COLD IS HOT
Hebgen On Fire
smokers galore
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.. It's even nicer when they bring over some tasty golden bounty from nearby Hebgen Reservoir. We pretend to understand their language and we get along just swimmingly.
.. We trade lies about the temperature, (-20's & -30's,) and extol the seeming virtues of being able to exhaust oneself by partaking of the exercise necessary to drill a hole in the ice -- and sit in a small shelter while the wind roars across the naked expanse of ice.
.. It's cold enough here that we usually don't have to resort to "wind chill" factors to impress anyone. On the other hand a -52° F / wind chill factor in the bright and blinding sun is not an experience for the faint of heart.
.. So, long story made short: smoked fish is the dish of the day. These kids are genuine smoked fish aficionados: they cold smoke the fish most of the time. It takes more time but the fish last longer, taste far better, and are flaky and buttery smooth... On rare occasions they will hot smoke them with a sweet brine and then throw the boned fillets in a blender with some mysterious ingredients and produce a smoked fish dip that goes great with just about anything.
.. These fish were taken about a week or so ago. There are still some in the smoker. There will be more tonight - damn the weather. Bless their hearts.
.. Apropos of our recent posts a few were taken on a fly. Not a single one on any of the flies we've mentioned. These were taken on a small renegade. Most were taken on bits of night crawler. A few were taken on the last of the maggots left in town. The fish are hungry in the winter.
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