Fishing In Thailand Newsletter September 2014

Hello to everyone following Gillhams Fishing Resorts newsletter. In the absence of Stuart and Sean it has been left to the guides to compile the latest report on the fishing here at Gillhams in Thailand. Once again sorry for the delay in putting this report together, but as you can imagine without the bosses at the helm things here have been rather hectic.

Now that we have had a bit of rain all of the gardens are looking their best, and work has been continuing on the erection of the new salas. 14 have already been completed, and the builders are marching through the final 12. The target is to have all 26 completed before Christmas. Every swim will have its own tiled roof sala, each fitted with an oscillating fan to keep you cool on those hot Thailand days. Not to mention lights, roll down blinds to keep the sun and rain off, plus power points to keep your gadgets charged. This is complimented with the free WiFi around the entire resort so social media sites will get updated daily by the happy anglers showing off their latest capture. This means the end to the umbrellas we used to have, which were being blown into the lake or crumpled by the wind. It’s a heavy investment in the fishery and Stuart says it will be probably ten years before he gets his money back on what it cost for “new umbrellas”, but it’s definitely money well spent to keep Gillhams ahead of the game as the premier fishery in Thailand.

Writing this newsletter; Stuart was leaving to go back to the UK to see his mum along with a trip to Orlando, and just before he left, little Jack said to his dad,”Daddy, can you make a noise like a frog?” When Stuart asked why, Jack replied, “Well, Sean said when you croak we can all bugger off to Disneyland.” Stuart said, “I will do better than that; I will take you and Sean and we will have a boy’s holiday.” So Stuart, Sean, and Jack are off to see Mickey Mouse. One of Stuart’s sons was very excited, and so was Jack!

I’m sure you are all aware but we have had to say goodbye to our longest serving fishing guide Joel Fennell. Now Joel is one of those guys that can get on with anyone. He can get his point across without offending anyone, and his knowledge of the lake’s topography was second to none. Put this together with his fishing ability, people skills and general love of Gillhams and he is going to be sorely missed by everyone. How long he will be able to stay away from the place he regards as home, and the Gillhams he calls family is unclear, but we have a feeling he will be back sooner rather than later. Stuart has already told him his job is open whenever he wants to return, so let’s all hope he gets homesick and returns ASAP. Below is a post Joel put on Facebook when he left. It brings a lump to everyone’s throat who had the pleasure to meet him.

“This is going to be a little long so apologies in advance:

Yesterday was my last day guiding at Gillhams fishing resort after two years and eight months. I came here for the first time five years ago as a customer and had five trips to this fishing paradise, so to say I had the Gillhams bug was an understatement.

When I was made redundant from my job in London I came out to Asia back in October 2011 with the intention of traveling about for a few months and then making a new start in finance in Singapore or Hong Kong. I was always coming here to fish in that time; I went to India with Sean in the November fishing for the mighty mahseer and then was traveling back with him just for ten days to chill out. Well, I chilled out for a bit longer than ten days – more like 950 days!

I became one of the guides here, and then took over as the head guide. If you knew me back home, I learnt to fish late and was taught by my mates. I wasn’t the best angler to say the least, but after a while I got the idea of it and before I left the UK I was competent, not the noddy that was on the bank before. So for me being a guide was the furthest thing from where I ever imagined my life to head down. I got the gist of it quickly and found out I loved it. The buzz you get from people catching their fish of a lifetime is an awesome feeling, and for me the privilege of handling the immense fish in this lake has been the key to it; you either thrive on it or not.

Obviously I fished a bit here too and have caught fish I could only ever have dreamed of. My tally to date is 29 species with five different species over 100lbs – not bad in anyone’s eyes. The way I look at it I have probably gained ten years of fishing experience in my stint here by fishing every day and learning from some of the best known and unknown anglers around from all corners of the world. It really is an experience that has been invaluable to me and priceless. The memories of this experience will stay with me forever; it really has changed my life for positive reasons. I found myself again; I did something for me, and I really lived life after working to live for 13 years. I’ve gained a new family here; this really is home and feels like it. I think that is the best way of describing it, and if somewhere feels like home, then you know you’re in the right place.

