What is better than skipping school? How about skipping school to go on a guided fishing trip?

Local guide, Pritchard's Guide Service on Grand Lake in Oklahoma did a kids fishing day today. Took 6 kids out this morning and 6 this afternoon chasing spoonbill. First time my kids had been after them. It was a success.

side note, if you're in northeast Oklahoma and looking for fishing on Grand Lake, Pritchards is the guy to call. Winter time spoonbill, summer time crappie (caught a 6 man limit plus piles of white bass with him this summer), and catfish and white bass thrown in the mix, plus he has contacts for when he is full and knows everybody around. If he isn't taking his kids hunting or is already booked, he will put you on fish.

Pritchard's Guide Service Facebook page

Rusty Pritchard and the 6 kids off to the races-


I guess they drew straws as to who got to go first and my 11 year old was 1st. Smallest fish, but first in the boat..



I think my 9 year old daughter went last, but she got a good one.



Group pic at the end


Then for 30 miles of the 60 mile drive home I got to hear all the ins and outs of winter spoonbill fishing and how they want to go again...

Filets soaking in salt water and the search is on for how to cook them beyond chunking up and frying like is typically done.

Very cool! I have never done it myself but I do appreciate a very unique fish like that.

Very cool. I assume they are good eating also?

Kind of a cross between a catfish and a pork chop? Dense meat, not flaky like a fish. Does have some fishiness to it for sure though. I'd rather eat crappie or walleye for sure....but when in Rome...

Very cool! What are they caught on? Bait?

That'a awesome cheeseguy !

Cool beans.

Do they troll for them in winter? Search out areas where there is still plankton and the paddlefish are still feeding?

I'd imagine any recipe for sturgeon would work, as they are rather closely related. One might try an Italian salad dressing marinade and then grilling it.

Congrats on a great outing Cheesy. Well done Papa! Even your smallest fish was very nice.

They're plankton feeders, so the only way to catch them is snagging.

Typically 95% are caught in the spring when the turkeys start gobbling and water is warming up. They leave the reservoirs and head up the rivers. That is when most everybody is in the rivers trying to snag one. 4 ounce weight below a big treble, 40 lb line or so, cast out, jerk, relax, jerk, relax, jerk, relax. It is great sport to go to the Neosho River in the Miami, OK city park and watch every redneck within 100 miles that gathers there to try and snag one from the bank.

This guide only targets them in the deep water in the cold months. He uses Dipsy Divers or similar to get the treble hook down to the proper depth they're holding at.

Awesome!

Outstanding!

Love their smiles!

Nice!!!

Good eating right there. Delicious and no bones!

That is super cool man nice work raising em up right!

Great times and fantastic memories for everyone. Two thumbs up from me…👍👍

The picture of the young man in the green jacket facing the camera with the fish is really a great picture and one worthy of framing!

Great post Sir!

Hooky to hook some prehistoric fish 😊

Right on. Great to see the kiddo's out doing something cool.

Snagging is a ton of fun. Spoonbills are far from my favorite to eat though.

Spoiled on crappie and walleye.

Good on you and the guide

Good stuff!! Love the pics! I've only caught them once in MT.

Great Smiles there!

How are they smoked? That would seem a good way to use the meat.

Great pictures! Smiles and memories that will last a lifetime right there. Thanks for sharing!

Never had paddlefish, but sturgeon smoked is pretty fine eatin'.

Rinse no less than a half dozen times and that "fishy" taste will go away. You will see the oil film lessen with each soaking.

I rinse every hour until I go to bed. Maybe in the night if I get up, again in the AM then rinse throughout the day if home.

If not home after the morning rinse soak again for the day then good to go that evening.

A pard had a 5 gallon bucket with at least 100 holes in bucket and lid with a hose adapter in the side towards the bottom of the bucket. Fill with fish, turn water on just enough to keep a good flow going and walk away for the afternoon. This got most all of the oil from the fish.

We used to net them here, oily as heck but made a good fish fry for a funeral party fundraiser, last one I did was 1981

Funny looking fish. Like a Jimmy Durante cartoon.

I guess I’d eat one if I was on some kind of camping survival mission.

9 yr old Granddaughter told me last week that she would probably just catch a minnow. Looks like she was wrong.

Hell yeah!

Awesome!! I've fished with Rusty several times for spoonbills and once for catfish. He is a great guy and a great guide with good equipment. A great choice for anyone.

Nice group of happy kids right there. Awesome that they each got to catch one.

Curious as to the snagging technique(s) employed. Is it just blind snagging?

I've done a fair amount of blind and sight snagging for hatchery salmon (kings, silvers and sockeye) here in AK. Blind snagging will wear out pretty quick, but can be productive if there's lots 'o fish. Sight casting is a lot like wing shooting ducks. Gotta see 'em, lead 'em and pull the trigger at the right time (or just flock shoot).

Great thread and pics Cheese

Very cool, cheesy.

I found them in a ditch mouth feeding and snagged with a big treble on a bass rod. I kept some and they were ok to eat. Fun to catch.

Totally blind. No such thing as clear water here.

The 3 ways I'm familiar with fishing for them.

1. The poor redneck way: No boat, fish from bank in the spring when they're doing their (fake?) spawning run. Heavy river pole with a 4 ounce weight and a big treble hook. Cast across the river, then jerk pole, reel up slack, jerk pole, reel up slack. Repeat. Will wear you out.

2. The less poor redneck way: From boat, in the spring when they're doing their (fake?) spawning run. Heavy river pole with a 4 ounce weight and a big treble hook. Let out 100' or 150' of line, troll up stream, jerk pole, let current/troll take out slack, repeat. Won't wear you out quite as bad as 1.

3. The sophisticated way: Rig pole up with dipsy diver and troll around the channels they're schooled up in until your treble hook runs into one. This is what the guides do. I've never been on one of these trips, so I can't exactly give the details.


Was with the wife at an engineering deparment dinner at Pittsburg State University several years ago. One of the dishes was smoked spoonbill that one of the students had brought. I thought it was pretty good.





Feel free to send some down, I'm only a few miles off of 49....