[fishsnatcher]

I have never tried catching eels [except ounce when i was younger we made a trap and caught two large ones], are they any good eating?

I could go spearing eels [never done spearing before so pretty keen to give it a go] I often see them sitting in holes, lol ounce i saw a 3lb trout chase away a 5ft eel , i as thinking “Ok… so what level is that trout on the food chain?”

[yellowfin]

ive caught alot of eels inthe kaiapoi river usually if the river is dirty or getting into night some rather large as well. all caught on hooks lol

[fishsnatcher]

lol traps are way easier and if you have the right bait are more productive, though depending on the type of trap you may have to watch it to make sure ounce the eel goes in it don’t come out…

[fishsnatcher]

the main reason i posted this topic is because im wondering weather it would be worth spearing [probably not on a rod!!!!] a 6ft+ eel that always sits in the same spot. Any good eating? Or would it taste like an old leather boot.

I could go down with my salmon rod and get him to take a lure…. but they twist and tangle your line….

[yellowfin]

Catching eels on 1kg line would be fun though………..

[Sevengillz]

I dont think eels are great eating and even if you smoke them you cant get rid of that mud-fish taste.You got to remember a freshwater eel of that size would be very old.Could be looking around 50 years old plus.There are big eels up here in our lakes and they are protected.Some of them have been estimated to be in excess of 100 years old.
Really it would be a shame to kill him especially if you didnt plan on eating him in the first place.I take the odd freshy for bait but I only take 1 or 2 bootlaces and always pull the bait away if a bigboy is going for it.I have alot of tame eels at the back of my property and its cool being able to take the kids down and feed them in the middle of the afternoon and Its amazing just to think that some of the big ones that come out are atleast twice my age.

Im not going soft either I just have a newfound respect for these old-timers

[fishsnatcher]

i know, I wouldn’t actualy want that on a rod, just wondering what it would be like….
It is amazing how long they live for though especialy in the wild, I mean they don’t have anti-septic when they get a cut, or the like

[Sevengillz]

Yeah no harm in trying.As far as im concerned they taste like shit.Id rather eat a live red cod

[yellowfin]

Apparently eels eat a lot of the young salmon that go up the river to the sea, so you’re doing the salmon guys a favour if you kill them. Although the eels were there first.

[fishsnatcher]

thats the way of the wild, but why don’t they just release the salmon closer to the mouth?

[Miliwolf]

Eels are very easy to catch.

Berley a spot with a few rotten eggs and maybe a rabbit skin tied to the end of a rope. Anything with a bit of meat on works well. Even fish heads.

Leave for 5-10 minutes, then return with a bit of meat tied to a piece of string (wrap in bait elastic bag helps) (again a rabbit skin works well here). Throw the meat into the feeding frenzy and wait for a eel to grab hold and start twisting before pulling it out. Probably 75% would release before reaching the bank but a few would hang on or get caught teeth. This method is much more fun and less messy then removing a hook from a eel.

Under my bridge at home I can even hand feed the eels after a few minutes of Berley. I use to spear heaps but now I am quite fond of the slimy worms.

The very big eels are LongFin eels and are a endangered species. They have the same threaten status as the Kiwi. The smaller or shortfin eels are much more common. Remember that eels only spawn once in their life, while the size limit for most marine fish mean they are large enough to have spawned atleast a couple of times before being kept.

[fishsnatcher]

Yeah… I used to get lots of them when I was younger we used to put eggs in a tube like thing with a funnel at the front then catch and release them, great fun and I did use bait on the end of a string although don’t think I ever caught anything….

[Trumpy]

Yeah eels,
I remember living in Temuka as a young fella and they used to dredge Halls Creek out every so many years.
(This was back in the 80’s, in case you were wondering).
But, as soon as the excavator turned up, there were boys from all over town, down there chasing eels all over the banks of the creek, some fell over in the mud and went home in some shocking states.

Some had bags of eels (even school bags had eels in them), I can imagine the reception they got home “Hey Mum, I’ve got some fish for tea!” all covered in mud and stuff.

But, if you can keep eels alive for a few weeks with fresh, running water, they lose their muddy flavour.
Not my favourite food though.

[yellowfin]

in a little creek where i live are huge eels, everyday i would go down and feed them my food scraps, sometimes even just prepare a meal for them, one day while waiting for the sound of the swishing tail coming up the creek a little eel came swimming along and started to feed on the food i just chucked in, i was wondering if my pet eel had a baby, then swish swish i could hear it coming along, such a huge creature in shallow water, wow i thought i will watch these eels feeding together but guess what happened, that big huge eel munched on the little eel much to my horror, he didnt need to it there was a whole chicken to share, then it began to eat the chicken,i told my family about it, my brother reckons thats why that eel lived soo long cos hes been eating everything that comes up or down the stream, the smaller eels dont have much of a chance to survive.
Well i decided to catch that eel and feed at least 10 people i know that loved smoked eels. I was a little sad when i was told that eel was 60 to 80yrs old judging by the size of it, but then when i think about that younger eel getting snuffed out im thinking theres more eels can live in that creek now and not just 0ne.

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