[pct-l] Fishing?

[The Mountain Goat]

Yes, there is a fishy odor left, and to get rid of it, you would really have to
use some hot water to clean your pots (if they were used). If bears do come 
in, just think of it, as a new food supply. I don't know how your going to get 
the bear to hit on the fishing hook, or how to properly set the hook....

OK, more seriously, there will be a fish order. The main problem as I have 
seen it in the last 25 years of backpacking, is camping where many other 
backpackers camp, which the bears know where those places are, and 
frequent them to get there "supplemental food", namely OURS. With thru 
hiking, that is a lot less likely, because we travel around 20 miles a day (in 
the Sierra its more like 15 miles a day on average).

That said, If you try cooking over a fire using green branches to lay the fish 
down on, youll have less of fish smell go with you, since you didn't use 
your pots. 

I also found that if you wash your hands (which you ate the fish with), using 
the sand in the creeks, it will help get rid of the smell. Yes it is kind of hard 
on the hands, but it works for me. Even using Gravel while washing your 
hands seems to work.

Another way to cook the fish is to put them in a zip lock bag, and boil the 
bag. If you have some butter or Olive oil, put it in with it. Cook the fish in 
the bag, in a pot. 

On a final note, having tried fishing on the thru hike, I notice it really slows 
you down. and cooking the fish takes a lot longer than our typical 
backpacking meals, which vary widely. And there is more clean up. So you 
can fish, and I might do it again as well, but you may want to factor in extra 
time to fish and eat them. I did most of my fishing on zero days in the 
Sierra's.

http://www.trailjournals.com/photos.cfm?id=104523
(yep, Benton lake fishing was good in 2005, that really is a 13" troute)

-Mountain Goat-

mike hughes      huggies08318 at yahoo.com        
     Sat Feb 24 05:14:46 CST 2007          
---------------------------------
    
OK, so I've seen a few threads talking about fishing
and about the where and how of it all. As an avid
fisherman, I'm not too concerned about how to catch
them but what happens after I catch them!
...

 
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