Since the WILD fish cannot be removed from the water,no more wild pics should be seen on ANY of these or other website pages.Makes it tough to scale and measure what you catch for a replica mount.Thanks wdfw.

What about anonomous pics like these?




or



or




This rule is going to put your favorite magazines in a real pinch. Good intentions. Poor execution.

bullshiat...if i catch a wild fish and i want a pic, then im gonna damn well take a quick pic and let it go..

Hey -

that top pic was a great picture of Rob Endsley - who by the way - is an awesome steelhead guide!!

JK

How can we expect the bonk and carry guy to be able to relase a fish unharmed? Does he know any better? Or Just a dumba$$?

I would love to see a guy get ticketed for pulling a fish out of the water for a pic, treating it with total respect.
I will keep releasing nates the way I allways have.

Not everyone out there has commonsense or respect for our wildlife.

The state's on the right track.
Just my 2cen$...NUT

Okay - the top pic was of Rob Endsley - before it was deleted - who is still an awesome steelhead guide - and who has great respect for these fish!

JK

shhh....from now on fish pics are going to be more like "artists renditions" or something like that...no names.

I guess I will only post pics of wild fish I carefully C&R in BC rivers

SA

The cover of Next months Salmon, Trout, Steelheader!

I have made my points as to why I was for this regulation on numerous occasions and I believe that I have proved as well as others, that quality fish pics will still be capable.

I will repeat however as to why I was such a large proponent of this regulation.

I know, as well as you, that holding a wild steelhead out of the water for 5 seconds or so (water should still be seen dripping from the fish) for a picture does not hurt the fish. I was a proponent of this regulation because I believed it would force so many who treat our fish poorly before release to be more responsible with the privelage that is awarded to them when they land a wild steelhead.

I was, plain and simple, fed up with the how so many handled wild steelhead on the rivers. And I found a way to do something about it...plus, do not forget, many others sent in similar proposals.

Sparkey -

The road to Hell is paved with good intentions.

If we keep using the logic expressed in your latest post - and by this latest law - we'll be finished - as far as recreational angling goes -

Think about it....if holding a fish out of water is bad for some folks ...then hooking and fighting the fish must be bad for some folks...if hooking and fighting the fish is bad....we better not even hook the fish...

I'm not seeing any light at the end of this tunnel except for the one on an Amtrak Train.

My pennies worth -

John Kruse

Piper, that is too funny. Very nice.

Hey SteelAddict, would those be from some of the same rivers that have been C&R to sportsmen for decades and also face pressures from downriver commercial and tribal fisheries (Skeena system)? The same ones many of us gladly jump at the chance to fish?

And Sparkey, don't take this ribbing too personal. You put it out there so you should be willing take some flack. Nobody sez you can't get good pics while in the water.



It's just that this ain't a perfect world and we shouldn't try to make rules for every little thing that's wrong with it. C&R vs. C&K is one thing. Pics are another in my book. Pick your battles or you end up unnecessarilly alienating a lot of folks over the minor skirmishes.

Whatever, folks.

IT'S JUST FISHING.

I am not taking it personal at all. I can handle the flak without a problem...Hell, I've recieved much worse on this BB over the years.

B Gray

That's one beautiful steelhead! Proof that a fish doesn't have to be a 70# hog to make for an impressive CnR photo.


Sparkey

Do not be discouraged... history has shown over and again that every true visionary started his illustrious rise to recognition as a heretic. I know what it is like to be a "lone voice in a vast and empty wilderness".... had a similar experience in securing a slot limit to conserve giant Kenai kings. Keep the faith brother! I'm on your side.

One last post!!...

John-
I couldn't agree with you more!!

Hey, That's the cover shot for the WSC brochure.

Well, I just have to post some more on this issue...I cant help myself

So many of us take what Smalma says to heart, so I thought I would repost a post of his from over 2 years ago.

I to have used the analogy of keeping fish out of water no longer than I can hold my breath as a guideline for years. However in recently thinking about the validity of that rule I feel it needs to be updated. "Hold the fish out of water no longer than you can hold your breath after running a 6 minute mile" - then would be truly comparable to the fish's situation.
It should be clear to all that restraining a fish for additonal time needed for a picture does increase the stress under which the fish is placed. I certainly under stand the desire for a picture of an exception fish (first fish, true trophy, etc) but do we need pictures of every 10 pound nate caught and released.

