lil bit paddling

[catfish]

well i didn,t get to do as good as joey overniting,fishing but did the dust off the paddle paddling today. got off that 4 letter word early today and got in about 5 or 6 miles. half of that was paddling up river current . went to our old camp site on what used to be our hunting club. man i sho do miss that place.
paddled down thru the swamp on old roads everything is green now. seen an otter,2 deer,2 owls and a big ole gator. he was enjoying the sun too. i had to stay next to the bank or cut thru the swamp today as much as possble the wind gust were bad today too. i can see how the wind and white caps would as joey mentioned on his outing. all in all had a great paddle and a good time.

 

[oldsparkey]

Catfish....
Sounds like you had a short trip but a fun one.
It's a good thing that you managed to get the dust off the paddle since a dusty paddle is such a disgraceful item to have.
This is the prettiest time of the year for me , the Spring green foliage is so beautiful to see and new life is springing up all around , just a great time to be outside and enjoying all of it.

Chuck

 

[jdupre']

Catfish, good to hear you got in a little paddling. I love seeing animals from a paddlecraft. Otters in particular seem not to quite grasp what they are looking at. Curious but still wary.

Just about the perfect time of year for paddling for us southern boys. Not too hot yet and everthing is leafing out. Nice. I'll be paddling up the bayou in the morning in quest of a mess of catfish.

Joey

 

[catfish]

well i guess joey is eating some catfish about now? where i paddled yesterday i usely set limb lines on the roads where i paddled. when we had our camp there i could paddle right up to the camp in my canoe thru the woods from off the main river . yea like you guys said this probally is the best time to go paddling not to hot not to cold just right. with everything sprouted and the foilage spring isn,t far off. our river was about 10.5 ft right now you are limited on the sandbars or hill for a camp site right now.

 

[jdupre']

Yep, catfish, we had some pan seared catfish fillets for lunch. REAL hot skillet and fillets dusted with bearridge's seasoning mix. Delicious.

I've done a fair bit of catfishing in my life but almost always fished them on the bottom with the weight on the bottom and a hook on a short dropper a foot up the line. I had never heard of a sliding sinker rig......sometimes called a Carolina rig. I made up a couple and it has become my favorite. You can feel any movement as the fish picks up the bait.

Joey

 

[oldsparkey]

Got some time to kill and want to have a ton of fun ???????

Try catching the catfish on a fly rod. A hook , some worms and a bobber if you think you need one. Still fish it like you do with a regular rod and reel but look out , a small cat will feel like a monster when it is on the line.

I found a spot down here where the Fingerling Cats are holding up and those guys are a lot of fun on a fly rod and even better in the frying pan.
For the Yankees , a fingerling cat is about 8 to 10 inches long and dresses out between 5 to 7 inches and is darn delicious.

 

[Kayak Jack]

In Canada, I saw larger carp in clean water, on heir beds. I thought about the same thing - FUN catching them on light tackle! Eating them? - not so much fun. (But - better than Spam or Viennies! :wink: )

I told some fishermen about the carp, and how they would fight on light tackle. They weren't interested, with a sneer on their face. Oh well. Years later, a fellow told me about how he and his wife steam canned carp in tin cans. He swore the tasted as good as canned salmon. I don't care for canned salmon either. Canned fish all tastes like - well, fish. Try eating fish sometime without all the breading, seasonings, etc. Even, no salt. Just fish. It'll break you of liking the stuff pretty quick.

 

[catfish]

joey what i use on a reel is a split shot below an egg sinker. on my limb lines i tie the hook and about six or eight inches above it i tie a knot big enough so the egg sinker want slip thru it. i use on the limb lines anywhere from a 1 to 2 ounse mosly i use a 2 ouet stanless i rarely fish them on bottom. you can have them an inch or two below the water or 8 or 10 ft of water for me dept doesn,t matter. most people probally dont know this but a channel catfish will strike just like a bass. i have had them hit bush hooks so hard they knock the hook slap up into the tree limb.

i have never caught any on a flyrod like chuck is talking about but i have caught on a cane pole i can see where it would be fun. on the other hand what are we gona do with kjack? :?: :? dont he know you got to add salt ,season and meal, and yes gritzzzz on the side.no wonder his fish he is eating doesn,t taste good. :mrgreen:

 

[jdupre']

Catfish, fish and GRITS! Now you're talking my language. Pan seared fish with a healthy dose of seasoning and a side of grits topped with the pan drippings and all the "crispy bits" stuck on the bottom of the pan. Jarvis ain't gettin' none o' that!

