You don't understand why you C&R? I would say C&R for steelhead is counterproductive.

Wow really?

Fish fish fish- have fun- and if you happen to catch a fish with an adipose let the Fuka go- are you that hard up for a fish to feed your fam?

Just fish with some morals and think about those that follow - make it better and make morals that they follow

Kind of a cool thought -

Whats the point your trying to make? I don't understand what your saying, do you fish or not?
I am a fisherman and have good river ethics and know the proper catch and release procedures to allow the fish to be released unharmed.
Oh and I do understand why I practice c&r.........its because I am a fisherman and I care about native fish.

Are you that hard up for C&R. Why not shut it down, it would be best for everyone.

You should have more respect for the steelhead than using them past what is acceptable to be using them for.

Whatever you say boss. I will c&r nates till I stop fishing. I will never keep one and I have never kept one.
If I catch one fishing for hatchery fish I will release it unharmed and it will never leave the water.

Starting to sound like you think it better to club them out then release them.


My local rivers are closed now so I am not even steelheading now.

Crowballs is a tool, sounds like leadeater. What river did you tag your one nate at this year?

I don't fish for Native Steelhead. I couldn't justify being that stupid.

Do you fish at all???



This is the exact same way I feel about this subject. If you have respect for the fish your not gonna mistreat it. Especially if you enjoy fishing.

Strike Zone,
Yes it is the same old sh!t. Yet we still get the same old sh!t from those that try to justify keeping nates. I'm hoping with repetition it will finally sink in! OK?

YAWN.....

Sounds like a truly worthy scientific investigation *not*.........

Or maybe we have a closer look at the thousands and thousands of nets in the Pacific Ocean?

I have heard it estimated that on certain BC rivers, some steelhead are caught as many as 3-4 times before the anglers go away and leave them to do their things over the winter.

This was a little shocking/disturbing to me as I had always liked the idea of a solitary C & R experience for a certain (smallish) percentage of the fish headed towards the gravel. As it turns out, on some of these systems with smaller runs of aggressive fish, a very high percentage of the run gets caught, many of them multiple times. However, I don't think this scenario is particularly relevant to winter run fish in the northwest where I would think a small number of the total get caught and those that do typically get caught once. If they are well handled, the mortality rate is well known and acceptable for most conservation minded anglers.

CrowBalls is a PETA member that is concerned about the well being of sea kittens..

In fact, while fishing productive spots that held multiple fish, many of us have caught the same fish a second time within an hour and thought the fish fought quite well under the circumstances. Heck I've even seen this done with percieved inferior hatchery steelhead. While fishing a few seasons back, I landed a fish that looked like it was missing half it's head and only one eye ball intact. Crazy thing was is that it was probably 200 river miles from the ocean. C&R = dead fish, sorry not buying it.

Since it appears that all are fishing legally, then a regulation change is in order.
What is it going to be:
No retention of wild steelhead ---OR--- no CnR season? A compromise of both changes would work best for the wild steelhead.

No retention of nates is a no brainer. If someone has the argument that C&R is such a dangerous practice and its killing the fish they clearly dont fish at all or often enough to even have the opportunity to catch and release a native.

If everyone had the proper river ethics and knew the proper way to catch and release then we would not have the problems we are faced with. Its the bad apples that make the rest of us look like a**holes to the uneducated and the peta pushers. Most real passionate fisherman I know care more about the species than fishing itself.

I would more readily accept the "we should close it completely, including CnR fishing" argument if it didn't mostly come from those who choose to bonk wild fish, and don't want the rest of us playing with their food.

With the Puget Sound streams all closed now, this is when the wild fish harvest on the OP streams should be curtailed, not promoted.

Fish on...

Todd

Like I was saying. Bad apples make it bad for the rest of us.

Big if Mike. I agree with your premise, but it's not what I've witnessed in fact on the riverbank.

I agree completely. What I have witnessed is less than decent morals or ethics from the majority of the "fisherman".
Its extremely different fishing in a more populated area than fishing in places that are hard to reach or in the middle of no where.