The Northern California Fly Fishing Board

Brian, I know you to be someone who cares about the fisheries and the fish, but I have to applaud Dawn's reply on this - just because we don't like the implications doesn't mean we should ignore the facts.

I really like the post that points out that this is a good reason to not have tournaments. But I take exception to the "why care" reply - we should indeed care. We should care a great deal about the ethos of our sport and our responsibility to the fish and their environment. For instance, take the Idaho cutt study posted by one respondent - assume 3% to be the mortality of properly handled C&R fish. That means that one fish out of every 33 you handle will die. More if the hook is barbed. More if handled improperly.

What should this mean to us? I would hope it suggests that we should promote proper handling techniques to all other fishermen/women. I would hope it means we should take care to ensure that our hooks are truly barbless. And I would hope that it argues for quality - not quantity - in our fishing experiences. I can recall all too clearly threads on this very forum, many years ago, lauding the "50-fish day".

Personally, I'll settle for just a few large, tricky fish, well handled and carefully released.

Recently while fishing for steelhead I had an interesting experience. I had caught a decent hatchery fish and noticed it had a distinctive mark on it's head and after carefully releasing it i hooked another fish on the very next cast, this time it didn't fight as good as the first one and Uppon landing it, I notice the same mark on the side of it's head, I had caught it again. Then one week later in the same riffle I catch the same fish for a third time. it had recovered much of it's energy and fought pretty good on the following week. anyways this particular fish had been caught at least one time prior to my encounters. uppon the final release it quickly darted off leaving a splash of water in my face!
Proof positive C+R works if done right.

Sparse Hackle: Are you an idiot? My post was NOT Why Care but Who Cares? I really get a kick out of people who read into posts things that aren't there. I never said I didn't support and practice proper catch and release methods, etc, etc. I simply stated that I didn't care what all the various studies concluded and that I would continue to fish, as I have for over half a century, in good conscients. If people don't like that attitude, TS!

Sparse Hackle: Are you an idiot?

Dang, I haven't fished the Y above Daguerre in over two years. I think you need to find some time & get me back out there.........

no/msg

I merely referred to the colloquialism "who cares" you used in your post - which most certainly suggests that no-one does, or should, care. I did not read anything else into your post.

Am I an idiot? Far from it. But many are the idiots I have encountered - and it seems I continue to do so.

Consider yourself hooked, landed and released in good shape.

Looks to me like that exchange took about 7 hours (based on when Hackle took the hook)...I think you probably should have kept him.

no/msg

Yeah, Ric is a good sport.