First fishing trip of the Spring season

Here in the Midwest, the weather is finally warming up. The sun is shining....Yes, Spring is in the air. The daffodils are in bloom..Gosh, I have been aching to go fishing since the ice left the lake. There is nothing like the taste of fresh pan fried bluegill! My dad, sister and I decided today was the day. We would go to the pond. I like going there because I always catch a mess of bluegill, good sized ones too! Being on a private pond you don't need a fishing licence as, I don't have mine yet. In the beginning we weren't sure we would be able to go as my dad wouldn't be able to drive back to it with his truck, being so wet and all. We decided later that he would drive out to the pond with his lawn tractor with his wagon behind it to carry the bucket, bait and fishing poles. My sister and I would walk. It is a way to walk but, we didn't mind it as walking after all, would be good exercise. Even though at 60 degrees, the sun shone brightly,however, the north wind cut right through us. This made for a difficult time to cast our line out. Our lines at times got tangled a few times from some tall weeds amongst the shore line. The fish were hungry! It is no wonder as they do not have mosquitoes and such to eat yet. We used red worms and wax worms but the fish prefered the red worms today. It seemed my sister and I were reeling all the fish in until my dad got out his small cane pole and used it and then he was reeling them in right and left. No one got skunked .I am sure if I hadn't had to go to the bathroom so bad we would have stayed longer. Our pail was packed with fish! It was time to head back to the house. 51 fish=102 pieces divided by 3 = 30.6 pieces each to be exact. We all had enough for a meal and one batch for each of us to freeze for another meal, another day. Now, we had to clean all those fish. Most city folk would have to wonder at the sight of my dad, sister and I outside at the table cleaning fish with chickens walking all around us. My dad throws a piece of chicken gut now and then as the chickens scramble for that one piece. We laugh and talk. I had an amazing time and I really look forward to my next fishing trip on the pond. But, next time it will be 60 degrees and no wind!

Ice fishing..... Love it or hate it

Monday for supper we had bluegill my dad and I caught on the pond this summer. I had froze them for some delicious eating this winter. My DH has been out a few times ice fishing so far this winter, something he never got to do last winter, in fact he is out fishing right now. I don't balk as he enjoys his man time and I enjoy my no man time. I would love to go out with him a couple of times. but, I dislike the cold and not sure if this old body can handle this sort of thing anymore. DH assured me when the temperature warms up in the 30 degree range I can go. Not going to argue with that. I will stay home where it is warm and let the DH freeze his old hiney, bring home the fish, ( if he catches any) clean them and I will cook them. I like to take each precious piece, dip in egg and roll in panko crumbs. I salt and pepper them and fry them in a small amount of canola oil until they are golden. mmmm-mmmm you just can't beat the taste of bluegill. Anyways, for those of you that have never ice fished, ice fishing is the practice of catching fish in an opening in the ice which you have drilled with an ice auger. If you are bothered by the cold, this kind of fishing is probably not for you. There has been many times DH has gone out and sat out on the iced lake or pond for hours and never caught a thing. However, the times I went out with him we were lucky and caught many fish right after another. It must have been the adrenaline flowing but, this kept me from thinking how cold I was. Ice fishing has an allure all of it's own. Some say it is peaceful, some say it's relaxing, most say it's crazy. There is very little debate when it comes to ice fishing. People usually love it or hate it. Perhaps you should try it and decide for yourself.

A llittle of this and that

If I am not posting as much anymore during the week, It is because I have been extremely busy like tending my garden, Oh my....with all the rain and warm weather the garden is growing crazy and so are the weeds. I have been trying to stay on top of it all which is a tackle in itself these days. Oh..how embarrassing to have a weedy garden. Weeds are a fact of life with a garden and they need to be pulled. Seriously, I have to be attentive to them. Turn your back on them and they are back in your garden! When I am not tending the garden I have been fishing and having coffee with my Dad. In fact, I went again this morning with him and we reeled in 47 beautiful bluegill. The rest of the day was spent helping clean fish dividing the bluegill between us. I put 4 containers full in the freezer for this winter. We had so much fun that we fished again early this evening. This time, DH went with us. We took home 50 fish. HA! This time DH received the honors of cleaning them. I put 4 more containers in the freezer. We are ever so thankful the Lord has blessed us once again with a mess of fish. I must not forget the quality time spent with my father. Oh yes, and then there is our pet rabbit. Why have a pet if you never spend any time caring for it? I got this hair brained idea a couple of days ago to let little Bunny Boo in the house. I carefully spread newspapers all over the floor in one room. I can't trust the little guy after he peed on my friend from down the road. Okay, I am so glad this lady has a sense of humour! Anyways Bunny Boo and our little Yorkie/shitzu played and played...chasing each other like they were playing tag and were best buddies. It was hilarious! Now, I am not making a habit of bringing my rabbit in the house all the time. I have however have been making a habit of spoiling the little guy. Okay, No more excuses. I promise to get on the bandwagon here soon. Just know I am okay. Maybe you can relate?

