Home Forums Fishing Freshwater Bream on the bed.

My fly rod and a couple of black ants invited this guy and 14 of his relatives to a fish fry Saturday evening. Mmmmm Good!

That's summertime right there!

Very nice!

I took momma and the twins out on Saturday evening and we got into a few 'gills. Not many, but they were all around 9" and put up a good tussle.

Do y'all cook 'em whole or try to fillet the little buggers?

Both.

Any tricks for filleting them?

Invite a buddy over who'll fillet for beer.

Best tasting fish out there! If anyone doesn't want to clean the little buggers just leave them with me. Here in northern MN they are just starting to get on the beds, but the rain won't quit. .

While it is easy to take the big bulls off the beds, do your part and leave a few, taking some of the smaller fish. The big boys are just too vulnerable at this time.

I heard of a scaler that works by putting all the fish in a "barrel" and then tumbling them. After a while the scales are gone. Anyone have any experience with these? (Not a thread hijack, but a solution to the cleaning challenge!)

That sounds like it would beat the fish to a pulp. Maybe that's how they make gifeltefish(sp)?

Drum scalers-I remember they had them at the commercial camps on Toledo Bend back in the 70s. Don't remember much about their construction. They worked after a fashion but you had to watch close or you could lose some meat with the scales.

Dude, your a man after my own heart! I fish the exactly like you when they are bedding. usually the first full moon in may. Those black ants are deadly ain't they! If its slow or if they are finicky try a berkley maggot or power wiggler or power honey worm on a salmon egg hook fished on your fly rod. Its murderous! I had 8 medium sized green sunfish bluegill hybrids out of a spring feed pond last week while camping. They were the best fish I have ever had in my mouth.