# Self Sufficiency/Living off the Land or Off the Grid > Fishing >  Fish cleaning tips?

## crimescene450

So today i finally learnedhow to clean a fish.  I know most of you guys are probably like, "You JUST learned??!"

yeah its kinda funny, im 18 and ive been fishing all my life, but never bothered learning. until today.


anyhow.  I kept worrying i was gonna cut my fingers off because the fish were so slippery.  Does anyone have any tricks, or tips on how to grip them better? or is it just something you learn?  

I gotta work on filleting, which i didnt do as good with.   i might just gut them and cook them without filleting in the future.  might be easier.

feels so cool to finally be at least somewhat self sufficient with the fish now though.

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## LowKey

If I'm filleting lake fish at home I get a spring clamp and clamp the tail to an old oak board I keep for this. Surf fishing, the fish are much bigger and easier to hold onto. That's usually a tailgate operation on the beach for blues and fluke. Stripers usually come home whole (minus guts and gills) and get filleted on the kitchen countertop. Unless the family objects, then it's the tailgate in the backyard.

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## Justin Case

or, you can wrap a dry washcloth around the tail to hold.

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## flandersander

What kind of fish are you talking about here?

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## Justin Case

slippery ones  :Innocent:   :Smile:

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## crimescene450

> What kind of fish are you talking about here?



well today it was 1 bluegil, 1 perch, and 3 smallmouth bass

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## Alaskan Survivalist

> im 18 and ive been fishing all my life, but never bothered learning. until today.


How does that happen?

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## crashdive123

> yeah its kinda funny, im 18 and ive been fishing all my life, but never bothered learning. until today.


So were you eating them whole?

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## Stargazer

I'm thinking he did the cactching and some one else did the cleaning for him.

I like to hold on to the tail with a dry cloth.

Good for you learning how to clean what you catch.Its like everything else you do.The more you do it the better you will get at it.

A sharp knife and not being afraid to get sewn up if you slip go a long way to cleaning a fish.

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## crimescene450

> How does that happen?






> So were you eating them whole?




My dad cleans them, or we catch and release. depending on the size.

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## Justin Case

well I can tell you this, You haven't lived untill you Have caught, Cleaned and fried a fish you had just caught in a cast iron skillet over a campire for Breakfast  :Smile:

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## Sourdough

> well today it was 1 bluegil, 1 perch, and 3 smallmouth bass



We call that BAIT. :Smash:  :Smash:  :Winkiss:

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## rwc1969

I like to filet aLL MY fish unless I'm gonna grill em or sometimes bake em. 

#1 rule for me is an ultra sharp, super flexible filet knife sized appropriately for the size of fish. The Rapala filet knife is pretty much perfect IMO. It also has a nice pommel for dispatching the fish prior to cleaning. I have a big 9 or so inch one for salmon and such and another 6 or so inch one for panfish, etc. If I get 50 or so fish I sometimes sharpen two or three times during a cleaning. It makes life so much easier, safer and less meat is wasted.

I hate wearing gloves, but if you use brown jerseys they absorb the slime and make it real easy to hold on. They will be 5 pound snotballs when you're done though. But, what I do is to get things started I use my fingers and hold the fish in the eye sockets and gill area to get a grip. Once I make my first cut I really don't need a good grip.

I start at the head, work toward the tail and leave the fillet slightly attached to the body so when I skin it the body holds the filet in place. I leave a thin layer of flesh on the skin and remove the brown streak as well down the lateral line. These are concentrated toxins and should be gotten rid of. It's an unfortunate waste of good meat, but I do believe it's required in today's agricultural/ industrial age. Even pristine waters have natural toxins that build up in fish, especially fish eating or bottom eating fishes. I also leave the ribs and such in place and remove them after the filet is skinned. It's generally much quicker that way than trying to filet the ribs off while it's still attached to the fish.

Another thing I did with some success was to soak the fish in water with a small amount of vinegar. The vinegar strips off a lot of slime. This worked "OK" for crappies in the winter, but it's probably not the best method. And no, the fish weren't pickeled.

If by chance the fish have been out of water and are dry then don't re-soak them as it will just re-activate the slime.

pike are our most slimy fish and I really don't think you can get around it. I just plow on through and do my best to ignore it. I have wiped them off with a big towel, but the wife wasn't too happy about that. Especially when she found it in the hamper a week later. LOL! Jusyt kidding! I wouldn't do that.  :Smile:  Walleyes are the least slimy and are a pure joy to clean....and eat.

