# Sheephead??



## Lord of the Salmon (Feb 17, 2008)

Has anyone noticed if the sheephead are back on the galveston north jetty yet? I have some friends that actually eat them and they are somewhat entertaining on light tackle. Besides, the ones there tend to have a biggness about them.


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## sabine lake hustler (Dec 17, 2007)

ONE OF THE BEST EATING FISH OUT THERE. THE MEET IS REALLY SWEET.


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## trio-assassin (Nov 4, 2008)

if you like fish, you'd be crazy not to eat a sheepshead!


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## JustAddWater2 (Oct 10, 2005)

*2CoolSupper*

:whitesheeYummy


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## lowe18 (Dec 18, 2004)

fished the kemah channel today...10am -12 pm..live shrimp fish next to the pilings at the kemah boardwalk...caught 20+.....kept 10 between 2 of us from 19-23 inches..adn 2 reds from 22-25 inches....nice and fat....:work:


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## blueproline (Sep 25, 2007)

please discard all unwanted sheephead to myself...i will propperly dispose of all fish that ever come into your posession. mmmmmmmm......sheephead....ahhhhhhh


Lord of the Salmon said:


> Has anyone noticed if the sheephead are back on the galveston north jetty yet? I have some friends that actually eat them and they are somewhat entertaining on light tackle. Besides, the ones there tend to have a biggness about them.


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## chopsinblack (Mar 12, 2008)

lowe18... is the kemah boardwalk open post ike? and are you allowed to fish there and where? im headed down there next month, would be great not to drive all the way down to galveston. thanks


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## cfred (Jun 13, 2004)

I know they're a pain to clean, but can you get a boneless fillet out of one?


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## CoastalOutfitters (Aug 20, 2004)

filet them backwards


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## cfred (Jun 13, 2004)

So backwards you can get a boneless fillet? I just know my wife would have fun catching them and if it's that good of meat I'd keep them, if, I can get a boneless fillet. Otherwise I know we won't eat them when we can eat the boneless trout or red fillets.


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## JustAddWater2 (Oct 10, 2005)

Back in the day before tarter sauce we caught loads of bluegills and sun pearch. I don't recall eating fish without bones. We scaled, cut off the heads and ate the rest, including the crispy tail. You just ate around the bones. We left skeketons on our plates to remind us how good it was. Ketchup helps for the weak. You might go to the seabrook side of the bridge and fish from what used to be fish and bait houses. Cast towards the boardwalk. If you have a boat, just launch under the bridge go about 50 feet and tie off to the shoreline.


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## capt mullet (Nov 15, 2008)

In Florida they love to eat them and they are targeted as a real game fish in the winter. In fact sheepy season starts about now in Florida and a lot of the big time guides target them. When I lived there they would have a lot of TV shows showing guys targeting them and the coolest thing was that they would scrape the barnacles off of pilings and actually chum them up that way and then they would actually take barnacles and place them on the hook and catch them with just using barnacles as the bait. That was really amazing to me!


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## Fishin' Soldier (Dec 25, 2007)

One of the best eating fish out there epsecially on the grill. I usually bowfish them it easier..


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## SaltH2oAssassin (Jan 25, 2006)

Try just gutting them and throwing them on the grill. You don't even need to scale them. When it is cooked, you can just peel back the skin with the scales on and then just pick off the meat. MMMMMMM good eating. This way is not for those who are used to just eating fillets of fish. Just another way of eating these great tasting fish.


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## fishnstringer (Oct 20, 2006)

*Sheephead*

are structured like a redfish or blackdrum. The primary difference between the sheephead/black drum and the redfish is they have larger fins. The fins will definitely do some damage to you if you are not careful. I typically have used a pair of kevlar (I think) gloves when cleaning them, because their tougher fins and scales can make you slip with the knife. The meat on the sheephead and black drum filet off the back bone just like off the redfish. They don't have small bones either, all of their bones are large like their fins. Because of the size of their head relative to their body, you will typically get less meat per same size redfish, otherwise everything else is the same. Hope this answers your question.


