Smelt last Sat.

OR Coast Range · 02-19-2001, 03:34 PM

Did anyone do any good last weekend on the Cow? I decided to spend my weekend on the Sandy so I never made it down there.

O'City Fisherman · 02-19-2001, 03:39 PM

My family has to drive down riverside everyday and they have not told me yet that people are doing really good. When I hear something I will try to post it for everyone in the portland and other areas.

Pete · 02-19-2001, 05:58 PM

Fred Meyer has fresh smelt for 2.99/lb. They are shiny and silvery and look tons better than whats in my freezer.

Trick · 02-19-2001, 06:44 PM

It sucked....One more Saturday left. The netters are killing them. A person I know from ODFW said the smelt are so thick down around Skomokawae(sp), that they can't read the bottom of the river on their depth finders. They are spawning in the Columbia according to him. I wish a few would head up the Cowlitz. The water is very low and the temp. must not be right for the fish. If I don't get some Saturday, I'll be picking up the $2.99 Fred Meyer specials.

Phunybonz · 02-19-2001, 06:56 PM

What do you mean by "one more saturday"? Don't tell me they shut it down before the smelt get there. Sure would be par for the course and suck at the same time.

Trick · 02-19-2001, 07:01 PM

The Cowlitz closes march 1st to smelt dipping from what I've been told. If I'm wrong then maybe someone will correct me.

Phunybonz · 02-19-2001, 07:14 PM

I just saw a smelt massacre on the news this evening. They were glorifing those that use the death curtain. I guess i'm just jealous that I don't have the ability to screw with mother nature. I'm pretty sure that death curtains were not figured in to the balance of the ecosystem.

Clamman · 02-19-2001, 08:58 PM

Smelt dipping on the Cowlitz is open through the month of March. The commercial fleet has been doing quite well in the Columbia. There appears to be a huge school of smelt just hanging within the system. Yes, smelt do spawn in the Columbia. The so called curtains of death never harvest the amount the sport dippers have gotten out of the Cowlitz when they are in.

ISG

Trick · 02-19-2001, 09:07 PM

I'm glad I was incorrect. I was beginning to sweat. I've gone the last three Saturdays and I've yet to see a single smelt dipped.

WaterDog · 02-20-2001, 05:45 AM

Just vac packed 30lbs last night. Paid $1.99 per pound.

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EAT, SLEEP, FISH!
website

zipper · 02-20-2001, 05:58 AM

Waterdog... what process did you do to vacuum pack them? did you freeze them first? how do you keep your sealer from sucking all the slime and juice out? never done this before and looking for clues... thanks!

WaterDog · 02-20-2001, 06:10 AM

We used a food saver. Work's great. The smelt were fresh and we did not freeze them first. We wiped the inside of the bags clean with a towel and we only put 5-6 smelt per bag. Never sucked any juice in the vac. Used about 2 rolls of the 8inch plastic. Took us about 2 hours.

Bait O' Eggs · 02-20-2001, 06:33 AM

A trick I read on this board a while back was to put a paper towel on the inside of the bag before you vac pac it. I just tried it with some prawns and it worked great. Just about the time the bag was sucked flat and the juice wanted to go into the machine, the paper towel caught it, long enough for me to seal the bag.

Pilar · 02-20-2001, 07:36 AM

Waterdog, where did you buy them? I usually get them at Fergus Mcberendse in Astoria but I'll skip the drive if I can.

Thanking you in advance.

The bend is your friend!

OR Coast Range · 02-20-2001, 08:14 AM

The trick to freezing smelt that I learned from an old timer is to freeze them in the water of the river that you dip from. So I will put 6 smelt in a ziplock with a little water from the Cowlitz in the bag. The problem with this approach is that the smelt only last a year or two before they get mushy.

Does vacume sealing preserve them better? How long do they last when sealed?

[This message has been edited by Oregon Fish Chaser (edited 02-20-2001).]

zipper · 02-20-2001, 10:24 AM

lets start a new post on this subject!

WaterDog · 02-20-2001, 01:21 PM

The store is here in McMinnville called Cost Cutter 503.472.0494. It comes
in a 50lb box.

------------------
EAT, SLEEP, FISH!
website

Bobber Down · 02-21-2001, 07:54 AM

Another trick when filling the bag with smelt. Take a small plastic cup and cut the entire bottom out of it. Then open the bag, put the plastic cup small side down into the bag a bit. Fill bag with however many smelt you want in the bag. Take the plastic cup out, vac. the bag, no need to wipe the inside of the bag with a paper towel for a good seal. This is faster when you have lbs. of smelt to do.........Bobber Down

02-21-2001, 03:19 PM

does Anyone ever get any smelt in the Lewis??