I'm kinda getting back into fishing catfish. Been having some gall bladder problems and cutting down on the red meat and the extra greasy foods. Fresh fish cooked in a little olive oil is a pretty good alternative.

I'm going throw out a few jug lines while I'm fishing in the lake. Two to three feet of line and a baited hook is about all it takes to catch them among the cypress trees here. I don't think I'll mess with a trot line, though. That's too much like work. :shock: I'm notlooking to catch 200 lbs of fish. A few meals for me and the wife and give a few pounds to family members and I'll be satisfied.

I know what you mean about channel cats striking a bait. I caught about 15 lbs of catfish yesterday morning. The 3 channels I caught left NO DOUBT that they intended to kill that gob of worms on the hook. Fat buggers.......couldn't hardly get my hand around them.

Joey

 

[bcwetcoast]

In Canada, I saw larger carp in clean water, on heir beds. I thought about the same thing - FUN catching them on light tackle! Eating them? - not so much fun. (But - better than Spam or Viennies! :wink: )

I told some fishermen about the carp, and how they would fight on light tackle. They weren't interested, with a sneer on their face. Oh well. Years later, a fellow told me about how he and his wife steam canned carp in tin cans. He swore the tasted as good as canned salmon. I don't care for canned salmon either. Canned fish all tastes like - well, fish. Try eating fish sometime without all the breading, seasonings, etc. Even, no salt. Just fish. It'll break you of liking the stuff pretty quick.

You mean like sushi or shashimi?

 

[Kayak Jack]

No, cooked. My late wife was an avid fisher woman. She'd get upset when I'd enjoy smoked fish, but pass up her freshly caught fish.
Finally, I told her that her fish tasted terrible unless covered with salt, breadings, and seasonings. She didn't agree, so I steamed a couple of fish fillets, and served them to her. No salt, breading, or seasoning - just fish.
She took a bite, and said, "YUCK!" I said, "Bingo!"

 

[oldsparkey]

Joey....
I was thinking about you and I am sure that no self respecting Cajun would be caught without most of the ingredients listed in this recipe. :wink:
In place of frying the fish.........
****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
Dana and Nicole Sanchez submitted this recipe to the Florida Trail publication "Footprints Magazine " to fix while out hiking and backpacking on the Florida Trail.
2 fish fillets ( they suggested Snapper or Tilapia , I think any fish a person could catch would work just as good.)
1/2 small onion thinly sliced
1/2 Bell pepper thinly sliced
1/2 tomato chopped
1 Clove fresh garlic chopped
1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons white wine
Salt & Pepper to taste

Place fillets on heavy duty foil
Divide veggies , garlic , juice from the lemon , butter and white wine over fish. Salt & Pepper to taste. Wrap up the packets and place over the camp fire or grill for 20 minutes.
You will hear it steaming and bubbling. Take it off the fire and open carefully
Prep veggies before camping and place in zip lock nags. You can prep the entire packets also if overnight backpacking , just keep them cool.
*****************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************
I have done fish with just the butter , lemon juice and foil out camping , the rest of the veggies they suggest would add more to the meal.

Chuck.

 

[Kayak Jack]

Recipe sounds good.

AI wonder if they really carry that gear backpacking? They don't travel very far if they do.

 

[oldsparkey]

Recipe sounds good.

AI wonder if they really carry that gear backpacking? They don't travel very far if they do.

That's for 2 folks , divide it in half and it should not weigh that much for a solo overnight trip. Especially considering that you don't have to have dried food and all the water it requires to hydrate it , water is heavy. Plus it eliminates the pots and pans since everything is wrapped in foil and ready to cook.
Or better yet , catch the fish at camp , fillet it out and prepare it , cook and enjoy.
Just remember fishing is called fishing and is not called .... catching fish. :roll:
If you got skunked ( No Fish ) then all the veggies cooked would be pretty good , especially with a single serving of Spam.

 

[Kayak Jack]

And, in what waters can you catch tilapia?

 

[oldsparkey]

And, in what waters can you catch tilapia?

Freshwater. A lot of the locals like to use a bow and arrow to get them when they are in the shallows spawning. Right here by me at Lake Monroe over on the East shore by Government cut there is an island and they are around it all the time.
They are an invasive species that have taken root here and are flourishing. They are here for the taking and I understand that up north the folks actually pay money for them at the store. I'm sure the person who told me that was joking. :lol:

 

[Kayak Jack]

I expect some folks do pay - for the farm raised tilapia. Aren't they a carp relative?

 

[FlaMike]

Tilapia is in in the Cichlid family, the carp is one of the Cyprinidae family. No relation there.
Might be friends, though. . .

Mike S.
Spring Hill, FL