MANGALORE, Karnataka

What kind of city?

Mangalore is located on the west coast of India between Goa and Kochi. It is an old city with an authentic atmosphere. It is not a tourist city, more a living and working city. Sometimes it feels like walking through the Middle Ages. 

There is a large fish market where you can buy fresh and sometimes live fish, but also a whole section with dried fish (see video's below). Follow your nose and you will come there automatically. In Mangalore you can find various parks where people exercise and where you can enjoy all kinds of plants, trees and flowers. There is also a water park where there is a daily show where projections are made on the water drops of a fountain. and of course the most beautiful is the variety of the most beautiful temples which are a must visit. On the beach wich you can reach by boat there is a fantastic theme park with attractions from the middle ages (see video's below).

 

Fishing in Mangalore

There are plenty of options for fishing in both salt and fresh water. There are several freshwater rivers such as the Gurupura and the Netravathi. Fishermen working the rivers with nets (see video's below)

There are also several small lakes. There you can catch beautiful fish like the Mangrove Jack, Rohu, Catla, Masheer, tilapia and many other species. On the sea you can expect the bigger work. Large fish can be caught, but take the season into account. At the end of the rainy season, the fish come more to the coast. This is usually around September. Ask locals to know for sure. I did some fishing in the Gurupura river. 

Another choice you can make is to visit some islands. There you can go deep sea fishing for GT, Spanish Macerel, Kingfish and other species. The island group called st. Mary's island en is north of Mangalore. Also you can fish on Maple island.

We stayed in a guesthouse on the river. The name is Nisarga Nirvana River House (tinyurl.com/y7olcz86). Wonderfully secluded and away from the crowds. It is a nice place with a nice owner and manager. Sometimes large parties are held on the roof of the building. The view over the river is magnificent and idyllic.

During the day we went to discover the area and daily there were some temples on the agenda. Early in the morning and at dusk and in the dark it is a good time for fishing. Best bait would be fresh prawns. Als lures will do the trick. My choice at that time was fresh shrimp. On the road a few hundred meters away you can find stalls selling fresh fish. They also often have fresh shrimp. It is maybe better to ask the manager to buy shrimp for you because as a tourist you naturally pay too much. I went myself and had a nice chat with the seller and some bystanders. Nisarga Nirvana has a big kitchen with fridge and freezer. Also there is possibilty to cook (your catch). Bepending on the time you stay you can buy an amount of shrimps and cool or freeze them. So you wont have to go daily to buy new shrimps.

I did some fishing from dusk to dark. I made a leader with multiple hooks on it. My choice were small hooks. I dabbed the hooks with pieces of shrimp and after throwing it in, it was immediately life(see video's below)

It was mainly small fish that gave life to the rod. Despite the small size of the fish, they were very beautiful in color and shape. These are fish that I cannot catch in my country because we have a temperate climate. I am always happy to add new varieties to my spiecies list

Fishing in the dark was great fun. I had clamped an alarm bell on top of my rod. A headlamp is also very useful when fishing in the dark, actually necessary. Life diminished a bit during the dark, perhaps because the larger fish start hunting. Ofcourse my sweet girlfriend enjoyed me while fishing. I am very lucky with this friend who shares the pleasure of fishing with me

After an hour while enjoying a KingFisher and a glass of whiskey i got a huge blow to my rod. The rod was almost dragged into the water. The bell fell off before I had the fishing rod in my hands. It felt like a strong fish. It fired from side to side, and because the diameter of my line was not too thick, i was afraid the line would break. Fortunately that was not the case and I was soon able to pull the fish on dry land. When seeing the red color i was extremely happy. I caught a Mangrove Jack. A deep red color with golden hues blinded my eyes. Another beautiful specimen that I could attribute to my species list.

This Mangrove Jack was the only size fish I caught in the Gurupura River. I got into a conversation with a boy who stayed in the same guesthouse during those hours. We turned out to have the same interests and it was a pleasant time. It was getting late that night and I crawled into bed very satisfied.

Because we only stayed a few days in Mangalore and we wanted to see and experience a lot, I did not have much time for fishing. But the hours that I did fish were with a good result.

 

Below a photo gallery with pictures of the fish market in mangalore and some videos