Stuart Gillham, I thank you for having me, trusting me and letting me get as deep into your business as you did. You remind me of people who have been in my life, and to be honest the way you are with me has been what I needed.

Sean Gillham thanks for everything, mate. You really are a mate for life, more to the point like family; like a brother.

Becca, Benz and Noi, I thank you all for being there for me, helping and generally just being yourselves.

To all the guides I’ve worked with, thanks for the support, for the laughs, tears, hangovers and general good times, all of us will admit without the team being together you couldn’t get through the days and weeks as easily as we did. I really do thank you all from the bottom of my heart.

To the customers who have been and generally all returned, thanks for letting me share your experiences. I hope I have left a lasting memory with you all in a good way. So many of you are now friends, and long may that continue. I look forward to seeing all your future photos and stories from the lake; it really has been emotional, and I really have changed! Lol!

I’ve got 40 days left in Thailand now before I move on and try and create a life for Tor and me, be it in finance or a new career path, I’m not sure, but wherever it leads I will push for it to be as successful as my life to date.

I’ve got one last challenge left here. I’m fishing for ten days straight starting in a few days. I’m going to cherish every minute of it and try and fish my heart out. I’ve watched too many of you lot enjoying long sessions, and now it’s my turn – hahaha.

Then it’s up to chiang Mai fishing Teak Tree Lake for three days and then my beautiful girlfirend is meeting me there and I’m going to spend three weeks with her traveling about before I have to go. I can’t even explain how hard that will be.

To James, Jim and Elaine in Malaysia thanks for everything you and your family have done for me; you are family to me, and I appreciate it more than I probably ever show.

Right I’m finishing now, as the screen’s got a little blurry… lol…

Cheers, Joel.”

Spot on, Joel! Our eyes are also watering and we have lumps in our throats. As for your ten days’ fishing, it was completed before the newsletter. Joel landed 33 fish of five species: three Amazon redtail to 50lb, three big head carp to 35lb, one arapaima of 180lb, and one giant gourami of 4lb. He topped this off with 25 Siamese carp, with a very well deserved personal best weighed at 138lb. Joel had netted the big carp a few times for various clients, and he always commented that this particular fish was the one he would love to catch. What a fitting way for the lake to bid farewell to its greatest lover – top darts, Joel!

Joel, the lads put this newsletter together, but I just wanted to add my bit. You are like a son to me, and a brother to Sean, Becky and little Jack. Mate, you are part of our family and always will be, now get back here and forget the UK – we all miss you. Seriously Joel, we would love you to return, as would everyone, and your job is open for you anytime you want it. Be lucky, son; I am sure whatever path you choose you will give it your best shot, and the people whose paths you cross will be touched by the most honest genuine and nice bloke they will ever meet. Up the Hammers!!

Unfortunately we also had to say farewell to another of our fishing guides this month, Steve Mayo. Steve is a highly respected match angler in the UK and originally planned to stay for at least two years, but after six months he could not handle Thailand and decided that it wasn’t for him, so he is returning to the UK hopefully to pick up a job in the tackle trade. All of us Gillhams wish him all the best; it was a pleasure having him here.

To cover us on the shortfall while Stuart and Sean were away from the resort and before new guides arrived, Adam Randall returned to help out for a few weeks. Now those of you who know Adam will know that he is a fitness fanatic, watches what he eats and drinks and has a strict fitness regime running every day. He is shortly due to run a 25km race in Singapore and a 50km race in Hong Kong. He has been out running the streets of Krabi on a daily basis. Unfortunately the locals around here are not used to seeing young men with shaven legs (yes ladies and gents, he actually shaves his legs!) running around in the skimpiest shorts that wouldn’t look out of place on an Olivia Newton John aerobics DVD! Perhaps that is the reason that our Becca has gone on record as saying Adam is her No. 1 guide, or maybe it’s because they share each other’s Immac hair removal cream! You decide.

