Fishing

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Many fish, fantastic trip.   We are vacuum packing tuna in a few minutes.    I'll be sending some filets from some nice 20-30lb Bluefin tuna home in a few days.

[FlyinBrian]

Tuna is one of my all time favorites.  Hint, hint, wink, wink, nudge, nudge.

-B

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Here is a short movie of our relatives at ease going along with the boat at 12 knots. 


http://www.flickr.com/photos/49637895@N00/6035853059/

I'll post some fish-caught pictures this week...

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[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Many fish, fantastic trip.   We are vacuum packing tuna in a few minutes.    I'll be sending some filets from some nice 20-30lb Bluefin tuna home in a few days.

My all Bluefin tuna catch is in the cooler with dry ice & ready to ship tomorrow from California to here overnight--- shipping weight somewhere under 70lbs.   Price (this is not for brag, this is for information only), is over $300.00 for the cooler of fish (including the dry ice), shipped overnight.  Less than 5 years ago there was a West Coast shipper that would overnight fish for $1.00/lb. we used them exclusively.  They are gone, now it is FedEx and us facing the horribly high cost of bringing home the plentiful Bluefin tuna catch that we experienced West of Ensenada on the 10th of August this year.  It makes it harder to give a bag of fish away here and there to be sure. 

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[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

I got a call fairly late last night from my fishing buddy Alan G. (Geepersag), asking if I wanted to meet him at 7am over by Lake Lanier to go fishing for Crappie..   Say the name any way you want but it is one delicious pan-fish.  I met him, we drove up past Gainseville to Little River boat ramp and put his big 'ole Lund boat in, it was a bit chilly at first, but we headed out for some brush piles that he has marked on his GPS and started catching plenty of keeper crappie.  We threw a bunch back but we kept 30.  I just got finished cleaning 30 crappie making neat mouthful-bites of the fairly small pan fish.  I have them in the fridge, cooling down and firming up until tomorrow.  Tonight we are going to eat sandwiches.  But tomorrow I am going to deep fry part of the nearly 5lbs of crappie filets I cut off of fish carcasses today.  I have been up since 5 and am fairly punchy, but I have a spirit guide (CP) helping me through dinner.  I don't think I'll see 10pm tonight.  LOL

It was a terrific day on the lake, the lake is down about 12 feet, and some of the brush piles we were hunting were actually sticking up above water.  We anchored and tossed small chartreuse jigs, or worked them vertically and produced fish at several of his "secret" brush piles. 

The question is for tomorrow, should I tempura the fish with a bunch of things or just shallow fry them with corn flour and panko..  I am undecided at this time.
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[totm]

Fishing off shore in the gulf last month I had a catfish take my bait down his throat pretty deep.  Are saltwater catfish worth keeping and cooking?  I was also lucky enough to catch either a Sculpin or a toadfish.  8-(

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Fishing off shore in the gulf last month I had a catfish take my bait down his throat pretty deep.  Are saltwater catfish worth keeping and cooking?  I was also lucky enough to catch either a Sculpin or a toadfish.  8-(

I love me some sculpin.   Two years ago we didn't catch tuna off of San Diego but did a nice two day trip the local islands and caught a bunch of reef fish.  The sculpin were cooked on board for our dinner one night, they were superb.  I was allowed to go into the galley and build my old beer batter for half of them.  We didn't have a deep fryer on board but we battered and flat-topped those delicious morsels.  They turned out great.

Good for you, local fish is always good.   

Tonight I'm doing the crappies some way.   I really think the pieces are too small to do a Tempura, so I'll revert to beer batter and shallow fry them.  We fry things so infrequently, I have to be sure my tummy is ready for deep fried foods.   

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[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Here are some pics of the lake and of my crappie being cleaned last night.


The lake is way, way down.  It is dangerous unless you know where you are.



A look across the bay from Little River boat ramp in Gainsville.



Yes the fish were small that's why they call them panfish.  I laid the two carcasses on the back of the table to attract the very aggressive yellowjackets that were buzzing around, it worked. 



