Fisherman, along the Mekong, Laos
Along the Mekong, Luang Prabang 2009. A Fisherman at work with a scoop net mounted on a fork of 2 approx 4m long bamboo handles. I came across this scene just after sunrise, so he will have been working in the river since dawn.
Handling the net alone is impressive enough, but also how he was navigating the river, moving forth and back into deeper areas at times. You can tell from the surface the Mekong was a proper, wild and untamed river back then. There are turbulences and currents, rocks and pools and the river gets real deep in certain areas. And the river is/was rich in fish and other creatures (both real and imagined!), an ecosystem second in biodiversity only to the Amazon.
But a scene like this may be a thing of the past now. From what I read a dam built further downstream in the last years has led to an increase of water levels of around 2m in Luang Prabang. Life in and along the river has changed. I don't know if fishing like this is still happening in the UNESCO World Heritage town, just a few meters down the embankment from the historic temples.
Shot on a modest quality (by today's standards anyway) Nikon D300 and iso 800. On the other hand it was raining that morning, so the noise is partly natural :)
I visited as part of my ongoing journey 'along the Mekong' in stages; this section starting from the golden triangle in the north to Luang Prabang during the Buddhist new year in April 2009 (more pics to follow).
☞ more from along the Mekong
© All rights reserved. Please do not use my images and text without prior written permission.
Fisherman, along the Mekong, Laos
Along the Mekong, Luang Prabang 2009. A Fisherman at work with a scoop net mounted on a fork of 2 approx 4m long bamboo handles. I came across this scene just after sunrise, so he will have been working in the river since dawn.
Handling the net alone is impressive enough, but also how he was navigating the river, moving forth and back into deeper areas at times. You can tell from the surface the Mekong was a proper, wild and untamed river back then. There are turbulences and currents, rocks and pools and the river gets real deep in certain areas. And the river is/was rich in fish and other creatures (both real and imagined!), an ecosystem second in biodiversity only to the Amazon.
But a scene like this may be a thing of the past now. From what I read a dam built further downstream in the last years has led to an increase of water levels of around 2m in Luang Prabang. Life in and along the river has changed. I don't know if fishing like this is still happening in the UNESCO World Heritage town, just a few meters down the embankment from the historic temples.
Shot on a modest quality (by today's standards anyway) Nikon D300 and iso 800. On the other hand it was raining that morning, so the noise is partly natural :)
I visited as part of my ongoing journey 'along the Mekong' in stages; this section starting from the golden triangle in the north to Luang Prabang during the Buddhist new year in April 2009 (more pics to follow).
☞ more from along the Mekong
© All rights reserved. Please do not use my images and text without prior written permission.