How to Catch & Release?

Fishing Tips and Info, , ,

As the word is spreading about the benefits of C & R, it has become the “in” thing to do. You can see increasing number of posts on social media showing happy fly fishermen releasing their hard earned trophy catch. However, anyone stop to think what happens to the fish after the photo is taken and the video is shot? Does the fish swim away, living happily ever after in the waters of far far away? What are the chances of survival for the released fish? It can be very high or very low depending on many factors, but one thing is for sure, we can definitely increase the survival rate if we do C & R properly. C & R doesn’t mean throwing the fish back into the water after unhooking it. Let’s look at the 3 phases of C & R.   Catching and Playing the fish A good C & R starts with the catching the fish. Use proper equipment for the job. It may look cool and might earn you more bragging rights if you catch a huge fish on flimsy line. The prolonged fight might cause the fish to tire beyond recovery. Fish caught and fought to exhaustion will not live to fight another day. Use also barbless hooks, barbless hooks may be hard to come by in this part of the world, but we can all make do. Just use a strong pair of pliers and crimped the barb. This makes unhooking the fish easier and most of the time, the fish doesn’t need to leave the water. Barbless hooks also make cause less damage to the fish’s delicate mouth and won’t tear the mouth when it is removed. Use heavier tippet. Fish may have good eyesight and some fish are line shy, but if you use fluorocarbon lines, it is practically invisible in the water. Using heavier tippet will give you the confidence to land the fish quicker. A tired fish may take longer to recover and while it is resting, it may be attacked by other predators.   Landing the fish Landing the fish is the most harmful part of the process for the fish. It is quite common to see the fish being pulled onto the grass, rock and even the sandy bank. This will rub off the slime coating on the fish. This slime protects the fish from infections and diseases. Also, wet your hands before you hold the fish. A dry hand is more likely to remove this layer of slime. Put the fish on a wet towel or a mat. Use a landing net if the fish is still very green or is too large to be handled by hand. Use a large rubber net as the string nets have knots which can hurt the fish. As much as possible keep the net in the water and remove the hook. If you need to lift the fish out of the water, use on hand to hold its tail and the other to support its belly. Have a firm grip to ensure that the fish doesn’t fall when it struggles. A fall to the rocks can be fatal to the fish. Remember a fish can’t breathe out of the water. Imagine holding your breath the entire duration you have the fish out of the water.   Releasing the fish When holding the fish, do not squeeze it. The fish depends on water buoyancy to support its weight. When it is out of the water, the internal organ will be compressed by its own weight. It makes sense to keep the fish in the water. Remove the hook quickly by reversing the direction of the hook entry. If the fish is hooked deep in the throat, cut the line as close to the hook as possible. The hook will fall out on its own. If your fish is too exhausted, revive the fish by allowing the water to gently flow over over its gill. Position the head of the fish in the direction of the flowing water. When the fish tries to swim away, just release your grip and let it swim on its own. This might take a few seconds to a few minutes.   Photographing your catch It is understandable that you will want to photograph your prize catch. Choose the fish that you want to photograph. If will be silly to photograph every single fish that you catch. The best way to photograph your fish is to leave your fish in the net and get your camera ready. Set the timer and lift the fish out of the water only when you are ready to shot. Tis makes for a more dramatic photo that one of a fish drying out in the sun. Have a shot of you releasing a fish. This will make it more meaningful

Catching to RELEASE?

