We embarked on a fishing trip in a Forester in search of a monster sea bass in Tokyo Bay.

The ‘Forester’ SUV from Subaru is well renowned for its reliability as an outdoor vehicle has undergone a model change. 3 well known creators have agreed to take a ride in this new model to enjoy the outdoor fun of urban fishing close to the city centre (30 minutes) in the Yokohama Bay area. All of the members have gotten really into to urban fishing recently and are excited to a encounter a legendary sized monster fish lurking in the bay.

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11:00　Meeting Time

The 3 participants for this trip were Juicy who is a member of break beats outfit ‘Hifana’ along with his brother and illustrator Maharo, and lastly fashion salesman Iori. Iori and Juicy arrived wearing the same outdoor brand WO which has been designed and launched by the trio.

These 3 creative individuals are at the forefront of the times and are well known for their love of the outside and for fishing in particular. We joined them today on this existing fishing trip that can be enjoyed in the city.

The car of choice for the 3 intrepid fisherman was the Forester Advance which features the hybrid ‘e-BOCER’ system and is suited for both off road and city use.

Everyone gathers with their own individual tackle, lure and cooler box. After that everyone loaded their cargo onto the Forrester.

“The automatic trunk is really convenient as it can be opened with just the touch of a button. Even if your leaving early in the morning it doesn’t make any loud noises so you don’t need to worry about the surroundings”.

The rear seats can be retracted in a 6:4 split, meaning the luggage compartment can be expanded freely be rearranging the seats. If you only flatten one side of the rear seats then long items such as fishing rods etc. can be stored even with 3 passengers. This can also be operated manually with the flick of a switch.

11:20　Departure

After loading the entire luggage onto the vehicle it’s about a 30 minute journeyer to the Yokohama Bay area. We chartered a boat for midday so the meeting and departure time was pretty late and relaxed. Now everyone has boarded the Forester it’s time to set off!

“When you step on the accelerator you can really feel the power”!

The Forrester Advance model comes with an ‘e-BOXER’ system that combines a 2.0L direct-injection engine with a motor. The fuel efficiency is of course excellent but the acceleration is also incredibly smooth which makes starting and stopping as well as traveling through smaller city streets or highways equally comfortable. The inside of the car is a very smooth ride with noise minimized and plenty of space even with the large volume of fishing luggage.

 

12:00　To the fishing and tackle shop in Yokohama

30 minutes from the city centre, get off at the 3^rd Keihin and head towards the Minato Mirai area where buildings line up along the waterfront. The Forrester is not only an off road vehicle as it doesn’t seem out of place in the city scape of Yokohama.

Once we reached Yokohama the 1^st stop was the tackle shop. Yokohama has many narrow alleys when turning off from the main street but the Forrester has a minimum turning circle of 5.4m making navigation easy. Next it’s time to check the lures available at the sea bass section of the store.

The 3 guys chat and make jokes as they examine the different lures available. It seems that late fall is a great chance to catch a massive 80cm plus sea bass nicknamed ‘Ranker’ in the Tokyo Bay area. Everyone laughs at the selection of an equally massive lure, today looks like it’s going to be a really fun fishing trip.

12:30　Preparation for Departure

After the 3 of them left the fish and tackle shop everyone made their way past Chinatown to the marina at Shin Yamashita. The Island Cruise Tokyo Bay sea bus company looked after us for this trip and they are well known amongst celebrities and musicians. There are many types of fish that can be caught in Tokyo Bay but the most famous for this season is the Ranker size!

“It would be awesome if I managed to catch something with this huge lure!”

Urban fishing is all about matching your fishing method with style not just conventional fishing apparatus and apparel. Now everything’s ready it’s time to board!

 

13:00　Departure

We set sail for the Shin Yamashita marina. This type of island cruise is on a small boat so its great for casual fishing trips for small groups of friends.

It takes about 30 minutes from leaving the port and passing the Yokohama Bay Bridge.

Here we arrived at the offshore location where we can see the Tokyo Bay Aqua Line right in front of you.

 

13:30　Fishing

The water is pretty choppy and many birds are circling overhead. “The timing should be perfect for the sea bass to be chasing after small fish under the water” said captain Endo, whose words immediately lifted the spirits of our fishing crew.

Right away the guys cast their ‘Mino’ lure onto the surface and almost immediately got a bite! The rod bends under the tension and sea bass bounces as it breaks the surface of the water. This first catch was on the smaller side but as the catches started to pile up everyone really livened up!

Once everyone had managed to make a small catch the boat moved onto the next spot. As per Captain Endo’s recommendation everyone switched to a ‘vibration’ style lure which has high appeal for the fish to due to the incremental shakes and movements. After casting this new type of lure and waiting a little patiently, we started to catch some bigger Sea Bass than the previous location.

A fish caught onto the line. This fish had a slender muscular silhouette and powerful looking teeth.

The other 2 members noticed Juicy’s ongoing battle and the intense bend in his rod and gathered round. He was unusually quiet and entirely focused on this battle with the fish, only the increase in his heart rate noticeable. Carefully matching the fishes motions and giving a strong tug at just the right moment led to a large black shape appearing at the surface of the water.

“It’s huge! Don’t let it loose!”

I scooped it up with the net that the captain had been previously using.

It was a monster Sea Bass measuring 83.5cm and weighing 6kg.

“I did it!”

Everybody had the same grin on their face. Having this experience with a monster sized opponent has shown all of us a new face to the city we weren’t expecting.

 

16:30　Finish

Although we had a few more bites before finishing nothing as big as this monster Sea Bass appeared. As the sun goes down, everybody lowered their rods for the return trip to Yokohama.

We watch the dramatically lit up industrial district as the boat coasts along to the port, with the looming night view of Minato Mirai awaiting us.

 

17:30　Return

After all the fishing gear and cooler boxes filled with the days catch was loaded onto the Forrester we begun on the journey back to Tokyo, leaving nightline of Yokohama in the rear view mirror.

“With the touring assist turned on it’s easy to drive back”!

The new upgraded model has drastically improved eyesight. The installed Touring Assist automatically controls the way back on the highway, the accelerator, brakes and steering. The driving load placed on the driver is greatly reduced and ideal after a long day of outdoor activities like fishing.

This fishing trip was ripe with excitement at the prospect of encountering a massive sea beast lurking close to the city centre. Even in the car on the way back, the conversation was filled with exciting reminiscing about today’s events. Which adventure is next in the new model Forrester?

Photo／Shouta Kikuchi、Takuma Utoo

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SUBARU Forrester Advance

【SPEC】Overall Length 4625×Overall Width1815×Overall Height 1715mm　Wheel Base 2670mm　Vehicle Weight 1640kg　2.0L DOHC Direct Injection + Motor（e-BOXER）　Fuel Consumption18.6km/L（JC08Mode） Engine Output 107kW（145PS）/6000rpm　Engine Torque 188Nm（19.2kgm）/4000rpm　Motor Output 10kW（13.6PS） Motor Torque 65Nm（6.6kgm）Drive System AWD（Always All Wheel Drive）　Price 3,099,600Yen