Ah, the great outdoors. Short of being a dryad, those four words beautifully describe fishing in Merchong and Nenasi . Then you add some beef, lamb, tapah, soon hock, coral trout and cuttlefish, and you have the complete Merchong fishing experience. We returned to Merchong in 2024 for another two-day fishing trip with new friends. Their target was the humble coral trout, commonly known among local anglers as ang gao. I call it humble because coral trout are relatively common around the Merchong fishing grounds. We do not need to travel all the way to Tioman, Jubilee Reef or even Pulau Berhala to find them. Catching these tasty red groupers can be quite predictable when the conditions are right. You just need some luck and a well-presented bait. Two Days of Fishing in Merchong and Nenasi Location: Merchong and Nenasi, Pahang, Malaysia Trip duration: Two days Main target: Coral trout, also known as ang gao Other catches: Snappers and assorted reef fish Fishing methods: ...

I think we actually did poorly during the frenzy. We lost a few non sagai fish. Ah Du also caught and released a decent goldie.  "So, this will be a tenggiri batang jigging trip ya. Anyone caught using micro jigs will be thrown off board because we don't want any sagai shit happening." We started the trip off with this mindset which was promising and I felt somewhat vindicated in my efforts. I always tell folks that when you go fishing in Desaru, dream big when jigging. Instead of fooling around with micro jigs, one should try bigger jigs especially when combing the bottom for tenggiri and snapper.  Or that's what we thought lah. We didn't even last the first spot. I mean, we started out well with big jigs and all but we slowly started to degrade into sagai kakis. Even the last man standing, Sherwinder, also changed to smaller jigs to catch some sagai. Kraken Gear Ah Du getting ready The crew setting up shop We even got chided by Captain Ah Long of Desaru who lite...

Fishing Batu Pahat with the legends. It had been more than two years since our previous Batu Pahat fishing trip . I thoroughly enjoyed our first Batu Pahat kurau jigging trip for reasons that only a bottom fisherman would understand. Batu Pahat offers the chance to catch excellent table fish. The fishing style also suits us because the main targets include golden snapper, grouper, grunter, kurau and senangin. If you are unsure about the last two species, read our guide explaining the difference between kurau and senangin . When slots became available for another trip, joining was a no-brainer. This time, I travelled with Biao, Bao, Ho and Baks. It was also Bao’s birthday, which made the trip even more special. Batu Pahat Fishing Trip Details Location: Batu Pahat, Johor, Malaysia Fishing boat: Kurau Haven Captain: Captain Tony Fishing organiser: David Fishing style: Light jigging and bottom fishing Target species: Golden snapper, grouper, grunter, k...

How I missed this beach! Fishing at Desaru has always been special for me as it was one of the easiest places to get started on light jigging last time. The glory days of TU lighthouse were simply amazing and I'm sure the older anglers would know what I am talking about. Countless queenfish, GT, mackerals and so on... basically all the pelagics you could dream of!  Desaru is also a place that is fairly near us (under an hour drive) that will produce good sized tenggiri batang also known as spanish mackerals. It is also the place that I caught some of my nicest red groupers on jigs . The downside of Desaru? As it is a little more exposed than other fishing areas up the east coast of Malaysia, the weather can be a little unpredictable and stormy or bad conditions at sea will mean you might have to cut your trip short. That's what happened on this trip but I am not complaining! During this trip, we started out very late at 10am and the fishes were in a frenzy till about 1230pm. Th...