Of all the questions I've seen here in my short time here, this one has to be one of the most amusing. O.o

Come on... after all my years fishing, I do not recall anyone refer to any species being "manly", much less being "the manliest fish to fish for".

I would believe that the "the manliest fish to fish for" (if there is such a thing) are the ones where you are teaching your child or some other beginner young person about our fishing sport. I'd believe that the times I've taken my nieces and nephews to a little bluegill lake in north Michigan and spent all day baiting hooks with "icky live worms and crickets", or helping one of the kids deal with getting hung up and have to re-rig their Zebco push button reel and pole... have been the most "manliest" and fun fishing times of my life.

When I'm out alone fishing for myself, spending the morning or afternoon catching double handfuls of little 4 or 6 inch bluegills is highly satisfying. Sure... catching a two pound bluegill would be outstanding, and catching a five pound trout on the world famous Madison River in Wyoming in Yellowstone National Park is definitely a once in a lifetime experience, however... watching the joy on a child's face when you hear the delight in a young voice yelling "I got one, I got one", when they're catching a five inch bluegill makes me proud I am their uncle.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

I am one who thinks the OP did the right thing. Just because you can catch and keep a big one, doesn't mean you have to. Unless of course it's some kind of major record kind of fish... I understand that too. However, it is to note that the big ones make the little ones that provide our future experiences when teaching our children about fishing.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

A rose by any other name is still a rose. :)

I've found that over the many years I've fished, that this fish is called that, the other fish is called that... each area of fishing has it's own name for the same species. It's all good as long as you catch them.

Best Regards,
Fred Williams

Sorry to hear that primodude,

Many of the Asian restaurants I've visited have enjoyed the bits and pieces of fortune cookies I have shared with them. Unfortunately, the cookie fortunes have never been correct for my life, (sigh)

I am sad that your garden of big goldfish ended up the way it did.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

ofGreetings nwaka, thank you for your kind comments, as they are much appreciated within the arena of not only being nice to others, however, your experiences seem to offer help instead of hate that sometimes overwhelms all of our online experiences.

No telling what kind of "attitude" Mr. Ice Fisherperson and his behavior towards the Conservation Officer that this fisherman you write about, took when talking about his out of season bass. It's mostly never a good idea to to argue with a State Police Person about the rules of the Michigan DNR, especially when they can try to argue their way out of an obvious violation of the rules.

However, I kind of digress here... the whole point of your original question (in my opinion) was to ask about what to do with the fish guts (i.e. the "offal") after catching and cleaning the fish a person catches and want to keep for eating... obviously, they need to go someplace. I know I don't care to eat bluegill guts and bones... :)

So many folks here seem to offer the "put everything in a plastic bag (maybe even freezing it) and tossing it into their garbage" method... I would tend to believe that such a thing is not even sustainable. Our family owns some several tens of acres of wonderful fishing and wildlife area within Manistee County in Michigan. This property is a treasure to us that use it. What we do is make sure that our "offal" is made available to the various and sundry little critters that share their land with us. All the offal is distributed to various parts of the property, or otherwise used as plant fertilizer for our garden... and yes nwaka, some of it gets put back into the waters where we catch the fish we choose to eat. It seems to us that the offal can return some life to the waters and forest we live and love in. It is such a simple idea, that seems much more sustainable than wrapping it in some various version of plastic and sending it off to a community landfill.

Your choices may be different... however, the continued variety and beauty of our family land's bounty seems to be the way to go for us. It has supported us for some 120 years, and hopefully our grandkids will continue in our tradition.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

Greetings nwaka, I smile in your general direction and appreciate the heads up...

I read through my little fishing rules book from the counter at Wally World after reading your post... and then spent a couple hours searching through the Michigan DNR 2019 rules online. I couldn't find anything that pointed to specifically mentioning tossing "remnants" into the water when I clean my fish at my favorite pond as being illegal.

Although, it is also to note that there are some rules relating to "chumming" to attract fish. Those rules for chumming definitely and positively say do not do that here in Michigan under certain and possible conditions.

All this is not to say I'm a game warden or fish commissioner here in Michigan... it's just that I mentioned a way to keep the area around your house or apartment free of stinky fish residue. :)

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

Howdy Kaiser...

I've been fishing for some many (45++ years) and I've NEVER had an experience when catching a "normal" fish for the area I've been fishing in... has caused my rod to break in an unexpected way. It all comes down to knowing how to use your chosen fishing pole.

As an example, I use a fly rod. The big NO-NO is to reel in a fish and holding your rod in front of the cork handle, up into the main fishing rod area. This kind of behavior stresses the rod beyond it's designed limits because the fly rod was not designed to be held in that way when catching a fish. The same thing applies when a person yanks, jerks, and tries to "horse" the fish to the net.

With the rods available today, they could likely stand being "abused" in this way... although I wouldn't recommend it. At the risk of being accused of being a "cruel" catch and release fisher person... hold the fish on the end of the line and let the fish get a bit tired out. There are some limits to over tiring a given fish, however, if your're hungry... you might want to do that.

After all this somewhat lengthy thoughts on breaking your fishing pole... it's hard to break your fishing pole because of simply catching a fish. Please ignore the circumstance of catching a 15 pound catfish on a four pound line. :)

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

If I'm going be keeping some of the fish I catch, I bring along some basic fish cleaning equipment... and clean the fish at the shore or in the boat I'm fishing from... then fling the head and guts back into the lake. The little fish, and other things in the water appreciate the free food, and I appreciate that when I get home that all the "nasty" parts are already taken care of.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

Greetings jeanmca09,

Glad to virtually meet you!

