Meals From Japan and Taiwan

Japan
Le Manoir D'Hastings, Ginza

Suehiro Sushi, Shizuoka

Arcana, Izu City, Shizuoka

Taiwan
Din Tai Fung, Taipei

Tainan Tan-tsu-mein, Taipei

TimHoWan, Taipei

L'Atelier de Joel Rubuchon, Taipei

Unfinished Business Part Seven: Mahseer PhD-Level Lesson

April 21, 2018

My last fishing outing for this epic adventure was the return to the mahseer grounds.  This time with my new friend Danny.  The fly fishing community is small in Taiwan.  Almost all of them are on a Facebook page and all know each other either personally or through FB.  I got a friend request on my FB page from Danny after coming back from Japan.    I normally don't accept "friendships" from unknown people but I noticed Danny was friends with Donny so I accepted.  Once I did he messaged me and offered to take me out.  After going through his timeline checking all his fishing posts of large mahseer, I agreed without hesitation.

I left early for the first train of the day to head out to Banchaio to meet Danny who would pick me up there.  As I exited the station, Danny was waiting for me in the parking lot and after brief pleasantries we headed to toward Hsinchu.  We'd be fishing the same river as Donny took me earlier this trip but further downstream.  Danny had a different approach to fishing than Donny.  First he didn't fish first light.  He said most of his fish won't rise until past 9am.  So when we arrived into town we stopped by a 7-11 for breakfast and for some lunch to pack in.   While eating Danny told me that these mahseer in this river, while native to Taiwan, are not native to this part of the island.  They were transferred, most likely by anglers, from Hualien (the Eastern part of the country).   As with any introduction of a new species, it altered the river and mahseer started to dominate and weed out the native fish, angering those anglers who targeted those species.  Danny take is a more pragmatic one.  For one, Taiwan has a lot of imported foreign fish in its waters, from tilapia, carp, African catfish, cichilids, and even peacock bass, so at least these fish are domestic and native to this land.  Besides they offer great sport.

After finishing our meal we drove to the river.  We parked and headed to the water passing through some jungle and then through a small banana farm.  Danny lead the way and picked up a fallen branch using it to pound the ground to spook any snakes that may lay near.  Eventually we made it to the water and this section was big, deep, slow and void of any significant current.  Danny let me know this section was hard to fish but was loaded with big fish.  These fish are spooky and presentation is the key to getting these fish to bite.  Danny suggested I practice my pick up and laydown cast before we headed out on this outing.  Of course I'm in a city that I'm not too familiar with so I had no opportunity to do so but I see the benefit of knowing how to use this cast here.  You want to keep false casts to a minimum or even non existent.   I tried this cast on the water and simply sucked at it.  First I'm not used to the cast. Second I'm fishing a new 8 foot rod that had little to no time with it prior to this trip and was not used to the timing of the slow action.  Third I was using a double tapered line that isn't the greatest for shooting line.  I was also making some common mistakes with this type of cast such as starting with the rod tip too high and not starting it on the water.

Danny left me alone to try my luck while he started downstream of me.  I managed a few rises but could not connect with any.  Every time I turned my head Danny's rod was bent or he was in the middle of releasing a fish.  He would give me a few pointers when he passed me while moving upstream.  I'd catch up with him later at a section of river that produced faster moving water.  Now with riffles to hide my false casts fishing became a little easier.  Danny stopped and guided me to my first fish.  After that, fish became more plentiful.  So much so I lost count on how many ended up landed.

We'd split up again once he knew I no longer needed his help.   We came across a section that Danny told me held fish in the 50cm plus range.  Danny would end up landing fish in the 45 inch range.  I'd get a big enough fish that straightened out my size 8 TMC 101 hook.

Danny is an engineer by profession and his approach to fishing reflects that. It' very methodical.  His approach to mahseer is different from Donny's and Cash's.  First he fishes only dry flies.  A Beetle fly specifically tied with a nonslip loop knot.  He casts upstream and strips in the fly.  Pick up line and shot line with minimal or no false casts.  Once the fly passes the zone  take one step slowly forward and cast again methodically from left then to the center then to the right.  Take one slow step move forward and repeat.

We stopped fishing just downstream of the section Danny and I had stopped on my first outing.  I have no ideal how many we landed this day but it was significant.  Mahseer are extremely difficult to catch and most anglers in Taiwan are happy to get a couple an outing.  Most anglers on the Taiwan Fly Fishing pages don't actually believe Danny catches the numbers he does.  They think he's full of it.  Of course I've witnessed it firsthand so I know that's not the case.

