Fish storage

I wasn't sure if this should go in 'Kayak fishing' or Rigging section, but I decided on this one.

I am wondering about where you folks store/hold fish you catch while you are fishing.  I noticed on a thread I was reading that several people talked about using bags to store them in on the deck somewhere. 

Is there a particular reason for bagging the fish instead of putting them on a stringer off the side?  How long does the bag keep the critters cold for?

I think I remember Polepole showing some kind of stringer used by spearfishermen when I was out at the Alder Creek demo at Vancouver lake.  I thought that looked like it would work pretty well too.

I've only kept small rainbow trout while kayak fishing so far, but I found that a stringer works fine for this task.  You get extra drag from the fish, but its not that bad (at least on a lake).

Were I keeping big lingcod or salmon, I'd want to look into something different.  Especially salmon.  I really want to troll for salmon from the kayak, but I'm a little nervous about Mr. Sea Lion trying to climb aboard and enjoy some fresh fish with me.

I usually use a diver's game clip in the saltwater.  I prefer this when targeting halibut or larger lings.  I also have those metal individual clip style stringer.  Sharpen the points on those and just punch them through the lower lip on fish like rockfish.

I do not dangle anything over the side in salt water for fear of the overly aggressive seals, sea lions, and yup, white sharks.  The white sharks are more of a concern in the Bay Area.

I don't bag the fish, just throw them in the tankwell.  If I know I'll be out for a full day or that it's a warm day, I'll drape a wet towel over them.  Everything gets bled immediately for better fish quality.

-Allen

On the freshwater side, I prefer to bring a little cooler with ice. Dragging dead fish around on a stringer, in 65-75F water, is a good way to encourage spoilage. Of course, in my rowboat, I'm spoiled for space. Still, if I was in a yak, I'd have some kind of cold storage. I recently picked up a small soft cooler for $8.00.

 The old school is a wet burlap sack. The water evaporating keeps your catch pretty fresh even with alot of sun. Just keep wetting it.
 That works pretty good up here, but in the south, where evaporation works in reverse, most yak fisherman have been using big insulated bags from Costco or Sam’s club. Think pizza delivery bag. They run about $10 and will hold a limit 28” reds and specks and 10lbs of ice for most of the day when the air is 90+ and the water is 91  (I’ve caught redfish that felt warm to the touch!) You can also freeze a few quarts of drinking water or Gatorade, just drink a bit before freezing for expansion.  Man, there is nothing better than ice cold Gatorade with fish slime! YUM! You can stuff the bag inside the big hatch or really test the insulation and leave it the tankwell.
I’ve been toying with the idea of stuffing an partially inflated air mattress (pool float) inside the hull for additional insulation and floatation.

Allen: I don’t have a problem with the hull holding a smell. When it has gotten funky I’ll hose it out, add a bit of bleach, hose it out again, and leave the hatches open for the drive. That's part of the beauty of fishing from tupperware! Actually it’s a lot better to take them off so you don’t loose them (ask me how I know) 

Wali


Hot Redfish

Nice Red!
 I haven't had a good blackened Redfish since I left the Texas gulf area. MMMMMM!!

FFTW, is that an inflatable you caught that redfish off of?

-Allen

FFTW, is that an inflatable you caught that redfish off of?
-Allen

Yep.
 Sevylor SVX 200 
EXCELLENT fishing boat. Paddles well single and double. Holds a gigaton of gear. Extraordinarily stable and just makes the cut for unpenalized carry on baggage.

Only problem is it won't hold air       I really want to love that boat, but I have had soo many problems with the damn bladders leaking. The dealer has been very helpful, but the manufacturer was totally unresponsive. And it is a factory problem!!!!! Pinhole leaks in the welds in the tips of the bladders. Don't get me started 

I used to live in Texas and we allways carried a  box of rock salt to cool the beers in a hurry.
I think if you added a ziplok with some ice and rocksalt, you would have a "mini fridge" on board for a few hours.
Stuff it in your game bag or just lay over the catch.
will try.
Sea run Cutthroat are in the river now and the baitballs are working into the lower river estuary. This means the Salmon may enter the river to follow bait in. I'm polishing my spinners now!