Seems like I was making my last Wisconsin cast minutes ago but the reality is I’m in the KLM Lounge in Amsterdam making the best of a long layover about 36 hours later. I left Duluth on the 6 pm flight to Minneapolis yesterday then last night caught the redeye to Europe. In about six hours I’ll fly from here to Singapore (13 hours!). Then Singapore to Jakarta, Indonesia.
If all goes well I’ll find a hotel in Jakarta late Wednesday night then Thursday afternoon I’ll meet up with friend Austin Kane and we fly to Balikpapan, Borneo. And that’s not all. We’ll overnight there then Friday we take a local flight to the village of Melak and meet our guide/host, Fajar Setyawan. I’m not exactly sure after that. I believe there’s some 4×4 driving time and a long boat ride. I’m hoping for first cast to be no later than sunrise Saturday and perhaps with luck it will be Friday afternoon.
The goal for this trip to the jungles of Borneo is to catch the extraordinary looking Borneo Red Gourami (Osphronemus septemfasciatus) on fly. Also known as Red Kaloi or Kalou. This wild one would be a solid addition to my long species list. And of course, there should be a few other species lurking too.
Stay tuned for what should be a lifetime adventure. I don’t know how fast my reports will roll out being internet will likely be an issue. But I’ll be writing and documenting it all and they will post when they can. For now, I just as well kill this layover off with some good Euro brew. I’m not a Heineken drinker but drafts do taste excellent here in Amsterdam.
Always look forward to your posts Jeff but this one really has me intrigued. I grew up with an aquarium full of gouramis; blue, pearl, kissing, etc but none of a size that would bend a fly rod. Have a great adventure!
Thanks Glenn. Yeah this trip has me pretty excited. Hopefully we get the job done and we all can get a good look at this cool creature!