Bullhead Fishing

[edbone]

Anybody getting itchy to do a little fishing for them tasty bullheads?

[bowslinger]

i had a few people tell me they were getting them last week at mays point before the snow strom

[Woodjr55]

I don't target them but caught a couple last spring and they were mighty tasty

[blackradio]

I usually throw them back. Would much rather eat a bass/sunny/crappie.

[greg54]

The annual Bullhead Contest in Wilson is scheduled for April !! this year. I'm thinking of heading up there to catch some of those tasty fish, and hopefully it will be the big one!!

[Arrow Flinger]

The annual Bullhead Contest in Wilson is scheduled for April !! this year. I'm thinking of heading up there to catch some of those tasty fish, and hopefully it will be the big one!!

 

Better bring your ice auger

 

 

[Bowtoons]

Better bring your ice auger

I never caught a bullhead on a tip up.

[edbone]

Ice fished lake of the isles one time(I believe it was 1990) and a buddy and I got about 20 bullheads through the ice.Great time

[edbone]

I usually throw them back. Would much rather eat a bass/sunny/crappie.

. They may not compare to a crappie but WAY better eating than a bass

[Doc]

. They may not compare to a crappie but WAY better eating than a bass

And such a beautiful looking face on them too ..... lol.

 

Actually, every body of water in the area that would typically hold bullheads are still frozen over tight. But I'm glad for this reminder thread. I have a way of always missing the best parts of the bullhead run. Not this year though .... I will be paying attention this time.

 

Best bait? .... Pollywogs (no legs even started to satisfy the law) if you can find them. What bait do you guys use?

[nyantler]

Ahhh... bullhead... my favorite fish to eat and to clean... when I was a kid my friends father taught me how to skin a bullhead in about 10 seconds with my pocket knife... to this day I can still do it that quickly... no pliers... just a knife... I did it  with the blade on a set of nail clippers once on a bet... took a few seconds longer, but I won the bet.

 

As a kid at camp we use to bread the fish with pancake batter before frying in bacon grease.. I haven't had it in a while but still my favorite. Well, maybe second to walleye!

[RangerClay]

Ice fished lake of the isles one time(I believe it was 1990) and a buddy and I got about 20 bullheads through the ice.Great time

 

My boy has caught bullheads this winter on tip-ups rigged for perch on LOTI Lake of the Isles.

 

Wish I had time to go back home in Madison County and catch real farmpond bullheads.  These Lake Ontario bullheads are not the same.

[blackradio]

. They may not compare to a crappie but WAY better eating than a bass

I can eat them, the Europeans where I worked always kept them and loved to eat them but I jsyt never loved the taste or texture.

[wooly]

I think my favorite bullhead hole has a "don't eat the fish" clause attached to it by the DEC,lol

I'll pass on the bottom feeders from there!

 

[HOUNDS77]

Way better than bass.

[Woodjr55]

My buddies and I went shore fishing on lake Chautauqua last year after turkey hunting. We caught a couple. Had a hell of a time trying to clean them but ended up dusting them in seasoned flour and frying them in a cast iron skillet over the camp fire. Mighty tasty

[philoshop]

We used to catch buckets of 'em in the '70's while we were waiting for the smelt to run in the bays along Lake Ontario. Nightcrawlers mostly but sometimes we'd use a stinky catfish bait concoction. Worms were easier, and they were free.

Pancake batter with a little cornmeal mixed in for texture, either deep-fried or in a cast iron skillet. Tasty stuff.

[Arrow Flinger]

We used to catch buckets of 'em in the '70's while we were waiting for the smelt to run in the bays along Lake Ontario. Nightcrawlers mostly but sometimes we'd use a stinky catfish bait concoction. Worms were easier, and they were free.

Pancake batter with a little cornmeal mixed in for texture, either deep-fried or in a cast iron skillet. Tasty stuff.

mmmmm......Smelt! I used to love eating them. Anyone know where you can get em nowadays? I used to go to Lake Ontario and Cayuga Lake to get them but haven't seen a good run in years.

