Khun Somchai Rattanaphon has been fishing the covered platforms of Bangkok's pay-lake circuit since the early 1990s, back when Bungsamran Lake was still establishing its reputation and the concept of commercial fisheries for giant species was considered novel rather than a national institution. Over the three decades since, he has fished competitively, professionally, and obsessively — accumulating a depth of practical knowledge about Thai freshwater giants that few anglers working in English can match.
Born in Bangkok's Lat Phrao district, Somchai grew up fishing the city's klongs and reservoir edges with bamboo rods and dough balls, the way most Bangkok kids of his generation did. The shift from subsistence-style urban fishing to the pay-lake circuit happened in his early twenties, when a colleague took him to Bungsamran for the first time. He recalls the morning clearly: arriving before sunrise, watching a Mekong catfish the size of a small dolphin clear the water on somebody else's line, and understanding immediately that he was going to be coming back for the rest of his life.
He fished the Thai tournament circuit through the late 1990s and 2000s, competing in multi-day events at Bungsamran, Pilot 111, and the network of smaller Bangkok-area lakes that have come and gone over the years. Several podium finishes in species categories — Mekong catfish, Siamese carp, and the Chao Phraya giant catfish — gave him the kind of on-the-platform experience that is difficult to replicate outside competition. He stopped competing full-time in the 2010s to focus on guided fishing, which he found more satisfying than the pressure of events.
Somchai's specialist knowledge
Somchai has fished Bungsamran Lake more than 400 times by his own count and has guided visiting anglers from over 20 countries. His bait paste formulas — developed over years of trial at Bungsamran and Boon Mar Ponds — are among the most refined in the Bangkok scene.
His specialisms are the giant Mekong catfish (Pangasianodon gigas), Siamese carp (Probarbus jullieni), and — more recently — the arapaima (Arapaima gigas) that have been stocked into several Bangkok lakes since the 2010s. He writes with particular authority on bait selection and presentation: the right paste consistency for Bungsamran's current stocking levels, the timing of bites on Boon Mar Ponds in the post-monsoon window, the difference in tackle required when fishing Pilot 111's lure-friendly zones versus the heavy-bait platforms at the bigger lakes.
Somchai speaks Thai natively and conversational English — enough to guide international visitors competently and to write with assistance from the ThaiAngler editorial team. His articles on this site are field-checked at the venues he describes, typically within the season they are published. He does not write about lakes he has not personally fished, and he is candid about what has changed at any given venue since his last visit.
When he is not at the water, he lives in Bangkapi with his wife and their two dogs, collects vintage Thai tournament fishing trophies, and maintains a disorderly but impressive tackle collection that he insists is strictly functional.