Fishing Tips and Info, , ,

Why do people go fly fishing? Is it for the joy and pride of telling the world what a skilled fisherman they are? Or is it to be out in nature, enjoying the beauty of nature either alone or in the company of close friends? Whatever the reasons, it makes sense to practice catch and release. Catch and what? Catch and release. The act of catching the fish, unhooking it and then gently releasing it back to its natural habitat. Isn’t it counter productive to release a fish that you have tried so hard to catch? Why release when you wanted to catch in the first place? For a start, Catch & Release ensures that the fish numbers don’t get depleted and there is always a chance for others or maybe even yourself to enjoy catching the same fish time and time again. A live fish in the water is worth much more than one on the dinner table. C & R also allows the fish to maintain its number and reproduce to ensure the sustainability of the species. Time and time again, we have heard of rivers, lakes and even parts of the seas being depleted of fish. This is bad news for fishermen and anglers, but there is also a hidden side not many are aware of. The balance of the ecosystem will be negatively affected too. Every species in the ecosystem has a role to play, no matter how small or insignificant it may seem. The world is about balance and nothing upsets this balance when a secondary and tertiary consumer is removed from the food web. Fish biologist will tell you that the longer the fish live and the bigger they grow, they will have more time to collect pollutants, toxins and harmful chemicals from their surroundings. A big fish may look good for the table, but we may unsuspectingly be poisoning ourselves. When we release the bigger fish, we are releasing mature fish that are ready to spawn and ensure the continuation of the fish that we love to catch. It also makes economic sense to practice C & R. Anglers spend good money to travel to fishing location. Imagine the amount of money spent on gear, transport, accommodation… If the area is depleted of fish, it will no longer attract angles and the local economy will be affected. All of the above have been said and discussed many times over. Some might argue that C & R is is cruel and cause unnecessary suffering to the fish. And some say that it is not right for us to cause harm to our fellow creatures. My take on this is; before we truly understand the beauty of nature, we will not have a personal agenda to save it. I have been fishing for many years and have gone through the various stages of fishing; catching and bringing home everything to selective C & R and now to mostly C & R. As a casting instructor, I actively promote fly fishing and I see this as a great platform to educate anglers on the importance to practice conservation and preservation of our nature. A small price to be paid for the bigger good to the environment. Education is the tool that we must have to start creating change.      

Fly Casting Technique: 5 Essentials in Fly Casting

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The 5 Essentials in Fly Casting Essential #1: Eliminate Slack Line Line should be kept in tension throughout the cast. You can start to load the rod as soon as you life the line. This allows casting to begin earlier. Left: Slack line Right: No slack line With slack line the rod needs to be moved further to eliminate the slack line before casting can begin. It will reduce the casting stroke and there is no tension to load the rod. —————————————————- Essential #2: Timing At the beginning and the end of the cast, there is a pause to allow the line to straighten out before proceeding to the next cast. Pause is directly proportional to the length of line outside the rod. LONG LINE = LONG PAUSE SHORT LINE = SHORT PAUSE Tips: 1) Look over the shoulder to see if the line has straighten before proceeding with the forward cast. 2) Too short pause – hear a snap, break the fly / tippet off 3) Too long pause – the fly line falls to the ground due to gravity If timing is right, you will feel the line tug. —————————————————- Essential #3: Vary the Casting Stroke & Casting Arc Casting stroke = the distance the rod tip moves during a cast Casting arc = the angle the rod moves during a cast LONG LINE = LONG STROKE = LONG PAUSE SHORT LINE = SHORT STROKE = SHORT PAUSE —————————————————- Essential #4: Smooth Power Application Smooth power application (Start Slow, End Fast) The line speed allows the line to shoot out when the rod tip stops. Smooth power application can eliminate a concave tip path. Concave tip path will cause tailing loop. (We will look into this in tailing loop section) Crisp stop – when the rod stops, the momentum carries the line beyond the rod tip and create a loop. —————————————————- Essential #5: Straight Line Path (SLP) The line always follow the path of the rod tip. Straight Line Tip Path + Rod Tip Stop at SLP = Narrow Loop Convex Tip Path / Rod Tip Stop BELOW SLP = Wide Loop Concave Tip Path = Tailing Loop —————————————————- SUMMARY

Fly Casting Technique: Roll Cast

Fly Casting Technique, , , ,

What is the usage of roll cast? – When space is limited (no space at the back) – Straighten your fly line – Bringing your sinking line up to the water surface – Tail Wind (Wind blowing from your back to front) How to Roll Cast? First, bring the fly line back parallel to yourself, creating a big D loop. Use the line in the water as an anchor. (It is important that your casting hand to be level to your ear.) At this point, the fly line will be hanging to the side of your body forming a ‘D’ loop like the diagram. After the ‘D’ loop is formed, do a forward cast. In order to do a WIDE ROLL CAST : stop the rod tip lower than straight line path (SLP) In order to do a NARROW ROLL CAST: stop rod tip near the straight line path (SLP)