Adam has just received news that he is going to be a father for the first time, and I’m sure you will join us in congratulations to both Adam and his beautiful wife Kerry on their good news.

On a good note two new guides have just started – Alex and Jake – both young lads, and with the imminent return of our Dec we could have the makings of a Gillhams boy band so watch this space!

Fishing folk are a strange bunch… at home they sit for days on end waiting for the chance of a big fish. Most come here and accept the fact that a lake cannot support thousands of huge fish. You can’t mix multiple daily catches with big fish. If you want lots of fish then you go to a fishery with a high stocking density, but you won’t catch big fish; the fishing will resemble mackerel fishing, but if it’s your thing then go for it.

We see it all the time – fisheries showing pictures of fish claimed to be double and even triple the size they are, and also fisheries with a few distinctive big fish claiming that the same tired looking old fish is many different fish. Some show a fish caught one day and two days later show the same guy with yet another big fish. In this day of computers and being able to blow up and compare pictures the same distinctive marks are there. You get the ones who publish fish of huge sizes without any pictures to back up the false claims. They are fooling nobody but themselves, and the only harm it does is to their fishery. It actually helps the busy fisheries like Gillhams to stay busy while they struggle for customers.

Gillhams is aimed at the anglers who want the chance to catch a fish of a lifetime, and couple this with stunning surroundings and quality accommodation, plus a large swimming pool and first class restaurant and you can see why 90% of anglers return to Gillhams every year. It is without doubt one of the best fishing resorts in the world.

However we still get the odd customer who thinks they should catch ten or more fish a day, and they want them all to be the biggest in the world when in reality this is an impossibility. We had a guy here recently who on arrival said if he caught one fish over his biggest fish of 30lb then he would be over the moon. We all thought, well, he will be easy to please. On his first day he caught a 180lb arapaima plus two carp at 70 and 80lb and a 50lb catfish. Remembering his comments on arrival we congratulated him on a good first day, and the reply of, “I am disappointed as the fishing was slow” soon dampened everyone’s spirits.

We get the guy who catches a 280lb arapaima and is disappointed it wasn’t over 300lb, but the ones we feel sorry for are the anglers who visited another fishery and have been told that 50lb carp are 100lb, arapaima of 100-plus are 300lb… the big fish list goes on. The poor sods come here honestly believing they have caught these big fish. We weigh our 100lb-plus carp and they see the lie they have been told. Do they return to the previous fishery or tell their mates to go there? Do they hell!

Anyway enough of the things we find disappointing and onto the catch statistics and guests reports. This month has seen 3,000 fish caught of 300 species, the best being arapaima to 900lb, Amazon red tail catfish to 240lb, Mekong catfish to 700lb and Siamese carp to 600lb. Sorry we could not resist that!!

Enough fantasy, here is reality:

The anglers who visited us for the exotic fishing Thailand has to offer had some good fishing in Krabi this month with a total of 484 fish caught of 24 species, made up as follows: 35 arapaima to 350lb, five arawana to 9lb, one alligator gar of 60lb, 85 Amazon redtail catfish to 80lb, one Amazon stingray of 25lb, 67 Asian redtail catfish to 42lb, 24 black pacu to 40lb, five big head carp to 35lb, two giant gourami of 5lb, two giant snakehead to 6lb, three giant featherback to 14lb, 17 Julian’s golden carp to 45lb, 31 Mekong catfish to 210lb, four mrigal to 11lb, five Nile perch to 8lb, four rohu to 13lb, three ripsaw catfish to 25lb,one striped catfish of 25lb, three spotted sorubim to 20lb, five spotted featherback to 14lb, 176 Siamese carp to 138lb, one shovel nosed tiger catfish of 15lb, two tambaqui to 35lb, one wallago attu of 20lb and one wallago leeri of 25lb.

