Would You Pay 20,000Baht To Catch This Fish?

[zoso]

This arapamai was caught a few days ago at Bungsamran. The angler SHOULD have paid 20,000baht to catch one arapamai but according to a forum he paid 40,000baht. My friends at Bungsamran told me it was 20,000 which is the fixed rate.

[JackSterling]

20,000 Thai baht in USD is now $714.29 @ 28 baht to $1.00 USD. That is a lot of money to catch any fish in my book..I'm from Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes and the fish are not that big but still a lot of fun catching.. It all depends on how this fish was caught and by what means I guess...At least he can say it did not get away...

[kenny999]

20,000 Thai baht in USD is now $714.29 @ 28 baht to $1.00 USD. That is a lot of money to catch any fish in my book..I'm from Minnesota, land of 10,000 lakes and the fish are not that big but still a lot of fun catching.. It all depends on how this fish was caught and by what means I guess...At least he can say it did not get away...

If money is no object then why not, but for a lot of us 20,000 bht is to much to pay, also there are other venues where you can catch a fish like this at a greatly reduced price, and yes you are right it depends on how it was caught did the guides do everything for you if yes then it realy is not your fish!!!!

[tingtongfarang]

After reading this i begin to wonder what happens if this fish was,nt targeted but somehow foul hooked and the person in question did,nt have the cash or the means to come up with the cash at that moment?

I certainly dont carry 40,000 or even 20,000 baht around with me and i,m sure this amount for many thais would be out of the question,

Ah well...another reason not to fish bsr.

[Krungbin]

I thought Bungsamran was a catch and release affair.

Why did he have to pay? Did not release the fish?

[kenny999]

I thought Bungsamran was a catch and release affair.

Why did he have to pay? Did not release the fish?

Yes BSR is a catch and release but if you want to fish for the Araparma you have to pay 20,000 bht and that is not all day as soon as you catch one say good bye to 20,000 bht ,

[tingtongfarang]

If i were to hook one of those by pure fluke i guess my thumb would by accident push the drag lever forward and break the line ...better not to land it than pay 20,000 baht,

[kenny999]

If i were to hook one of those by pure fluke i guess my thumb would by accident push the drag lever forward and break the line ...better not to land it than pay 20,000 baht,

I guess if you did hook one by chance and land it they would expect you to pay the 20000 bht, how you would prove you were not fishing for them is a difficult one and I think impossible.

[tingtongfarang]

Actually getting the 20,000 baht from me would also be a difficult one....i never carry such amounts with me, Atm cards are also not with me when fishing.

[kenny999]

Actually getting the 20,000 baht from me would also be a difficult one....i never carry such amounts with me, Atm cards are also not with me when fishing.

Well they would not get it from me either, I am not in a position to spend 20000 bht on catching any fish, there are other places to go where you can catch huge fish for a fraction of this cost... but if you are wealthy or you have come on holiday to catch the fish of a life time then up to them...

[zoso]

Most anglers do have a code of conduct. For example in Bungsamran the arapamais will only take live/dead bait and probability of it taking bread,lum etc is almost nil. So no ethical angler will use fish,meat,glizzards as bait. Only once I have seen a Thai angler foul hook an arapamai at Bungsamran but there was no charge/penalty.

Arapamais are not great fighters, it will be intense for 10-15 minutes then it weakens, as they are air breathers. They need to come up to the water surface.

Spinning, luring and fly fishing is not permitted at Bunsamran.

[kenny999]

Most anglers do have a code of conduct. For example in Bungsamran the arapamais will only take live/dead bait and probability of it taking bread,lum etc is almost nil. So no ethical angler will use fish,meat,glizzards as bait. Only once I have seen a Thai angler foul hook an arapamai at Bungsamran but there was no charge/penalty.

Arapamais are not great fighters, it will be intense for 10-15 minutes then it weakens, as they are air breathers. They need to come up to the water surface.

