How do you release a fish without bringing it in the boat?? The regs now say it is illegal to bring a fish into the boat that you will not keep. If the lip grip tools and the tailers suck, how do you get the hooks out? It would be hard to net them and get the hooks out and then release them. You can't exactly grab them by hand. Don't want to grab them by the gills. How would you do it?? How are you going to get an accurate measurement without laying the fish flat??

I can see guys reaching over the side with pliers and a nice wave taking them overboard.

What methods would you guys suggest? I am talking in the salt in a 19'+ boat.

I just reach over the side of the boat with long needle nose pliers, keeping the fish in the water, and pull the hooks out.

The de-hooking device that has been described here a few times (and also at the WDFW website) IMO, is the best method I've used so far. The bigger the boat you have, the longer you make the stick.

EDIT: You can mark out 22" or 24" on the dowel, lay it along side the fish in the water, and you can get a pretty good idea if you've got a keeper or not.

Sliding a galf hook down the line works almost as good as the stick release described above.

Chinook have a very rigid tail wrist. you can just grab them by the narrow part between the tail and bodyl with one hand and hold them in place while you pull the hooks or cut the line with needlenose pliers. No need to take them out of the water. Works good in the river, should work fine in the salt. This doesn't work so well with coho as their tail is not rigid, but works great with kings. If its a big fish you need a firm grip though.

I have used the dowel and eye hook device and they work great. I would try to avoid tailing the fish in the salt, or touching them at all for that matter as it wipes of the protective slime coating and scales, leaving the fish vulnerable to disease.

With one of those plier-type pistol handled fish hook removers.

If you are using your barbless hooks, in most cases it is real easy to grab the hook by the shank and pull/turn the pointed end out of their mouth. I always just grab the leader right above the first hook and use this method.

With our clipped-fin only regs here this year .... we're C&R'ing way more fish.

Geoduck is right on ... easy to grab if close to the water. I grab the line with gloves and release it if tension is too great until I hand line the fish up to the boat. Then, I either just grab the hook with pliers or grab the tail wrist and take the hook out then ... very easy with kings, even with bigger ones.

Saltwater fish lose scales easily and should never see ANY kind of net

Releasing fish with the dowel and cup hook takes a little practice but is really the least intrusive method of the ones described above. A friend of mine gave me a home made version of the dowel and hook He made this from the butt end of an old trout rod..He epoxied a hook in the hollow end and made a longer fish releaser with a nice foam handle. Pliers are the rule most often but some boats like mine for example are far enough off the water than you could fall overboard if you left the fish entirely in the water. The hook on the stick is worth a try for all you old dogs who won't try a new trick.

By the way the gaff hook works on the same principle but WDFW enforcement may get excited if they see you with a gaff near a salmon....not good.

The de-hooker is probable the best way....

4Salt hit it on the head... I use a 4' that is measured 22". It doubles for a release grabber so I don't have to lean out over the boat.

They are simple to make. 1/2 or 3/4' dowel and insert a cup holder in one end...

I haven't aways used, but dang sure to now with the regs...

Single barbless hooks!!!!!!!

Do not net fish you intend to release PERIOD!!!!!! do not bring them in the boat.. put your life jacket on and lean over the side take a pair of pliers and unhook the fish.

If there is a chance you'll be releasing your catch then you should not be using any treble hooks!! for this very reason.. if you cannot unhook the fish without bringing a fish in the boat.. cut the line.. no matter how expensive the lure or even if it's your last one and you have to stop fishing..
any wiah worth releasing is that important!!! don't like it? don't fish where you might have to release your catch..
Sorry about the attitude but i got sick of seeing people kill wild springers in the columbia by using Kwick fish with 2 huge trebles netting ever fish , bringing them in the boat and taking 5 minutes to get it unhooked and back in the water..

So how well does this dowel thing work with two hooks? I imagine if the slider is close to the bottom hook it would be pretty easy. Maybe I need to snell my sliding hooks a little more loosly to make sure they come together.

and before touching any fish to be released, get your hands wet..it doesnt take the slime off as bad..

one nice benefit of the Coyote spoon is that it has a single siwash barbless hok and is easy to release. I never did understand being able to fish for springers in the CR with Kwikfish with twin treble hooks if you are supposed to release the unvlipped fish..kind of a dumb reg if you ask me.

Holy cow.. grandpa.. we agree on something

the dowel type remover will work with 2 hook set ups such as mooching rigs, just takes a little practice and patience. You will notice that most of your fish are hookes on 1 of the 2 hooks and not both.

Ok, got the picture. So, where does one find one of these dowel hook remover things? I have looked around and see nothing that resembles anything with a dowel, or does anyone have a pic of one they can post???

Steve,

They are usually available at the sportsman's shows however, they are very easy to make.
Just buy either a 1/2" or 3/4" wooden dowel and some cabinet cup holders and screw into one end. Done! They are also handy for various other things like grabbing the release instead of leaning over the boat. Again, I mark off the 22" mark for a quick reference for fish. I also have one inch increments marked off...

Hey Downriggin', you think of everything! Why have a tool that only does one thing when with a few marks it can do two or three!! I'll give it a try.

Thanks!