Gotfried, or Fritz as he is affectionately known, came with his son Peter for the second time in three months. Last trip they managed to winkle out an arapaima each, and this time they wanted to target the Siamese carp and Mekong catfish.
After a slow start their patience was wearing a little thin, but thankfully they trusted the guide and kept feeding the swim. Eventually the fish moved onto the bait, and in Peter’s case they certainly arrived. He started off with a small Siamese carp by Gillhams standards at 40lb, then followed up with a 90lb fish. He didn’t think it could get any better, but his next fish broke the 100lb barrier at 115lb. The fish was weighed and identified as last being out in July 2012, when it was weighed at 96lb and had not been seen since. When I first started guiding here a 100lb carp seemed a big event, but now 100lb’ers are a regular occurrence.

Peter’s next fish at first glance looked like a large arawana, but once netted a beautiful 10lb arapaima revealed itself – perfect in every detail and no more that 2ft long. We don’t stock arapaima until they are 150lb-plus, and this is one of several caught at this size lately, proving the arapaima breed and thrive in the perfect environment the Gillhams have created. Unfortunately this little fella still had the strength to jump the net before we could get a picture.

Peter’s holiday wouldn’t be complete until he had felt the power of a Mekong catfish, and the one he caught at 160lb led him on a merry dance for nearly three hours, with Peter saying those well known words:”I don’t want another one!”

Dad Fritz wasn’t to be outdone, as he helped himself to three carp to 70lb, Amazon red tails and a striped catfish. Although living in Indonesia Fritz hasn’t forgotten his roots, and every afternoon at 4pm out would come the Austrian sausage with Austrian corn bread. He was a pleasure to be with, and if he is going to feed me, well, he’s my kind of customer!

Dave Harris, a retired steel worker originally from Darlington and now living in Yarm near Middlesborough visited us this month. Dave has fished all his life, and concentrates on match fishing the rivers these days. Fortunate to be retired, Dave manages to get over to Thailand three times a year. This was his first visit to Gillhams, but there is no doubt he will be returning. During his stay Dave managed to bag three Siamese carp to 75lb, Amazon redtail catfish, pacu and a spotted featherback.

Ken Scott, a regular at Gillhams, was over this month with his good friend and well-known fishing guide Dave Plummer, who brought his son Neil over for a treat. Dave mentioned how well the lake was looking, which is remarkable for Dave, as he never sees the lake during daylight hours, preferring to study the inside of his eyelids during the day!

Now for all of you out there who think Stuart wouldn’t give a door a bang, let me let you in on a secret: under that gruff ex-scaffolder exterior is a man with a heart of gold and generous to a fault. So much so that when hearing that Ken had retired, he offered his fishing holiday free of charge as a retirement present. Now before you all send in begging letters saying you are nearly retired, let me tell you, I retired in 2011 and got bugger all off him! Ken enjoyed his fishing at times to suit him, unlike Dave who enjoyed never once casting out! Ken ended his retirement trip with Siamese carp to 90lb, Amazon redtail catfish to 55lb plus an Asian redtail catfish.

Young couple Ben Miles and his wife-to-be Gemma Teago joined us on their way to Bali this month. Ben is a reporter for the Angling Times and told me how he got into working for the well-known angling newspaper. He remembered as a kid going into the offices and working for nothing, cataloging all the fish pictures until eventually they offered him a post. Most kids these days want to start on £20k a year, but it just goes to show that if you are prepared to put yourself forward and put yourself out then it often leads onto bigger things.