Unfinished Business Part Six: Zacco/ Pale Chub

April 21, 2018

Along with Donny, Cash was one of the few Taiwanese fly fishermen communicating in English over the internet.  So before I arranged this trip I messaged him to see if he'd be willing to show me around some of his favorite waters.  He agreed.  So when I came back to Taipei after Japan I got in touch with him to see if he wanted to get together and fish.  He said he'd pick me up in the city and we'd fish Yilan.  Since he lives in Luodong, east of Taipei, I told him not to bother picking me up and I'd take the bus to meet him in his hometown.

Cash asked me what I wanted to fish, initially while stateside, I told him I wanted a mahseer but now that I'd already crossed that off my list with Donny I wanted something else.  He suggested Zacco or Pale Chub as it is also known.

I took the express bus out of Taipei and headed southeast to the countryside of Yilan County to Luodong.  This part of Taiwan is much quieter and slower paced than the hustle and bustle of Taipei.  Home prices and incomes also reflect that.  Much of my view during the bus ride there were of paddy fields.

A Cute Pic of Country Life.

I arrived in Luodong and waited for Cash to pick me up.  When he did he told me we'd be picking up one of his friends, Zhi Chun.  After picking him up we drove to the outskirts of town and fished a river loaded with various fish.

On my first cast and with a dry I managed my fish Zacco.  The colorful version.  I'm not sure the difference between the vibrant version and the more silvery one.  Not sure if its a differentiation of sex or another subspecies.  That said as what seemed like a theme throughout this trip, from my first mahseer to my first yamame to now my first zacco, I fumbled the fish and accidentally released it before I could get a pic of it.  Luckily it was caught on the Gopro. 

After fishing a half mile or so the dry fly action seemed to stop and Cash suggested I go subsurface.  I tied on a secret fly my buddy Jacob swore me to show no one.  Cash lead me a section of river in between two boulders and said there's  a drop-off holding a ton of fish.  I stood downstream casting upstream and slowly retrieving the fly back.  It was easy picking from then on.  I lost count how many I landed.  Cash moved below me and tried to get black carp to bite but to no avail.  We gave up after a while and headed out for something to eat.

After lunch we drove to another river that held mahseer.  While Cash and Zhi Chun both managed a handful of mahseer I came up blank.  Cash used the same fishing method as Donny.  Casting perpendicular to the current and letting the fly drag with the current.  The fish would either take upon landing or just after the fly begins to drag.  It's counter-intuitive from how I've been taught but it works.  I've seen it.  After fishing Cash dropped me off at the bus station I headed back to Taipei.  On the bus I was sitting next to an American expat from Wisconsin teaching here in Taiwan.  After a talking with him, knowing we had similar interests, I asked him where in Taipei are all the outdoor shops.  I was looking for some Japanese outdoor gear I didn't have time to buy while in Japan.  He told me to go to Taipei Main Station and from there from there they'd be a ton of outdoor shops just outside a certain exit that I've now forgotten.  Funny it took a white guy to tell the Taiwanese guy where to shop in Taiwan.

Unfinished Business Part Five: Taipei

April 17, 2018

Now back in Taiwan, I hooked up with my friend Peter.  Last year he was kind enough to show me ropes around Taipei.   He tried to get me on a Pacific Tarpon but after two strikes I failed to connect.  This year I had snakehead on my mind and that would be my specific target.  I met Peter at Jingmei station after his work shift at 6:30pm and he was still in a dress shirt, slacks and dress shoes.  Considering we'd be fishing along the filthy banks, you can't say Peter is not fish crazy.  We took to his scooter and rode down the street to the fishing destination.

All fish within the city limits are highly pressured.  Fishing then takes not only skill but stealth.  Peter's first suggestion was to fish off the steep concrete bank and cast from there.  A task much easier done with gear than a fly rod.  It was not long that I realized the 7'11" Sage rod with a foam frog popper was not up to the task I need to get closer to the water.  So I did but it didn't help me get any closer to my goal.  When it started to look like the snakehead were not going to cooperate this evening I switched tactics.  I decided to go subsurface.  It was not longer after Peter hooked into a fish, a tilapia, an African import.  I had at least 10-15 bites but could not get any of them to stick for more than a moment or two.  I even had one what Peter called a "big fish" on until it came loose.

It quite possibly was the snakehead I was looking for.  Then when we moved spots and I managed to hook a tilapia and fought it right at my feet before it popped off and swam away.  Afterwards I checked my fly only to discover that the hook was bent out of shape.  No wonder I was failing to connect.  I moved toward the inlet  that was flushing water into the system and noticed carp clopping.  I've only seen carp clop a couple of times here in the states and yet now I've seen it twice in a row in Asia in two different countries.  Because it was so dark and a bit lazy I didn't bother switching to a dry fly I just floated my wooly bugger on the surface.

