Sucks to see wdfw advertising wild steehead kill season is open on their Facebook page. Caulksuckers!

Yep, they keep pushing it too.

like ive stated countless amounts of times Chuck... and the WDFW is pushing that into peoples heads, that its ok to kill your 1 a year, especially after driving 200+ minutes to get there... its such a hard hard thing to do, especially at 3am when the traffic is just ridiculous...

those rivers are next, in 10 years, they wont have to worry about making a native season... there wont be any left...

Don't worry, the Natives will have a season.

They dont even mention the yearly limit in the article. Bastards.

Well i like the idea, just because you can doesn't mean you have too, however if you get one hooked deep and its bleeding from the gills, which happens, you can retain it rather then watching it float away on its side because its about to die.

You have the opportunity to police yourselves. But if i am fishing and i happen to unfortunatly hook one deep and the fish is in bad shape from fighting him twice as long so I can actually hold him and keep in water to follow rules, that fish is more likely wasted now. But in the event you do what you can and a fish is still morally wounded you can keep (1) a year.

I would prefer to let them go and keep fin clipped only, but setting a fish free that is F'd up, this allows for killing of a fish.

The English Pete excuse. I don't like the rule, but I hate the promotion of killing your one a year. The wdfw knows these rivers are in trouble, and they are directing traffic right at them.

Hey Oregonarcher,
That mentality will only perpetuate the killing of natives. I can see it now, people saying it had the hook way down its throat so we had to kill it. I would still release it. It will have a better chance of survival in the river rather than in the bottom of your boat with a frickin lump on its head! The rivers need the nutrients. Get over it THERE IS NO GOOD EXCUSE TO KEEP A NATIVE! What the hell is so important about killing them? Is driving 200 miles a good excuse? NO! People fly around the world to fish and practice catch and release. Why is it different on the Peninsula? How is it that even the most undereducated people at those destinations realize the virtues of catch and release yet here, it seems like so many have trouble realizing that it will help to insure survival? I’m so f*#king sick of people coming up with ridiculous excuses to kill a native. I say this, if you can’t handle catch and release… get another hobby!

Blah,blah,blah.Same ole $hit.Good luck,
SZ

oregonarcher, I would have to disagree. While that fish may die, it may (by some minute chance) make it to the spawning grounds. If you remove it from the system, you remove any hope for that chance. While I haven't been at this as long as most, I have hooked only a few (as in maybe 3) fish that swallowed my offering or were bleeding to an extent I questioned their survival. If proper handling and fishing techniques are applied, the risk of mortality is very low. As pointed out plenty of times before, there is NO need to retain native steelhead, ever.

Besides, if you really want to argue the waste of a dieing steelhead, look up Marine Derived Nutrients (MDN) or any of the other benefits associated with decomposing salmonids. I bet you will find that even floating belly up downriver, that steelhead is doing far more good for that river ecosystem than it is on your dinner table.

Is this where we go for the " anal thread of the year " award?

Excellent summary.

I agree with you on the fact the river needs these fish, all I am saying is this, police yourselves. Don't keep native fish, simple. Whats with the 200 mile stuff, doesn't matter if you drive 10 minutes, native fish are important and should be let loose. Don't disagree with ya.

Last year I fished the Duc and after following the rules, and playing fish, getting out of the boat, Setting up for the tail grab. (see I had to play this fish twice as long as I would of in Oregon where I use my Fish safe net, lean over the boat, unhook, turn over the net and let loose)

I finally get to tail the fish, its on its side, bleeding real bad, I cut the line, try to revive the fish and the 10pound fish is done. My guide said we can retain this if you like, I was suprised, I said, ok, hell, it can't swim, it bled damner out. See, it wasnt till i came to the OP to fish did i start using double hooks set ups sidedrifting in native sensitive waters. It was the first time I had done it. Oregon I use #2 singles and have very few nasty hook ups. Those hooks were deep and the fish was dead. I kept it, and was bummed I had to tag a fish like that, but I think letting that go and watching sink or float down stream is a poor excuse for the "nutrients" come on dude. The river did get the gut pile. so It got something, but I got to eat a nice fish, and it was unfortunate that I had to tag, but i was not going to let it go tumbling down the river. Say what you want.

dont use 2 hook rigs in rivers with nates in them during that time... simple...

if you want to take it even further, dont use bait in rivers where nates are present during the time you are fishing...

havent seen many fish with a fly, spoon, spinner, corkie, ect all the way down its gullet...

Not only can you use nets here to net wild fish, I prefer it...so long as you are using a soft knotless catch and release net.

Double hooks are a good way to lose two hooks at a time...that's the only advantage I've found they give ya

Fish on...

Todd

Whats the big deal with C&R? The only reason there is a C&R in this day and age is because there aren't very many fish. Now because of C&R there will be even fewer natives that survive for next years C&R season, make sense? If you really knew what to do with Native Steelhead you would quit dinkin around with them and watch them recover. Apparently that's too hard to do for some.

Just checked out WDFW's Facebook page.

64 comments so far and almost every single one rakes the dept and it's wild kill policy over the coals. Good! They need to hear it.

69 now f- that sh!t

Now that is just stoopid...we want more of them to spawn!

Exactly the same way I feel.