40 inches. Taken on a fly with a dryline in 40 degree water. I had the privelage of tailing (well I tried and failed) the fish and taking a picture of board member Brian L. with his big pretty steelie.

Looks like stumbling around on all those nasty rocks was worth it!! Congratulations~

Thompson-Clearwater ??????????

Nice fish! Too bad that if the new proposals go through we wont be able to take pictures like that. Myself I would rather take a pic than kill one, most of the time. That is if that is river "X" Spark

Actually, pictures like that would still be legal as that was a hatchery fish.

The reasoning behind my support for the proposed regulation is because I am tired of seeing so many wild steelhead so poorly handled that are to be released.

You can still get so-called hero photos even if the fish is not removed from the water.

Ryan:

I agree with you on the pix. Even though I make part of my income from fish pix, I think we can do what we need to do without taking the fish out of the water. I am certain that my photographic efforts have resulted in the death of a few fish. For that I am sorry. However, I think most of the Kodak killer episodes I have been involved in were with hatchery fish.

I have seen too many fish slip from peoples hand only to land, hard, on the rocks. While I personally believe steelhead are pretty dang tough creatures, some of thos episodes probably killed the fish. In many places wild fish are scarce enough that it would be a shame to kill them while we take a photo commerating our release.

Not to turn this into a debate about photography but the following pictures show that it is possible to get decent pictures without fully removing the fish from the water. Sorry if I am taking this too far but it is an issue I feel strongly about.

Spalding Mission on the Clearwater? It's nice to see pics from an area I spent the last sixteen years.

if a particular run is that sensitive, dont bother with "handling regs" just close the river to fishing completely until the fish can recover. its very simple, and it would be much easier to enforce.

i dont think a few seconds out of the water will change their survival chances anyway. but dropping them on the rocks, thats a different story.

This is another reason you guys do not see pics of the fish I catch.Not that I really catch that much but I fish alone for the most part and my atempts for pics in the past did more harm than good.

My rope climbing buddy and I got a routine down.The person who catches the fish plays it and takes the pic.The second person gets to tail the fish pic it up a foot or so for the pose and then slipp the hook and and send it free.

It is always fun showing somebody a pic and they say that isn't you??

Metalhead, So you propose closing all hatchery fisheries, since there is incidental catch of wild steelhead in those fisheries as well?

Sparkey, you made some good points. This rule will be good for the fish, further reduce hooking mortality, and bring attention to fishers to learn proper C&R techniques. In my opinion it is apalling the number of wild fish that I have witnessed that are mishandled.

Handling of fish depends on their condition when brought in. The largest steelie I ever caught I never got a picture because all my time was spent revivng the fish for release. This little native hen was in great shape so I had time to gently handle it for a picture before release. Just be sure to never squeeze the tail or belly of the fish to firmly. If you have to hold on to tight forgo the picture because you will only injure the fish.

Well here is your chance.Write the proposal that you like/dislike.This is your chance to voice your opinion.

thats not what i said, maybe you should re-read my post, i said "if a particular run is that sensitive..."

i see no good in a regulation like that. fish will still be mishandled, sharp metal will still cut into their mouths, and they are still being stressed and worn down as they are reeled in. i will say it again, if a particular run is that sensitive that it cannot handle the angling pressure, it should be closed to fishing.

i think too many people want to fish "their" favorite water and dont want to give it up, no matter how it hurts the fish, and are willing to settle for "politically correct" regulations that don't do much to help the fish but lets them drive home at the end of the day with a warm fuzzy feeling inside.

Metalhead, Doesn't particular sensitive runs also exist in rivers currently open for hatchery steelhead fisheries? For example the Wynooche does not allow retention of wild steelhead, however it has a late hatchery run that is targeted. Should that fishery be closed or would it be better if fishers just handled the wild fish better and allowed them to continue to fish for the hatchery fish?

Right on... Lower Clearwater. That would be a B-RUN !! If you ever catch one like that, that has all its fins you won't soon forget it. Atta boy with a fly rod no less. SWEET.

Gotta chime in on this on this one since Sparky decided to use my pic on the board.

Yes, I like pictures of me with big fish! Hell, who doesn't??!! And I LOVE that river - I've been stupid-lucky on it for years.

But I've also seen plenty of mishandling of fish either because OH DAMN, it's a WILD fish so we gotta release it! (bang around in the bottom of the boat or on the bank before being unceremoniously dumped back in the water) or Hero poses with 10 or 11 shots being taken from every angle before the guy gets tired of holding the fish and decides to give it a drink.

This isn't just a "Anti-Photo" campaign, it's an attempt to minimize the C&R mortality of wild fish that will be released anyway the same as the barbless hooks regs for salmon and the increasing use of those nifty little de-hooker wires by concerned anglers.

Sure, we'll lose some great shots. But it's a small price ( IMHO) to pay for a few less wild fish getting bouced off rocks and boat bottoms .

Fish On!

Brian

i too gotta say.....the clearwater river rocks!!! my new rod will be here next week and im heading over there to do some fishing.. i lived in orofino for 9 years, its sad to have left, but its good i did...no future there, but awesome fishing!!

Hey I disagree with the Idaho location that Spark caught that fish. Try N. Central Washinton. My friend that lives over there caught and released 21 Steelies the 2nd week in June,, all on flys..... :p

Where?

If that's "decent", I'd hate to see "crappy".

Oh, and the phish in the 2nd photo is out of the water, if I'm not mistaken, Sparkster. That would be breaking the (proposed) Rulez, if they were to pass. Shame, shame.

That proposed rule is a joke.

Honestly, if you are that bent out of shape about wild fish, why are you fishing for them? How many wild fish did you, and are you, going to kill just by incidental hooking mortality?

So much for "every little thing helps", huh?

It's such a silly regulation that does no good on the grand scheme of things.