Lure Haven Photo Blog

Micro delights in Maldives!

2012-02-13T01:28:00.000+08:00

Here is an extensive variety of catches that we managed to amass in Maldives, using the smallest jigs and lures. Our favourites include micro jigs such as the Ima Gun (7g and 12g), Jackal Mame (5g and 7g) and Shout! (7g), as well as the Duo Ikakko.

For an area like the Maldives where patches of reef define the terrain, micro lures work best to drastically increase your species count. If you want to truly experience the variety of fish that a particular area has to offer, unleash your smallest, bite-size lures.

In general, the size of your catches will understandably be smaller, and some anglers might feel that ultra light luring and jigging might lack that 'punch' or excitement from catching larger targets. Surprises do happen, and these occurrences are not all that uncommon. When you hook up a 5kg GT on 4lb line, we guarantee your adrenaline levels will shoot through the roof!

So remember- if you want fun, surprises, quantity and variety, go small. You will be amazed at the sheer number of fish you catch.

Unforgettable Maldives Success! - Part 2

2012-02-13T00:24:00.001+08:00

The quality of the fishing was excellent throughout, and maybe this had something to do with the magic onboard created by Benster's proposal to Felicia!

High speed Javeline jig did the trick on this Dog Tooth.

Black Jacks everyday and everywhere.

Catch more fish in the Maldives by using thinner FC leaders, 70lbs and below.

Benster with one of his many Dog Tooth Tuna.

Good friends.

The grin on the face says it all.

Nice!!

Benster with a nocturnal GT taken on Ima Gun micro jig.

Thomas being brutalised.

45kg Dog Tooth on PSPJ-502, Stella 6000, P.E 3 line, Fisherman Andaman jig.

This was the Captain's biggest Dog Tooth capture as well.

Birds of a feather flock together.

Alex about to bite… again.

Nice AJ for Thomas.

Big Black Jack.

School of Rainbow Runners crashed the party.

Beautifully marked Grouper from the depths.

1st course.

2nd course.

3rd course.

Dessert. Heavenly banana caramel.

Typical Maldivian GT on FCL Labo SPP Popper.

Classic sunset in the Maldives.

Little Mack Tunas were unbelievably fun on ultra light tackle.

Don with a little speedster. Note the blood splatter.

First at the dinner table.

The Nooraanee 2.

Crazy jigging session.

The look on Benster's face says it all! Lucky to get the jig back.

Captain can fish too.

Red Bass on popper for Don.

Goal Keeper!!

Excellent Red Bass!

Who cares about the GT! Check out the silly headgear!!

Madai works in the maldives too.

Non stop action with Madais and micro jigs.

Rare Titan Trigger on Madai.

Tremendous fight from this 4kg Green Job in shallow water.

Anchovies everywhere!

One scoop = one pail

Fried! Shiok!

Same mouth, same eyes, same hair!

Good sized Green Job on popper.

Sail on jig eventually lost at boatside.

Tomato.

Groupers like this were in plague proportions.

7 days of Blue Fin sashimi.

Future wife showing future husband how it's done.

Claiming credit again.

How grown ups have fun.

Alex in his jungle hat and brand new buff.

Amazing coloration on a juvenile Yellow Fin Grouper.

They all love Rosy too.

An Amberjack a day keeps the doctor away.

Alex with Maldivian Mafia.

Benster with deep sea Pop Eyed Grouper.

Alex in his red Evergreen shirt and stylish Shout gloves.

Happy couple!

Luckiest anglier of the trip with 7kg Dorado on jig.

Fried! Haha!

Don with attention seeking flying fish on Pintail 40.

And they lived happily ever after...

Behind the scenes.

6kg GT on 4lb line. IMA GUN!

5 minutes later. 13kg GT on Andaman.

Last minute GT.

FCL Labo Ebi Popper. 100% consistency.

Last minute Red Bass.

I love Rosy too!

Don with a mama Green Job on popper.

Benster trying to break the jaw of the GT.

See! FCL Ebi Pop!

Come back you B@#*H!!

A fitting last fish for a quite incredible trip- 35kg Dogtooth Tuna on popper!

Great teamwork!

A big thank you to the captain and crew. Till next time!

Unforgettable Maldives Success! - Part 1

2012-01-23T05:46:00.001+08:00

After Lure Haven's November visit to the Maldives, we were back to the tropical island nation for the second time in as many months.

The results of this trip were a complete contrast to that of November's. The 7-member team were thoroughly rewarded for their planning and preparation, with some of the best Maldivian fishing encountered in recent times!

