Fishing in the Central Valley: Some foods are too hot to handle while fishing

One of the key things that I’ve found really enhances a good fishing trip is … good food. Actually, there’s more to it than I used to think.

When I first began guiding more than 12 years ago, I quickly realized that my guests would bring all kinds of different kinds of food for a full day of fishing. Of course, most of the stuff they brought usually fell more into the “snacking” category, you know- the kind of “ food” my wife won’t let me eat at home.

However, since I’m out on a boat, no one is there to count fat grams, sugars or calories. Of course, I’m thrilled

The real tipoff to just how good a trip might be starts at the dock when the guests load their supplies. A hefty ice chest can be a treasure trove of goodies, many of which I haven’t enjoyed for quite some time. A few examples include Cheetos, sour cream and Hawaiian potato chips, gummy bears, jerky, Swedish fish, licorice, hot tamales, pecans, and chocolate covered almonds.

“Would you like some?” has a beautiful ring to it. The offer also keeps me from having to grovel for some.

Many guests come prepared for lunch with all types of sandwiches and foods. Since I used to live on only a peanut butter & jelly sandwich, topped off with a Dr. Pepper on my trips, getting offers to test out the haute cuisine was a real treat. Pulling out a big tri-tip sandwich covered with horseradish sauce was at the top of the list, but breakfast burritos weren’t too far behind.

I realized that you never knew what someone might mean when they said sandwich. To some folks, a sandwich meant a piece of white bread, followed by a dash of mustard, one slice of cheese and some ham. Slap one of these finger sandwiches together in a second. I’m a hearty sandwich kind of guy so I usually avoided these gulag style sandwiches.

I jumped on some things when offered, while at other times I made sure I knew what was meant before I dove in. Once, a guest offered to bring me a sandwich for lunch for our trip. I told him I would like a very mild turkey sandwich with mayo, light mustard, a tomato, pickle and lettuce. Pretty standard. I also told him clearly that I didn’t want anything hot on it at all.

“No problem, “ he said.

We’re fishing the next day, when I asked for my sandwich. He proudly brought it out, I unwrapped it , and took a big bite off the end. Suddenly I had a five-alarm fire raging in my mouth. I spit the piece out and while my mouth was still, looked more closely and saw that the sandwich was laced with jalapeño peppers and drenched in super hot sauce.

All I could do was ask: why? He said he thought I would like it.

Although I had no lunch, he had also brought a nice snack along , that he was sure I would like. I tried to act magnanimously, with my mouth still on fire as I reached into the sack and pulled out a nice bag of Cheetos.

I opened the bag and grabbed a handful of one of my favorite snacks and crunched them down, expecting a nice cheesy Cheetos flavor. Except, my mouth burst out on fire again. That was when I learned about Super Hot Cheetos. Yep, I know because it was emblazoned across the bag in flaming letters.

My mouth was destroyed for hours and I was done eating.

I am much clearer about what I would like to order now, and I closely inspect all snacks and read the labels before downing them in ignorance

Don’t forget to bring the snacks on your next fishing trip. And never give up

This story was originally published December 13, 2024 at 12:00 PM with the headline "Fishing in the Central Valley: Some foods are too hot to handle while fishing."