Releasing natives from a boat

[Swamp Puppy]

What is the best method for releasing native fish from a boat? I have had to do this a few times..and expect i will have to do it a few times more in the future. There are times that the fish is hooked well enough that releasing it while still in the water is pretty much out of the question...and i hate to tire the dang thing out to the point where it is so exhausted it can't swim.

the filp side is...netting it and putting it in the boat is definitely not doing the fish any favors and i believe may even put me on the wrong side of the law. also, not a big fan of cutting away gear as spinners/wobblers/kwikies aren't exactly cheap and when you find one that "works" you hate to lose it.

been considering switching out my trebles for single hooks, but not sure i want to cut down on my hookup rate. i don't get that many opportunities as it is and really hate to miss the few i get just on the off chance that the fish on the end might be a native.

i would say that i rarely have to worry about this, but the few times i have it has been a hassle and i would like to do the best i can for the fish without resorting to cutting them away.

i don't troll bait, so deep hookups and/or gut hooking is not an issue. but i do get a few that manage to get that treble hook lodged in their mouth(s) pretty darn good.

suggestions?

 

[Markcanby]

From what I have seen mostly on TV a fish glove an a net keep in the water is the safest.

 

[the_intimidator03]

I wouldnt know how bringing a native fish ON the boat be illegal. if you are unhooking and releasing it that is. now sturgeon if its oversized you can't remove it from the water

 

[Swamp Puppy]

I wouldnt know how bringing a native fish ON the boat be illegal. if you are unhooking and releasing it that is. now sturgeon if its oversized you can't remove it from the water

I am not clear on the regs on this one....i need to look into it for sure. It was my understanding that you cannot remove a native salmon/steelhead from the water. I may be wrong in that. like i said. need to check.

either way, i would RATHER release the native without boatiing it if there is a good method for doing so. netting the fish and having it flop around in the bottom of my boat isn't doing it any favors. If i can avoid that, i will.

 

[halibuthitman]

I am not clear on the regs on this one....i need to look into it for sure. It was my understanding that you cannot remove a native salmon/steelhead from the water. I may be wrong in that. like i said. need to check.

either way, i would RATHER release the native without boatiing it if there is a good method for doing so. netting the fish and having it flop around in the bottom of my boat isn't doing it any favors. If i can avoid that, i will.

I believe that with salmon and steelhead natives they suggest trying to not remove it from the water if avoidable, but it is not illegal.

 

[the_intimidator03]

I do agree with your moral/ethical view on not wanting to remove native's from the water. I would guess if you can get a good hold of the hook with pliers while in the net and try and put pressure on the hook and give it a quick pop in the reverse direction of insertion could do the trick nice and quick