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## Justin Case

good post rwc,,  rep sent  :Smile:

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## crashdive123

> We call that BAIT.


I thought that's what you called tourists.

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## crimescene450

> I like to filet aLL MY fish unless I'm gonna grill em or sometimes bake em.


when you bake them, you still have to remove the guts right? sorryif thats a stupid question lol.

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## Rick

> I leave a thin layer of flesh on the skin and remove the brown streak as  well down the lateral line. These are concentrated toxins and should be  gotten rid of.


The lateral line is a sense organ in fish. The brown streak is part of it. 

Toxins will vary depending on the type of toxin but generally are concentrated in the liver, intestines, head, and roe of the fish. Otherwise, you'll find it throughout the muscles. 

If you have a source indicating toxins are concentrated in the lateral line I'd be interested in seeing because I've never read that.

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## Sourdough

> when you bake them, you still have to remove the guts right? sorryif thats a stupid question lol.



Yes and/or No.......If you just caught them you can bake them with guts in, or even just shove a green stick down there throat and roast them guts and all over the fire. When cooked peel off the skin, eat the meat, and throw into the fire the guts/stick/skeleton/skin.

However most/some fish have worms, and if not eaten quickly, need to be gutted.

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## Alaskan Survivalist

> My dad cleans them, or we catch and release. depending on the size.


Seems everything is being learned backwards these days. There are single gloves sold for fileting fish. They work give a good grip and also protect you from cutting yourself to some degree ( I never put that aspect to the test). My wife uses the glove but I have found ways to hold fish and use a simple method of cleaning. Some fish are cleaned different because they are built different but the most common would be like a Salmon so I will tell you how I filet them. I cut of head just behind gills, this also cuts the connection to guts so my next cut slices from the crap hole forward and scoop the guts out. Then from the front of fish make a cut straight back along the side of backbone all the way through to where the meat thins near tail. Repeat on other side of spine. Easiest grip is in front of fish with fingers in fish and thumb outside. Now you have two thick slabs of meat. Lay on the shin and I remove the belly strips since there is not much meat there and they really hold a hook well (good bait) all that is left to dois peel and shave off rib bones. I leave the skin on for holding it together during cooking and smoking and most of the fat is between skin and meat. The spine I chop up for chum and head, tail and belly strips are for Halibut and the guts go in the garden. Warning gutts in the garden may attrack bears. It only takes me a minute or two but my wife can have it done with her Ulu in half the time.

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## Alaskan Survivalist

BTW, I'm of the school of if you ain't going to eat it leave it alone! Applies to all wildlife. Getting your jollies is no excuse to sink a hook into fish, pull it up from depths and in many cases throwing it half dead back into the water to weak to fight off preditors or worse. Sorry to offend people but the practice of catch and release offends me on so many levels this comment barely scratches the surface of my outrage. Shooting for antlers and bragging rights fall into this category also. Spending 50 times the money to depleat natural resources than go to the grocery store. There it is. I hold back and delete many comments I write, not this time.

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## Justin Case

> BTW, I'm of the school of if you ain't going to eat it leave it alone! Applies to all wildlife. Getting your jollies is no excuse to sink a hook into fish, pull it up from depths and in many cases throwing it half dead back into the water to weak to fight off preditors or worse. Sorry to offend people but the practice of catch and release offends me on so many levels this comment barely scratches the surface of my outrage. Shooting for antlers and bragging rights fall into this category also. Spending 50 times the money to depleat natural resources than go to the grocery store. There it is. I hold back and delete many comments I write, not this time.


I agree with AS, But am not sure about the Fish thing, only because lots of places have size limits, they must feel the fish will live ? don't get me wrong, you are right, trophy hunting is so wrong in my book, Killing is just plain cruel, the ONLY time I think is acceptable is if you are hungry and have no other options. I say Live and let live, animals have just as much right to be on this planet as us .

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## Alaskan Survivalist

Subsistence users are given priority over commercial or sport interests in Alaska and is matter of contention here. It's not hard to judge which side of the issue I am on.

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## Rick

Well....ya'll haven't seen what no hunting does to deer populations have you? Starving, sick deer because the herd wasn't thinned is a pretty pathetic sight. I'm not for trophy hunting but if you hunt to put meat in the freezer, even if you can buy it at the store, is entirely up to you and has become an integral component in the natural cycle of some animals.

