Paul Arden | Monday, 13 July 2015
It's my last few days here in Hungary and I'm frantically packing, and fishing of course. Let's see, today I visit my boat on the Balaton to pick up my mobile solar panel and negotiate some sort of reduced harbour fee, Tuesday I fish with Sasha, Wednesday with Peter and Thursday with both Peter and Sasha before catching the evening plane back to Malaysia. It's been a great previous week, fishing with John, we both had Asp from the Drava, and a great day fishing the canal as you can see from the current POD series...
And apart from this it's been a fantastic European trip as a whole, fishing the reservoirs in the UK, the Scottish Meet, fishing the Highlands with Ash, fishing Hungary, Bosnia and Croatia with Ti and the Gov, a Meet in Croatia, another in Romania, and then the recent fishing here. I've actually learned quite a bit too, have been working through both French Nymphing as well as Collapsed Cast nymphing. I've had quite a few revelations along the way! But it's time for a change...
As most of you will know my real passion right now, is not Grayling or Trout or Asp, but instead Snakehead, Gourami and Jungle Perch. And to this end I'm going to spend the next six months fishing for them, living with them, eating and breathing the jungle. If you're going to do something, then you may as well totally immerse yourself in it. And I'm really looking forward to catching up with my girlfriend too!!!
Packing for this trip is proving complicated. I'm only allowed 20Kg hold luggage and 8Kg hand luggage. I'm taking HT4, 6, 8 and 10 weights, reels for each, a FULL flytying kit, camping and cooking gear, limited clothes, as well as cameras, Sexyloops and laptop gear. I also have a couple of 4wt HTs and an 8wt HT for sale - just the way that has worked out! However this one is going to be a long trip. I won't be back in Europe until April at the very least and I'm not entirely sure I'll return then either.
I'm going to map out the fishing in Temenggor and make that my home for a while. This will ultimately take years, but I should make some big in-roads into the fishing this trip. It's starting to feel like a home for me, just in the way that New Zealand, Australia and North America has. And when I'm not fishing I'll be training my casting for the next World Championships. Living on a boat on a lake leaves no excuse not to cast as much as possible. My first Malaysian purchase will be accuracy rings for floating behind the boat!
I think this trip is going to be a real adventure! 
While I love all sorts of flyfishing, all methods, all fish, all locations, I find myself drawn more and more to wilderness locations. No light pollution, no traffic noises, often no people. And this is a hell of a destination, the oldest rainforest in the world, with wild elephants, tigers, monkeys, erm snakes and an alive feeling that words simply can't express. The fishing is incredibly challenging; Snakehead are the hardest flycasting shots I've had to make - much harder then Saltwater for example. And slightly unusually for me, I've made a lot of friends who don't flyfish! I'm looking forward to getting back home again!
Cheers, Paul
PS Sasha says I look like a King with my beard! 