# First day of Trout season haul!



## GentlemanJerk (Apr 17, 2019)

With the first day of trout season opening last weekend I was able to get out with my dad and we came back with a small haul of 5 rainbow trout.  We cleaned them up and I took them home to brine and then smoke with alder and hickory.  As a side experiment I took the heads, cleaned out the gills, salted them and let them sit for 20 minutes, and rinsed them.  They then went into a pot of boiling water to simmer for 20-30 minutes and bam! Fresh fish stock!


----------



## motocrash (Apr 17, 2019)

Nice! They look like stocked fish...all the same size.


----------



## crazymoon (Apr 17, 2019)

GJ, Nice smoked fish,our season opens soon but there will be too much ice to venture out !


----------



## HalfSmoked (Apr 17, 2019)

Nice catch.

Warren


----------



## chilerelleno (Apr 17, 2019)

I'm jealous.
Nothing quite like standing in a cold trout stream to soothe the soul.


----------



## GentlemanJerk (Apr 17, 2019)

motocrash said:


> Nice! They look like stocked fish...all the same size.



They are all stockies, most rainbows are.  The local fish hatcheries stock a handful of the small lakes and streams in the area before and after the opening day of trout season.  We started in a small lake and caught all of the above, then hit a few streams and didn't catch anything.  I hooked one small brook trout and the willy fish shook my spinner loose.


----------



## muskyjunky (Apr 17, 2019)

Nice job !


----------



## yankee2bbq (Apr 17, 2019)

Some nice rainbows!  Great job on this cook too!


----------



## Hawging It (Apr 17, 2019)

Sweet!!


----------



## Preacher Man (Apr 22, 2019)

This is happening as we speak!


----------



## chilerelleno (Apr 22, 2019)

Dang'it Girl!


----------



## Murray (Apr 22, 2019)

Good on you, taking kids fishing. If more people took kids fishing I’d bet the world would be a better place.


----------



## HalfSmoked (Apr 22, 2019)

Awesome catch life time memory there.

Warren


----------



## chilerelleno (Apr 22, 2019)

I keep admiring her fish and her smile is so infectious...  Making my Monday.

Danged fine Brookie.


----------



## Preacher Man (Apr 22, 2019)

Murray said:


> ...If more people took kids fishing I’d bet the world would be a better place.


Preach on!


----------



## Preacher Man (Apr 22, 2019)

chilerelleno said:


> I keep admiring her fish and her smile is so infectious...  Making my Monday.
> 
> Danged fine Brookie.


Seriously! She's caught a catfish bigger than that before, but this one was her biggest fish in Montana, and her first big fish in 3 or so years.

That smile was still on when she went to bed. Love that kid.

These we're actually rainbows. Freakin' huge rainbows...

My youngest wasn't having much luck on the end of her pole, but something tells me she didn't let it get her down:


----------



## Preacher Man (Apr 22, 2019)

Didn't have a scale in the boat, so had to wait til we got home.






4 lbs 2.5 oz


----------



## motocrash (Apr 23, 2019)

River Rats Rule! Pic is from my kayak,8 years ago.


----------



## Sma5k (Apr 30, 2019)

Oh! They look great!


----------



## Bearcarver (Apr 30, 2019)

GentlemanJerk said:


> They are all stockies, most rainbows are.  The local fish hatcheries stock a handful of the small lakes and streams in the area before and after the opening day of trout season.  We started in a small lake and caught all of the above, then hit a few streams and didn't catch anything.  I hooked one small brook trout and the willy fish shook my spinner loose.




Hey Neighbor!!
Nice Job on the Pennsy' "Bows".----Like.
You're bringing back memories---When I started PA Trout Fishing, the season opened at 5 AM, instead of 8 AM, and the daily limit was 8, instead of 5, but that was 65 years ago. I always got my feet wet, because I didn't get my first Hip Boots until I was 8 years old.  Dang, that water was cold!!!!

Bear


----------



## flatbroke (Apr 30, 2019)

GentlemanJerk said:


> With the first day of trout season opening last weekend I was able to get out with my dad and we came back with a small haul of 5 rainbow trout.  We cleaned them up and I took them home to brine and then smoke with alder and hickory.  As a side experiment I took the heads, cleaned out the gills, salted them and let them sit for 20 minutes, and rinsed them.  They then went into a pot of boiling water to simmer for 20-30 minutes and bam! Fresh fish stock!


 great job and congratulations on father son time


----------



## jcam222 (May 10, 2019)

How do you brine them, temp to smoke etc.? I plan on doing catfish this year in June when the go bonkers in the local reservoir. I can catch 5 pounders or so in my honey hole until my arms are so tired I cant move :)


----------



## Bearcarver (May 11, 2019)

jcam222 said:


> How do you brine them, temp to smoke etc.? I plan on doing catfish this year in June when the go bonkers in the local reservoir. I can catch 5 pounders or so in my honey hole until my arms are so tired I cant move :)




We used to catch catties like that at Conowingo, but the best eating ones are from10" to 16". (My favorite eating Fish!!)
Bigger ones get too oily.

Bear


----------



## GentlemanJerk (May 13, 2019)

jcam222 said:


> How do you brine them, temp to smoke etc.? I plan on doing catfish this year in June when the go bonkers in the local reservoir. I can catch 5 pounders or so in my honey hole until my arms are so tired I cant move :)



The brine I used was one I found on the Fish thread of SMF.  We gut them, cut the fins and head off, then split them down along the spine.  I then brined them in a Tupperware container for about a day giving them a shake every now and then.  I smoked them for about 3-4 hours using a mix of alder and hickory, then tossed them in my oven (my electric smoker won't go above 180F) at 190F till their internal temp hit 145F.  I left them to rest after they hit the IT and then pulled the bones out and vac-sealed them to be frozen for later.  

Some were eaten plain, some became part of an egg salad, and others became part of a really good smoked whitefish dip that my dad made.


----------

