughter who just had her appendicitis removed. Another small haruan ended up with the same fate. That ended our trip to our old haunt. As if to prove to us that giants do live there, Maniam had his 18lb line broken, when he went for his ‘buang suei’(urinate) session. He found his rod snagged on one of the plants on his return minus the fish.

The next week we were more prepared. Our knives were sharpened and lengths of raffia strings were brought along. Clearings were cut into this ‘jungle’ using our knives tied to long branches. Even with long branches, we still had to get into the water once in a while.

My God, you should see those aquatic Draculas gliding silently homing in on us. Just a few minutes in the water were enough to have hordes of these hungry creatures gleefully clinging on to our legs. They never failed to send shivers up my back. Wish we had a stove and wok as I would like to fry the whole lot of them crispy. How that Mark fellow sat in a bathtub full of leeches (20,000 to be exact) in that ‘Ripley’s Believe It Or Not’ program is beyond my comprehension.

This was the type of 'jungle' wee had to fish in. These 'shooi koong chew' had runners crisscrossing all over the surface. Underneath, hide many monsters, including bujuks.

Again my friend was the first to have his bait taken. This time we were using floats to keep our worms above the weeds. That beautifully patterned bujuk was landed after some thrashing in the pond. Fishing about five meters away, I saw my float slowly dipped below the surface. Bujuks do not feed like that, I thought to myself. When the culprit was lifted up, it was found to be an eel. That day must be its lucky day, for I dislike eels.

The bujuk that took my bait next must have a guardian angel looking after it. After thrashing and tugging, I lost it to the plants. My friend was luckier as he landed three snakeheads of reasonable sizes.

Our method of fishing was to ground bait out targeted place. Earthworms were chopped up finely and mixed with earth. This mixture was then strewn into the opening cut by us. Every now and then we threw in more mixture. This method had proven to be effective for fishing in such conditions. One thing that bugged me was the many tiny sepats, prits and other small fish that came for lunch. They could be a nuisance and be very irritating at times.One method of overcoming this problem was to use lizard or frog baits. At least we do not have to keep on redbaiting all the time.

This greedy eel got itself into trouble by not keeping its big mouth shut.

Rebaiting had its drawback. First you might get snagged and lose your rig. This was a constant occurrence. Secondly it reduces the time your bait was in the water thus reducing your chances of a hook-up. Thirdly it would make you very short tempered.

With the numerous gulping sound and broken line, we must be very uncommitted not to go back there again. Cutting our way into the pond and climbing up one of the short trees to fish is a very attractive idea. Our main problem was how to keep those bloodsuckers at bay. Most important was how to keep some of the more adventurous one from going up our orifices. Other than using plugs or rubber stoppers, I still could not see how we could solve our problem.

This was one of those aquatic Draculas. They could sense the vibration in the water and home in on you immediately.

The choice of partner in this type of fishing is a very important factor to consider. It is one thing to sit comfortably on the bank to fish. The whole scenario will change when you are been coiled and crushed by one of those big 'Tai Kors’. It will be ‘pocik’ (die) for you if your partner runs away.

REEL MAINTENANCE – SPINNING REEL

This article was published in the November 2002 issue of Rod And Line fishing magazine.

In my many years of fishing, I have seen all sorts of characters fishing with all types of reels in various condition of neglect. Some would give off a grinding sound when cranked. Others looked as though they were going to fall apart at any moment. It was a wonder how the anglers could keep on using them.

Use a tray to organize the parts to prevent losing them. A discarded egg tray is very handy.

To me a smooth and well-serviced reel is an ecstasy to use. You do not feel exhausted spinning the whole day. The most important thing is when you were locked on to a whopper. You do not have to divide your concentration worrying about whether it will let you down or otherwise.

There were also some “friends” who came complaining that their reels were not working properly. When confronted, they would swear on their ancestors’ graves that they have never opened the reel before. The funny thing was that the reel that they had ‘never opened before’ had parts fitted in all the wrong places. Some even had their shafts, springs or pins bent out of shape. How they chose to buy a reel that was not working properly in the first place is beyond my comprehension. I had also come across reels (costing four figures) so corroded and fused by saltwater that I had to use a plastic mallet to know them apart!

A safety pin is handy for keeping the parts in their proper sequence.

I am not claiming to be an expert in reel maintenance. But when you see many beautiful and expensive reels being ruined by neglect or clumsy dismantling, I feel it is my duty to share whatever little knowledge that I have with our readers. At least we can pass our time fruitfully during off seasons.

Every reel comes with a schematic diagram. Do keep yours, as it can be very useful.

To start off, I would like to choose the spinning reel, as it is the most widely used reel around this region. The number of models of spinning reels in the market is mind-boggling. Some are quite cheap, while others may cost thousands. No matter what price of the reel is they somehow work on almost the same principle with some refinements here and there.

