Jigging for Cod

 Monday, July 10, 2023

Hi Blog!

Fishing was the big reason folks settled in Newfoundland and Labrador. While Cod fishing in Newfoundland was carried out at a subsistence level for centuries, large scale fishing began shortly after the European arrival on the North American continent. Commercial Cod fishing ended after intense over-fishing with the collapse of the fisheries in 1992. Today, limited licenses are issued to commercial fishing ventures. Recreational Cod fishing is allowed on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays during the summer months. 

Having heard so much about Cod fishing during our visits to Newfoundland and Labrador, Kathy was eager to give it a go. Dave, not being fond of party boat fishing, stayed back at the rig and accomplished some needed chores on the promise that Kathy would bring home fresh Cod for dinner. 

Mission accomplished!

Just sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip that started from this arctic port aboard this tiny ship.

Dave dropped Kathy off at QV Charters in Quidi Vidi (pronounced: "kiddy viddy") at the wee hour of 9:00 a.m. The morning fog hid the sun from view. A family of four from Nova Scotia was already waiting on the picnic deck. We were soon joined by a couple from Ontario. After donning our life jackets, we endured the safety briefing and then set sail. (Yes, our boat, the Smugglers Run, looks a lot like the "S.S. Minnow" from Gilligan's Island.)

As we prepared to leave Quidi Vidi Harbour, another boat was coming in the tickle.

The tickle is so narrow that only one boat can pass through as a time. It is also very shallow. At low tide, the clearance is four feet. The Smugglers Run has a three and a half foot draft. We all had to move forward in the cabin to make sure our motors didn't drag on the bottom. 

Good bye Quidi Vidi!

In all the years we've been fishing, we have never caught a fish so fast. As soon as we passed the tickle, the captain slowed the boat and ordered us to drop our lines. The bottom was 85 feet down. As soon as the weight hit bottom, he ordered all of us to start reeling our lines back in. By the time my line came back up, I had not one, but two fish on the line. As this was my first Cod, I was obliged to give it a kiss!

I borrowed a photo from the QV Charter Facebook Page to show a picture of the Cod rods we used. The rods were one piece fiberglass and 5 feet long. However, the reels we used were classic wooden reels. It was much easier to reel in the line at 85 feet than it was when we moved to a new location of 145 feet!

Since I dressed for the weather (cold and misty), I was over-dressed for how much heat you can generate reeling in 10 or 20 pounds of cod from 145 feet down. After catching a few, I found myself in a flop sweat and had to take a break. However, the rest of the "crew" did their part to make sure we met our quota.

Once we caught our limit, it was a quick trip back to port. I would have liked to get a lesson on cleaning and preparing the Cod, but it took longer to get my land legs back than I thought.

The teenagers from Nova Scotia were very interest in seeing a Cod tongue. Fried cod tongues are a traditional Newfoundland food, often served as an appetizer. Turns out, a Cod tongue is not the tongue; it is actually a little muscle from the neck of the fish. In terms of texture and flavor, cod tongues are somewhere between a cod fillet and a whole belly clam.

The crew was going to fry up some of the Cod for us to have for lunch. However, I was still feeling a bit under the weather, so I took my Cod fillets home to have for dinner with Dave.

Once we got back to the rig, Kathy washed and packed the Cod in the freezer. We kept two portions out for dinner. On Saturday, we had stopped at the farmer's market where we picked up some fresh bok choy and some Newfoundland Seasonings Cod Spice. We poached the Cod and steamed the bok choy. If you are going to enjoy fresh Newfoundland Cod, you need to wash it down with a fresh Iceberg Beer!

We have one more full day in St. John's before heading back out into the country. We'll see what kind of adventure we can come up with. Stay tuned.