Is that a fishing rod?

I supposed it started the day(1981) my brother Theng brought home one of those fishing kit you could buy at Oriental Emporium (I never knew about Beach Road and Arab St. until some 10 years later and still am not sure why Theng bought the fishing tackle). The kit consists of a puny looking 6ft telescopic rod, a spinning reel, some hooks and sinkers.

The first opportunity to test out our new gear was at a family gathering at East Coast Chalets. The first taste of fishing was at one of the breakwaters, half the time was spent learning how to cast and the other half fighting 'sangkot'.

Not the best start to one's fishing endeavours, thankfully stubborness prevailed. I was determined to catch something.

The early years ...

Finally caught my first fish, a pitiful 15cm 'ang cho kee'(snapper) at the Esplanade on worms. Nope, catch and release was not part of my vocabulary then. Quite a spot, the Esplanade actually, had some success there, that was before Singapore River became a drinking belt and Merlion was in full view, not blocked by some bridge today.

So thats it, kena hooked already.

'Everytime also catch nothing.' Mum

Up till September 1998, my type of fishing involved surfcast rods, bells, light sticks, apollo jigs ... Bait ranged from sotong, worms to live prawns. Most of the time, it would be a cast and wait game. No sizeable catches to boast off, just a good tan to show off most of the time.

Was introduced to lure fishing recently by a bunch of mad kakis, must dedicate a page to you guys. I won't touch on the fun/beauty of fishing with lures, but boy now I've swallowed hook and bait!

The catch did improve a wee bit, but that elusive biggie is still out there waiting to be caught.

Not that lures are more effective, I just fish more often now.

Release fish, you 'siao' izzit?

Most importantly, I've experienced the satisfaction of releasing the catch. Nothing beats seeing the fish swim off gracefully after giving its best in the earlier struggle. The Ah Lao(old timer) would think you are crazy, but its worth it. Try it to believe. I'm no saint surely, I do keep the occasional catch.

Many a Ah Lao would claim that 10-20 years ago they used to catch fish by the truckload at the local waters. Ask them if things could have been the same had they taken what they only needed.