Go On, Beat The Drum

I know, I know, there's not been many sporting posts on the this fascinating mind blog lately and that's because I've been babysitting. So here's a fishing infovideo to set the record straight.

When my son, the Cadet (potential) saw it,  he said, "You look younger, Guv'nor." Such, readers, is the magic of fishing.

Tight lines,

LSP

How To Fillet A Sunfish

OK, you've set your objective and met it - catch enough fish for a meal. So you've got those Blue Gills in a cooler and, well, what next? Descale and fillet, that's what's next and here's how.

Put your fish on a cutting board and stare at it with respect, the ferocious predator died that you might live. Meditation over, get a knife, a kitchen knife will do, and remove the scales; you don't want to eat them. 

Next step, use a fillet knife to cut around the head, gill and fin of the fish, then work the knife along the the back of the fish, following the bones of the ribcage as a guide. When you're clear of the ribcage you'll feel it; push the knife through the fish and cut through to the tail, being sure to keep as close to the bone as possible.

That done, work the knife over the ribcage, severing the flesh from the bone. Don't be pernickity, cut the fish flesh off the ribcage when it's obvious that you'll have no more flesh. Then cut out the fillet.

Look at that small Sunfish fillet but don't be dismayed, it'll puff up several times when it's deep fried, making for a great snack.

So that's how it's done, at least in LSPland. There are different ways to do this and you can go out and do them, good luck to you, but there's no rule. At the end of the day it's all about catching your own fish, like a Sovereign, then prepping them and having a meal.

Fish On,

LSP

Texas Floods, So You Fish

Texas is mostly underwater, which forces us to fish. I tried out the old chicken liver and night crawlers method today, all in the hope of getting a monster catfish.

That meant clambering over the bluffs looking down on lake Whitney, and dropping a Carolina rigged treble hook baited with liver onto a recently submerged limestone ledge. I'd seen two big Channel Cats grazing there, so my hopes were up.

OK, Not a Monster, But Still, A Fish.

I left the rod in its holder and waited for the liver to do its trick while I fished the topwater with lures. Sure enough, after about 10 minutes, down went the float, out played the line, and the rod bent with a vengeance. Big excitement, no doubt about it, and I dropped the one rod and scrambled for the other. Reel that fish in! And I did, or at least started to, then... nothing. Whatever it was dropped the bait. 

Fierce Little Thing

My guess is that a Gar hit the liver and ran with it but let go after discovering something was up, they do that. Nothing was biting after that, so I moved on to less adventurous water and was rewarded by a Catfish and a Sunfish.

Gratuitous Texan Sunset Over Lake Whitney

They hit worms on treble hooks in shallow water with the kind of zeal you'd expect from Bernie Sanders promoting the Communist Manifesto. Aggressive beasts, fish. And that, readers, is that, except that it isn't, because the challenge is still on for a big Cat.

Fish on,

LSP