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## Alaskan Survivalist

I also remember it taking hours for Caribou herds to cross the highway in areas the don't even inhabit anymore. The issue gets complex when it gets into management but the human element needs to be restrained, ask the buffalo, but anybody that knows anything knows there is not enough wildlife to sustain our population. So where do you draw the line? That line is drawn for me if you don't have any intention of eating it unless it presents some kind of threat to you or your property. The issue has become complicated to include where you reside, historical use and ethnic heritage to be given subsistence priority. The old way was better that simply was subsitence rights were given to lower income people no matter what there heritage or residence address. They are ones that need to hunt and fish the most. The politicians certainly have dollars signs in their eyes these days knowing how much money is generated by sporting goods stores, tourism, etc. A single Salmon can generate thousands of dollars of revenue. The other side of the coin are people that want only to live as they always have as removed from the world as they can. I am in the minority even in Alaska and the old ways are disapearing with the invading population. This is how the Indians must have felt long ago.

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## crimescene450

> I also remember it taking hours for Caribou herds to cross the highway in areas the don't even inhabit anymore. The issue gets complex when it gets into management but the human element needs to be restrained, ask the buffalo, but anybody that knows anything knows there is not enough wildlife to sustain our population. So where do you draw the line? That line is drawn for me if you don't have any intention of eating it unless it presents some kind of threat to you or your property. The issue has become complicated to include where you reside, historical use and ethnic heritage to be given subsistence priority. The old way was better that simply was subsitence rights were given to lower income people no matter what there heritage or residence address. They are ones that need to hunt and fish the most. The politicians certainly have dollars signs in their eyes these days knowing how much money is generated by sporting goods stores, tourism, etc. A single Salmon can generate thousands of dollars of revenue. The other side of the coin are people that want only to live as they always have as removed from the world as they can. I am in the minority even in Alaska and the old ways are disapearing with the invading population. This is how the Indians must have felt long ago.



Oh believe me, im completely with you on that.
i think part of the reason i never learned how to clean  fish until now, was that i didnt like killing them.  I sometimes feel bad for killing worms even, but i get over that pretty quick.

i think they way things are now is kinda ****ed up.  our population is beyond carrying capacity, that we're forced to rely on things like farming. which has a higher yield, but is more harmful to the planet

i guess you could say im an environmentalist. .. maybe naturalist is a better word

as far as hunting things like deer.  If you truly hunt for substinence, then you will obviously make sure you hunt sustainably.  My general idea is, if you rely on a species to survive, it is your duty to make sure they survive as well.


as far as catch and release. i didnt know they die even if you hook them in the lip?  If i ever think theyre gonna die for some reason, i always take them and make use.

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## Alaskan Survivalist

Crimescene, Death is not certain because fish were hooked. The fight takes a lot out of them and the spashing around draws other preditors and then they are realeased in a weakened state making them vulnerable. Bottom fish have organs that explode when brought up so most of them die. They have done studies on spawning salmon and catch and release results in more death but I forget the percentages. Many creatures with damaged mouths starve. I have seen animals that starved because they were shot in the mouth yet you will hear some hunters still claim that a head shot is either a clean miss or the animal drops. The idea of killing does not bother me because I feel the best thing for any creature is to be killed by me, suddenly, with as little damage to the meat as possible. Fish taste better that have not been fought hard. Winch em in and be done with it, Bleed them immediately. Best way to kill them, cool them down and blood is the first to spoil. Bleeding works best while thier heart is still pumping. Killing food is no big deal, it is part of life, get over it. All I am saying is don't play with your food.

PS I know somebody is going to say beating them in the head to kill fish. Wrong. If you hit a fish in the head the idea is to stun them for handling and prevent them from damaging and bruising their meat doing so. Proper handling of fish really affects flavor. I've had many people tell me they don't like fish but never after they have had some of mine.

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## justin_baker

> Crimescene, Death is not certain because fish were hooked. The fight takes a lot out of them and the spashing around draws other preditors and then they are realeased in a weakened state making them vulnerable. Bottom fish have organs that explode when brought up so most of them die. They have done studies on spawning salmon and catch and release results in more death but I forget the percentages. Many creatures with damaged mouths starve. I have seen animals that starved because they were shot in the mouth yet you will hear some hunters still claim that a head shot is either a clean miss or the animal drops. The idea of killing does not bother me because I feel the best thing for any creature is to be killed by me, suddenly, with as little damage to the meat as possible. Fish taste better that have not been fought hard. Winch em in and be done with it, Bleed them immediately. Best way to kill them, cool them down and blood is the first to spoil. Bleeding works best while thier heart is still pumping. Killing food is no big deal, it is part of life, get over it. All I am saying is don't play with your food.


