I'll have a trip back down next year. It was fun fishing for them as they do tug on the end of the line. I'll probably be returnng to my roots (true calling) next year and take my fly rod down there. I think it would be a hoot catching them on a 5 wt.

I think the key to getting good smoked shad is to first of all have good shad. Sounds like yours were ok. I also kept them cool while brining them. Refrigerator or ice around brining bucket works. I used ice. Then it would be to dry them properly. I let mine airdry for 2 hours and get tacky. Then I smoked them for 12 -13 hours. Next time I'll try 10 hours. I also put 5 slits on each side of the shad so the brine could get in and the fish oil could seep out during the smoking process.

These are the first fish I've smoked when I had standing oil in the catch pan on the bottom of the smoker.