Always remember to keep your reels well lubricated and clean after every trip. Spray a coat of WD40 or any water repellant spray before and after an outing. (Bear in mind though, some water repellants are harmful to some PVC). At least once a year, do strip it down for a total overhaul. If you are using it for saltwater fishing then the strip down should be more frequent.

Before we start to strip our reels we should have some of the things listed below.

Turn the knob anti-clockwise to unscrew. Pull out the spool and remove the drag washers for cleaning and oiling.

THINGS TO HAVE

A:  Have a tray ready so that you can keep all the parts in their proper places. The tray will save you a lot of heartaches looking parts that suddenly sprout legs.

B:  Please do use proper tools for the job at hand. The screwdriver should fit snugly in the screw slot or else damage will occur and thus lowering the resale value of your reel.

C:  Proper solvent should be used to clean the grease and grimes from your reel. I normally use kerosene of petrol. Petrol will dry totally, but will leave a layer of additives on your reel parts, while kerosene must be wipe dry. One way of overcoming this problem is just dip it in spirit after cleaning with kerosene. Never use thinner, as the corrosive nature of thinner will damage the rubber parts, paintworks and plastic in your reel. Be careful when using these solvents as they are very flammable. Use them in the open as the circulation of air is better.

D:  A good stiff paint brush is very useful in getting rid of sand, grease and grits from your reel parts. The fine bristles can reach into most crevices.

E:  To lubricate spinning reel bearings, I normally use light oil with molybdenum disulfide. As for grease, those with molybdenum disulfide are my preferred ones. This grease is to be used on the shafts, gears and other moving parts that encounter a lot of friction.

F:  Have a roll of toilet tissue handy. They are good absorbent of solvent and are soft enough to be used for cleaning the bodywork.

G:  A big safety pin or any other device to help keep washers, nuts or bearings in their proper sequence is very helpful to have around.

After removing the ratchet gear and washers , unscrew the hexagonal nut to take out the rotor.

Uncover the bail arm spring to clean and grease. Remember to grease the bail-tripping lever at the bottom.

Unscrew all the screws and detach the side cover of the reel. To remove main shaft, unscrew the small screw "X" holding it to the oscillating slider.

The drive gear, oscillating gear and slider can now be removed.

DISASSEMBLING THE REEL

1.       Remove the drag knob and pull out the spool.

2.       Slowly take out the cir-clips and then the drag washers from the spools. Soak in solvent, dry thoroughly and apply oil or grease (depending on the make of the reel). Do make sure they are arrange in their proper order before putting them back in.

3.       To detach the rotor, first pull out the ratchet gear and washer. Unscrew the hexagonal nut holding the rotor before pulling out the rotor.

4.       Open the cover of the bail arm spring. Clean and grease. (Be careful with the spring. Once it springs out you will have a hard time finding it).) Oil all moving parts.

5.       Remove the reel handle, clean and oil.

6.       Detach side cover plate.

7.       Unscrew the screw holding the shaft to the oscillating slider. Detach shaft and the slider. Clean and grease.

8.       After the shaft has been removed then only can the drive gear be taken out. Clean the gear, bearings and then apply grease and oil.

9.       To access the main shaft bearing and the anti-reverse bearing, unscrew the cover situated on the front of the real body.

10.   The anti-reverse roller bearing needs to be clean and grease too.

11.   To re-assemble, reverse all the steps taken.

Unscrew the cover to remove the main bearing, anti reverse bearing and the rotor drive shaft.

THINGS TO REMEMBER

a.       All moving parts must be oiled or greased to prevent metal to metal contact. This will reduce friction and dissipate heat thus prolonging the life of all parts.

b.      All springs, cir-clips and the likes must be treated with care. Once misplace or should they spring out accidentally, a lot of time will be wasted looking for them. Replacement is difficult to procure.

c.       All reels come with schematic diagrams in their boxes. Please keep yours, as it will save you a lot of time and heartaches when assembling your reel.

d.      Screws must not be over tightened as the threads are very easily stripped.

e.      All exposed bearings must be cleaned thoroughly so as to remove sand and grits. They must be totally dry before oiling or else the solvent will thin the oil too much to be of any use.

f.        Sealed maintenance free bearings are exactly what the name implies. Please do not clean with solvent as it might seep into the bearing compartment rendering the lubricant useless.

g.       To check for the proper working condition of the bearing, put a pencil through it and spin the bearing. The bearing should spin smoothly. Should there be any grating sound then it should be cleaned and oiled properly. In case there is not improvement, the bearing concerned should be replaced.

h.      Please bear in mind the grease and oil  are there to:

i)                    Prevent metal to metal contact

ii)                   Dissipate heat

iii)                 Prevent rust.

iv)                 Stop water from coming into contact with metal or washers.  

Bail roller bearing. Make sure the roller turns after reassembly.