CTFishTalk.com: Small Pond near Monroe - Connecticut Lake Reports ( CT Lake Reports ) - A Community Built for Connecticut Fisherman.

Cd662 · Joined: 03 Mar 2012 Posts: 91

Decided to do some fishing in a small pond for eels or bullhead. The conditions seemed perfect - recent rain to stir up the water, adequate current, and an overcast day. I managed 3 small crappie and 4 bullhead. Surprisingly, most of the bullhead were not on a traditional weighted setup - I was using a hook and nightcrawler halves with no weight and working them like a soft plastic off the bottom. Tons of fun on 4 pound test! Water was a bit cloudy but cool. Also had a crappie take off with my stringer Shocked

Overall, a beautiful night for fishing.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

You actually try to catch eels? Laughing

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CT_BASSman · Joined: 23 May 2011 Posts: 349

SeaDog1 · Joined: 21 Dec 2009 Posts: 2629

rxpxtx · Joined: 06 May 2012 Posts: 259

Eel actually grills up pretty nicely. Caught one in New Hampshire that was 3ft and as fat as my wrist. We cooked it up on the fire in a Pabst Blue Ribbon marinade (pour one can of beer on one eel) and we all loved it. 'Course....we had bass fished all day, and were bullhead fishing from the campsite at this point. Everything was well marinated.
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Dave..... I can be a pain in the bass.

Cd662 · Joined: 03 Mar 2012 Posts: 91

I'm really looking for larger eels. As mentioned, they are surprisingly tasty. I also enjoy catching them a lot. Eels are one of my favorite fish from a scientific point of view because of how strange they are. They're catadramous, go through a body metamorphosis, exist in a juvenile stage that is worth thousands of dollars to the Asian markets, have an uncanny sense of direction (eels kept in personal fish tanks are always trying to escape), and progress to a pre-spawn state not entirely unlike that of salmon. They have the ability to eat fish larger than their mouths by opening them up wide, and I believe I saw some research that showed their mouths have a minor suction effect as well. This will definitely sound out there but there's even a way to put eels "to sleep" temporarily. Cover the eel's eyes with a towel and let it struggle for a bit, and then lay the eel out on it's side. Run your fingers down the length of the eel (Yes, I know what this sounds like Shocked

) and do it repeatedly. Eventually, the eel will be completely calm and you can move it without any issue.

I never tried cooking anything in Pabst. It's like fizzy water in it's normal state so I don't know if there's any flavor it could lend to fish Wink

SeaDog1 · Joined: 21 Dec 2009 Posts: 2629

Hi,

My uncle "Tony' (100% Italian) use to smoke eel (traditional) up for Christmas Eve family supper!
Always a big favorite!

SeaDog1

rxpxtx · Joined: 06 May 2012 Posts: 259

OK...so the PBR went on the eel 'cause it was on fire. I'm defending you and I get shit for my "marinade"...geeze! I know for a fact they go to sleep when you smack their head on the dock. You CAN actually rub them to sleep....you just have to spoon with them a little while first.
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Dave..... I can be a pain in the bass.

PECo · Joined: 06 Oct 2009 Posts: 5203 Location: Avon, CT

Cd662 · Joined: 03 Mar 2012 Posts: 91

LOL PECo! I'll keep that in mind on my next adventure Wink

And in all seriousness I know that beer of any sort if popular for cooking. I've been meaning to try cooking with Guinness but it's too expensive for me to waste on cooking and one's results seem to vary too much when you buy those nonsensical widget bottles.