Spinning, luring and fly fishing is not permitted at Bunsamran.

Well as you know Araparma do take bread you and I have seen this, as for being ethical I only fish for what I want to catch which is Mekong and Caho, so any way the 1 in a million situation where an Araparma did take bread I think there would be a long conference from the BSR staff regarding did he or did he not use a live or deadbait!!!! tricky situation, and yes it could possibly happen..

[zoso]

Yes I had seen arapamais taking bread. Quite an eye opener. Some ornamental fish farms in Singapore feed koi pellets to arapamais with also a diet of live frogs to maximise growth. Guess it's a matter of "conditioning" the fishes. Also if one is hungry one will eat anything.

[kenny999]

Yes I had seen arapamais taking bread. Quite an eye opener. Some ornamental fish farms in Singapore feed koi pellets to arapamais with also a diet of live frogs to maximise growth. Guess it's a matter of "conditioning" the fishes. Also if one is hungry one will eat anything.

Yep agree with that, on another note I went to Sawai the other day, there was 2 English lads there, they were told by fishing Koh Lak it was good for Predator fish, poor blokes they got there at 8am and when I got there at about 3pm they had only caught Pacu, but they did lose an Alligator Gar at the net, I was helping them as they realy wanted to catch a Red Tail, nothing, that place is rubbish I am not sure if they had to pay the 5000 bht but I am sure the lake tried it on with them, so bored here now because of no fishing.

Edited November 8, 2010 by kenny999

[zoso]

Predator fishes at Sawai pond? If this is their selling point it's quite misleading. Anyway a very frustrating but challenging place to fish is Bang Wad Dam. Take a rod, some lum and a couple of beers and go at 430pm for a couple of hours. Sort of happy hour.

[IanForbes]

I've spent a lot more than that for catching fish in their native habitat, but I wouldn't pay that amount to catch one in a pay for play pond. The PFP ponds are only an afternoon diversion when there isn't something better to do.

[kenny999]

Predator fishes at Sawai pond? If this is their selling point it's quite misleading. Anyway a very frustrating but challenging place to fish is Bang Wad Dam. Take a rod, some lum and a couple of beers and go at 430pm for a couple of hours. Sort of happy hour.

Been there and it is very difficult fishing plus no parking to speak of, the only place tp park safetly is up by the pumping station, I will wait untill I get the car then venture up to Cha Am and BSR, the 2 guys were off to Gillhams for the day yesterday I think, hope they caught something there.

You living in Bangkok now I take it?

Edited November 8, 2010 by kenny999

[Crossy]

Seems to be a few members around Hua Hin, anyone tried Hua Hin Fishing Lodge http://www.huahinfishing.com/home worth a look or not?

[zoso]

If you stand on the dam facing the reservoir I fished on the right side quite near the dam. If you drive round you will find a shoulder-good for 5 to 6 cars-where I park and many Thais too. Only problem you have to walk down a path to fish.

I was in Bangkok but now back in Singapore. Going back to Phuket tomorrow or day after for few days then Bangkok.

[robblok]

20.000 to catch it is out of my pay leage. Or at least i would not be willing to pay that much for it. I can spend that much on gear.. (that last long) but not on a single fish.

[kenny999]

Seems to be a few members around Hua Hin, anyone tried Hua Hin Fishing Lodge http://www.huahinfishing.com/home worth a look or not?

Never been there but just looked on there web site, looks okay, some big fish there.

[zoso]

Seems to be a few members around Hua Hin, anyone tried Hua Hin Fishing Lodge http://www.huahinfishing.com/home worth a look or not?

Fished at Hua Hin Fishing Lodge 6 months ago. When we were there were lots of work going on nosiy and messy. There are 2 ponds one for normal fishing and the other predator pond. The owner charged us if I recall correctly 200baht per rod for normal and 500baht for predator pond. Caught small pacus,cahos,sawais and mekongs at normal pond. As the pond don't sell ead bait drove to buy 5 kgs of small mackerels and caught nothing. No even a single bite. The water looks tepid. Perhaps, hopefully, the owner finished and upgraded the ponds and facilities. And the 2 circular ponds are very very small.

