[cool][#0000ff]TubeBabe and I believed the calm weather forecast for Starvation and headed for Bunny Gulch this morning. Had to look hard to find the lake...with the water level dropping so fast. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Air temp at 7 am was about 60 and water temp 67. Light breezes and nary a cloud in the sky until about mid morning. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Started off the the expected dink-o-rama. Small perch everywhere...from 6' to over 20'. After going through a bunch of the day's supply of worms without anything to show in the basket we both motored across to the other side of the gulch. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The dinks either followed us or had lots of relatives on the other side. Same scenario. So I moved out into deeper water...looking for single larger blips on sonar to try to find something besides subtoad perch.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Just before 8 I had a solid take, followed by some good tugs and headshakes...followed by...nothing. Inexperienced fish forgot how to hang on. A few minutes later I had a similar tug of war but managed to finesse the fish to the net. Alllllll riiiiiight. A nice nineteen inch wallie. Basket fish. Hoping for more but expecting nothing...I got what I expected...nothing but a bunch more small perch. But now they were out in deeper water too. Just couldn't get away from them. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The rapidly dropping lake had messed up all of my prime spots. Too shallow and lots of weed pieces littering the bottom to foul up my vertical jigs.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Covered a lot of wet real estate today. Found grundles of 7 - 8" perch...but only a few over ten inches. Ditto for walleyes. Caught about a dozen "seegars"...ten inch clones. Caught one just under 14 inches to join the 19 for dinner. Also caught several small smallies...and one fiesty fifteen incher that liked to play rough.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]No trout today. Nothing on the surface and did not see the trollers bring in anything either. Only saw a few blips on sonar that might have been suspenders. But cain't prove nuttin'. The only thing I got on spinners was perch. No class.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Did see one of the bank tanglers in the picture bring in a nice rainbow. And he did not even bring it out of the water...reaching down with pliers to release it. Big time class. They were able to walk out on the newly exposed rock reef off the campground and only had to wade ankle deep for a short distance. Within a day or so it will be a dry ground peninsula. Good spot for casting from shore. finished up there about noon and caught a grundle and a half of subtoad perch and several more small wallies...all within easy casting distance of shore.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]TubeBabe had fun playing with the "kids" today. She caught lots of small perch and walleyes but nothing much basketworthy. She did keep one quality perch for a picture. By the way, quality is in the eye of the be older. And we be older than most.[/#0000ff]
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Sounds like a fun morn out. Didn't hear ya griping about the big bad Wolf huffing, so maybe had a calm one for a change!
Do you get ski-boaters and such out there? Maybe not in your window or 'get on early, and get off before . . . !'
Quite a bit of difference in bulk 5 inches makes . . . see much the same with the kitties - they start growing bigger around, and less for the length. Ah - don't we all!
Think that first head-shaker was another toothy friend, or a slim-one giving ya a run?
You've had various rescipees on fish-prep, curious how you like your Eye's prepped? I was actually planning to have some Walleye tonight myself! [cool] Miracle's happen. So far I've gone with a simple sprinkle, and Panko, with butter - panfry. Enjoyed some nice poached perch - beer, w/o the batter.
[cool][#0000ff]Pretty sure (from experience) that the first tugger was another nice wallenski. But the rule we go by is that it can be anything the angler wants it to be. If it don't get witnessed than it is anything ya want.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Had a couple of jet skis blow by the entrance to Bunny Gulch today but no power craft pestered us at all. The bank tanglers were actually boaters, with their craft parked up on the road. They said that it was a zoo all last week down there with lots of fishing, fun and frivolity. I'm sure the heavy traffic did not do much to enhance our success rate.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Walleyes are good just about any old whichaway you wanna serve 'em. But I kinda subscribe to the philosophy that less is more when cooking up a fish as toothsome as walleyes. Sauteed in garlic butter with a bit of your favorite seasonings...after cooking...is as good as it gets. But I also like the Panko treatment...with some good tartar sauce on the side.[/#0000ff]
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As always great report. Sounds like your day was very similar to mine last Saturday. I am glad to hear that I wasn't the only one that couldn't find a trout. I was begining to think I forgot how to catch them. [
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[cool][#0000ff]Same thing happens during the hotter days of summer every year. When temps rise and oxygen levels get out of whack with the decaying vegetation exposed by dropping water the fish look for more comfortable surroundings. Last year they gathered up in the Strawberry river arm...but last year there was still some runoff coming in at this time. I'm guessing some are up there and a lot are looking for a cool zone with more oxygen somewhere deeper in the lake.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]September and October are prime trout months. That's when the water cools down again. The fish are back in the shallow water and hitting all kinds of flies and lures.[/#0000ff]
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was on Starvation Saturday - some perch hunting then trolling for whatever. We caught a few walleyes (no size) and a bunch or rainbows south of the bridge. Marked a ton of fish so TD is spot on with the fish looking for better water conditions. There was an obvious current flowing there - nice debris line. We fished the deeper water side. Landed a dozen and missed more as bite was soft. Still working on that walleye bite but getting closer.
