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I finally caught a burbot from the Gorge.[sly] I caught this 22-incher this morning in Linwood Bay, on a small white tube jig. (not tipped or scented). It didn't fight at all, just reeled it right to the boat. I also heard of one caught around Antelope Flat last week, so they've made their way south. I can say it was VERY tasty! Flaky, white meat similar to perch, walleye, crappie, etc. Not as much flavor as a walleye or perch, but more than a bass. It reminded me of the Dorado (Mahi Mahi) in south Florida, with slightly less flavor, but very delicious.
Anybody know any tricks to filleting one? I did it just like most other fish, but there seemed to be two sets of bones coming off the backbone, one set noticably larger than the other. It worked the traditional way, but was difficult to get every bone out of the skinned filet. Maybe skin 'em like a catfish and pull the bones out when they're cooked?
Mack fishing, on a Sunday, pretty much sucked. We caught a couple babies, and missed a few hits, but the fish were showing little interest in a jig either high or low. Its been a slow past few days overall. The fish are right on the edges of the spawning humps in 70-95 feet of water, and I even marked two or three on top of the humps at 55 feet, but tough times are ahead until November with classic pre-spawn moodiness. They have something other than food on their minds currently, and have also been getting beat-up by fishermen nearly non-stop for the last few months. Water temp. is still a warm 56.
The spawn is coming, and the *#*#*#* snaggers are too.
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Sure is an ugly lookin' thing. I'm glad he was tasty though! Too bad they made their way to the gorge though. It will be interesting to see what the long term affect will be on the fishery.
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Jim, How would one target the Burbot?
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I don't have a clue how to target them. This one looked just like a lake trout on my sonar. I've read that they're primarily night feeders, and primarily fish eaters. Maybe just target them like lake trout, only at night. The lakers in the Gorge don't hit at night (they go into a coma!), so I guess if you get a bite jigging after dark, its likely to be a burbot. They reportedly like colder water, and spawn in very shallow water during the winter under the ice. That's all I found on Google searches. Maybe some people on a Great Lakes forum know how to go after them. They've got lots up there. Alaska lakes are full of them too. I'm sure they'll behave a little different here, and just like the lakers, not by "the book."
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Du Pont makes a dandy burbot lure.
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Why wouldn't a big laker make a meal out of that?
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[cool][#0000ff]Lots of lakes in the northern part of the country that have burbot. Most anglers usually don't really go after them except during the winter ice fishing season. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]But, those who do, usually fish at night with minnows or fresh chunks of fish meat. They will take crawlers but prefer fish. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]During the open water months, they are seldom caught, except by accident...guys vertical jigging for other species such as macks or walleyes. They definitely hang on the bottom and will not rise far in the water column to chase a lure. And, if you tip the lure with worm or fish it will work even better. Walleye jigs tipped with minnows catch a lot of burbot in their range.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]They are members of the cod family, and have mild white flesh. They are well worth catching and keeping.[/#0000ff]
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According to some of the things I've read, lakers DO eat the burbot in lakes where both exist, including the Great Lakes. Maybe they'll just turn burbot into another food source, as if they need more! (These lakers currently have PLENTY to eat).
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Hey Jim, nice catch! Did you catch it up on one of the spawning humps and did you happen to check out its gut contents? I know they are real opportunistic, eating a lot of crawfish and sculpin.
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Thanks Jim! That's the last species I needed a picture of! I put your pic up on my Burbot species page.
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Ryno: the fish was in deep water about 200 feet away from a spawning hump, which is still where all the macks are too. In its stomach were the crunchy remains of a crawdad, and a 4-inch fish that looked like a baby burbot. No spines, no gill plate like a sculpin. I've seen lots of sculpin, and I'm 90 percent sure it was a baby burbot. Had the same mouth and tail shape as the adult.
Mack fishing was HOT this morning for a few hours before the front and gale came in. It was kinda windy from the start and I had second thoughts about even going, but nobody else was in the bay, and we had bites every 5-10 minutes for about 3 1/2 hours. No big fish though. All 2-6 pounders, but you couldn't keep 'em off. Bite died about 10:30, and gale-force wind arrived shortly after. Now its snowing on the mountain.
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Man, I sure hate to see those things showing up that far south. Maybe when the big fish get their minds off spawning and back to eating they'll start chowing down on the burbot.
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I have fished for burbot in bothe Wyoming and Alaska and the bait that has worked best for me is cut up whitefish. Not sure if you can use it in Utah or not haven't read the proclamation lately on it's use. In Alaska I caught all of them at night fishing in a river in the fall with a sliding bait rig set up like you do for catfish In Wyoming I have caught them with jigs tipped with minnows in a river below Boysen Dam in the evenings after dark. I also caught one up there last winter through the ice with a jig and minnow very close to the bottom. I have heard that glow spoons and jigs tipped with cut bait or minnows work very good through the ice. They do spawn in winter normally in water around 30 feet deep. As for filleting and cooking them what works best for me is to skin them first then remove the head and fillet them starting at the tail. One of my favorite ways to cook them is to cut them in small 1 inch chunks and boil them until they start floating around then dip them in melted buter. Taste like lobster but not so chewy. Even the very small ones work good for this just cut them in longer strips before boiling. Good luck catching a bunch of them.
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[cool][#0000ff]Whitefish is a gamefish in Utah and may not be used as bait.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]However, sucker meat and chub minnows (dead) should work just as well. I also suspect that a strip of filleted carp meat would be acceptable too, since carp are a part of the Gorge biomass.[/#0000ff]
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Thanks TD like I said hadn't read the proclamation in a while and I don't need it here in the desert. So wasn't sure if it was legal that is why I made the comment about the regs so if some one thought of using it they would check the regs and you saved them the time. Glad to see your posts while I am over here. Makes me realize just how good Utah is.
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[cool][#0000ff]Take care of business and get back to Utah.[/#0000ff]
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