How to Fillet Flatfish (Flounder, Sole, Halibut)

[the11fisherman]

This summer I headed out to the island for the yearly trip to the coast. The fishing was fine, but the guide was not. He butchered our halibut and clearly had no idea how to clean them. For this reason, I made this video (using just a flounder) to help you guys know how to clean flat fish in case your guide doesn't. I have to say that I would expect any half decent guide to know how to clean a flat fish, because they are probably the easiest fish to fillet.

Have any of you had a guide that was incompetent when it came to filleting the fish??

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4rmXI5xhPg

[SNAPFisher]

Originally Posted by the11fisherman

This summer I headed out to the island for the yearly trip to the coast. The fishing was fine, but the guide was not. He butchered our halibut and clearly had no idea how to clean them. For this reason, I made this video (using just a flounder) to help you guys know how to clean flat fish in case your guide doesn't. I have to say that I would expect any half decent guide to know how to clean a flat fish, because they are probably the easiest fish to fillet.

Have any of you had a guide that was incompetent when it came to filleting the fish??

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4rmXI5xhPg

I have not experienced that but any place I've been guided it was a fish cleaning / packaging facility that did the filleting. Now if they didn't know...then they would be making some staff changes, I'll bet. Sucks this happened to you. Wasting any fish is sad but a halibut is pretty precious.

Thanks for the video, very well done! I like technique of fast forward through the obvious. A lot of other tubers could take this page from you. Good job on explaining and on the actual filleting. You seem to know your stuff so I trust why you thought the guide didn't. Did you send the guide your uTube link?

[the11fisherman]

Originally Posted by SNAPFisher

I have not experienced that but any place I've been guided it was a fish cleaning / packaging facility that did the filleting. Now if they didn't know...then they would be making some staff changes, I'll bet. Sucks this happened to you. Wasting any fish is sad but a halibut is pretty precious.

Thanks for the video, very well done! I like technique of fast forward through the obvious. A lot of other tubers could take this page from you. Good job on explaining and on the actual filleting. You seem to know your stuff so I trust why you thought the guide didn't. Did you send the guide your uTube link?

Sadly staff changes wouldn't happen with this guy because he is the owner, guide, and processor lol.

Thanks for the compliment. I'm trying to pick up my outdoors videos, but sadly they aren't quite getting the views I want compared to some of my other videos. I've been tempted to send the video to the guide, but he was so offended by me asking to clean the rest of my own fish, that I don't think he'd appreciate it lol

[SNAPFisher]

[EZM]

3 of us took a long trip and hired a local professional guide. 2 of us were in my boat and the third was in the guides boat.

We hired the guide for the first day to "show us around" more than anything else.

That "professional guide" couldn't put us on fish!!!! He clearly knew the "general areas" that were good but had no idea how to dial in the spots in those areas.

A few hours later and half a dozen spots later, I began drifting a little further off and "doing what I'd normally do in a new area" - find the transitions, weed lines, drops etc...

And wouldn't you know it ...... we began catching fish ...... there we were - 20 yards maybe 100 yards away in some cases - on a weed line, transition or drop off and the two of us in my boat would be hammering fish while the guide and my unlucky buddy were off target and barely catching anything.

We still laugh about it to this day - despite the money we paid. At least he knew the general areas to look for fish I think so it wasn't a total waste of our money.

[the11fisherman]

Originally Posted by EZM

3 of us took a long trip and hired a local professional guide. 2 of us were in my boat and the third was in the guides boat.

We hired the guide for the first day to "show us around" more than anything else.

That "professional guide" couldn't put us on fish!!!! He clearly knew the "general areas" that were good but had no idea how to dial in the spots in those areas.

A few hours later and half a dozen spots later, I began drifting a little further off and "doing what I'd normally do in a new area" - find the transitions, weed lines, drops etc...

And wouldn't you know it ...... we began catching fish ...... there we were - 20 yards maybe 100 yards away in some cases - on a weed line, transition or drop off and the two of us in my boat would be hammering fish while the guide and my unlucky buddy were off target and barely catching anything.

We still laugh about it to this day - despite the money we paid. At least he knew the general areas to look for fish I think so it wasn't a total waste of our money.

It is amazing how some guides are horrible.