You surely can tell that we were looking forward to this trip.

First morning. DUO Ikakko draws first blood.

Hearty breakfast to kickstart a long fishing day.

Hooked up before he even brushed his teeth.

Cheater with nice green Jobbie on troll.

Bet she hasn’t brushed her teeth too.

Pretty girl with pretty fish.

Alex with lunch.

Poseidon Spinjerkers all ready for action. These 3 rods proved to be the star performers on this trip.

Fantastic fishing right from the start!

Weiping with grandson Emperor. Taken on Bassday jig.

Decent Black Jack on Evergreen Caprice jig.

Sashimi!!!!!

Thomas with nice Grouper on Shout Width jig.

Nice Yellow Fin Grouper that made even nicer fish porridge!

Felicia hooked up and leaning into a hard fighting fish on light tackle.

Benster trying to claim credit for her hard work.

Nice 20 kg plus Grouper taken on Poseidon PSPJ-502, Stella 6000 and PE 3 line.

Good sized Sea Bream easily done by the Poseidon 502.

Alex with sun ripened smooth skin yellow banana.

Assistant captain taking full advantage of the situation.

FCL Ebi Popper performed consistantly for the duration of the trip.

Benster's biggest catch of the trip.

And she said yes!

Taking the plunge together.

Ultra light jigging fun on the beach.

DUO Ikakko, everything in Maldives seems to want a piece of it.

Alex couldn't wait for the sashimi to be served.

School Yellowfin.

Beautiful colours on a good sized Lunar Tail.

Don with one of the many Red Bass that was taken on this trip.

Alex hooked up to a bruiser.

Shout Shab Shab jig accounted for this nice GT.

Alex in fashionable white trim glasses with matching singlet.

You want to see what I caught?

Nothing much la. Just 16 kilos of trophy Coral Trout that looks like a giant goldfish.

Taken on Poseidon PSPJ-502, Stella 6000PG, P.E 3 line, Shout Width jig.

Black Jack feeding frenzy.

Pink Caprice jig scored well.

Plenty of schooling Doggies around.

I Love Rosy.

Decent GT on PSPJ-502.

Perfect fishing conditions.

Groupers like these were everywhere.

Thomas locked up to a rampaging GT on FCL Labo 81 mid joint GT rod.

Nicely done.

Released to fight another day.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Grouper taken on Pelamis 7000 with 50lb Mono and Sure Catch jig. Thanks guys!!

Benster with another Blue Fin Trevally.

All eyes on her.

Felicia with a beautiful Yellow Fin Grouper.

Weiping with granddaddy Emperor. Taken on Shout Width jig.

Amberjack! Easy job for the PSPJ-500.

And they kept on biting.

That's how a locked up Poseidon looks like.

Another Amberjack by Benster.

Alex bullied by a monster. Priceless expression.

Yellowfin of this size were lots of fun.

Don hooked up to a transformer!

To be continued...

New Product: Toughphone for the Angler!

2012-01-23T02:55:00.001+08:00

Mobile phones have become integral in our everyday life. But fishing and mobile phones actually don't go very well together, like... sea hum and milkshake. You get the drift.

Jungle bashing, wading in water, rain, river crossing, stupidity, carelessness... the opportunities for us to murder our phones are endless.

The majority of hardcore fisherman would have lost at least a mobile phone or two during our angling escapades.

Toughphones available at Lure Haven now!

Introducing what could possibly be your best fishing investment of 2012, and its only the start of the year. They're called toughphones for a reason- because they are seriously TOUGH.

LM801B

LM801B Specifications -

Water resistant IP54
Rugged structure with 1 ton static pressure resistance
Dual band: 850/1900 or 900/1800
Altimeter / thermometer / barometer / compass
LED torch
Supports Micro SD / SDHC
MP3 player
FM radio
Laser pointer

LM121B

LM121B Specifications -

Dustproof and waterproof grade IP57
Floatable - this phone actually floats on water!
FM radio
500 phonebook contacts
1.44" colour screen
LED torch

From left: The LM121B and the LM801B

Another great feature, or the lack of it, is the absence of a built-in camera. This means that these phones will be perfect for the NSF or the reservist!

These phones are also especially useful for kayak anglers who are constantly out at sea.

These phones are reasonably priced, and will make an excellent backup for that expensive smartphone.

Stefan uses one of these phones, and the phone is so tough, he uses it to crack crabs' pincers.

For a preview of how hardy these phones truly are, drop by Lure Haven and Stefan will gladly give you a live demonstration.