His first morning, and 20 minutes into fishing Ben hit into a Mekong that was determined to swim to Ao Nang. As with all new anglers, Ben tried to play the fish with the rod butt on his elbow, but very quickly realised he needed the butt in his groin with Gemma looking anxiously on at how close the butt was to her future husband’s prized tackle! For an angler new to fishing in Thailand, Ben played the fish extremely well for two hours, until sadly the fish cut him off over a bar. The look on his face said it all… the poor lad was as sick as a parrot. Still determined Ben fished on and got his rewards with a 30lb Amazon redtail later that day. Ben’s dream fish was the Siamese carp, and after carefully feeding he got his prize, a whacking fish estimated at 95lb. He was well happy, and nothing could take the grin of Gemma’s face; she never left his side and was just so pleased for him. Ben went onto catch Asian red tails to 20lb and a lovely giant featherback at 10lbs. They were a great couple, and it was truly a pleasure to sit with them. I even got a sneak preview of Gemma’s wedding dress. Ben and Gemma, everyone here at Gillhams wish you all the best for your special day on 6th June 2015, and don’t forget to send us some cake!

Oscar Pye and his girlfriend Michelle Leach came for an 18-day holiday with ten days’ fishing. Oscar and Michelle were a quiet couple who kept themselves to themselves, and enjoyed each other’s company, alternating a day fishing with going out on day trips. When they did decide to fish they put some fine specimens on the bank: two arapaima at 150lb and 300lb, rohu to 15lb, Siamese carp to 50lb, Amazon red tails to 60lb and a much sought after ripsaw catfish of 15lb.

Andrew Hook, who is responsible for our website, came this month. Now it was obvious when I saw Andrew this time that he had lost a lot of weight, and I knew he was into Thai boxing, so I was more than interested in what was his secret, having putting on more than my share of weight when back in the UK. Like an American diva the order went into Becca to rush off to the market and buy him 30 coconuts, and then the girls in the kitchen were told to drain the coconut water and that would be his detox diet for the first day. Sounds like we had found the latest diet, doesn’t it? Well let me tell you the next day he had a full English, pie and chips for dinner followed by apple crumble and custard with copious amounts of cashew nuts to munch on as well. I can safely say it’s not a diet I will be following! Andrew was after arapaima, and although he hooked a few, time and time again they threw the hook. He did however help himself to seven Amazon retails to 50lb, two Asian red tails to 20lb and a bonus rohu at 12lb.

Lee Spatcher, originally from Leicester and now living in Bangkok via Sydney came for a short visit. Lee has been here many times, and up until this date he is the only angler who has asked for a chair when he hooks into a fish (got a bit of a bad back he says!). When a friend comes the guide is always under a bit of pressure, but I needn’t have worried, as Lee hooked into a carp within the first hour. He was explaining in an experienced tone, “It’s only a small one,” and some 25 minutes later (with Lee crouching down a couple of times on his haunches, but thankfully not calling for the chair) up popped a nice 65lb Siamese carp. He followed that up with another one of 75lb later in the day. It’s always great to see Lee, and hopefully we’ll see him again soon, and maybe next time he could bring some money with him! You know what I mean, Lee!

Good friends Alexi Storchi and Francesco Sorianini from Italy sampled the delights of Gillhams this month. They are two very different anglers these two: Alexi could speak good English and was every minute of the day watching the water and asking questions, whereas Francesco who could speak little English was content to sit in his chair and while away the hours. After a slow start, and although fishing in two swims next door to each other, Alexi started connecting with the fish. On one particular day he bagged five Siamese carp to 90lb and a big headed carp whilst Francesco looked jealously on suffering a blank for the day.

Now I think we all know how excitable the Italians can get, and Alexi is no different, so when he finally got his dream fish, an arapaima of 250lb, the whoops of joy and screeches of delight could be heard in Ao Nang. Funny really because when he got his other dream fish, a Mekong of 140lb his delight was curtailed somewhat, as he collapsed in his chair absolutely cream crackered! In the end Alexi’s total was: araipaima to 250lb, Mekong to 140lb, Siamese to 90lb, big headed carp at 18lb, Amazon red tails to 50lb and a pacu at 15lb. Francesco wasn’t far behind with Siamese to 92lb, Asian Redtails to 24lb and a lovely Julian’s golden carp of 7lb caught on a float rod.