For you shutter-bugs why not "focus" on action shots. To me a picture of partner playing a fish with a big-*** grin on his mug, an action shot of fish being released, snow-capped mountains in the background with angler with bend rod in the foreground all do more to capture the day on the river than another "hero shot". Those are the memories that what goes it my mental data bank.

Successful catch and release means doing all that the angler can do to reduce his/her impact on the fish. That may mean foregoing pictures or even intentionally shaking or breaking the fish off instead of bring it completely to hand.

Tight lines

Smalma

Bruce:

You better black out the entire face next time because that beak of yours tells us who it is every time!

BD

Hey, I thought the rod to Hell was paved with Hell bricks?

Heh. 6 seconds rule. Yeah, I mocked that a long time ago. Here, I'll mock that again.





Ok, I'll stop picking on Sparkey. Just to prove how worthwhile Sparkey's Law will be, I have to show one more photo. This wild fish was abused, held out of the water, dragged on the beach, and suffered much abuse. I do not think this fished lived after being released. If only Sparkey's Law was in existance at the time of this photo, this fish probably had a chance. To this day, I still feel bad about that fish.

According to a study by MLN (My Left Nut) ,photographing the fish lowers the self esteem of all fish. Somewhere in a spawning bed near you there are bucks on one side, hens on the other. Niether will cross...... further adding to the stress level and dramatically lowering projected returns. HOW CAN YOU PEOPLE LIVE WITH YOURSELVES!!

Yes, I too can enjoy the GL (Guano Level) of this particular topic.

Yeah, well, I still don't like it. Take one more step down that stupid slippery slope you're standing on, and realize that doing all you can to reduce your impact means hanging up your rod.

I'd feel better about a law that prohibits "abusing" a fish to be released and then let the warden decide what's abuse and what isn't. They determine intent when it comes to snagging all the time, they could tell the difference between abusing a fish and not.

Not that I really feel too strongly either way on this one but I had to step in... Anyone see Bob's underwater pic on the river reports page? It's pretty cool. Though an underwater camera box is costly... You could still get a great pic without taking the fish out of the water!

One of the better replies I've seen all week. You get a Scooby Snack, DanS!

I am busting a gut! Too damn funny.

This pic would be what we will be able to do from now on, right?

Did anyone see the pics in the newest STS of the guys C&Ring? I think the fish were in the mid west maybe, but one dude was hangin' her by the jaw! I'm not to militant on htis issue, but I'm suprised the pictures slipped by the Amato's. They were pretty blatant.

I'm not looking forward to seeing more of this on my boat!

Now THAT'S what needs to be outlawed. To hell with the fish.

I've found that fiberglass repair putty works great for fixing cracks on boats!


edit... By the way... it looks like they got your good side... :p

Hope you can take a joke

Think I recognize that person! lol Thats just wrong dude!

I think thats scary!

LOL ~ " it looks like they got your good side... "

No thats my fishin buddy, he can be a real ass sometimes.

P.S.
I know it may be hard to believe, but I do have a couple of friends.

well, as a person who fishes for wild fish, and can and does treat them very kindly, i realease them when im standing in water, up to almost my knees, any lower of water and the fish could get banged up against some rocks if it makes a quick run, i for one am not happy about not being able to bring a fish out of the water for a quick pic, so, as for most of the rules out there, this one needs to be broke too, i am in no way harming this fish any more than some dude tossing flies to catch these same fish and then fighting it till near exhaustion, which is worse? i do put alot of pressure on them to get em in, so as not to stress them to much, i think its time i get a digicam so i can post some new pics

I don't know if this pic would be legal under the new rules. Looks to me like this little nate is mostly out of the water...and what about that abusive looking gear it appears to have been landed with?

Bruce,
I thought i saw you fishing with one of those rods to.

right or wrong.

Bruce,
I thought i saw you fishing with one of those rods to.

right or wrong.

Yup, sure was. Fished in the past three Snoopy Rod Classics. It's a hoot. Gotta watch out for the guys with the tater guns though...

