Fishing Lake Chapala

I am thinking of hiring one of the water taxi's to take me out fishing. I want to go after one of the legendary big assed carp that are supposedly out there. Anyone else interested in coming?

Me! I think the best fishing will be when the water warms a bit but I'll go anytime.

oncesubtle wrote:Me! I think the best fishing will be when the water warms a bit but I'll go anytime.

Isn't it always best to fish when the water is colder, so the fish can be fileted better by keeping its flesh firmer and getting more out of the filet? Do you guys know how to filet a fish? My father was an expert.

Filet of carp,yummy.

viajero wrote:Filet of carp,yummy.

I don't know anyone who ate that years ago, but we were always salt water fisherman living in Mass on the East Coast. You haven't had good saltwater fish until you eat fresh fish from New England or the Pacific Coast.

We used to get, Flounder, Lemon Sole, Cod, Rock Cod and Haddock. We used to throw back Pollock and Shark as inferior fish.

John, we're just kidding around,actually fishing Chapala might be fun.

I have been told after catching them,they are usually kept for several days in running clear water to rinse out any muddy flavor. Also, I have been told they are a bony fish.

Well I am not looking to eat them. It will be strictly catch and release for me.

I'll go. No gear, but the experience would suffice.

I sent you a PM. You can get a really cheap set-up at WalMart.

One cannot help being amused by "fishermen stories" and I ran across the following quote by a diehard carp fisherman:"They are truly a good fight and if cleaned properly can taste exactly like buffalo. "

CheenaGringo wrote:One cannot help being amused by "fishermen stories" and I ran across the following quote by a diehard carp fisherman:"They are truly a good fight and if cleaned properly can taste exactly like buffalo. "

Buffalo carp is a fish similar in appearance and taste to carp although usually larger. Caught a lot of them in the muddy Missouri River. Like carp, a lot of bones.
Nobody "goes buffalo carp fishing", it's an afterthought.

Random carp notes:

1. Best to fish when the fish are biting John. The carp in Lake Chapala are more active in warmer water.

2. You get more out of a filet by being experienced, cold or warm water/fish doesn't matter.

3. Carp are very bony and not worth the effort to filet but that's o.k because they make a great cevechi, or so I'm told. I suspect they could be baked or broiled but couldn't imagine one fried.

4. I doubt 'soaking' a carp in clean water will improve the taste. The only thing we've ever soaked were mussels and clams so they would expel any sand they might be holding.

5. If I catch any they will be given to our housekeeper, she loves 'em as do many of our neighbors.

6. Light weight fishing gear i.e. trout rod, 6 lb. test line, split shot sinkers can make carp fishing a real thrill.

7. There are some very large carp in Lake Chapala. Augustine, of Viva Mexico Restaurant in San Juan Cosala fame, has the whopper carp story of all time. Fifty plus pounds by golly and he enjoys telling the story.

8. The carp are vegetarians so corn, peas and corn tortilla strips are best baits.

9. On a good day expect bites every 15 minutes. Average weight between 2-3 pounds with an occasion fish up to 6. Fishing from one hour after sunrise till noon has proven most effective.

10. Here are some Youtube vids of fishing in Europe where unlike north America carp fishing is a big deal. https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=carp+fishing+in+england&oq=carp+fishing+in+england&gs_l=youtube.12...0.0.1.3235.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0...0.0...1ac.rDv653uZuVo

Steaking and scoring gets rid of a lot of the bones in carp and buffalo. They kind of cook up when fried and that's how we used to handle them.
Catch and release?....that was unheard of when I was a kid. In fact, if someone had been heard to say that, they would have been sent away to someplace and never heard of again. LOL

In Utah we called them trash fish,but hey any kind of fishing is fun and here you don't need an ice auger this time of year.

Wasn't there once a recipe post along the lines of: heat a rock, cook the carp on the rock, throw away the carp and eat the rock?

borderreiver wrote:Wasn't there once a recipe post along the lines of: heat a rock, cook the carp on the rock, throw away the carp and eat the rock?

Yup, Posted that for Merry....borderreiver....Welcome by the way....Ya just find a dish size flat rock...put it on an open fire. when it is white hot, put the carp on, for an hour minimum..... EZ PZ recipe.

viajero wrote:In Utah we called them trash fish,but hey any kind of fishing is fun and here you don't need an ice auger this time of year.

Where I lived, you had to get down to a gar, to earn that "title". Even the cats wouldn't eat them.

slainte39:

Thanks for the clarification! I was thinking the four legged type bison. Shows you what I know about carp fishing.

1st time I saw a gar was on the banks, in Iowa, of the mighty Miss. (can't remember which one). Different looking kind of fish. Also the 1st time I ever saw fireflies. We were on our way to the opening of Disneyland. 1st time for buffalo too. Big event summer for a 9 yr. old

There are people who like to fish and people who like seafood. Two different animals. I think fishing sucks and fishing for carp turds in the polluted Lake is the only reason some rednecks ever leave the trailer park without their, "I May Be Slow But I´m Ahead of You" bumper stickers. You can tell the ones who actually ate those goobers. They can be found in emergency rooms all over the state with stomach pumps churning away hovered over by insurance agents going, "You know Billy Bob, when I sold you the policy, you never told me you had a habit of eating prehistoric turdballs. That sounds to me like a pre-existing psychological condition requiring exclusion under Clause 14.5, Section 1844 clearly spelled out in the policy which you should have read, brother ."

Other than a trip to the store or Chiapas, do you ever leave your house Mr. Dawg? Seems like you don't like to do much. We will let you drink tequila and drive the boat........

OMG! That sounds like a recipe for disaster...better take life jackets.
I caught a gar when I was 18...the thing was sooo ugly that I never went fishing again. Put up a good fight though.
I am reminded of a story my ex-brother-in-law told me...he was a butcher for Dominion and they used to have tanks of live carp for their Jewish clientele. One client, while looking at the tank, said "Are they fresh?"
Oy vey.

I'd be interested. When are you planning to do this?

I have company visiting from Feb. 5 to 12 so it needs to be before or after those dates. RB thinks the best fishing may be up around Mezcala Island. I suppose we could either rent a Chapala boat and get there via the lake or drive to Mezcala and rent a local boat there.

What are you thinking RB?

Also, does anyone know where to buy any hooks locally. The ones I have are too big. I know Walmart had them but someone said their fishing gear is no longer stocked.