The Dutch people are some of the most relaxed and easygoing customers who come to the resort, and the Den Hoed family were no different. Dad Nico and sons Jeffrey and Ricardo were doing the fishing while Mum Ingrid kept a watchful eye over them. Cancer is a terrible disease; but when it hits someone so young as Jeffrey then it makes it all the worse. This young man contracted Hodkinsons Disease (lymph cancer) at just 14 years of age. He had to undergo chemotherapy and his blonde hair fell out within days, not the best thing for a lad like him. Thankfully he is a fighter, and has been through it all and come out the other side. When he was in his hospital bed, he was visited by the ‘make a wish foundation’ who asked him if they could make his dream come true what would it be, and Jeffrey replied, “To fish at Gillhams fishing resort.” He had watched videos on YouTube and kept in touch with our fish reports on Facebook. He never thought he would get the chance, but due to this wonderful charity his dreams came true.

Now it was over to us to make sure Jeffrey returned to Holland with all his wishes fulfilled. A decision was made to try to see if we could to give him, workload permitting, one-to-one guiding, and we chose Adam to get him into the fish. Adam was chosen because although he is 30-plus he dresses like a teenager, so we thought they might have something in common!

He fished the top end of the lake and was soon into the Amazon red tails, and as every fish went into the net the grin on his face went wider and wider, but the best was yet to come. The next day he hooked into a huge arapaima, which took him all over the lake for two hours, and just when he thought the fish was his the line parted. What did he do? No tantrums from this young man, unlike those we see from some other customers; it was rods back in and let’s start again. Good job he did, as his next fish was a magnificent 136lb Siamese carp. Who says dreams don’t come true? After three days of monsoon torrential rain, and Adam wondering, “Why on earth am I here when I could be on my sun lounger in Singapore?” Well, it’s moments like that which make being a guide here at Gillhams all worthwhile.

Father Nico didn’t do too badly, landing himself giant featherback to 12lb and both Amazon and Asian redtail. Youngest son Ricardo chipped in with some Amazon red tails; however the trip was really about Jeffrey so they spent most of the time encouraging him and enjoying his captures with him.

As a family they must have gone through hell, but they were an absolute pleasure to have around the place. We miss them now they have gone, but Jeffrey, because of his great attitude, has made many new friends with all the other customers here, and we hope we see him again soon.

Michael Schiedner from Germany came for the second time this month. He usually comes to Thailand for a month, spending time with us as well as visiting other fisheries. Unfortunately the time with us was during some of the worst weather I have seen since I have worked at Gillhams. Add to that the fact that he was running a fever and his fishing times were short, but that didn’t stop him landing 18 fish of seven species including Siamese carp to 80lb, Mekong catfish to 100lb, arapaima to 200lb and Amazon redtail catfish to 70lb. The icing on the cake for Michael was a huge Siamese carp of 136lb, caught in the height of a thunderstorm. Michael, being so pleased, said, “I can’t better that so I’m off to bed for the rest of the day.”

Jon Neafcy from Wigan came for his third trip to Gillhams. Jon is a well known pike angler back home. He spends most of his time in the Lake District, or fishing the big lochs in Scotland. More recently he has turned his hand to carp angling, where most of the time his fishing companion is his young daughter Leah. He arrived fully prepared for his predator fishing, with frozen dead baits from back home and asked for them to be put in the freezer until he was ready for them. It was only one or two days later when Jon found the source of the smell coming from his room. He had left one pack of deadbaits slowly fermenting in the bottom of his suitcase! Jon fished hard through all the rain and had his feet in water virtually all day as the lake began to overflow. That’s probably the reason why poor Jon ended up with the flu and a nasty rash on the soles of his feet for the duration of his holiday. It didn’t stop him catching though, as despite his ailments he ended up with 18 fish of seven species including Siamese carp to 80lb, Mekong catfish to 100lb, arapaima to 200lb and Amazon redtail catfish to 70lb to name a few, with probably the best fish of his trip being a 60lb alligator gar with about ten minutes to go on his last night. He’s off to Texas next year to fish the Trinity River with top guide Kirk Kirkland where I’m pretty sure he will up his personal best for the species!