(This entire thread is supposed to have a joking tone...sometimes that's lost in text on a bbs)

Frankly, I can't see what the whining is about on this one.

I've been working under this rule for 10 seasons in AK and it's not the end of the world!

You should never have the fish out of the water for more than a few seconds anyhow (for a picture ... no other reason to come out), so I don't really see how this change how anyone lands a fish.

All it means is instead of the pic at the top of the page, you have a pic like the one of Ryan ... that is legal

I don't know if anyone intended to whine as much as poke fun at a rule some think is a little overboard.

I would say that this thread and the other contained much more whining then fun.

But hey it doesnt matter as long as everyone understands the handling of the above fish would still be perfectly legal after April 1. I win! :p

I'll just add it to the list of regs that don't get enforced, and give Sparkey a pat on the back........he's trying, which is more than most do. It's still just window dressing to me though.

I'll just live with it......and you'll hear me "whine" about it no more forever.

Wurd

Do you honestly think these people will change how they handle the fish??? Hell, most dont even read the regs! This is just another example of the govt writing a law they cant enforce! Dont break your arm patting yourself on the back with this one.... its a dumb rule, and it shows the stupidity of the people making the decisions... hell, they cant even make a dent in poaching on the Quilcene, what make you think this will make any kind of difference?

I'm just glad I'm not handicapped, because this rule seems to discriminate against our handicapped friends.

Here's a picture of one of my friends. I don't think I need to tell you what he thinks of the new rule.

Oh boy ----

I'm pretty sure the commission did not think about handicapped anglers (along with alot of other things) when they put this rule into effect. And before somebody says it's hard for a person in a wheelchair to fish a steelhead stream, keep in mind there are plenty of anglers who are handicapped that are not in wheelchairs - but do have limited mobility. In other words - a net comes in real handy for them.

Sparkey - where art thou now???

Or is it... where art thee...I dunno, English never was my strong point.

JK

NwMallard ... Here we go again. Just as I mentioned, an overreaction. No removal from the water does NOT mean you cannot net a fish.

First of all, nowhere am I giving myself credit for this new regulation. Many on this board started referring to it as 'Sparkey's Law' and direceted their disaproval at the regulation with me. I just stood up in defense of the regulation.

As a matter of fact, on another board, a member there thanked and congratulated me for getting this new regulation passed. I corrected him in that I did nothing more then send in a proposal and then send in a letter encouraging the Commission to pass the new law when the proposed regulation made it into the packet (which many others did).

And secondly, I will never oppose a regulation on the basis of "Oh...they won't enforce it anyways" or "Ohh...we dont have enogh enforcement" etc. etc. etc. That is one slippery slope I do not want to go down...

NO MORE WILD FISH PIC's?

I think these would still qualify:





As long as the adipose doesn't show, I suppose any picture could pass as "legal".... here's one more shot of the same fish:

Nice pics

I don't think the handicap issue is overreaction. I think it was a major oversight by the commission. Being able to use a net does not help people with certain disabilities.

I don't disagree with the good intent of the ruling, I just think it wasn't very well thought out.

Pictures of Wild Steelhead should not be shown on any of the Forums or for that matter in the magazine "Salmon, Trout, Steelheader".

If they would not allow or put these pictures in either the forums or magazines, then much of the reason for taking pictures would be lost. Maybe a general policy of just hatchery steelhead should be the rule. That would eliminate a person saying it was "caught on the Lower Quinault or on some Canadian river.

The memories of the river, the setting, the friends, and the challenge of the fight should be enough, not "picture so maybe it will be posted in a forum or make the front page on some magazine".

"Worse day sport fishing, still better than the best day working"

Oregon is moving closer to the same law,new this year "should not be removed from the water."

I agree with the Wash. regulation and believe both states should expand it to include trout and salmon.

Handicap people cannot use a dowel with a hook or a net?

Hey I cannot drive with my feet with out getting a ticket but a handicapped person can.

No one has a tag on their butt when born guaranteeing life is fair an equitable. It's just life.

BTW my dad is completly paralyzed with MS and used to fish 100 days or more a year. He would love to have the problem of figuringout how to release a fish.

I just think there should be some kind of exemption for them. I'd be suprised if that weren't challenged.

You are absolutely correct CFM:

Catch...Photo....Release...