Jeff's 2017 AR Shad Reports

[hwchubb]

It always used to be when the cottonwood started to bloom.

+1

We had a friend from North Carolina who loved fried shad roe. As for eating shad, not sure I'll eat anything that takes two days to wash the smell out of my hands. Probably a good rule for lots of things...

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

One evening in the 1970s my friend Cecil Wilder and I waded for Shad at the mouth of the Feather River.

Cecil had a camp stove that we cooked Shad roe on right on the sand bar.

It was very good eating.

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In the 1970s the CFFU who have an annual Shad outing at Goethe Park.

Some members would go out early in the month to catch Shad and have them smoked.

They would fish Shad in the AM on a Saturday in the Spring time and then at noon they had beer and smoked Shad.

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[John Sv]

I once heard or read or maybe read here that according to native lore a shad is a porcipine turned inside out. They smoke good if you can deal with the bones.

[Alosa]

I once heard or read or maybe read here that according to native lore a shad is a porcipine turned inside out. They smoke good if you can deal with the bones.

I'm pleased to see someone bring this up. I believe that's a native American story that's told to explain the origins to American shad. The 'bony-ness' of shad was not lost on east coast tribes like the Pamunkey and Mattaponni in Virginia, and I think you may have read about this in John McPhee's book 'The Founding Fish'. That's a GREAT read, BTW.

[Idadon]

Forgot where I heard it but supposedly Shad roe is a good substitute for oysters in a "Hangtown Fry".

[Keepemwet]

Wait, come again...? Shad on dries?? I am addicted to spring run dry fly for half pounders but had no idea about shad on the dry. Please please elaborate....

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

Some people smoke Shad.


Asian folks pickle Shad which dissolves the bones.



I met a French chef many years ago who ground the fillets up in a meat grinder to get the bones very short.

Then he mixed it with ground pork and made patties.


Some eat the roe.....I recommend you get the fish in April/May when the roe is green not later like June when the roe is red.

.

[Alosa]

Wait, come again...? Shad on dries?? I am addicted to spring run dry fly for half pounders but had no idea about shad on the dry. Please please elaborate....

I think that's pretty unlikely. Then again, there was a time when folks didn't think steelhead would take a skated dry fly...then Lani Waller showed up and proved otherwise, so maybe some shad will take a dry....but I still think it's pretty unlikely.

[Carl Blackledge]

Alosa,

Shad on the Russian River will absolutely take a dry fly. Now after that being said the high percentage way to catch them is very close to the bottom, but I have seen Shad come up and eat flies.

Carl Blackledge

[Alosa]

Alosa,

Shad on the Russian River will absolutely take a dry fly. Now after that being said the high percentage way to catch them is very close to the bottom, but I have seen Shad come up and eat flies.

Carl Blackledge

That would be pretty cool. I've fished shad at the Guernville Beach on the Russian, but there don't seem to be nearly as many as the locals say there used to be. What kind of dry fly would you use for shad?