Regulars and old friends Alan and Alistair came back this month, with one thing on their mind: to catch a 100lb Siamese carp. Unfortunately Alan’s favored swim C1 was not available due to ongoing works on the new salas, so with a heavy heart and a face like Victor Meldrew he fished elsewhere. On the first morning Alan fished A1 and mate Alistair was placed in D1. With Alistair blanking and Alan just getting a small redtail, Alan was offered the prime carp swim, D3, by Stuart and unbelievably turned it down. Alistair, not one to look a gift horse in the mouth was in there like a shot. You can guess what happened next can’t you, because within his first hour of fishing Alistair had banked his prize, a 102lb Siamese carp followed by two others of 70lb and 85lb. Alan’s face was a picture and dripping like a leaky tap, so much so we had to place some cat litter in his swim.

Things weren’t so bad because Alan hooked into one of the mighty Mekong that Gillhams is renowned for, and with his rod nearly bent double and the tightest clutch possible, he got the fish in within a record time of two, minutes not giving it an inch of line as he hauled the monster in – a fantastic achievement. To be fair the fish didn’t fight that hard due to it being brown bread, extinct, deceased, stiff as a board, gone to meet its maker etc etc. The fish had died and sunk to the bottom where poor Alan had hooked it in the dorsal whilst reeling in! It couldn’t get any worse could it? Well it did, as a couple of days later when Alan got into his favourite C1 swim he became the guides’ worst nightmare when he hooked into a Mekong at 7pm one evening. One hour went past and the rest of the resort went to the restaurant for dinner and to watch the Utd v West Ham game.

At half time around 10pm the crowd went to see how Alan was getting on. With Alan sweating buckets and feeling the strain and the crowd not showing him a glimpse of sympathy, Alan exclaimed, “It’s hooked by the arsehole,” and someone from the crowd said, “Well, you said it!” The place erupted with laughter, but I’m not sure if Alan saw the funny side. Midnight passed and around 12.30am, after battling the fish for five and half hours the line went slack as the hook had pulled. There is not much you can say to angler when that happens, and certainly not after over five hours of fishing, but credit to Alan he just shrugged his shoulders and said, “That’s life.” Thankfully Alan did get his carp, banking four to 95lb and a Mekong at 180lb, and Alistair finished with eight carp to 102lb.

Richard Wheeler from Aldershot came originally for a week’s fishing, but within ten minutes of looking at the lake and without even wetting a line booked himself in for an extra week. Richard, a plumber by trade and a stock car fanatic in his spare time, was one of those customers who came to learn about the fishing here. He took in all the information like a sponge. Unfortunately for Richard his stock car hobby nearly became his demise, as in a horrific crash Richard lost three of the fingers on his right hand, not that it would stop him doing what he wanted to do in any way, and certainly not stop him fishing.

I have to thank Richard, as the best advice we can give to any customer here is to listen to the guides. We are here 364 days of the year (well, we have to get ready for Santa on Christmas Day!), and if you do listen to us hopefully we can help you catch the fish of a lifetime. After placing him in a swim and telling him to keep feeding the swim, then the fish would come to him. After two very long days with only two small Asian red tails to show for it, Richard was wavering and hankering for a move, but thankfully I persuaded him to stay, and I went on my days off. You can guess what happened can’t you, as Richard bagged 12 fish the next day, and two days later bagged a special fish, a Siamese carp weighed at 102lb.

Richard fished hard, and even caught fish on bird pieces as he would shout, “I got it with a red robin,” when what he really meant to say was a robin red pellet!
His magnificent total came to 27 fish of six species, with three of these species over the magic 100lb! His haul included Asian redtail to 30lb, snakehead to 5lb, Amazon redtail to 65lb, Siamese carp to 102lb, arapaima to 150lb and Mekong catfish to 150lb.