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[cool][#0000ff]I wondered if the recent rains might have put some water in the river. That fresh inflow is a definite magnet to the trout in a warm reservoir. It brings cooler water, more oxygen and potential food items from upstream. Fish are very sensitive to even minor changes in temperature, oxygen levels and pH. They quickly gravitate to where living conditions are more comfortable.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There are a couple of underwater points and humps up toward the river entrance that often attract both walleyes and big perch this time of year too. [/#0000ff]
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I keep hoping you are going to find that pot of 11 in perch. A couple pretty nice walleye still make the trip worth it. I was kinda out of commission for a few days recovering from a visious attack by a crazed surgeon that removed a few body parts before moving on to his next victim (patient). I need to get out and chase a fish this week!!! Glad ya caught a few. No doubt we will see some pretty low water levels this year. Constant adaptation as the lakes drop.
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[cool][#0000ff]Some people will do anything to lose weight. But having a surgeon remove body parts is a mite bit extreme. Hope you mend quickly and are able to make up for lost time on the water.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The last two years on Starvy have been disappointing from the standpoint of big perch. But the dinks are getting biggers. As on most perch ponds, Starvy populations are cyclical. Last year of lots of big perch was a couple of years ago. Those biggies were in their last years of life and faded away after the spring spawn. But they spawned well and the lake has been overrun with small perch. Last year the predominant year class was about 5 inches. This year they are up to 7-8 inches. By next year they will be 10 plus and the year after...their final year of life...they can become the perchzillas we lust after.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There are still some big perch in the lake, but the small ones are so thick and competitive that the older and slower fish have a tough time getting to your bait before the little ones. So the larger ones tend to cruise in singles or small groups...not the big schools. You can pull a larger one from the masses sometimes but not regularly.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I was going to try to hit the Knolls this week but I think I'll wait until someone turns the heat down. I had enough of that sauna fishing when we lived in Arizona.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]And yes, I think the lowest water levels of several years is going to affect the fish...and anglers. By early fall the fish might have to be wearing sandals to hunt for food on the drying lake beds. And we might need to retrain bird dogs to become fish dogs...and hunt them with bows or guns instead of fishing rods. Hope not.[/#0000ff]
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What a nice walleye, Mr. Dude! Is there a more sought-after fish at Starvy? Not for me.
And hey, since there's been some talk on how to cook fish out of Starvation and other waters here recently, I think I'll chime in.
The other day I had about half a dozen decent white bass and one good sized perch from UL. I filleted them, and then poached them in some very tasty broth.
The broth:
*Leftover drippings in the bottom of a glass dish from some leftover porkchops off the grill, about a 1/4 cup
*About a 1/2-3/4 cup of good white wine (I don't drink it, just cook with it)
*Juice from one lemon
*Butter
*Salt, lemon pepper, celery salt, onion salt, garlic salt, Old Bay
I heated up the liquid to barely bubbling. I gently dropped in the fillets and cooked them slowly for a few minutes each side, basting the fillets frequently with the broth with a spoon.
Once the fillets were cooked, I removed them to a plate, turned up the heat and reduced the broth slightly. Then I poured the broth over the fillets and a steaming baked potato.
The meal was heavenly. Just thought I'd share.
