Fishy Frets - Where to Clean It?

[SVJourney]

We're new to fishing and are hoping to avoid a repeat back ache and sunburn from our first experience filleting a mahi-mahi caught trolling under sail.

What do other Pearson 365 ketch owners do when it comes to cleaning or storing fish caught underway?  Where do you clean them?  We've been both bringing them aboard and and cleaning them on the side deck.  We also don't have a good way to store the fish if we don't want to deal with them until later.  If you have a good fish storage solution, what is it?

Meanwhile, we've been catching only ciguatera laden barracudas which we've thrown back so it's been a non issue of late.

Thanks!
Dana (1st mate) of s/v Journey

[Jim S]

On Phantom in Texas coastal waters we use a 1/4" plywood plank, maybe 2'x3'.  It has a small hole in one edge for a lanyard.  This is big enough for the fish and crabs caught locally.  I clean the fish in the cockpit using a small bucket for the offal.  After cleaning, I trail the cleaning board overboard with the lanyard and dump fish and crab parts overboard.

For storing the cleaned fish and crabs we use zip lock type of bags or hard side containers in the refrigertator.

[INCOMMUNICADO]

Dana, Here's our fish on drill.One person goes to the rod with the fish the other slows the boat to about two knots and sets the autopilot (if not already set).Now reel in the other lines and get them out of the way.Next get the gear you need(gaff,bucket,knife,cheap vodka)It's against Florida law to use my good rum for this job.All the cockpit cushions need to be moved out of harms way.By this time the angeler should have moved forward on the side deck just abaft the beam.Now the helms person,with gaff in hand comes to the side deck between angeler and fish.Gaffs fish, fish goes from ocean to cockpit floor.Angeler now puts rod in holder with a very light drag them goes to the very,very cheap vodka which is in a water pistol (if you have a problem with guns use what delivery system you like the fish won't know the differance)then sprays the cheap vodka in both sets of gills.The helms person is still controling the fish with the gaff.Wait until the fish stops flopping, remove gaff and hooks, filet fish, put in ziplock bags & move to frid.While the fish is being cleaned so is the boat (don't let the blood dry).Let the fish cool for a few hours them seperate to what you can use in the next few day, the remander zip lock put in freezer.Dana we wish we were with you showing you how.Allen