Lots of good information here on this forum... some of it is really specialized, more of it is useful to all kinds of folks who fish for most everything. And, like other forums - there are many posts and questions that either ask the same question(s) over and over, or sometimes are a bit silly and amusing to read.

I'm glad to be watching for your own questions and your own experiences.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

Your up and coming fishing trip sounds like fun flyguy. I wish for you and your friend(s) much fun and many fish. Living where I do, I've never fished any of the Great Lakes... and I know even less about Lake Huron... I'm sure there are fish in there, because what I have heard about Lake Huron comes my Canadian buddies.

Anyway, everyone I've talked to about the other Great Lakes around Michigan - all speak very well about what results they've had...

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

Hello MeMeMaKeR6,

All the answers here are valid.

I've been fishing where the rules call for a 15" minimum size and a 35 each fish limit... we did that in about 2 hours. We even had a contest to see who could cast, and NOT catch a fish. I've also been fishing at a small lake for bluegill, and again, every cast caught a fish. This is not a normal happening, and I've been skunked more times than I can count.

When my brothers and I fished the world famous Madison River in Yellowstone National Park, on the two days we fished, our combined total was upwards of 25 fish per trip. Of course, many places on the Madison River were catch and release... but we had a good time on that trip too.

It's kind of like going to a carnival... you pays your money, and you take the chance. :)

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

flyguy... Sorry coach, I was a very light classed minor wrestler way back in my high school days, and there are many differences between Whitedogs and Whitecats. However, we all have had a wrestling mentality at some point. :)

The war between dogs and cats is an eternal one, and both animals have their own advantages. Sort of like people who fly fish and those who don't.

I smile in your general direction, flyguy.

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams

Having recently moved to Michigan from the Dallas, TX area - one of the top items on my to-do list was to get myself established as a fishing person that resides in Michigan... So, my first task was to get the "fishing book" from the Michigan DNR and study up on the local rules. Beings as I still have my Texas Drivers License, I paid very close attention to the sections about acquiring a Resident Michigan License.

It turns out that the Michigan DNR has graciously provided a way for new residents to purchase a resident fishing license, without the need for a Michigan Drivers License.

It works like this... To get a resident fishing license here in Michigan you need something off this list:
- A Michigan Drivers License, OR
- A Michigan Issued State ID, OR
- A Michigan DNR Sportcard

Obviously. I looked at the rules for a DNR Sportcard. It turns out that this will prove you're a resident, and to get one, you need proof of residence. Something like a utility bill, copy of a property lease agreement, or other paper that shows your local residential address on some kind of local government official paper. I used a water/sewer/garbage monthly bill from the city I live in.

So, I jump into my Texas Licensed car... with my Texas Drivers License... and my proof of residence in hand... and happily traveled over to the local Wally World. When I got to the Walmart Fishing License desk, I explained to the Department Manager that I wanted a Michigan DNR Sportcard, my Drivers License was from Texas, and showed him my proof of residence... namely the water/sewer/garbage monthly bill from the city I live in... and because I did all that, I then wanted to purchase a Michigan Resident Fishing License.

Well, you can imagine my disappointment when Mr. Walmart Department Manager told me I couldn't do that, because I had a Texas Drivers License. (????) I opened the little DNR book and pointed him at the relevant paragraphs (shown above, noting that each item on the list is an OR item, not an AND item... along with the rules of the DNR Sportcard).

Mr. Department Manager insisted that the first item on the list is a Michigan Drivers License... and that is the Word From God. Beings as I have a Texas Drivers License and not wanting to get into some kind of big public argument over his B.S., I said OK. He charged me $77.00 for a Michigan Fishing License and DNR Sportcard... and I went home knowing I could now fish in Michigan legally.

When I got home, I called Michigan DNR... and explained (in four part harmony) what the rules actually said... and how I'd gotten ripped off big time. My new buddy (Joe) at the Michigan DNR and Joe told me to go back to Wally World and complain... along with having Mr. Department Manager call him at the Michigan DNR.

I did that, along with stopping off and getting the Walmart Store Manager up to date with my difficulties.

It turns out that when the Walmart Store Manager and Mr. Department Manager called the Michigan DNR, my interpretation of the Resident Michigan Fishing License was (obviously) correct. So, the Walmart Manager and Mr. Department Manager then kindly did everything in the way I originally intended, and instead of paying the original $77.00, I paid the more proper $16.00 for this year's Michigan Fishing License.

At the end of this long-azzed post, the moral of the story is, it's ALWAYS a good idea to read the DNR rules for your state, and where appropriate, do not listen to Mr. Department Manager and take his determination of the rules because he's supposedly an "expert". :)

Best Regards and Good Luck!
Fred Williams, now a full and completely legal resident of Michigan's DNR fishing program.

P.S. That $16.00 license price only works in Michigan if you are 65 or older.

Howdy tigger... Congratulations!

Sounds like you've found your stride. Way to go my virtual friend... it sure sounds like you have turned some kind of corner, sometimes quantity wins over quality. :)

I knew you could do it.

Best Regards and more Good Luck to you!
Fred Williams

tigger... I'm curious as to what happens tomorrow... heh heh heh

Best Regards and Good Luck
Fred Williams