On 23 May 2005 03:32:11 -0700, Eric The Viking let rip with:
Hi Pscylo,

Garfish are more of a sport fish ( on light float tackle ) - like you
said, they are supposed to be edible but a lot of people get put off by
their green bones!


Yeah, I had relised that. To be honest I took one look at it, and though
"that ain't for eating". Monkfish look that way to me to, but they taste
damn fine, so I'll try anything once, even with green bones.


Mackerel can be easy to catch on basic gear and are good to eat too -
especially if you take a disposable BBQ and cook them on the beach.

I'll start there I think. I've barbequed them with a tamarind and spice
filling i the cavity before and it's quite pleasant. I might have a go
at making a small smoker as well.

That said, I've got to catch some first, but as far as I can tell
mackerel seem a good choice for a complete beginner like me.

There's plenty of other good stuff to eat in the sea but most of it is
hard to catch and often requires good local knowledge of where to go,
and sometimes requires more expensive gear to catch. When I say more
expensive gear I mean that mackerel can be caught as close in as a few
yards from the shore whereas bottom feeding fish are often further out
requiring better gear to get the distances required.


There's a couple of websites that list Bass, Skate, Mackerel, Whiting
and Cod as regularly available (depending on season). One assumes that
Dogfish would be there too.

When I see how far I can cast with the rod I'll be borrowing (possibly
permananently, as my father doesn't bother anymore), I'll think about
the other fish. Mackerel is good for me though, but sea bass, mmmmmm!
I think I could spare the time to learn to ctach those.

You don't need a license for sea fishing.


Excellent. I didn't want to shell out as it's not likely to be a regular
thing.
--
Pscylo