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IloIlo, Philippines
(Pronounced: ee-lo ee-lo)
located in the Western Visayas region of the Philippine archipelagos. A
mere 25-minute flight from Cebu City.
Named after a river which
is shaped like a nose, Iloilo province and its city ranks as one of the
country's foremost centers of culture. Iloilo has stretches of
breathtaking, unpolluted seaside communities and beach resorts that
makes it an upcoming point of interest for tourists visiting the
Philippines.
Not far from the city of
Iloilo is a small and quaint town called Oton, just a fifteen minute
drive away from the center of Iloilo city. A wonderful region with
picturesque views of the beautiful countryside and seaside who's charm
can only be matched by the friendly and outgoing people that reside
there.
 Go Fish Tackle &
Hobby
Shop owner,
Bong Sanagustin invited Cebu Sport Fishing to Iloilo to
partake of the town of Oton's 437th Foundation Day and Katagman Festival.
Along with it's first ever Pammunit sa Katagman fishing tournament. The
festival itself is a week long celebration that features Laro Ng Lahi
which revives traditional games like palosebo, tumba patis, kadang sa
paya and more.
Katagman Festival Participants
The flight out of Cebu was as expected,
Cebu Pacific Airlines always offers an inexpensive flight with good
service. Their planes are new Airbus's and Bombardier's so our guest have
always been pleased with the flights we've booked for them.
We arrived into Iloilo around 9PM and
were pleased to see a very modern and clean facility. The airport isn't
as large as Mactan International Airport but the layout is typical USA
standards, meaning it was easy to navigate. Additional good news is that
they will become an international port very soon. Bong Sanagustin was
kind enough to meet us at the airport and provide us transportation to a
local hotel for our three day stay in Iloilo.
The new Iloilo Airport
After check in and a quick
rest, Bong invited us out to dinner at a popular seafood restaurant and
afterwards gave us a tour of his store. The store was situated in a very
nice location next to Robinson Mall and was laid out very nice with all
of the excellent toys we sports anglers enjoy so much. Be on the look
out on the CebuSportFishing.com website for our interview with Mr. Bong
Sanagustin becasue we will be doing an editorial on his establishment. |
Go Fish Tackle & Hobby Shop
The next morning we headed
out to Iloilo Fish Port Complex in Oton to prepare for the contest. The
great thing about the tournament is that it aims to promote awareness
among fishermen and anglers about the importance of preserving marine
sanctuaries by establishing artificial reefs, enforcing the laws against
illegal fishing techniques and promoting conservative sport fishing.
This was a drop-line only
tournament and had two categories; rod & reel type and the traditional
hand line. Upon arrival at the fishing port we were greeted by the Mayor
and Vice Mayor of Oton. Including that of all the fine people of the
local fishing clubs.
Go Fish Tackle & Hobby Shop, TCE
Tackles and CebuSportFishing representatives pose with Oton Mayor and
Vice Mayor
With approximately 70
participants, most being Go Fish clients and a few visitors from Japan
and the United States. The tournament was gearing up to become a very
exciting event. After the commencement ceremony all the anglers boarded
their pump boats for a 30-minute ride out to the fishing
grounds. Just the day before a tropical storm had hit the area and the
tournament was at risk of being cancelled. Luckily, it had passed
without any event and the day was bright and skies clear.
The ride out to the
fishing ground was smooth and calm. In the distance we could see the
flags annotating the locations of some artificial reefs frequented by
local fishermen. The water was pristine and one notch of from being
glassy. The color of the ocean was baby blue and still a little milky
due to sediment being tossed up into the water table from the storm
that had passed the day before.
Guests on the Go Fish Tackle &
Hobby Shop Boat
Although, the best
man-made artificial reefs are those that had been placed by the local
business owners and fishing club. Those spots, though numerous, are not
marked in any manner and takes a person with the "sixth-sense", as I
call it, the ability to be able to find them. Luckily, we had one of
those experienced and skilled boatman and guide on hand to assist us.
CLICK
HERE to download the PDF Flyer on the Katagman Festival |
I must say, the boatmen
of Iloilo are undoubtedly amazing. In such a vast ocean they are able to
pinpoint the exact location of all the artificial reefs without the
need of a map or GPS. The remarkable thing about their ability is that
they are able to do this without a landmark to go by as the landscape
did not offer any reasonable point of reference. A good friend of mine,
Mike Maquiran tells me the Iloilo boatmen are not trained in this
ability but in fact are born with GPS receivers wired to their brains.
Hehehe, funny Mike.
 The fishing
through out the day was remarkable. Typically, after bad weather
we didn't expect too many catches but the day turned out be very
productive. No doubt due in part to the preservation techniques
established by the local government and the efforts of the local
fishing club and fishermen.
Many good sized
fish were landed, including that of species other than fish like
sting rays.
Participants an a large pump boat. One of them had been fighting
a large stingray for the past 30 minutes.
Over-all the
tournament was fantastic and the openness and warm and friendly
nature of the people of Iloilo made this a great trip for
CebuSportFishing. We will definitely be going back (very
soon) and will be bringing many guests that want to enjoy the
wonderment this region has to offer.
THE WINNERS
AND THEIR CATCH
Rod and Reel Category:
Champion
Eric "Bobong" Cruz
3.86 Kg Inid (Lapu-Lapu/Grouper)
-20lbs Line (Tomman Big Foot)
-Banax 3000XS Reel
-BBS-Figo / 20-50 lbs / MH Action Rod
1st Runner Up
Henry "Dre" Galor
3.14 Kg Bukan (African Pompano)
-20 lbs Line (Tomman Big Foot)
-Banax 2000XS Reel
-VIP-Stik / 10-25 lbs / MH Action Rod
2nd Runner Up
Alfredo "Bong" Tuling
1.10 Kg Kilawan (Snapper)
-20 lbs Line (Trilene Big Game)
-Penn Reel
-MH Action Rod
HandLine
Category:
Champion
Joclevy Minerva
5.28 Kg Lali (Queen Fish)
1st Runner Up
2nd Runner Up
No winner
CLICK HERE TO SEE PHOTO'S FROM THE TOURNAMENT |