A nice bowl of filets to serve two of us for several meals.  Sorry for the blue tint, I had not reset my white balance for that late evening light.



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[totm]

Fishing off shore in the gulf last month I had a catfish take my bait down his throat pretty deep.  Are saltwater catfish worth keeping and cooking?  I was also lucky enough to catch either a Sculpin or a toadfish.  8-(

I love me some sculpin.   Two years ago we didn't catch tuna off of San Diego but did a nice two day trip the local islands and caught a bunch of reef fish.  The sculpin were cooked on board for our dinner one night, they were superb.  I was allowed to go into the galley and build my old beer batter for half of them.  We didn't have a deep fryer on board but we battered and flat-topped those delicious morsels.  They turned out great.

Good for you, local fish is always good.   

I didn't know what it was at the time and it literally freaked me out.  It went back in the gulf for someone else to catch again.  Sculpin appear to be somewhat difficult to clean.

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Fishing off shore in the gulf last month I had a catfish take my bait down his throat pretty deep.  Are saltwater catfish worth keeping and cooking?  I was also lucky enough to catch either a Sculpin or a toadfish.  8-(

I love me some sculpin.   Two years ago we didn't catch tuna off of San Diego but did a nice two day trip the local islands and caught a bunch of reef fish.  The sculpin were cooked on board for our dinner one night, they were superb.  I was allowed to go into the galley and build my old beer batter for half of them.  We didn't have a deep fryer on board but we battered and flat-topped those delicious morsels.  They turned out great.

Good for you, local fish is always good.   

I didn't know what it was at the time and it literally freaked me out.  It went back in the gulf for someone else to catch again.  Sculpin appear to be somewhat difficult to clean.

very spiny and (though I didn't look it up), possibly poisonous barbs.  Just a small amount of meat on each one but really a good flavor and worth the cleaning.  I didn't clean the ones we caught in 2009, but I have carefully cleaned them before.  At Catalina Island we caught some in the 3 pound range so there was enough tidbits to go around.

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[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Fishing off shore in the gulf last month I had a catfish take my bait down his throat pretty deep.  Are saltwater catfish worth keeping and cooking?  I was also lucky enough to catch either a Sculpin or a toadfish.  8-(

I love me some sculpin.   Two years ago we didn't catch tuna off of San Diego but did a nice two day trip the local islands and caught a bunch of reef fish.  The sculpin were cooked on board for our dinner one night, they were superb.  I was allowed to go into the galley and build my old beer batter for half of them.  We didn't have a deep fryer on board but we battered and flat-topped those delicious morsels.  They turned out great.

Good for you, local fish is always good.   

I didn't know what it was at the time and it literally freaked me out.  It went back in the gulf for someone else to catch again.  Sculpin appear to be somewhat difficult to clean.

very spiny and (though I didn't look it up), possibly poisonous barbs.  Just a small amount of meat on each one but really a good flavor and worth the cleaning.  I didn't clean the ones we caught in 2009, but I have carefully cleaned them before.  At Catalina Island we caught some in the 3 pound range so there was enough tidbits to go around. 

I was just remembering, I asked the cook to do some with just sesame oil, chili powder and salt.  That tray emptied first.    We barely cooked these as I remember.  These same 18 guys have been fishing for tuna together of 25 years, you gotta expect that the few real cooks in the crowd have fiddled with tuna recipes or sushi for a while.
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[totm]

Why would a very large sporting goods store carry 20 and 30 lb test with the heaviest sinker they have being 1 oz?  If you only carry fresh water tackle when would need 20-30 lb test?

[Corky]

Maybe striper? Or big catfish? That's my guess since I'm not a fisherman.

[Mike GadgetGeek Stock]

Why would a very large sporting goods store carry 20 and 30 lb test with the heaviest sinker they have being 1 oz?  If you only carry fresh water tackle when would need 20-30 lb test?

I use line weights up to 60lbs, and almost never use a sinker.  With the newer braided lines at very small diameter most of the rules have gone out the window even for folks that use sinkers.


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