Well, if he is catching bluegills and small mouth bass, were talking ponds and small lakes, not huge rivers or the ocean, so he is not going to be popping any organs. And in my experience, lots of these little ponds dont have very big fish. Its not like a 2 pound salmon is going to get gobbled up by a 10 ponder. These little bluegill and bass, they dont put up a fight. You just pull them in. They dont have a chance to fight back and so dont have much of a chance to get super tired out.

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## Alaskan Survivalist

> Well, if he is catching bluegills and small mouth bass, were talking ponds and small lakes, not huge rivers or the ocean, so he is not going to be popping any organs. And in my experience, lots of these little ponds dont have very big fish. Its not like a 2 pound salmon is going to get gobbled up by a 10 ponder. These little bluegill and bass, they dont put up a fight. You just pull them in. They dont have a chance to fight back and so dont have much of a chance to get super tired out.


As Crimescene was receptive to ethics I also included much useful information on proper fish care. I would not teach a gang banger to shoot and this is the last post of mine you will see that mentions fish.

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## Rick

AS - I'm curious about your comment that blood is the first to spoil. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on that. Spoilage, to my way of thinking, occurs because of bacteria or some other contaminant, which would more often be found in the gut than in the blood.

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## Camp10

> Well, if he is catching bluegills and small mouth bass, were talking ponds and small lakes, not huge rivers or the ocean, so he is not going to be popping any organs. And in my experience, lots of these little ponds dont have very big fish. Its not like a 2 pound salmon is going to get gobbled up by a 10 ponder. These little bluegill and bass, they dont put up a fight. You just pull them in. They dont have a chance to fight back and so dont have much of a chance to get super tired out.


I agree.  Google catch and release mortality rates and you will get all kinds of contradicting info.  It seems if you filter through it though, fresh water mortality is between 6 and 11% and salt water is between 20 and 28%.  Many of the sites say the high percentage is because the fish was not properly released.  If you follow some basics, like keep the fish in water as much as possible.  Cut the hook if it is hooked deep or in a vital area, and dont fight the fish for to long then the mortality rate will be much higher.

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## Camp10

> AS - I'm curious about your comment that blood is the first to spoil. I'd be interested in hearing your thoughts on that. Spoilage, to my way of thinking, occurs because of bacteria or some other contaminant, which would more often be found in the gut than in the blood.


The first one mentions the blood spoiling fast.  Both offer good information on how to handle your catch.

http://auburnjournal.com/detail/127676.html

http://www.fao.org/wairdocs/tan/x5892e/x5892e01.htm

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## justin_baker

Ray Mears does a cool video on filleting the fish with the skin still on.
Skip to 3:08
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QQc2kC5CpOo

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## Rick

I can certainly understand that bleeding a fish might improve the taste because of chemicals in the blood at the time of capture; adrenaline, etc. It might even improve the appearance by not letting blood coagulate within the meat of the fish. But I'm hard pressed to understand the spoilage issue. 

There should be no practical difference between catching a fish and catching a deer. Your precautions with the deer are related to gutting and avoiding fecal contamination. I would think the same would be true with fish. Bleeding would be for purely aesthetic purposes and taste. 

There is obviously some bacteria in any animal's blood so spoilage could occur but I'd think that would be a more long term issue and easily controlled by cooling. 

I'm not trying to be a hard act. I've just never ran into this before and I can't find any reliable information other than someone expressing their opinion on the subject. I've never done any ocean fishing either and that may be much different than fresh water fishing. I've taken a lot of fish in my day, some into the 20 pound range, and I've never bled a fish and I've never had one spoil. I am careful how I clean them and ice them as soon as possible.   

So please don't think I'm challenging or disputing. I'm not. I'm trying to understand and tossing out some thoughts just for talking points. I'm a little like YCC in that I like to know the why's, not just the how's. It okay to tell me the blood will cause spoilage but tell my why it causes it and I'll be a lot happier.