Lure Haven Sponsored Event: Barramundi Competition at FW1!

2011-12-26T20:11:00.000+08:00

Lure Haven is delighted to have been part of this first ever competition organized by the Barramundi catch & release pond located at Pasir Ris Farmway 1. 18 anglers signed up for the competition held on 20 November 2011. At stake were bragging rights, plenty of excitement and a chance of winning some attractive prizes!

The Rain God was not feeling too generous that day. Overcast from the onset, the skies soon opened up and it was pissing rain once the competition commenced. Thankfully, the organizers were well prepared and had ponchos prepared for all the contestants.

A wet start to the event, but the anglers' spirits were not dampened. The competition was exciting throughout, with some of the younger anglers giving the older, more experienced anglers a run for their money. Even the eventual champion and runner-up had to be decided with a sudden death 'fish-off'!

The calm waters before the competition with an overcast sky looming above.

Event organizers finalizing competition details.

Burley for the event.

No need to know my name. Just call me '03'.

Sneak peak at the prizes!

Ponchos, an important item for the competition.

No umbrella? No problem. Just pluck the whole shelter from the table.

Unbeknownst to the fish in the pail, they would soon be swimming for their lives.

Roy and Alex 'soaking' in the atmosphere.

Rain, rain go away.

Desmond with the first hit of the day!

Landed!

One of the 8 landed by Ah Xiang that gave him his first place finish.

Eventual runner-up Ah Ho in action.

Rain? What rain? No 3 with his catch.

One of the younger competitors showing the others how its done.

The anglers were a hardworking bunch under such poor weather conditions!

Another Barra landed.

Beautiful panorama. The smoky effect was not caused by mist over the water, this is from a from a mosquito fogger.

Prizes set up as the competition drew to a close.

In a nail-biting finish, the scores were close with Ah Xiang leading Ah Ho 7-6. Ah Ho then hit a fish with a bout 10 minutes to go, but he lost it due to a crossed line with another competitor. His dismay soon turned to joy when he hit another fish at his very next cast to tie the scores at 7-7 with 5 minutes remaining! This set the scenes for a showdown between first and second.

Burley was used, and both anglers cast their lures out to around the same zone. Ah Ho's lure was slammed almost immediately, and everyone thought this would be the conclusion to the competition. As fate would have it, he hit a big Barra that was not going to give in. On its second jump, Ah Ho's lure came flying straight back at the dejected angler.

Ah Xiang then had a hit almost immediately after Ah Ho's fish was dropped. Sensing his chance for victory, he kept his cool and landed this winning fish. What a brilliant climax for the competition!

Nicholas in third place.

Ah Ho in second place.

The champion!

Congratulations to all three deserving winners!

Maldives 5 - 12 November 2011

2011-12-22T02:50:00.042+08:00

Admittedly, we haven't been updating the blog as regularly as we should be. Things are going to change.

Starting with this post about our recent trip to the Maldives, we promise to bring you stories of our latest catches, newest products, as well as other interesting snippets about the Lure Haven family. Watch this space!

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7 excited anglers were assembled for this trip since early this year, of which 6 were virgins to the popping and jigging experience.

We were fishing onboard the Nooraanee 2, arguably the cleanest, most comfortable fishing vessels in the Maldives. This trip proved to be an excellent introductory trip for the newbies- The waters were generally calm, and there was plenty of casting space to hone our casting skills.

The fishing was generally challenging throughout the trip. But with fantastic company, food and constant laughter, there wasn't a dull moment onboard.

Arrived!

The taxi boat located 2 minutes from the arrival hall that brought us to the mothership.

Anglers (from left): Ming You, Adam, Keith, Stefan, Ing Fu, Ron and Daniel

Equipment for the trip.

Group shot before the start of the action.

Some of the popping gear used for the trip, excluding the bananas.

White tip reef shark. Sharks are relatively common in the Maldives.

First GT of the trip taken on a 130g Maggy Gara Short Popper

Maggy Gara Short Popper- well balanced, durable and easy to work. A must-have for Maldives!

Popping the first few days were difficult, so we turned to jigging. Daniel hooked something that embarked on deep, powerful runs... everyone was guessing the identity of the unknown fish. GT, Big Doggie, Yellowfin?

Funnily enough, no one seemed to care once they saw that it was a shark.

It was a big White Tip, estimated by the captain to be about 50-60kgs. After 45 minutes, thankfully one of the 2 assist hooks gave way.