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## Gottagofishin (Dec 17, 2005)

Sheephead are like crabs. They are good to eat, but a lot of trouble for what you get.


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## Pocboy (Aug 12, 2004)

I've heard about making a chumming device out of pvc with a cap on both ends and holes along the length. Stuff it with scraped barnacles and smashed oysters and drop it into the water to bring them up.


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## killer minnow (Nov 6, 2008)

can u cook them on da 1/2 shell like da reds?


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## J L Dunn (Sep 16, 2005)

It's been so long since I've caught a sheepshead that I don't remember how difficult it is to set the hook. Now that I have gravitated toward a fly rod for most of my fishing, when I can go, catching sheepshead with a fly rod sounds like a lot of fun,

Will they go for a fly? or any particular arty?

Thanks,

JLD


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## da fillthy hoe (Nov 13, 2008)

*R good 4 Tacos*



killer minnow said:


> can u cook them on da 1/2 shell like da reds?


 Hell yeah you can there grreeeaaattt! Use a large breaking knife to clean (your knuckles dont get as close to the spines) also if your ever around a shrimpers supply get a dozen pair of shrimpers gloves for those occasions they save your hands you can really handle large quantities without get-n tore up.And also work great when your gutt-n or process-n deer on cold days try um once and youll always have a couple stuffed in with your knives Once you get in the rethym step back its fillet and play time!!


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## killer minnow (Nov 6, 2008)

J L Dunn said:


> It's been so long since I've caught a sheepshead that I don't remember how difficult it is to set the hook. Now that I have gravitated toward a fly rod for most of my fishing, when I can go, catching sheepshead with a fly rod sounds like a lot of fun,
> 
> Will they go for a fly? or any particular arty?
> 
> ...


 if u ever fish chocolate go to where the barge's are park.my father in law and i went yesterday and gat a few of them.


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## Bonito (Nov 17, 2008)

Yes, the Sheep Heads are at the North Jetty. Also try the 2 Channel Markers in front of Sea Wolf Park. ( Pilings ) Basically any piling. 

Take a camping shovel with you and scrape the barnacles off of the pilings. The Sheep Head will show up shortly. Shrimp are good but the best bait is Fiddler Crabs.


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## mikey01 (Oct 17, 2008)

is the ferry open to get across to the north jetty?


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## Lord of the Salmon (Feb 17, 2008)

Thanks for the info. I'm thinking of taking off work early and farting around for a couple on the first small jetty (the one in front of teh wreckage of Poretto beach).

I usually deep fry these guys in a cornmeal dusting. I smoked one on the pit last year and it was excellent..


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## killer minnow (Nov 6, 2008)

man i put 1 in the oven with the butter and limon pepper and all the good stuff.it was yummy.then my buddy came over and we put one on the pit.fixed it up the same way i do my reds.make u slap ur mama


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## adpostel (Jan 14, 2006)

Caught a nice fat one the other day, and the key is to definitely filet it like a red on the 1/2 shell. So like others mentioned, filet it backwards starting at the tail, and run your knife down the bone. Just rinse it, dress it up, I go with butter, sliced lemon, sliced onion and some lemon pepper seasoning, and then throw it on the gril. Cooked up really nice and tastes really good, no bones. They're not the most popular, but they eat pretty well, I'll never throw one back. Good Luck!


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## muleherder (Mar 7, 2006)

For a long time, I thought the only boneless fish was fish sticks. I was at least 25 before I ever heard of a boneless fillet. 

I remember those days JustAddWater.


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## speckfisher (Apr 11, 2006)

Fished offshore this summer and caught some snapper . On the way in stopped and caught some sheephead at a rig. Took the snapper and the sheephead to a friends house and cooked them the same way wrapped in foil and basted with butter and lemon. To my suprise the sheephead were prefered over the snapper.
I use an ax and hold it on the back of the head and the sharp part towards the scales. Just push it back and forth like a scaler only you have weight behind it. The scales come off very easy that way.


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