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## Justin Case

Not sure if this is what you are after or not, 




> Contaminants accumulate in the skin and fatty tissues of fish. The older and larger the fish, thehigher the level of contaminant. You can decrease your intake of contaminants by proper fish cleaning; remove/discard belly meat, dorsal meat tissue and "zipper" the flesh along the lateral line on larger species. Some methods of cooking also lend to reduction of contaminants.


http://ohioseagrant.osu.edu/discuss/...hp?topic=124.0

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## Batch

I don't eat the lateral line on any fish. It will ruin an other wise great tasting fish. Doesn't matter to me if it is raw, made into civiche, smoked, fried, grilled or baked. The lateral line ruins the flavor of the fish!

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## rwc1969

> when you bake them, you still have to remove the guts right? sorryif thats a stupid question lol.


I do, and the head too. LOL! And when fileting fish I don't worry too much about spilling the gut contents as I do with deer and such. It doesn't seem to be a problem if they are cleaned quickly. And the way I filet they usually don't even get cut. I just lightly rinse all my filets once processed. 

Also you can freeze them in ziplocs with a good amount of water and airspace to cover and they will last indefinitely with zero freezer burn. They also will thaw real slow in a pan of water which is what you want to do when unthawing fish. The meat will not degrade from thawing as much.

I don't like scaling because the scales get everywhere, but if I'm baking or grilling a fish it's nice to have the skin on to help seal in the juices...uh, and toxins too I guess.

I like grilling northern pike with the skin on. They have a mudvein of sorts that runs along the inside along the spine. It's enclosed by a thin membrane. I tear it open and flush and scrape the dark matter out. I really have no idea what it is, if it imparts a bad flavor, is loaded with toxins or what. I just don't like it and it appears to be something I'd want to get rid of before eating it. It looks like a long bloodclot. I'm sure other fish have something similar. I just look a new fish over and if something looks weird I get rid of it.

That's my anecdotal, scientifically unfounded story and I'm stickin to it.  :Innocent: 

I saw AS's post about bleeding fish and although I haven't done it I will say if a fish ever tasted bad it's because it was either too old, sick, spoiled, or had bloody veins in the flesh when cooked.

I've noticed some fish I clean, all freshwater btw,  have blood in their veins and others don't. It's not species specific, but I believe it has more to do with the way or amount of time it took them to die, or not die. But, sometimes they do taste fishy or muddy because of it. 

I know the same is true for deer and squirrel, pheasant, goose, pigs, etc. But my deer usually don't have much blood left in em by the time I find em.

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## rwc1969

> The lateral line is a sense organ in fish. The brown streak is part of it. 
> 
> Toxins will vary depending on the type of toxin but generally are concentrated in the liver, intestines, head, and roe of the fish. Otherwise, you'll find it throughout the muscles. 
> 
> If you have a source indicating toxins are concentrated in the lateral line I'd be interested in seeing because I've never read that.


It's not actually the lateral line, but the layer of flesh just under the skin. It is more concentrated at the lateral line though, but covers the entire body of the fish. If you filet the fish's skin off and leave no flesh you will see the flesh is brown. That's what I get rid of and every good fish prep thingee I've read or seen says to ditch it. I do believe the toxins that get stored there are fairly specific, but it's been a while since I referenced exactly what they are.

According to our DNR mercury is found occuring naturally in our waters in levels high enough to concentrate in fish and be problematic for humans. It has something to do with all the glacial activity we've had. They also state that it is stored throughout the flesh and can not be removed by process of cleaning.  I don't know if that's true and the DNR no longer publishes it in the maual. For quite a few years we, as in Michigan, actually had a fish consumption advisory manual that delt specifically with toxins in fish according to watershed, size, persons eating, etc. I think they did away with it when they made a poor attempt at drawing in tourism. That way they didn't need a disclaimer at the bottom of all their ads. Anyhoo, the book explained best practices for cleaning to prevent the most toxins. Since many toxins are absorbed thru the skin and a fishes skin is in contact with toxic water 100% of the time it seems plausible that the area next to skin would have the highest concentration of toxins as opposed to flesh that isn't brown. I do notice fish from cleaner waters and younger fish have less brown and taste better.

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## Batch

RWC, studies have come out recently that state you would have to consume high risk fish for centuries to be at risk of mercury problems from eating fish flesh. The mercury is mostly stored in the organs.

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## rwc1969

Speakign  of anactodatl evidence. I swa a fishing show the other day where they was catchin fish down deep and the guy blew in their mouth. Said it re-inflated the swim bladder and reduced fish mortality big time. Surprisingly every fish he blew swam right off upright and apparently ok. The ones that didn't get blown went belly up in spirals. So, if you want to reduce deep water fish mortality....pucker up.

