Handling eels

[kezza99]

Caught my first eel today, Had some trouble with the thing on the shore. Every time i tried getting anywhere near the damn thing it turned on the length of its own body to face my hands. Ended up just putting him back in the water and cutting the line. At a guess i reckon he was only about 40 cm...To be honest it makes me feel a little stupid....lol. What is the best way to handle these guys? And also what do i need to watch out for/be careful of while handling them?

[Dazzamcgee]

I just cut the line near the hook.....no point stuffing around with the slimy buggers you end up with slime all over ya if you do....

some of the sharkers around here like to use them for bait...

if you do get some slime on ya line cut it off past it as their slime puts other fish of the bite...

[Oztrav]

what if its your $30 jackall

[kezza99]

Yeah losing tackle really annoys me....haha i wish i was fishing for fish big enough to use an eel as bait.....wat dangers is there in handling them?

[Dazzamcgee]

:laugh: :laugh: if its me $30 jackall i would look for something like a lump of wood or a large rock and beat the s%#t out it till it kicks the bucket.then leave it for 10minutes to make sure its stopped kicking then remove the lure from its mouth.....then throw it back.:whistle:

the only danger is their teeth ....

Post edited by: dazzamcgee, at: 2007/01/23 14:15

[Oztrav]

okay since its an eel stand on it steady enough to stop it from squirming but without squashing it grab some pliers preferably long needle nosed and take you rhook back kiss it then give it to a sharker

I guess that is how you would do it. Any other suggestions

[Terry H]

I just whack it in the esky straight away. :laugh: then open it open slightly so I can unhook it with some pliers.

Excluding that, just grab an old rag (or your bare hands if you don't have a rag) and grab it with two hands (depending on the size) for a 40cm one I wouldn't bother using two hands to hold it. If it's larger and you're by yourself, use one hand and a foot to hold it down, whilst you unhook it with some pliers.

Then if you want you can take it home, put it in your freezer and give to me... :woohoo:

kezza: what type was it? Pike eel, moray eel, or one of the freshies?

[kezza99]

not too sure terry....it was long, slimy and grey:laugh: with yellow fins near its gills....it had a white belly...maybe u can tell me wat it was..defiantly had some decent choppers in its gob...

[Gerty_92]

would the eel actually take a lure...i havnt heard of a pike doing it but do others?

[Oztrav]

I f an eel is cranky enough it will i guess

[Terry H]

Kezza: did it look similar to http://www.australianfishing.com.au/photos/219.html

Was it in a salt water (tidal) water system? Sounds like a pike eel. You need to take a little extra care with those eels, they certainly can bite!

[werewolf]

yeah I'll second Terry: Pike Eels have nasy canine teeth and they won't hesitate to have a go at you. The also like lying very still, giving you a false sense of security, then you try to get the hook out and it gets really exciting.

Me: I rate them as the second best bait for river sharking, so when caught I introduce them to Mr Axe straight away. They can't bite with no head:side:

[kezza99]

Yeah Terry it does look pretty similar, except for the size obviously ....nice eel. You are deadright werewolf, i had it up on the bank for a good 2 mins and it had not moved for a bout 1 min....couldnt even see it gasping for air, I went to try and get the hook out still cautious i approched from the rear of it, in about 1/2 a second the bastard had turned around on itself with mouth wide open showing me a nice set of pearly whites...i spent the next 30 secs scooping nuggets out of my jocks...lol...:woohoo:

[werewolf]

:laugh: LOL

[Feral]

Oztrav wrote:

what if its your $30 jackall

If you can afford $30 dollars for a lure in the first place, you can afford a few more!

[tdawg]

even if you do bank them for 2 minutes and then cut off their heads they can still chomp down on anything in their mouths!:ohmy:

Post edited by: tdawg, at: 2007/01/23 20:18

[jeff f]

when your in a 12 foot tinny and your demented mate pulls one five feet long into the boat you thve no choice but to go after them with a waddi

and beat them to death or the bloody thing willsit there for a while then try to wreck everything in the boat then repeat the performance till you kill them

[Cowfish13]

Pike eels can also stand up on their tail to bite you

[brado]

i have had a few very close tooth encounters from the common pike eel. best idea is to cut the buggers off n thatll save u alot of time n mayb a finger.

[Oztrav]

get a donger and use it as self defence.