Fishing with my Dad

I went fishing with my Dad yesterday morning. We have been talking about going fishing on the pond by his place for quite awhile. Yep, just my Dad and I. The pond seems so different than the lake when it comes to fishing. My thinking is that the fish are dumber. Really, some of the best bluegill fishing can be found in ponds. Remember always ask permission to fish on private ponds. If you are simply wanting to catch alot of fish regardless of size, most ponds will provide ample bluegill action. I grew up fishing from a small farm pond located close enough to my house that we could walk to it. I remember many times fishing with my mom, my dad and grandma. Ponds are still a great place to catch fish! Dad and I caught 38 nice bluegill in a couple of hours in the morning. I hooked a small bass and a few young ones that were too small to keep. My DH bought me a really cute lightweight 12 ft. cane pole awhile back. I love that pole! I have hooked more large bluegill with that little gem. I gave my dad the exact same pole for fathers day. He also hooked more fish with that little gem! Bluegill spawn in spring and early summer and this is a good time to catch them. When the water exceeds 70 degrees, begin looking for spawning bluegill in shallow water on their beds. Which explains why so many large bluegill we caught were females loaded with eggs. We cleaned all 38 fish. Dad filleted with his electric knife and I cut out the ribs. As a team it seemed like we had the fish cleaned in no time! Here's a picture of my dad cleaning the fish.





All in all, It was a great way to spend the day and be rewarded with some tasty eating!

Bluegill fishing time

While Susan (that's me) is slaving away preparing for this yard sale....DH was fishing last night until dark and yes, he was enjoying it too! He caught about 30 but kept 11 nice sized ones for our supper tonight. I'm jealous! No, not really...and I wasn't preparing for my sale. I took a shower got into my comfy pj's and watched my all time favorite show American Idol. But, tomorrow you can bet I plan on getting my fishing license so I can fish also. If you don't already know by now, fishing is one of my favorite pastimes. What a better way to enjoy a day than quietly probing a lake in search of bluegills. It's easy and it's simple. It's just great! I love fishing for bluegill with DH especially when I catch more or bigger fish than him. He takes the abuse quite well. DH and I are true bluegill addicts and we don't have to travel very far to find good fishing. I am itching so bad to fish this spring. With the ice off the lakes and the water warming up, the bluegill are hungry. There is something magic about watching a slip bobber suddenly twitch and make a tight circle before plunging beneath the surface as a big bluegill inhales your tiny offering and takes off with it. Maybe I'm dreaming or wishful thinking but, this year with all the bluegill fishing I have in mind....my only problem will be finding enough freezer space to store all those tasty fillets....and isn't that a nice problem to have?

Autumn days are here again

Do you enjoying the fall season? For me, fall is my favorite season of the year. I love the cooler temps, the smell of burning leaves aah! Summer ending can be very depressing for some. Not for me. although I have to admit I hate to see my garden go. We have enjoyed an abundance of fresh veggies from it this summer. The first day of autumn starts today. It's the day when the sun crosses the celestial equator moving southward, or as they say, the autumn fall equinox. Yes, it won't be long before the leaves will be changing. I have already noticed the daylight hours are already shortening. In the fall there is so many cool things to do and see. Some of the prettiest sunsets here on the lake have been in the fall, with milder temperatures with the heat lifting and the humidity lessening. The beautiful colors from the foliage...could you ask for anything better?Hubby says sometimes the best time to fish is in the fall. The fish either don't bite or they will bite like mad. As the water begins to cool in the fall, bluegill often move into shallower water more often, and midday fishing success improves. Unlike in the summer when morning and evening are the best times to fish. Yep, It is hard to believe summer has come and gone but, fall is a great time to enjoy the outdoors. So, enjoy the season and all it has to offer.

Fish, fish and more fish

Some people fish for a sport and some people fish well, to eat. That is my hubby and I. We love to fish but, those who know us also know we love to eat them just as much. This weekend DH and I fished all weekend. We go out in the middle of the lake to our favorite little fishing spot and fish. This last weekend seemed to be the perfect weekend to be out on the lake and just do that. Hubby with his 2 poles and me with my 2 poles and using worms my dad gave us that he himself raises. We are hoping to catch enough to make it worthwhile to clean them. Hubby says that is nothing less than 5 fish. Bluegill is what we fish for. If we catch a sunfish or perch a bass or anything else we throw them back. Friday afternoon we went out and caught 25 nice gill. Saturday afternoon we went out and caught 35 good ones. Sunday night we went out and caught 28 really nice bluegill. In fact, I caught one gill that was 8 and 3/4 inches. I would of taken a picture but I didn't take my camara along and it was dark when we got done fishing. I am not sure if it was the worms or what. Maybe it was the moon or the airpressure, really hungry fish, call it what you want But, this was a really good fishing trip. It is really good.that we now have quite a few containers in the freezer for later, like this winter when my husband gets layed off. This will help so much on the food budget. The summer here seems to be going way too fast. There may not be another opportunity to fish like this again. As fall approaches DH will be thinking hunting deer again. We are thankful for this fish, fish and more fish!