[Bowtoons]

My buddies and I went shore fishing on lake Chautauqua last year after turkey hunting. We caught a couple. Had a hell of a time trying to clean them but ended up dusting them in seasoned flour and frying them in a cast iron skillet over the camp fire. Mighty tasty

Get yourself a pair of  skinning pliers. Skin em', twist their heads off, egg, flour, bread crumbs and deep fry. The meat will fall of the bone with a fork. Dip in some cocktail sauce. YUM! I remember when I was a kid my ol' man would come home in the middle of the night and fill the bathtub full of BH. My Mother used to freak!!! HAHA!!!

[greg54]

mmmmm......Smelt! I used to love eating them. Anyone know where you can get em nowadays? I used to go to Lake Ontario and Cayuga Lake to get them but haven't seen a good run in years.

They are active in the lower Niagara river off of Artpark in Lewiston.  Have a good pair of chest waders and long handle dipping net. Mostly just after dark people start dipping for them. I think its a 2 quart limit per day. There is also a free smelt fry every year that's in Lewiston. People donate smelt and a

everyone is invited to come and enjoy!! Things start to pick-up in later april.

[Woodjr55]

They are active in the lower Niagara river off of Artpark in Lewiston. Have a good pair of chest waders and long handle dipping net. Mostly just after dark people start dipping for them. I think its a 2 quart limit per day. There is also a free smelt fry every year that's in Lewiston. People donate smelt and a

everyone is invited to come and enjoy!! Things start to pick-up in later april.

you don't need the waders if you have a long enough net. My brother and I go and work in tandem one guy pushing the pole against the bottom and the other pulling it in with a rope.

That's how we do it and it works for us most guys just dip themselves

[Doc]

As a kid at camp we use to bread the fish with pancake batter before frying in bacon grease..

 

I just wrote that down so I don't forget to tell my wife that idea. It really sounds good!

[Doc]

mmmmm......Smelt! I used to love eating them. Anyone know where you can get em nowadays? I used to go to Lake Ontario and Cayuga Lake to get them but haven't seen a good run in years.

Damn! That brings back childhood memories of when we used to head out to the feeder creeks of Canandaigua Lake. My Dad, Uncle, Cousin and myself. We filled buckets with smelt. We had about 8 different places we would go where cottagers left the creeks open for smelters. You can't do that anymore. Those places have long since been posted up and shut off to access. Probably the fault of the fishermen themselves. People can be such pigs.

[philoshop]

Introduction of trout and salmon into Lake Ontario around 1980 or so pretty much put an end to the smelting there.

April 27th was always the magic target date, for some reason. We'd head out in the afternoon to make sure there was an outlet from East Bay into the lake, then fish for bullheads until the smelt started running. I don't think there was a limit then, and I remember that 5 or 6 of us would end up with several 5-gal buckets full by the time the sun came up.

We'd spend most of that day cleaning and cooking and freezer-bagging the smelt. There would be beer involved as I recall. The bullheads went into a big stock tank where they would stay alive for a week or so and we could process them at our leisure. Some good memories, for sure.

[ncountry]

I have slacked off on the bullhead fishing lately.. Might have to catch a pail or 2 this spring.. We always tried going around April 15(fils birthday). There have been a few years where all of our spots were iced in. I am afraid this year may be another.

Easiest way to clean bullhead requires nothing but a knife.

Slice across the back towards head behind the fin until you hit bone.

Slice skin along backbone to tail..

Hang on to head in one hand body in the other and bend until the backbone breaks( usually a pop and a little splatter away from you ,make sure a buddy is standing there.lol).

Reach in with thumb and grab backbone and pull the meat right out of the skin. rinse and throw in bowl.

Repeat.

I can still remember when a classmate demonstrated this method in our 8th grade class for a presentation..LOL.. The girls were NOT impressed especially the ones in the front row.

This works great until you start catching the 12" plus ones, they are a little harder on the fingers.