First, just to correct oscar, it's not the mouth, but it's legal to keep anything hooked above the gillplate. Now, I will say I find it by no means sportsmanlike to snag a fish. What's the point in it? If you're a subsistence fisherman, yes by all means snag away. I feel if it's your only way to feed your family then I feel family comes first. But, unless you live in remote Alaska, I don't see it here in Washington in the new millenium. The point to fishing is to have fun, try to FOOL a fish into hitting what you're throwing it, then playing it in (then release or keep if legal to do so). I've had many a times that I could look into a hole and see fish not biting. Of course it would have been easy to snag it, but what would that have proven? Would I be a better fisherman for it? No, it takes no morals to snag a fish. Have I snagged a fish, yes, but not on purpose. The fish was immediately released upon landing (man is it hard to land a tailhooked salmon). I'm not sure about punishment. I feel maybe first times a warning, maybe a small fine. If you get hit another time, then maybe go with the picture in paper. But, I can almost guarantee you this, most snaggers haven't purchased a license in the first place. Well, that's all I have to say......

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you haven't lived til you're rowed a cataraft. Friends don't let friends run Outcasts.