July 21 Fishing and tape worm report - Bruce Nixon

I fished Skunk Bay Wednesday afternoon approx. 2pm. I began fishing 1/4 mile inside the buoy 90-110 ft on the wire. There were numerous marks on the screen and a little bait. In less than 1/2 hr I picked up a nice 10 Lb King. 100 ft on the wire/purple tale wager about a mile from buoy just making the corner in the bay. However when I cleaned the fish along with some herring there was a very large tape worm in the stomach. 2-3 mm wide and I estimated probably 20- 30 ft long still alive! I checked on the internet about the tape worm and here is a little info. It is ok to eat the fish IF it has been cooked and or frozen to 14 deg F. It should NOT be eaten raw as in Sushi. They were not seen in Alaskan Salmon until about 30 years ago but are becoming more common. Main lesson is be sure you check the stomach of your fish! For more info about salmon tape worms check the net. B Nixon