Just another day of fishing for bluegill

This was supposed to be a picture of our fish but, I goofed and had it on the setting for video. The 2 best ones are mine! I'm not bragging am I? Hee-Hee!

My hubby and I spent about 3 hours fishing out on the lake today. We took the pontoon and anchored it between the 2 willow trees by the shoreline. This is one of our favorite fishing spots. It has been a beautiful day today. I anticipated a nice mess of bluegill. However I knew even if we didn't catch any fish the time spent out on the boat was relaxing and worth it. We got out there.....I told hubby I was hoping to catch the first fish. I cast my line out. It wasn't even a mere minute a bluegill snagged my hook. A dandy it was and hungry too! I thought this is going to be a good day. I cast my line out again...Wham! another one! I thought ...this is going to be a very good day. 2 keepers in less than 2 minutes. I know if you catch 1 keeper, there are usually more where you caught that one. I was right because, we never moved the boat. We caught 11 bluegills that were keepers. We also caught a 12 inch bass, a few perch , several sunfish, and baby fish that we did not keep. I lost 3 really good sized bluegill. One of them broke my line and I lost him. The other 2 I lost by reeling them in too fast. I would just about get them reeled in to the boat and lost them. Pooh! It made me angry. Hubby told me not to rough them so much. So I will try. but, it will have to be tomorrow morning when we go out again. This time with my dad. Just another day of fishing for bluegill!

Update on our lake

This is an update on our lake about all the fish dying as you know awhile back our lake had fish dying all over the place and I mean lots of fish. We were told until they had a chance to test the water for contamination it may be wise to not eat any more just in case. Well, just thought you all should know that the DNR said they tested the water and that it was alright. They said the fish must have been dying because of no oxygen in the water that it must have smothered the fish. That is very good news. Hubby and I both love to fish and love to eat them! It is such a relief! We will be going out again fishing soon and I hope to catch a big mess of bluegills too!

Contaminated fish

We have been informed today by the Department of Environmentalist not to eat any fish from our lake until they determine the cause of all the dead fish showing up on shore. One of our neighbors buried over 35 dead fish that washed up on shore the other day and while we were on our dock and out for a boat ride we noticed lots of dead fish different places in the lake and up on shore. This causes me concern, we have 8 beautiful bluegill sitting in the basket off our dock and we will have to let them go. Its not worth the chance of getting sick and even if you don't get sick, Do you know what chemicals or poison you may be putting in your body by eating the contaminated fish? This problem is believed to be from spraying maybe from the fields and is leaching into the lake contaminating the fish. It is not sure exactly what it is. I am hoping they get this resolved soon so we can get back to fishing and eating those delicious bluegill again real soon.

Fishing , eating bluegill and a few bluegill facts

Yikes! I did it again. I was so busy yesterday I didn't get my post in, let alone get my CVS figured for today. I went fishing almost all day yesterday with hubby and then later with my Dad and hubby. First was the cruise around the lake then the fishing. Then later another cruise around the lake and more fishing. All in all hubby cleaned 19 fish. You know what we are having tonight for dinner. The rest went in the freezer. There is nothing like fresh bluegill.My husband fillets the fish then skins them. We then put them in the fridge with salt water until ready to fry. We usually dip the fillets in egg and dredge in Drakes fry mix or Andys fish dip and pan fry.We like to fillet and cut the skin off. I don't like to deal with the bones nor do we like scaling them. Some people still prefer them scaled, bones, and all and fried in a pan. Some say there is more flavor that way. I guess it's a matter of preference. I remember as a kid we would scale them and pan fry them bones and all. That meant picking out bones as you ate. This wasn't much fun I guess I don't like working so hard for my food but never less, I always worried I would choke on a bone. Did you know bluegill like nearly all fish are nutritious and high in vitamin D? Bluegill also help humans by eating thousands of pesky insects, such as mosquitoes. Bluegills are the most common fish caught by fisherman. They are easy to catch because they eat so many different things, such as earthworms, crickets, grasshoppers, even people food like bread and corn! They eat just about any little animal that will fit into their small mouths, especially (water) insects and (land) insects that fall on the water. Fishing for bluegill is alot of fun. I know I can't wait to go out again fishing. Maybe next weekend. Aaah life is good! If anyone has a favorite way to prepare bluegill please share.