Gutting Fish OTW
 

I saw a video on BWE and after cutting the gills the fisherman gutted the fish OTW. Is this common practice? Are there any issues rinsing the empty body cavity in the ocean?

There are many people that do. I know that the Bluefin regs are about to change (bag limit dropping from 10 to 2) which isn't a problem for us yakker's, but they are going to require to keep the skin on as opposed to keeping a 1" piece of skin on the fish. So back to your question, gut them if you like. Just do it with the mindfully and with purpose. I also don't see any issue in rinsing them.

Only if there's a shark circling your yak I might not do it lol. I like to gill and gut my fish on the water. Just feel like it help keeps em a little fresher to get those guts outta there once they're dead. And if you don't gut it you should atleast always bleed them out.

Bleeding the fish and putting them into a salty cold brine is the best way to keep them fresh on the water, but we kayakers don't have fish holds like the boats do. Bleed the fish the best you can, and keep them out of the sun so they don't cook while on your deck.

I think I'm going to buy an emergency blanket for wrapping the fish on the paddle in

I was taught that if you're going to kill it you better damn we'll take care of the meat. Always bleed the fish as soon as it's secure. I always gut them and scrape the knife along the backbone inside the guy cavity to cut the bloodline. IMO rinsing them out afterwards does not harm any meat.

As mentioned above a salt/ice brine is the best way to chill your fish.... I just use a towel and continue to soak it in water (just splash water with my hand on it).

I also like to let my yellowtail chill on ice for about 24 hours (bft around 36 as they are thicker). Do this to make sure you honor your catch and get the highest quality meat possible!

Here is a pic of some yellowtail I cut up after following the steps above!

http://images.tapatalk-cdn.com/15/07...cff1dada77.jpg


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