Attempt after attempt it looked as though I wouldn't get my first Taipei fish after all.  Then I finally hooked up on a nice common carp. When I noticed more clopping carp I cut off the streamer and was about to tie on a dry when Peter received a call from the wife. He asked if we could end the night in 10 minutes. I asked him if I got him in trouble. He replied no I only got a "friendly reminder." I know what that means, I told him we could leave and I was satisfied. I finally got a fish in Taipei city which Peter says is extremely difficult since these fish are highly pressured. Even though I've caught hundreds of common carp stateside this one was special. It was my first Taipei fish while not native to the land it was at least an Asian fish in Asia.

My Favorite Taiwanese Soda.

A Post Fishing Meal at Asia's Best Fast Food Chain, Mos Burger 

Unfinished Business Part Four: Suzuki

April 13, 2018: Last day in Japan

After failing earlier on this day to get my maruta or even my clopping carp, I left the river to run errands before meeting up with Koji at Yokohama Bay at 10PM.  Last Spring Koji attempted to guide me to my first suzuki (Japanese Seabass) but we failed.  We didn't hire a guide and fished the canals on foot.  It proved a fruitless endeavor despite favorable tides.  This year we would increase our chances and hire a boat.  Koji hired his friend Masuda (Masa), the captain of the Seakuro, arguably one of the most famous seabass guides in Japan.

Just before 10 I arrived at the entrance of the Higashi Kanagawa Station to meet Koji at the entrance.  He'd pick me up and we'd drive a few blocks to meet the captain.  When we reached our destination I started to rig up a Sage Smallmouth Bass rod I borrowed from Luc.  Koji asked if I wanted to use his spare 8 weight instead.  I declined as I figured I brought this rod all the way from the states and I should at least fish it.

In no time Masa appeared and we entertained ourselves with our past fishing conquests.  Masa told me he'd fished Hot Creek years ago and only managed a few small fish.  We waited at the dock for the boat to arrive.  Masa's partner was on a charter with a couple of Minnesotans who were gear fishing.  When they docked they let us know they made a killing on rockfish and said the fishing was fantastic.  Once they offloaded their gear we loaded ours and made our way to the fishing grounds.

Yokohama bay is quite a sight at night especially by boat. On the ride Koji would let me know that anglers all over Japan come to Tokyo Bay to fish for Suzuki. In most of the rest of Japan catching a handful of Suzuki or so would be considered a good day but in Tokyo Bay a handful would be a disappointment.  If commercial fishing numbers are any indication of how many fish are here, then if you don't get onto fish it might just be you.  I don't recall the number exactly but Koji told me something like a ton a day of seabass are caught by commercial boats and its a 250 (or thereabouts) season.

We made it to our first location and Koji gave me the helm. After a few casts Masa gave up on this location and moved us to the next, a well lit section along a walkway.  Within 30 minutes of our launch I was on my first seabass.  While not a big fish by any means it was my first Japanese seabass but not necessarily a suzuki.  You see not all seabass are suzuki but all suzuki are seabass.  Most westerners misspeak in referring to this fish, colloquially referring to them as Suzuki.  The Japanese seabass changes name in accordance to its size.  For any fish up to 30cm (roughly a foot) they are called Seigo.  Any fish in the range of 30cm to 60cm (roughly 2 feet) they are called Fukko.  Any fish larger than 60cm is a Suzuki.

My very first Japanese Seabass, the smallest of the bunch.

To increase your chances of catching a seabass at night look for lighted areas.  These predatory fish hide in the darkness and attack prey moving through the lighted areas.  We used floating lines with sinking flies.  Flies that proved successful were my ASSFly and a zonker style fly that Koji gave me.  Koji tied me and gave me  a 15 foot 16 pound leader.  With a slight wind it proved somewhat difficult to cast with the 7'11" Sage Bass rod.  Eventually about an hour and after struggling to get long enough casts I switched to Koji's spare 6 weight Echo rod for the remaining time on the boat.

We covered quite a bit of distance as Tokyo Bay is quite large.  I forget but I think we areas around Yokohama, Kanagawa and Kawasaki, maybe even Chiba.  The original plan was to fish from 8pm to midnight but Koji let me know he'd have some late meetings so he had to push it back to 10pm to 2am.  This actually worked out much better as the tides were to shift at 11pm.  Overall we had a great night, I lost count how many fish we ended with but I can say it was easily at least 20 to hand.  Koji even lost a few big ones.  Most of the fish were in the Fukko range.  So I will need to come back and actually get my "real" Suzuki.  That said at least I got my species I was wanting to add to the list albeit it may not be the name I wanted.  I did manage a rockfish that impressed both the Captain and Koji.  While not impressive in size, they are extremely rare on the fly.  We were only scheduled to fish for four hours Masa graciously added another hour without charge.  I didn't get home until past 4am only to get a few hours of shut eye before catching a 10am flight back to Taipei.