Baktao Heaven: 5 brownie points for Crazii (Joe Chan) Charters

An excellent day of fishing for groupers with Joe Chan

It's not always that we have both comfort and good fishing on fishing charters in Singapore. When the fishing is good, it's likely that the fishing captain is not really the cleanest guy around or service may not be the best (since he/she let's the fishing do the talking).

That brings me to fishing with Joe Chan and I wasn't disappointed. Fishermen are often skeptical of "comfortable" fishing charters since most productive boatmen are old timers and they don't really own luxurious boats. Joe Chan shatters all of this with his huge boat equipped with air con cabin and even a sun deck.

The first trip with Joe Chan to Southern Islands was a real treat and it shook me so much that I am writing about him! Below are five points that you can consider if you are taking his boat.

1. Fishing on Joe Chan is actually cheap

Air con cabin with two deckies & still affordable? Joe Chan's boat can take 10 anglers comfortable and his boat costs only about $800-$1000 to charter based on how much prawns you order. That's about only $100/pax which is the price most anglers are paying these days to fish on smaller boats.

Life will never be the same again.

2. Service is top notch

Good service knows no boundaries

Service is the best I have ever had simply because Joe Chanh ad two deckies. While this is common for long haul or regional live on board trips to places like Eastern Banks, Joe Chan is probably the only charter that offers two deckies for your local day trip. Deckies help in a variety of ways like clearing snags and they are very useful if you are bringing beginners. This makes Joe Chan an excellent candidate for a corporate fishing trip.

Oh, did I mention that he has like 4 bait wells places in strategic corners of the boat?

3. Boat is woman friendly

Air-con in the toilet. Need I say more?

Bringing their wives and girlfriends (WAGS) fishing is a tricky problem that many anglers face. While not discriminating against the women, fishing boats have to be well equipped with basic facilities such as toilets. Joe Chan's boat is equipped with a toilet (with shower), air con cabin and spacious fishing spaces. The boat even has strategic places where you can "lean" to when you're fishing.

It also has a sundeck which is usually popular among the women (and their selfie sticks)

4. Joe is familiar with using artificial lures & bait

Bring your jigs!

One of the common questions that jig anglers will want to know is whether a particular boatman or charter captain has experience of fishing with artificial lures. This can affect the bite rate for the day as fishing with artificial baits is something that comes with experience. It takes a massive amount of experience to gauge the current & spot on whether it is suitable to fish. I've encountered many charter captains who simply park or drift at the spot and say can use jigs.

Remember, truly experienced captains will tell you when to jig and what you are expecting. Instructions can be very detailed and might even consist of tips like using certain colours & techniques. Most of the time, the best advice is 'don't jig now, it's no use'.

Meanwhile, keep jigging.

5. Joe Chan is considerate and adapts well to your fishing needs

A boatman for every need

Fishing isn't just jigging, madai, luring or bottom fishing. In the true world of offshore fishing in Singapore, various kakis of different fishing styles come to your boat. Though it is true that most anglers come well equipped now, how do boatmen (who regularly bring well equipped folks out) adapt to that "fishing uncle" or "newbie" that turns up with a pond fishing setup and frayed mono line?

That's where Joe Chan scores well. On my first time with Joe Chan, he told us that current was too strong for our setups and went to somewhere with mild current. That was impressive because he adapted to his customers. Very often, we encounter boatmen who simply just drive to the spot anyway and when the customer loses the fish, the boatman will just say because your tackle cannot make it. Familiar?

Now, the second time I tested this theory was when a friend of mine booked Joe Chan for a corporate fishing trip. Same scenario here - how do you ensure a group of newbies on a company fishing trip catch fish? The standard request would be small sinkers, easy spots please. Joe Chan handled this well and the newbies caught some good fish on that particular trip.

In essence, a boatman cannot simply be good at finding good fishing spots, he/she must be considerate to factor in what your audience can do or cannot do. This is much easier said than done as you have to integrate this mindset into the fishing spots and expectations.

All in all, I would seriously recommend Joe Chan if you're looking for a fishing trip out to the Southern Islands!

Here are more pictures of Joe Chan's boat: