Pond Fishing in Bedong

I have not fished in a pond for many years now and recently I had a chance to do that. This place is located in Bedong, Sg. Petani, Kedah. It is located in a palm oil plantation a little off Bedong town.

This pond has saltwater fishes of a few varieties like the Siakap (Barramundi), Tek Ling (ladyfish) and Bulan (Ox-Eye/Indo Pacific Tarpon). Yeah, you heard right, SALTWATER pond!

I do not have the specific directions but the location is N 05deg 42.196' E100deg 30.031' on the GPS.

1. Clear blue skies in the morning. You can see the size of the pond. The owner has 3 big ponds for you to fish in.

2. See the small raft-like platform in the middle of this pond? It has wheels with paddles and a motor to run it to increase oxygen in the water. These ponds are for prawn breeding. My friend has told me that farmed prawns require water with more oxygen in order to survive.


3. You thought being in the "ulu" places that there would not be any toilet facilities, you're proven wrong here...this place has sinks for you to wash your hands in and they are in progress to build a chalet for those who like overnight fishing!


4. More prawn breeding ponds.


5. The owner is a versatile business man. While walking past this structure here we heard loud chirping noises inside. Initially thought to be a barn to store feed or fertilizers turns out to be a purpose made swift nest...yupe...swallow your saliva 'gulp' for some birds nest!


6. Our live prawn bait. Make sure to bring a portable air pump to keep them alive.


7. This guy caught a sizeable Ladyfish (Tek Ling) using fly fishing gear!


8. This pond is a catch and release pond. However you have the option to buy the fish you caught for a price.


9. Steven helping his father-in-law remove the hook from this Barramundi (Siakap). The hook went deep inside, you can see that Steven was able to get his whole hand inside the mouth...pretty big, almost comparable to the Garoupa.


10. Steven finally removing the hook from the fish, look at the monster...most probably nearing 2kg.

11. John with his 1st fish, also a Siakap looks to be slightly above 1kg. Not bad.


12. Whoa! Finally John with a much bigger Siakap, this looks like it could hit 3kg!!!


13. Steven caught the most in quantity, but I believe John will make it up in variety and weight. He caught the only Tek Ling (Ladyfish) in our group. This fish really packs a fight!


14. A fellow angler who was next to us helping us with the fish.


15. John holding his prize.


16. I didn't catch any fish at first, fought a couple of big ones but was not able to bring 'em in. However my only catch of the day was enough to put a big smile on my face to end a beautiful day. You can see the fish jumping to get the hook off in this pic.


17. Pardon my sloppy looking hair but I had to get the hat out of the way for this pic. My first 1kg fish!!! YAHOO!!! I know nothing to shout about but who cares :P


18. Right after bringing in my first Siakap I hooked another big one, this time the fight was furious, I must have adjusted my drag too tight (it was too loose during the fight) and suddenly the line went slack. It turns out that my hook broke off!

Reminder to self to get better hooks and not the Daichii ones as they are more brittle. Also reminder not to put drag too tight.

Although I did not catch the big one, but the fight was exhilirating enough to give me an adrenaline rush. Whoosh!!!


19. All this excitement whetted our appetites, thankfully this place has 1st class service...there's fried rice served with spicy belacan and 5 super fresh prawns from their own backyard!


20. Getting live baits from the prawn breeding pond.


21. You can see another Siakap being brought near the bank. Very clear waters. You can see the fish swimming nearby.


22. Splash and it was John's 4th fish of the day!

Entry Fee: RM30.00/pax
Live prawns: RM0.30/ea
Softdrinks: RM2.00/can
Fried rice: RM4.00/plate (5 big prawns)

Champion: Steven (total: Too many to count, record: 5 siakap in 5 continuous min!)