If you live in Hua Hin and feeling generous perhaps you could fish at Greenfield. More costly than Gillhams-same concept as Gillhams -2 rods for 5500bahts. Very conducive fishing but very disappointed with size. Caught the smallest caho ever. We caught numbers of small cahos,rtc,gars.

Fished with Steve and Wee.

Edited November 8, 2010 by zoso

[rufanuf]

Looking at your OP Zoso, they should of paid 100,000BHT to catch the fish the way it has been handled. Its so sad seeing the Bungsamran guides being cojouled into taking it up on the deck like that, when they clearly know the manager will do his nut if he see's these photo's. The chances of survival based on those pics less than 30% I would say. Unless you have captured a lot of Arapaima, and seen the rather unfortunate consequences of them not being handled correctly you would likely find it hard to understand the price, but Bungsamran have in fact probably got their ticket charge about right, purely from a commercial viability point of view. Pay for play predator fisheries in Thailand have largely built their clientele on the back of a fish that everyone wants to catch, but knowone wants to admit is not really a viable catch and release target, far more fragile than people realise. If a fishery can keep a large Arapaima alive for more than a year or two they are doing well. Palm Tree has a few at 20 years, but thats a complete anomoly.

Actually editing this post:- Looking at the full size picture they are not Bungsamran guides, which might explain the 40,000BHT charge. If Jai saw anyone handling his Arapaima like this he may well have demanded 40,000BHT knowing full well the fishes chances of survival was limited. You should never bring an Arapaima out of the water, for any reason.

Edited November 8, 2010 by rufanuf

[kenny999]

Looking at your OP Zoso, they should of paid 100,000BHT to catch the fish the way it has been handled. Its so sad seeing the Bungsamran guides being cojouled into taking it up on the deck like that, when they clearly know the manager will do his nut if he see's these photo's. The chances of survival based on those pics less than 30% I would say. Unless you have captured a lot of Arapaima, and seen the rather unfortunate consequences of them not being handled correctly you would likely find it hard to understand the price, but Bungsamran have in fact probably got their ticket charge about right, purely from a commercial viability point of view. Pay for play predator fisheries in Thailand have largely built their clientele on the back of a fish that everyone wants to catch, but knowone wants to admit is not really a viable catch and release target, far more fragile than people realise. If a fishery can keep a large Arapaima alive for more than a year or two they are doing well. Palm Tree has a few at 20 years, but thats a complete anomoly.

Not every one is Interested in catching Araparma,

[rufanuf]

Looking at your OP Zoso, they should of paid 100,000BHT to catch the fish the way it has been handled. Its so sad seeing the Bungsamran guides being cojouled into taking it up on the deck like that, when they clearly know the manager will do his nut if he see's these photo's. The chances of survival based on those pics less than 30% I would say. Unless you have captured a lot of Arapaima, and seen the rather unfortunate consequences of them not being handled correctly you would likely find it hard to understand the price, but Bungsamran have in fact probably got their ticket charge about right, purely from a commercial viability point of view. Pay for play predator fisheries in Thailand have largely built their clientele on the back of a fish that everyone wants to catch, but knowone wants to admit is not really a viable catch and release target, far more fragile than people realise. If a fishery can keep a large Arapaima alive for more than a year or two they are doing well. Palm Tree has a few at 20 years, but thats a complete anomoly.

Not every one is Interested in catching Araparma,

Well thats clearly true, what is your point though? It is clearly true it is the fish most people are after...otherwise why are people paying 40,000, 20,000, 7,000 5,500BHT etc etc for tickets at the lakes that hold them, people wont pay that for Mekong fishing. Its shame but thats how it is, hopefully people will start getting bored of them and move onto another target soon, something a but more resilient. Redtails are getting bigger everywhere, maybe when they all start hitting 50kgs anglers will see them as a more interesting target.