Although they weren't as big as we'd hoped for, they sure tasted good. Coral trout on a Fisherman Andaman.

Another coral trout by the handsome Adam on a Seven Seas Revolver.

Ron with a nice Coronation Trout.

Interesting trevally species taken on an Ima Ro 120g.

Blackjack on a Fisherman Andaman

Nice Coral Trout for dinner.

Small fish kept everyone busy

Blackjack on Fisherman Big Eye Jig.

Double hook-up of juvenile GTs.

Fisherman Big Eye Jig.

Adam's Red Bass on a Seven Seas Hooker, another proven jig in Maldives.

Keith's first GT on a FCL Labo Ebipop.

Daniel's first GT taken on an Adhek Gecko Popper

Light jigging would constantly produce.

Taken on the Ima Ro.

... and again.

... and again

...and again.

It works, we promise.

Even on the small guys.

Ing Fu was afraid that the Bluefin might start talking, he decided to cover the fish's mouth.

An over-enthusiastic paddletail snapper that took a fancy to the Fisherman Andaman.

First Green Jobfish caught at the break of dawn on a Jackson Pintail Tuned.

A 2kg Long-nose Emperor on Ima Gun 12g at the break of dawn. We'll go into more detail about this amazing jig later.

Schooling Dogtooth Tuna on PE3 setup is great fun.

Rosy Jobfish on the Ima Ro 120g

A greedy Blackjack taken on the affordable Geecrack Long Gun jig. This actually has a small rattle in it.

We didn't land many groupers this trip. This was one of the better bottom-dwellers taken on a FCL Labo SL 230g jig.

A nice Rosy Job from about 80 metres of water on the Ima Ro again.

Groupers are commonly encountered in Maldives.

Schoolie Dogtooth Tuna on a Fisherman Andaman. The Evergreen Poseidon Spin Jerker PSPJ500 is rated at PE3 but it is definitely underrated. A light but powerful rod with plenty of lifting power.

Back to popping. Ironically, the challenging fishing conditions made the anglers even more determined to produce results.

Persistence pays of with a Red Bass on FCL Labo Ebipop

FCL SPP Tuna sinking stickbait fooled this juvenile GT.

Close up of the lure.

Fooling a GT with a floating stickbait is truly a sight to behold. The lure swims lazily, pausing and bobbing intermittently. The next thing you know you're stumbling forward and engaged in battle...

The Maggy Gara Marlin- Same lure that was used to land the world record 168cm monster GT from shore. Just that this guy is probably 5 times smaller.

20-something Gee.

We'll be back for your family.

We know how to have fun. Fu*k spider!

Nooraanee 2- Our home for 7 days. It doesn't get much better than this!

We spent some time on a deserted island just to catch our breath and relax. Spiderman in Maldives.

Spiderman doing a Superman.

After the touristy shots it was time for some light game fishing. Maldives has always been known for the large variety of fish available. Fishing off a secluded beach, you never really know what you are gonna catch!

Paddletail snappers were ever obliging to our offerings.

A miniature Trevally on Ima Gun.

Micro lures worked well too. This goatfish was taken on a Jackall Chubby Minnow.

It's not always about the size that counts. Fish as pretty as this triggerfish never fail to stir the senses.

Surprisingly, goatfish of this size fight pretty hard!

The trophy fish of the shore fishing experience- 12lb of bluefin trevally. This bugger hit the Ima Gun 12g three times before he got hooked.

Perfectly hooked in the corner of the mouth.

It's like fishing in a painting. What more can we ask for?

A hard-fighting dart on a spoon. Tip: Dig out all those old, unwanted spoons sitting in the corner of your tackle box. You probably will lose all of them on the beach.

Baby-G.

Groupers this size on 6lb line are great fun.

20g Jackson Pintail in action.

Micro-jigging on the boat was great fun as well. We would do micro jigging whenever the boat was stationary.

Maldives aramugam.

We lost count of the number of fish we caught on micro jigs.

The beauty of Maldives is the different kinds of fishing that you can choose to experience. We spent some time doing some shallow water light jigging.

Stefan hit this big Titan Triggerfish on a Shout! Madai jig.

Titans are notoriously aggressive underwater. With chompers like that, it's no wonder divers stay clear!

The omni-present Longnose Emperor.

Greedy Green Jobfish.

The Emperors were everywhere.

Cute little Rosy Job taken on a 60g FCL Labo SLC jig

Only Yellowfin Grouper of the trip caught while light jigging.

Ima 20g caught a baitfish.

