cleaning and keeping fish

[BeenPerchin315]

theres  only a  min  size on  bluegills in a  few  lakes  .....  once we  have  stunted  fish and  over populated waters  the insanity will end

x2

[62&done]

We're getting a little off subject here but here goes anyway.  I'm kindof on the fence as to a size limit on gills' as I'm really not sure whether it will make a difference or not. I'll give it a couple years before jumping on the soap box. I do however fish a lake with a 15 fish limit. It has been that way for quite some time, (not really sure how long) and we regularly catch some great bluegills. In fact, there is absolutely no reason to keep one under 9" so if that's the results we get from good management, then I'm not complaining. If I were fishing another water, I don't believe I would keep one under 8". Just to small.  It's kind of like volunteering to pass a small buck right ?
    To each his own, but that's just my 2 cents

[trapper2000]

ib know i will get alot more  fish  out of  50 71/2 inch gills then you will 15 8 inchers ....thats why i fish for panfish  for  dinner  not bragging rights

[Iceassin]

ib know i will get alot more  fish  out of  50 71/2 inch gills then you will 15 8 inchers ....thats why i fish for panfish  for  dinner  not bragging rights

Perhaps. But it's a lot more fun for me seeing a 9"+ Gill coming out of the hole than a 7" or less. Same with a 40" Pike or a 30" Walleye. I can eat AND brag. 

[trapper2000]

if  you'd  eat a  30 inch walleye  over  a  good  blue gill dinner  we can't be  friends

[DR.SPECKLER]

Lol.

[Iceassin]

if  you'd  eat a  30 inch walleye  over  a  good  blue gill dinner  we can't be  friends

We can. In order of favorite...Pike (highly underrated), Bluegill, Walleye.

[62&done]

I guess it's just a common sense thing. I have no need to brag nor fill the freezer. when I can fish every day I've no need to clean 50 fish.  when I know there are better fish in the pond why keep one that will be bigger next year when I am limited to 15   And you can decide whether it's bragging or nonsense by the DEC but I'm pretty sure that 15 / day limit is producing some nice fish

[filetandrelease]

We can. In order of favorite...Pike (highly underrated), Bluegill, Walleye.
[/quote that must be a Michigan thing 😉

[DR.SPECKLER]

Must be.my fave is pike followed by perch then gill/speck.

[trapper2000]

i like eating  fish  and  family fish fries are a tradition i  don't want to give that up for a  8 inch blue  gill ........not to mention kids  love  bringing fish home and they are the  future  .....you had fun  let them have  theirs..... go chase them  30 inch walleyes  and  40 inch  pike  as  for  me  bobbers bluegills and beer    along with grand  kids  and  a   fish fry .......i can't help  but think  ,people  forgot what  fishing  was really all about.....

[62&done]

I think I could enjoy pike if I could get my knife to sort out the bones   Have tried a few times and just ended up with scraps after killing a nice fish    I just let them go now

[Iceassin]

I think I could enjoy pike if I could get my knife to sort out the bones   Have tried a few times and just ended up with scraps after killing a nice fish    I just let them go now

 

I had the same problem until I found the "5 Filet Method". Several YouTube videos on it. Easy to do and not near the waste. Still struggling with cutting around the Y-bones but getting better.

[trapper2000]

well maybe if you practise  more on  a bucket of  blue  gills  ya   could  figure it out.............just saying

[Iceassin]

well maybe if you practise  more on  a bucket of  blue  gills  ya   could  figure it out.............just saying

That's "practice"...just saying. 

[trapper2000]

you  guys are   "BIG  PIKE" fisherman and  you  can't  fillet  a  pike  with out  cutting it into 5 pieces  ...... your  right you two couldn't  clean a  bucket of  gills  take ya a week

[Raquettedacker]

you  guys are   "BIG  PIKE" fisherman and  you  can't  fillet  a  pike  with out  cutting it into 5 pieces  ...... your  right you two couldn't  clean a  bucket of  gills  take ya a week

   

[trapper2000]

You spell the verb form, practise, with an S. However, if you are referring to the the doctor's business, you can use the noun form, practice with a C. depending on your  dialect  of  English

[trapper2000]

dacker i thought i would  get  everyone  stirred  up over the  bucket of fish guts on the  ice  ...nope  but take a  71/2 inch bluegill  home   and  i lite them  up !!!!!   