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[cool][#0000ff]Creative recipe. I'll bet it WAS good.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I have been "poaching" (legally) fish for many years. It is a great moist heat way of cooking fish that infuses mild fish with the flavors of the poaching liquid. I have a lot of different easy to make recipes that all taste great. Some are simple mixes of shrimp bouillon cubes, pepper and onion flakes. Others more complicated.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]One of my favorite ways to cook white fleshed fish is "soup baking". You can use any soup...dry, canned or homemade. Just get it to a liquid state and cover the fish with it in a shallow baking dish. Then bake at 350 for as long as it takes to turn the fish white and flaky...usually about 30 minutes or so. My favorite soups are cream of mushroom, cream of onion, cream of potato and even tomato. In fact, my perch chowder recipe is based upon cream potato soup.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]If you like fish and like cooking you should never run out of "interesting experiments". Some turn out better than others.[/#0000ff]
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I like the soup idea. I've thought of you when I've walked down various isles in supermarkets and have looked for your shrimp bouillon. I can't seem to find it. In the Mexican food isle, I've found different types of bouillon, but never the shrimp.
I'm sure I could find it online, but do you buy it somewhere locally? In Provo there are Asian and Hispanic small mom-and-pop type corner groceries. I guess I could look in there?
The idea of making a shrimp-type broth with some type of citrus and other components sounds like something I'd try.
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[cool][#0000ff]It is pretty common. Look either in a Mexican food market or in the Mexican food section of large supermarkets. There are usually several of the Knorr bouillon products. You will be looking for "Caldo de Camaron". See pics below. It is also sometimes available in oriental food stores.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I put a cube in the pan when fixing noodles for fish dishes. I also add a cube to the butter/olive oil mix I use for sauteeing perch, white bass or other fillets. Adds a nice shrimpy touch. Add some grated coconut a few minutes before removing from the pan for coconut shrimp fish.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Use a small grater to turn the cube to a powder that can be sprinkled on fish...either as they are cooking or just out of the pan. That stuff also mixes well with hot butter if you are dipping fish or crawdad flesh in melted butter.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The main thing to consider, when using the bouillon cubes (or powder) is that it takes heat and moisture to "release" it. So adding during the cooking process insures max flavor. If you want to mix it into something not boiling you can dissolve the cube or powder in a small amount of water in the microwave before adding it to your recipe.[/#0000ff]
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Wow, great information.
Thank you.
I'm all of a sudden hungry. Better go catch some fish.
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With all this talk of food I have a question. How are you going to cook that bass?
Did you get any cheeck meat out of that walleye?
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[cool][#0000ff]The bass ended up in the same Panko pile as the walleye...and in the same alimentary canal.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]While I like the cheek meat of walleyes...and most fish large enough to make it worthwhile to dig for...I ain't a fanatic about it. Takes longer to dig out the cheek meat than to fillet and skin the fish.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]One of the times I almost always harvest the cheek meat is when I also save the rib cages. I poach (boil) them together with the head and skeleton in seasoned liquid and then both the cheek meat and the salvageable flesh from the other parts is easily removed. I am attaching a PDF file I put together a couple of years ago on "Waste-Free Wipers" that shows the process...also works for walleyes.[/#0000ff]
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Your "Waste-Free Wiper" article was informative and very nicely done.
Just one more comment. My first thought was if you hadn't picked the meat clean off the head, spine, and ribs, your recipe of seasonings, the flavor from the bones, and the meat itself that would have naturally dislodged itself with a longer cooking time, would have been the excellent beginning to a fine fish stew/chowder.
Wonderful stuff, TD.
Thanks for sharing.
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[cool][#0000ff]Thanks. Glad you liked it.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Fishy chefs often use the meaty carcasses of filleted fish as the base of cioppino or bouillabaisse fish stews. You are right. Lengthy poaching causes the flesh to fall off the bones and makes a great fish stock. Lots of good recipes if you look online. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I think I mentioned in the writeup that the "salvaged" fish flakes also go well in a tossed salad. When using them for salad I usually chill them quickly after poaching and then just scoop a good helping onto the bed of lettuce...along with some tomato pieces, cucumber, radish, pine nuts, baco bits, croutons, etc. I like creamy dressings, like bleu cheese, but oil and vinegar is nice too. It is all a matter of personal taste.[/#0000ff]
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You know Dude, I think you may have a little bit of knowledge in this whole fishing thing... Just a bit...Love to get out with you again and learn something new! (or a dozen things)
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[cool][#0000ff]Might could do. Enjoyed our kitty fest at Willard last year.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]If you are back for good and in good repair give me a shout and we will hatch somethin' up. You would loooooove Starvy.[/#0000ff]
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