Averaged size GT by Maldives standards. This was caught using a Golden Mean Sable Dance Ver. II PE1 rod.

Beautiful electric blue of the Bluefin Trevally.

2 Ima jigs, 3 fish.

Double Green Job.

The biggest Green Job of the trip weighing about 7kg. Taken on Ing Fu's favourite Ima Ro 120g.

Another schooling Doggie that fell for the Fisherman Andaman.

Another doggie from the same school.

Blackjack on the FCL Labo SL jig.

A beautiful red bass as we neared the end of the trip.

Once we arrived back to the city area, we took a tour of Male town. We visited the local fish market, as this is the destination to learn about the local fish species available to anglers.

Fishing in paradise!

The hussle and bussle of Male town.

Thank you for the fond memories Maldives. We will return!

Wind and Wave information for those wanting to fish in East Malaysia these few days..

2011-03-08T02:16:00.000+08:00

Lure Haven Species Luring Competition March

2011-03-08T01:10:00.003+08:00

The Species for this month would be Queenfish aka Talang aka Queenies.

Competitors in this month's contest will stand to win the lures in the picture below worth more then SGD$180!!!

Can you guess what next month's mystery species would be???

Lure Haven Species Luring Competition Feb 2011 Winner

2011-03-08T01:06:00.000+08:00

Congrats to Michael for winning the Feb Competition with a 40cm peacock bass!!

Lure Haven Species Luring Competition

2011-02-23T16:36:00.000+08:00

Lure Haven will be holding a Species lure fishing competition!!

See below for details

READ OUR RULES AND REGULATIONS TO PARTICIPATE!

Lure Haven species Competition

Rules And Regulations.

Eligibility
- Everyone is allowed to participate except staff of Lure Haven.

- Target species must be caught by any of our house brands
( IMA, Megabass, Imakatsu, Zipbait, OSP, Jackson, Jackall, FCL
Labo, Shout, Evergreen.)

- Target Species for the following month will be announced 3 days
before the end of the month.

- At the end of December the past 11 winners will be invited to join
a Shootout competition in January with a mystery fish species.

- The cut off timing for submission every month is the last day of
that month at 10pm. Any post stated after that timing is
invalidated.

How to enter.
- To enter the competition, contestants have to take two pictures and
post them on FishingKaki thread under lure haven competition.

a) First picture is of angler holding the fish in front of his
chest.

Example 1.

b) Second picture is of the fish FLAT on the ground with a
measuring tape Parrallel with the fish. measuring tape has to
be place at the snout of the fish and measured at the end of
the tail. (Best to use a straight object to align the fish to
perfect measurements)

Example 2 with tape.(try to align the snout of fish and the first zero on the measuring tape with a straight object Exp. tackle box.)

c) Lures have to be shown clearly in both pictures.

d) Only FISHING MEASURING TAPES are allowed. Please do not use
waist measuring tapes or rulers as the numbers are not as
visible.

e) Fishes which are measured with the tape over or under the
fish will not be entertained.

How to win.
- The prize winner every month will be selected by us after we have
reviewed all the photos posted on FishingKaki.com.

a)The Thread for posting your entries will be started on the
10/02/11 under the "Lure Fishing" section.
(Pls do not comment in the competition thread)

- The longest target fish of that month will be award with a prize of
lures from our list of house brands worth $150 - $200

- There will only be one winner every month.

- Winners will be PM on FishingKaki.com by the 3rd of the following
month

Claiming of prize.
1) Prizes are to be claimed before the 10th of every month at Lure
Haven.

2) Winners are to bring along both PHYSICAL pictures submitted on
Fishingkaki

3) Both pictures will be kept by Lure Haven

4) Lures will be picked out by us and non exchangable nor exchanged
for cash.

Disclaimer
- This is an open competition,participants are to agree with the
following:

- Lure Haven is not liable and absolves all responsibility for any loss(s), damage(s), injury(s) or mishaps.

- Lure Haven reserves the final say in matters regarding the winning
fish.

- To facilitate you better, irrelevant posts will be deleted from the
thread.

Thank you for taking the time to read the details!

THE FISH FOR FEB IS PEACOCK BASS!!

WE ALLOW ALL SPECIES OF PEACOCK BASS EXCEPT Temensis!!

Prizes for the month of Feb 2011

Recap of 2010 Part 1

2011-01-19T11:34:00.002+08:00

New Year, New Beginnings

2011-01-17T15:53:00.000+08:00

We're in the process of revamping the blog, as well as posting regular catches and product updates.

Sorry for the inconvenience caused.