release techniques 101

[Corey Howell]

apols for ripping two new threads in one day, but been trawling thru the forum looking at relative merits of landing/release techniques i.e. lip gaff [not tongue gaff!] vs net vs hands [difficult in a high-gunneled boat] and the knowledge of the thousands of GTs landed in this here forum - appreciate if anyone could point me in the direction of. thanks! corey

[Corey Howell]

Best practice is undoubtedly not removing the GT from the water at all, and I understand reluctance among experienced GT anglers in broadcasting info/knowledge on handling GTs in the belief it will only encourage more people to remove them from the water.

unfortunately we're not at the point yet where all anglers are willing to forego that classic pic of them nursing a big GT. esp as long as those trophy pics flood the internet reinforcing the notion that pulling fish out of the water is cool. in the real world, a third-world indigenous guide has buckley's of convincing a client to forgo that trophy pic - no matter how much the guide's employer encourages leaving the fish in the water. are operators enforcing leave-fish-in-the-water? No. It's not financially viable to do so yet - just as in the [long, frustrating, but ultimately fruitful] process of achieving mandatory release - pressure's gotta come from the angler for things to change

So, in situations where a fish is going to be removed from the water regardless of the above, how best to go about it?

low gunneled boats like pangas and flats/bay boats allowing two people can kneel down and really give the fish proper support when lifting out of the water really help, but are obviously not always the most appropriate or preferred rig.

higher gunneled boats, esp those without a coaming you can tuck your knees under, make safely lifting a big fish out of the water a real challenge, often ending up in some nasty reefing on the tail wrist and lip gaff. add some solid reef-edge boat rolling, and casting jelly arms, and 'best practice' goes out the window pretty quickly. enough nasty reefing on the tail wrist and lip gaff to make you wince.

hence the big landing slings/nets some operators are using. these look great, seem to result in much better fish handling if used properly, and are obviously evolving fast. cant seem to find any info on them tho - appreciate if anyone out there could point me in the direction of info on how to make em, best materials etc, how to use em properly

any refs to info/posts/vids about better handling GTs would be appreciated

thanks!

Corey

[Luke Wyrsta]

Valid points Corey (you must have been on some kind of spiritual GT journey last night )

There is always going to be an element of hypocrisy in what we do, however, we should all remind ourselves that we are still fishing, whilst the ultimate goal is to catch the biggest trophy possible. We rest assured that as a community and out fellow anglers that we ensure that a minimum set of best practices are employed to increase the chances of GT survival. The promotion of that ethos is what we are about - I think we should be very proud of that.

On the topic of removing GT out of the water, it's ideal that GT are removed laterally - via lip gaff and tail. This ensures that stress is not applied excessively from one such point. I can see the application of a tail rope. This would allow for the GT to remain in the water longer with greater security rather than rushing to pull a trophy GT over the gunnel, particularly in conditions that you mention.

GT should always be placed on a wet deck. This will help to preserve slime coatings.

Hook removal tools should be ready and waiting as well as deck hose to ensure a constant flow of oxygen rich saltwater to be pumped through the gills. Failing that, a bucket is the next best option.

A wet towel to be placed over the head and flank of the GT is also highly recommended.

A bolt-cutter is a luxury which can come in handy when hooks prove too embedded and awkward to remove.

I can't see a sling being very effective for GT removal at boat side. However, add a tail-rope, some patience and a well-oiled crew it could become an interesting process that allows easy weighing.

Luke

[Corey Howell]

after posting that i finally stumbled on the more recent posts in the very relevant Handling GTs thread - lots of good info there - thanks to all those posting!

thanks Luke for passing on your experience, and for the tail rope suggestion! we use tail-rope for securing and boating big yellowfin but hadnt thought of using it for GTs - makes a lot of sense tho, gives everyone breather time with the fish secure to clear rods, set cameras etc, and helps with that reach problem we have getting fish safely up and over a high gunnel. look fwd to trying it out, and will suggest to the Wilderness guides they try it. thanks again!