[kenny999]

Looking at your OP Zoso, they should of paid 100,000BHT to catch the fish the way it has been handled. Its so sad seeing the Bungsamran guides being cojouled into taking it up on the deck like that, when they clearly know the manager will do his nut if he see's these photo's. The chances of survival based on those pics less than 30% I would say. Unless you have captured a lot of Arapaima, and seen the rather unfortunate consequences of them not being handled correctly you would likely find it hard to understand the price, but Bungsamran have in fact probably got their ticket charge about right, purely from a commercial viability point of view. Pay for play predator fisheries in Thailand have largely built their clientele on the back of a fish that everyone wants to catch, but knowone wants to admit is not really a viable catch and release target, far more fragile than people realise. If a fishery can keep a large Arapaima alive for more than a year or two they are doing well. Palm Tree has a few at 20 years, but thats a complete anomoly.

Not every one is Interested in catching Araparma,

Well thats clearly true, what is your point though? It is clearly true it is the fish most people are after...otherwise why are people paying 40,000, 20,000, 7,000 5,500BHT etc etc for tickets at the lakes that hold them, people wont pay that for Mekong fishing. Its shame but thats how it is, hopefully people will start getting bored of them and move onto another target soon, something a but more resilient. Redtails are getting bigger everywhere, maybe when they all start hitting 50kgs anglers will see them as a more interesting target.

My point is I am not interested in catching Araparma, not because it is very expensive the desire is just not there, I love catching Mekong and trying to catch a big Caho.

[zoso]

I agree with you arapamais(big fishes) should not be handled this way. Those I saw caught by anglers were in bungalows and anglers took picture with fish in the water as it's near the bank. This one was caught on the central platform and it's pretty deep so perhaps, right or wrong, the fish was brought out as the angler who paid 20,000baht surely wants a documented proof. For arapamais- even it is an air breather - hold the fish in the water till it takes a breath before releasing it. Or surprisingly due to stress being caught and exhausted it may drown.

I am an ornamental fish hobbyist. I keep Plecos, Koi, Discus,Arowanas,even Piranhas'till it was banned by the Singapore Government you name I have kept it. Fishes have body slime it's their first line of defense against pathogens and others. For example mekong is a scareless fish-there are no scales to protect it- so body slime is important. It breath through the skin. There are many factors but to cut it short the point is whenever a fish,regardless of size and species,is caught,netted and brought up the fish is stressed, exhausted and scratched. So where is the middle ground?

As to what price to charge to catch an arapamai it's debatable. Thailand is the most successful country to breed captive arapamais. Arapamais,Siamese Carps,Mekong and Chao Phraya catfishes are on CITES endangered species list. There is only one licensed seller of mekong catfish in Thailand but then again this is Thailand where money can buy anything.

And I agree with Kenny999 I caught arapamais but not keen now. The only fish I am very keen are Siamese Carps,

Edited November 8, 2010 by zoso

[zoso]

Looking at your OP Zoso, they should of paid 100,000BHT to catch the fish the way it has been handled. Its so sad seeing the Bungsamran guides being cojouled into taking it up on the deck like that, when they clearly know the manager will do his nut if he see's these photo's. The chances of survival based on those pics less than 30% I would say. Unless you have captured a lot of Arapaima, and seen the rather unfortunate consequences of them not being handled correctly you would likely find it hard to understand the price, but Bungsamran have in fact probably got their ticket charge about right, purely from a commercial viability point of view. Pay for play predator fisheries in Thailand have largely built their clientele on the back of a fish that everyone wants to catch, but knowone wants to admit is not really a viable catch and release target, far more fragile than people realise. If a fishery can keep a large Arapaima alive for more than a year or two they are doing well. Palm Tree has a few at 20 years, but thats a complete anomoly.