Pete Garvin, a retired water board manager, came with his lovely partner Michelle. He’s obviously a fishing fanatic, and in the good old days had been on pike fishing trips to Ireland with Stuart.

Very quickly we became aware that Pete loves to talk when he is playing fish, much the same as John Wilson does on TV. Pete would say the fish is going to the right and heading for the weeds, even though the guide could a clearly see this was the case. Or he would say his fish was an arapaima, just because an arapaima had rolled somewhere in the vicinity of his fish, when of course usually it was a red tail! When he did get his first arapaima, Pete had an old habit of leaving the anti reverse off and trying to backwind one of the hardest fighting freshwater fish. A note to future customers – if you try to backwind any of these fish you are heading for broken knuckles. Use the clutch – they are too fast for backwinding! The practice of dipping the rod under the water when it headed for the weeds was not to Pete’s liking, and he had to pass the rod to the guide a couple of times before the beast was finally netted in the cage… and what a fish it was at 320lb! When he was given some guidance Pete would talk, and when he wasn’t given guidance Pete would still talk. Peter got some stick off me, but he took all the ribbing in good heart and gave as good as he got. Steadily as his holiday went on his landing of fish increased as well. Michelle was a star throughout and always cheerful, and Peter had a smile on his face from the beginning to the end of his holiday. His total for his stay was 16 fish of seven species with his biggest fish being a 108lb Siamese carp, a 280lb arapaima and Amazon red tails to 70lb.

It’s always nice to see serving members of the British Army here. We support our armed forces and offer a 20% discount to all serving members. (Before some Del Boy type thinks to try this, we do need proof!). Paddy, Taz and Cookie as they are affectionately known were an absolute pleasure to have around the place. Just returning from a tour of duty in Afghanistan, they made us realise how lucky we are when we complain about it being hot. They said, “You want to be in this heat in full combats carrying a 60lb rucksack!” Makes you think, doesn’t it?

On the first day they told me that only Paddy had fished before and Taz and Cookie didn’t know one end of a rod from another. I thought to myself, this is going to be hard work, but how wrong could I be? I don’t know why, but it is probably from working in the army that the lads were able to take instructions easily, absorb it and carry it out to the letter. Within a couple of hours they were casting for themselves and Spombing out with ease. The result was that all the lads caught fish, with Cookie grabbing hold of five different species: Amazon stingray, Amazon red tail, Asian red tail, Siamese carp and arawana. Taz didn’t do badly either, grabbing himself a huge 95lb carp, and these are the two lads who had never picked up a rod before. Paddy wasn’t to be outdone either, landing carp to 75lb and a lot of small Julian’s golden carp from the small lake. Never a murmur from these three lads; they just came to relax, and bearing in mind what they have gone through in their young lives, who would disagree they that they deserve it?

Sorry if we missed you out; it was not intentional and we value everyone’s custom, as without you we would not be here. It’s just we have been so busy here the guides hardly had time to put this month’s newsletter together.

I know we remind people every month, but please book in advance – Gillhams has become a victim of its own success. We hate turning people away and spoiling their dreams, but unlike other fisheries we will never oversell places here. 2014 is fully booked and 2015 is filling up fast with many dates already full or close to full. We have bookings coming in for 2016 and even 2017, so please plan in advance, and if we do not have your desired dates available send us alternate dates. It’s better to wait to fish the best fishing resort than take second best – if others have spaces there is a reason!

Once again many thanks go to everyone who has fished here, and we hope to see you again in the near future. For those of you planning a return or your first trip please email Stuart or phone +66 (0) 861644554, please remember we are +7 hours GMT.

Best wishes and tight lines from us all at Gillhams, and we hope your next fish is the one of your dreams (which it probably will be if you come to Gillhams).