So,whats the score?

Im strictly catch and release myself mainly because ive never prepaired a fish to eat in my life.
To be honest, for me its all about the sport and NOT the eating.
Doing my homework there seems to be a problem with releasing Trout?
Is this an inforced rule or is release do'able without harm to the fish?

Rich

P.S Happy new year to everyone

There is no problem with releasing fish which are handled properly.

Plenty catch and release and as has been said if done properly not a problem.
I still think you should maybe try eating one of your trout at some point though
and a happy new year to you

Simples,no problems.

Smoked rainbow trout are delicous and there is a thread on here which shows you how to prepare them also.

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Kevin

no longer applicable as moved

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I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,9 bean rows will I have there and a hive for the honey bee.

If care is taken when releasing fish; and your hands are wet and cool, then handling while unhooking can be done without any harm to the fish, but it is always preferable to release while your fish is still in the water, We should all be using BARB-LESS HOOKS for C&R.

Just a quick question re C&R.

It used to be said that when releasing a fish you should push it back and forth in the water to simulate the flow of water through its gills. However, I've seen a few comments recently saying that this shouldn't be done - what's the latest on this?

I was always taught the following:

1. Use a fine mesh net with no knots
2. Use barbless hooks
3. Get the fish to the net as soon as possible
4. Wet hands before handling fish
5. Keep the fish in the water as much as possible
6. Use forceps to remove the fly where appropriate (particularly deeper hookups)
7. Never squeeze the fish when handling or handle the gill area
[8. Push the fish back and forth in the water to revive it before releasing] subject to the above query

Good list except for 8.

Better to simply support the fish facing the current and let it recover until it is ready to go forward on its own. The end of this clip illustrates this quite well. The fish shows when it is ready to go without any support.

You can also use an unhooking mat where there is only hard ground to lay the net and fish on...


richard

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Who resides on the right bank of the Derbyshire Wye and is lulled to sleep each night by the mutterings of a weir, dreaming that "When the rivers and their inhabitants come first, we ALL win..."

Me personally I think a slightyl barbed hook does less damage than a totally barbless hook.
At least with a slight barb the hook holds in one position whilst being plays as quick as pos.
Unlike totally barbless wich over the space of a few minutes tends to tear a larger hole in comparison to it's entry hole due to it's lack of stability or hook hold.

Are you sure that barbless hooks do this? I've come across this claim before but not noticed it myself.

richard

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Who resides on the right bank of the Derbyshire Wye and is lulled to sleep each night by the mutterings of a weir, dreaming that "When the rivers and their inhabitants come first, we ALL win..."