When I'm icefishing for crappies mainly they come up from 30+ fow and usually are all messed up because of it. I think they get the benz. Lotsa times those are the fish with the bloody veins. If I bring up slower it seems to help with the bloody veins, but I rarely catch and release sdo it don't matter too much on them living or dying.

What surprises me is how a fish that's been frozen solid for hours comes back to life when thawed. Die already will ya?

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## rwc1969

> RWC, studies have come out recently that state you would have to consume high risk fish for centuries to be at risk of mercury problems from eating fish flesh. The mercury is mostly stored in the organs.


Gotcha, I honestly don't recall which toxin the DNR was talking about with the brown flesh and it has been 5 or so years since they had that manual I believe. :Blushing: 


I do leave the skin and belly meat on certain fish depending on the fish and how I'm gonna cook it. Salmon is one eventhough they are full of toxins because they feed on other fish big time. The rules I follow are genral and I don't always follow them 100%. Some fish actually have a good amount of belly meat, but it's rare I think.

That was a good point about removing the belly meat whomever posted it.

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## DickensCPA

My Dad taught me as a wee lad and this is the way I'm in the process of teaching my son. He's only 8 so I can't just let him wield my filet knife.

If I catch a big bait of fish that's going to the freezer I do this. I keep a VERY sharp filet knife and I take the point straight thru the brain or as close as I can get. I have a slab of 2X10 and I take a 16p nail and secure thru the head to the board. Take my filet knife as close to the gills as possible and go straight down to the spine and turn my knife toward the tail. I leave a piece of skin and don't cut it free from the tail just yet. Flop that slab back into place and turn the fish over. This time I separate the slab from the carcass. Then flip over and separate the slab on the other side.

This should give you two slabs. Take your filet knife and carefully slice the meat away from the outer skin. I then take my knife and curve it just under the rib cage that's in your slab. Should leave you with two good slabs.

I usually clean quite a few at a time and I keep a bowl of water to put each fresh slab in. I clean and rinse my slabs and put them in freezer bags and fill them with fresh clean water and then freeze. Keeps air and freezer burn a non issue.

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## LowKey

When I'm fishing for bluefish, and catch one, the first thing I do is konk it so it doesn't bite my fingers off then bleed it immediately. That is one fish that tastes horrible metallic if you don't bleed out the flesh with its heart still going. 

I used to gut then fillet blues and lake fish. Now I just fillet. It's easier with the head attached and you don't have ribs flapping in the breeze.

Striper on the other hand, by law has to come off the beach with its head still attached. Sometimes the walk is long down the sandbar so cutting the gills and guts out lightens the load by 5 or so pounds. Makes em a little tougher to fillet though.

As for survival, the trick is to keep them in the water. Don't drag a striper up onto the sand until you know for sure it is legal. Don't haul it out and get your picture taken with it if you aren't going to eat it. Get your feet wet, keep it upright and get the hook out quick. If the hook is in the gorge, cut the line and leave it. BTW, don't use Galvanized hooks. Regular steel rusts away eventually.

The other thing is to use circle hooks. You may lose a few fish but the hooks are designed to come back up out of the gorge and catch the lip, in theory. The catching the lip part is a little iffy. I use them when I'm specifically looking for striper because of the size limitations.

I also decide what I'm fishing for when going for tackle. For blues I use a huge hook, 8/0xx or bigger, and a 50lbtest steel leader. If you don't know blues, think really sharp teeth and snap at anything that looks like food. No self-respecting striper would touch such an obvious tackle.  Stripers are shy fish and will mouth the bait before taking it away. A much smaller hook, 6/0x or so circle hook and a monofilament leader will usually fool them. Of course, a blue taking that hook will have chewed through the mono before you even get to your rod.

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## Aurelius95

First of all, I applaud the original post(er) back on page 1.  If you don't know how to do something, ask.  When I got into trout fishing a few years back, I had never cleaned a trout.  I looked it up on Youtube, and there were plenty of examples.  By the way, cleaning a trout is EASY!  I even leave the heads on.  

A very easy way to cook a trout after it's cleaned is to run a stick through the eye to tail, put some salt pepper in the ribcage, and then angle the stick into the ground, near the open fire, so your trout is sticking up at an angle.  Give it 10-15 minutes, peel back the skin, and enjoy.

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## LowKey

Why do people always have to put "Enjoy" at the end of a recipe?
Almost sounds like an order.
<where is that pet peeve thread?>

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## crashdive123

Would you prefer Bon Appetit?

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