Another Amazing Fishing Secret Revealed
Seafood, freshwater / saltwater fish preservation and another YETI secret revealed. Maintaining the quality of freshness can only be achieved by keeping your fresh catch in as cold as possible. One of the simplest food or fish handling guidelines, for safe seafood consumption, is to keep seafood on ice or refrigerated at less than 38° F to prevent spoilage. Depending on what latitude you're fishing in, this may seem an impossible task. Not so..., read on.
Science and technology teach that seafood decomposition begins immediately upon exit from water. This fact that can be verified, by anyone ever stricken, by the bacteria accompanying improperly handled fish. It's not just another YETI Roughneck amazing fishing secret revealed, you can take it to the bank.
Although any person eating fish or shellfish containing toxin or disease-causing bacteria may become ill, persons with weakened immune systems or liver problems should not eat raw seafood because of their higher risk of Vibrio infection . But... This article is NOT about VIBRIO VULNIFICUS???
Back in October of 79, while angling with a friend off the southern Florida Atlantic Coast, I stumbled upon a nifty trick to keep fresh caught fish REALLY fresh. It was an atypically hot and still-winded day for that time of year. The must needed wind, to produce good offshore sailfish action was missing that day, so we left the bluewater and headed west to the color change hoping to jump some Kingfish. My angling partner Russ and I started trolling for Kingfish about 2 miles out from Miami's Government Cut (known affectionately to fishermen as the 'Honey Hole'.)
We weren't having any luck and it was getting late. As our disappointment was mounting, Russ noticed a lot of boats, congregated in about as straight of a line as you could imagine. My sounder pinged greater than 200 feet. What's this about?... I thought.
Anyway we decided to drag some Hoos by the congregation and check it out. About a hundred yards from the fleet, we saw dozens of long fish rocketing out of the water like maniacs. Yep.... they were Kingfish. Ahhh!!! the motherload, we must have both thought.
Those boats all had pairs of fishermen s and were anchored in 160' water. They were tossing handfuls of live pilchards in the water astern of their boats to chum-up the kings. The pilchard chumming had the school so excited that some of the undergrad feeders accidentally ended up in some of those boats following their leaps. The fishermen had a pretty good little system going. One fisherman would hook a king and retrieve it just to the point that its head was flush to the gunnels. His partner (sorry ladies, they were all men) would then whack it in the head with a Billy bat.
You came in search of a Fishing Secret. The YETI Roughneck (formerly Icey-Tek) Amazing Secret Revealed is not how to catch em with pilchard chumming, but what to do with them after they are caught. The fisherman would then quickly slide the fish over the gunnels and into an ice chest with a slurry of saltwater and ice. (Reminded me of a 7-11 slusshie, but with salt...Yuck!) Hmm, I thought, those babies would remain very fresh on their way home. Since that trip I've become a staunch advocate of good coolers.
Back then, there were no high-end coolers and most ice chests were constructed with open-cell styrofoam, cork or wood insulation and covered/not with a thin layer of vinyl or an aluminum shielding. Igloo was, and still is, DA King to a lot of old salts.
There's a new sheriff in town and his name is 'YETI. Whether it be Miami fishing, North Carolina fishing or Alabama fishing with live pilchards, the new YETI Tundra coolers rule. South Florida is a good testing ground for coolers and their IT-TLR latch design. Learn more about IT-TLR latches.
Frigid-Rigid may make a classier looking, albeit more expensive cooler, but to get the best bang for your buck, choose YETI. YETI (formerly Icey-Tek) coolers are handmade from premium components & materials to create the ultimate in a commercial quality icebox. They have a non-odor absorbing, impact resistant food grade internal liner. Superior ice retention (9 days or more in outside temperature of 90° F) is now more possible than ever before.
YETI Roughneck (formerly Icey-Tek) should be on your mind for fishing, camping, tailgating or gift occasions. Investigate online at
Cosmic Ray Enterprises or call / email Roy Seiders, CEO of YETI Coolers in Texas, for a dealer near you. Roy's number is 512-394-9384. Finally the truth about an Amazing Fishing Secret Revealed.