[Iceman1899]

Oh boy.  Can already tell it’s gonna be a good year here on iceshanty lmao. To the original topic if it was me personally I’d clean them on the tailgate of my truck put the fillets in a gallon ziplock bag then into a cooler with ice till I get home. Put the remains in a plastic bag of some sort then next time ya get gas toss em in the garbage by the pump. They change the bags couple times a day they can afford to take some stinky fish guts every now and again

[WARRIOR_ON_ICE]

When the garden dirt is thawed enough when I get back home from a weekend of fishing, I dig a trench a few inches deep and bury the guts then cover them. If the gfround is frozen solid to the point that I can't get a shovel into it, I just throw the guts away.

As with the MI guys that replied, I too know that pike are very underrrated by a lot of people. The ideal size for eating is the 25-30 inch range. The bigger ones are still OK eating but can have a stronger taste. The fillets from those 25-30 inch pike remind me of cod. I don't try to make completely boneless fillets, as I have not learned how to get the Y bones out. After you cook the fillet, there is a visible seem in the meat and if you separate it there, all of the Y bones are exposed in a straight line and are easily pulled out. I won't rate pike over good quality panfish, but mopst of the pounds of fish that I eat happen to be pike.

[BeenPerchin315]

dacker i thought i would  get  everyone  stirred  up over the  bucket of fish guts on the  ice  ...nope  but take a  71/2 inch bluegill  home   and  i lite them  up !!!!!   

Your doing great.

[trapper2000]

Oh boy.  Can already tell it’s gonna be a good year here on iceshanty lmao. To the original topic if it was me personally I’d clean them on the tailgate of my truck put the fillets in a gallon ziplock bag then into a cooler with ice till I get home. Put the remains in a plastic bag of some sort then next time ya get gas toss em in the garbage by the pump. They change the bags couple times a day they can afford to take some stinky fish guts every now and again

if the seagulls and raccoons are full i find the trash cans in the parking lot at wal mart work great

you guys  discuse  filleting them pike i'm going  fishing then planning  a fish fry tonight 

[Iceassin]

if the seagulls and raccoons are full i find the trash cans in the parking lot at wal mart work great

you guys  discuse  filleting them pike i'm going  fishing then planning  a fish fry tonight 

Quick, funny story...

Me and my buddies had just finished Walleye fishing on Erie. It was late and the cleaning station was closed plus everyone forgot their fish cleaning "stuff", and we're 3 hours from home  . So off to Walmart (in a sketchy part of town) to buy knives, bags and everything else we forgot. So there we are, under a lamp post in the Walmart parking lot cleaning fish on the tailgate of the truck. You wouldn't believe how many people stopped and asked if we'd sell them some fish. So in keeping with the topic, we did put the remains in the trash cans there.

Now, back to "practicing" cleaning those Pike. 

[Raquettedacker]

Oh boy.  Can already tell it’s gonna be a good year here on iceshanty lmao. To the original topic if it was me personally I’d clean them on the tailgate of my truck put the fillets in a gallon ziplock bag then into a cooler with ice till I get home. Put the remains in a plastic bag of some sort then next time ya get gas toss em in the garbage by the pump. They change the bags couple times a day they can afford to take some stinky fish guts every now and again

  Been waiting for someone to say that..

[WARRIOR_ON_ICE]

To reign this topic in some, the OP was asking about cleaning fish in a motel room, so to repeat myself, this is absolutely fine and should not bring any attention to your activities as long as you don't dispose of the fish waste in their garbage cans.

[trapper2000]

to  be honest  ...i  don't think you should  be  cleaning fish in a  motel room i can't  picture  any motel owner (unless its a  dirt hole) not minding .....that  being said gut gill   on ice  then  pack the  cooler  with  ice ......this really isn't rocket  science

 not  lets  get  back  to  making  fishing  bait out of play doh  and   ice  jigs  out of  pop tops .....oh wait that was in  my survivalist  thread sorry

[hangemhigh]

Yeah when I clean (fillet) fish in the kitchen I usually find scales for weeks ....or at least my wife does .....

[WARRIOR_ON_ICE]

to  be honest  ...i  don't think you should  be  cleaning fish in a  motel room i can't  picture  any motel owner (unless its a  dirt hole) not minding .....that  being said gut gill   on ice  then  pack the  cooler  with  ice ......this really isn't rocket  science

 not  lets  get  back  to  making  fishing  bait out of play doh  and   ice  jigs  out of  pop tops .....oh wait that was in  my survivalist  thread sorry

Read my earlier post about the measures I take to leave no trace of fish waste. Since I have done this dozens of times now and nothing was ever said, the motel does not even know that I did this

[Iceassin]

Yeah when I clean (fillet) fish in the kitchen I usually find scales for weeks ....or at least my wife does .....

Lol. Same here. But either I've gotten better at cleaning up or she just got used to it. 

Sidenote: When I did scale fish ( mostly pannies) I would put a few inches of water in the sink and scale them underwater. Kept them from flying all over the place.