The last time I posted about my trip with Francois you may remember reading about how benevolent and kind the Great Francois was. This time was no different as Francois very generously offered to take me to one of the greatest fishing lakes in Thailand. Not only was this trip free of charge for me but Francois picked up my tab. I was just responsible to get myself there where I could learn from one of the greatest. After a 7 hour drive through the “land of smiles” I arrived to perhaps one of the best kept secrets of Thailand. This lake is a true gem of a find.
Now we know that Saint Peter was a fisherman in the Bible but Peter has nothing on Francois when it comes to fishing. Whether Francois is ready for sainthood or not is still up for debate though 
. However, the Great Francois has kept his word to me and given me another memorable fishing experience.
The last time I was with Francois I showed him my lifelist goals and he was able to help me deliver on three of them last weekend. I have been earnestly seeking to catch the Catla, Black Shark, and prized Julien’s Carp for a long time now.
I only had a day and a half of fishing here so I had to make it count. I had to stay focused. I have to admit it was difficult to stay focused while watching 40+ lb. Giant Siamese Carp slurping rice flour off the surface. But I needed to keep my bait on the bottom where the Julien’s Carp feeds. I caught 9 different species while there (Mekong Catfish, Striped Catfish, Common Carp, Silver Carp, Catla, Java Barb, Black Sharkminnow, Julien’s Carp, and Rohu). I have no pics of the Catfish just because I have already caught a ton of them. They kind of lose their novelty after a thousand are caught.
Here they are:
1. The Common Carp:
This is actually a different strain of Commons that are separated from ours back home by thousands of years. We have the European strain in the States even though they are considered the same species.
2. The Rohu:
These get bigger than what I caught here but the interesting thing is they vary in their colorations. Some are really light colored while others are darker.
3. The Silver Carp
This one was a personal best for me.
4. The Giant Siamese Carp
I never get sick of catching these beasts. They are close to one of my favorites. They are like having a barnyard animal on the end of your line.
5. The Catla
Aka Indian Carp, this one is very close to the Siamese Carp. The main distinguishing mark is the long dorsal fin and green on the gill plate. This was new lifelister #1 for me.
6. The elegant Black Shark
This is a very cool fish and not very common. It kind of has a mouth like the European Barbel. I really like this fish. It fights well and is beautiful in appearance. It’s also all tubed up like our Redhorses get. I caught 3 different specimens here.
7. The prized Julien’s Carp
This one is awesome. This is an endangered species and getting more and more rare. It is truly a tough catch and one of my most prized catch. This was the only one caught on Saturday and I was fortunate enough to catch it. Pound for pound they are the toughest of fighters on the end of a line; a real bulldog.
Here are a couple of bigger ones from the olden days.
That Julien’s carp is a good looking fish 