Actually editing this post:- Looking at the full size picture they are not Bungsamran guides, which might explain the 40,000BHT charge. If Jai saw anyone handling his Arapaima like this he may well have demanded 40,000BHT knowing full well the fishes chances of survival was limited. You should never bring an Arapaima out of the water, for any reason.

If the angler paid 40,000baht then likely he went through a fishing tour company.

[kenny999]

I agree with you arapamais(big fishes) should not be handled this way. Those I saw caught by anglers were in bungalows and anglers took picture with fish in the water as it's near the bank. This one was caught on the central platform and it's pretty deep so perhaps, right or wrong, the fish was brought out as the angler who paid 20,000baht surely wants a documented proof. For arapamais- even it is an air breather - hold the fish in the water till it takes a breath before releasing it. Or surprisingly due to stress being caught and exhausted it may drown.

I am an ornamental fish hobbyist. I keep Plecos, Koi, Discus,Arowanas,even Piranhas'till it was banned by the Singapore Government you name I have kept it. Fishes have body slime it's their first line of defense against pathogens and others. For example mekong is a scareless fish-there are no scales to protect it- so body slime is important. It breath through the skin. There are many factors but to cut it short the point is whenever a fish,regardless of size and species,is caught,netted and brought up the fish is stressed, exhausted and scratched. So where is the middle ground?

As to what price to charge to catch an arapamai it's debatable. Thailand is the most successful country to breed captive arapamais. Arapamais,Siamese Carps,Mekong and Chao Phraya catfishes are on CITES endangered species list. There is only one licensed seller of mekong catfish in Thailand but then again this is Thailand where money can buy anything.

And I agree with Kenny999 I caught arapamais but not keen now. The only fish I am very keen are Siamese Carps,

The only place where fish are treated the correct way must be Gillhams but I doubt that happens any where else in this country, when I have been fishing I always witness poor fish care, concrete or grass nearly every one I have seen goes for concrete. even big Mekongs are thrown back in to the water and I mean thrown, but what can you do!!!!!!

[rufanuf]

Looking at your OP Zoso, they should of paid 100,000BHT to catch the fish the way it has been handled. Its so sad seeing the Bungsamran guides being cojouled into taking it up on the deck like that, when they clearly know the manager will do his nut if he see's these photo's. The chances of survival based on those pics less than 30% I would say. Unless you have captured a lot of Arapaima, and seen the rather unfortunate consequences of them not being handled correctly you would likely find it hard to understand the price, but Bungsamran have in fact probably got their ticket charge about right, purely from a commercial viability point of view. Pay for play predator fisheries in Thailand have largely built their clientele on the back of a fish that everyone wants to catch, but knowone wants to admit is not really a viable catch and release target, far more fragile than people realise. If a fishery can keep a large Arapaima alive for more than a year or two they are doing well. Palm Tree has a few at 20 years, but thats a complete anomoly.

Actually editing this post:- Looking at the full size picture they are not Bungsamran guides, which might explain the 40,000BHT charge. If Jai saw anyone handling his Arapaima like this he may well have demanded 40,000BHT knowing full well the fishes chances of survival was limited. You should never bring an Arapaima out of the water, for any reason.

If the angler paid 40,000baht then likely he went through a fishing tour company.

LOL...maybe true Zoso, if so one to be avoided, over charging and no clue how to handle or photograph the fish, not a good advert for any of us. When we take people for Arapaima on Bungsamran, the charge is 24000, that includes transfers to and from hotel in BKK, all tackle, bait, photography and most importantly advice spoken in clear English (assuming that is the required language), for a long while we refused to offer Arapaima fishing on Bungsamran as the handling was bad...but they have a pen now especially for photographing them behind bungalow 2/3 not far from where this fish was captured by the looks of things, so no excuses Im afraid.