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Net or Not ?
Have oftened wondered whether to use a net or not when trout fishing? Which do you folks think is better on the fish? If I use a net the fish seems to lay fairly still in the net while I remove the fly but I know some body slime is removed by the net. When not using a net the fish often flops quite a bit in shallow water and I then need to hold the fish, with a wet hand to remove the fly. What do you folks do and why?
Bill from PA
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I use a net. It seems that the conventional wisdom with trout is to use a net. With a net, there is less of a chance of playing the fish to exhaustion. You can keep the fish in the water while you remove the hook. I think more body slime will be removed with your hands than a net.
[This message has been edited by Devil's Ditch (edited 14 November 2005).]
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pafisherman,
Net? Not!
RW
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"We fish for pleasure; I for mine, you for yours." -James Leisenring on fishing the wet fly-
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More often than not, I do not carry a net. Bulky, vest weighs enough already, superstition(-:, and I can release a fish easy enough without a net and without touching the fish. If I were to go fishing with the express intent of keeping fish, then I probably would take a net.
Allan
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Net ???? It is like the kiss of death a net or a camera is a guarantee I wont catch a fish.Plus I like to walk a ways. Nets just get in the way and hung in the brush.
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Nets are bad luck
Several years ago I received a "ketchem release" as a gift. Not the sort of gadget I would get for myself. But it turns out it works very well.
This tool makes it much easier to release the fly without touching the fish. Works 90% of the time. I don't know if they are still available, but I've seen some Dr.Slick hemostats with a loop on one tip that look like the work the same way.
When I was a kid I had a red plastic tool with a large "bulb" on one end and a small bulb on the other. It was the same sort of tool, only this one cost around .29 cents.
[This message has been edited by dudley (edited 14 November 2005).]
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It depends on the situation.
If I am fishing in a place where I may encounter larger fish and where I may be fishing a 7X or smaller tippet; I usually bring a net so I can release the stronger fish quicker. I use a folding net that I keep folded in a holster on my belt so it?s out of the way and isn't a big deal carrying it to use if and when I may need it.
IF I feel I need the net for a particular fish I use it; if not I just steady the fish by grabbing its lower lip while leaving it in the water as I remove the hook. I probably release 99 & 9/10% of my fish this way without a net and almost never have to take the fish out of the water. I have the chewed up thumb to prove it http://www.flyanglersonline.com/bb/smile.gif.
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Not any more. Most of my fishing is done in areas that require fighting through heavy brush to get to the stream, which makes a net more of a hinderence than a help. Even still, up to this past summer I was carrying a net clipped to the back of my vest. Unfortunately, I went to slide down a bank not realizing that the net had caught on a branch. Needless to say, I was suprised by both the sudden stop and the fact that the frame of the net could support my weight. After I managaged to break the frame and fall into the water, I decided that that was the end of carrying a net.
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generally speaking, no, I don't carry a net.
although there are waters I fish where you'd better have one, hell, you better have a big one if you want any chance of easily landing the fish. a hot fish in hot current is hell on wheels to land by hand.
mgj
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I use a net. That way I don't have to play fish to exhaustion or drop them a bunch of times. Seems like the responsible thing to do for catch and release. I can get the fish back in the water more quickly and they aren't as tire.
-John