Man that gets me PO'ed

I just got done watching a show about fishing the Niagara River in New York for steelhead. I was absolutely livid at the way they stuck their fingers up into the fishes gill plates and gill rakers while hauling the steelhead out of their landing net before they released the fish. You can just imagine how much harm they did to these fish. I found the "guides" website and posted on the message board they provided.
Stew

[ 07-13-2001: Message edited by: BIGSTEW ]

[Crusin]

They do alot of unexsplainable things back east..

[chuck 'n' duck]

It is not just back east. I was reading over one of my past STS issues, and saw the same thing in the Reader mail section. There was a picture of this guy with one hand on the belly of a steelie, and the other hand stuffed way up in the gills. I think the letter said something like..."here's a pic of a 20+ lb. native steelhead that me and buddy caught and released. C&R is the only way to go."

I think that STS should have been ashamed for showing that type of handling on a native fish. I will bet money that fish didn't survive that catch and release.

CnD

[aye fsh]

Were these guys names something like Al Jablonski and Joe Tudumtufish? I've seen a program on the outdoor channel with these two schmucks that were treating steelhead and salmon like you described. Taking fish and shoving their paws clear up the gills and then giving 'em a big heave ho into the water that was only 2 or 3 inches deep. Couple of boneheads!

Those were the guys! What a bunch of dopes. I almost called the guide since he should have known better. There is a well known flyfisherman who Marty P. knows and loves that has been guilty of the same thing.
Stew

[Snagly]

Chuck, I saw the same picture and caption in STS and it made me want to write to Frank or Nick Amato but I get my issues so late I figured another thousand or so people had already beat me to the punch.

Sad to say, but the Midwest steelhead fraternity has quite a few folks putting their hand into the gill slits. The "In Fisherman" video on Steelhead was filmed in Wisconsin/ Minnesota (I think) and is not a bad introduction to float fishing bait on smaller waters. They catch quite a few double-digit fish, too, but what I found inexplicable is how senior In Fisherman magazine editor Matt Straw continously hoisted the steelhead with a couple of fingers in their gills and then extolled the virtues of C & R.

Another scene that made me wince recently was watching a tape of someone put the Vulcan Death Grip across the top of the head of a 5-6lb native, squeezing each gill plate with a thumb and forefinger. Can't imagine that helped that young buck become a repeat spawner.

Maybe there should be pamphlets handed out when you buy a fishing license that talk about the proper handling of fish you are going to release.

[Pete]

Help me out. I was under the impression that steelhead were introduced to the midwest and east ... that these were hatchery fish. Do they spawn in the wild? When were they introduced, or are these natives?

[Fishin Magician]

If possible I try and pull the hook out , get a quick thank you pic and send them on their way. If they are hooked deep or I feel that the fish is in any danger I will quickly remove the hook or cut the line and release it asap. Who would be dumb enough to put their hands in a fishes gills and then intend to release it unharmed. How about shoving a broomhandle down their throats and then telling them to try and run a mile or two................. [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img] ~~~~~~John

Pete I'm not sure what the story on the spawning thing and they didn't say. I think they do spawn in the wild then return to the Great Lakes where they are at the top of the food chain and grow to be pretty good size. The thing is why they would handle fish this way if they are releasing them?
Stew

[Snagly]

Pete, the steelhead were originally stocked with West Coast fish (I believe), but some of the stockings go back over 100 years and there haven't been any plants in this century in some cases. The runs in a minority of the streams are 100% natural (i.e., no hatchery augmentation, 100% self-sustaining). Though the dates of the original rainbow (steelhead) plants differ from place to place, there are naturally reproducing steelhead plus hatchery fish throughout the Great Lakes, from Ontario (Niagra River, upstate NY) over to Superior (Minn/ Wisconsin). Most if not all of the hatchery fish are clipped, too, to it's the same situation as in the Pacific NW: fishermen know what they've got on the line.

Now the REALLY ironic part about these Great Lakes steelies is that many of the naturally reproducing runs witness 10% smolt returns as adults, and even higher incidences of repeat spawning than you see in most of Pac NW. You see, the Great Lakes don't have seals, orcas and commercial gillnetters. Many of the states also have pretty minimal bag limits on natural fish. (Here I'm a bit fuzzy -- someone may know more.)

There are a couple of Great Lakes steelhead sites you can check out. www.steelheadsite.com is one and www.noodlebagger.com is another. (Neither is as good as Ifish.)

[Pete]

If the fish are free spawning and they're being released, then they should be given every opportunity to survive. Maybe it's an educational thing ... it isn't like bass which seem to be able to survive anything, but that's where most guys in this country learn their release techniques. It's only been the last ten years or so that proper anadromous fish release methods have been publicized in the NW.

[ 07-14-2001: Message edited by: Pete ]

[Thumper]

I have fished the Salmon and Oswego rivers in upstate NY a few times, and you must realize that their "culture" is quite different than ours. When the fish are running, they are mainly dark fish. My son and I hung around a roadside commercial filleting/vacuum-sealing operation and we marvelled at the black fish that compromised the majority of the catch. The fillets were typically near-white and very mushy. For proof of the cultural differences, just see the ads in STS extolling fishing in Oswego County, NY. One photo shows a 50-pounder no Ifisher would consider keeping for rose food.

At the peak of the season the fishermen are lined elbow-to-elbow along the river (which is very beautiful), and most are snagging. They are mainly big-city folks from downstate NY and Connecticut, and few are regular fishermen like we seem to have out here. It is a different world back there.

[Capin' Dan]

I will have to say that the great lakes has some awesome Salmon and steelhead. These fish are great when caught out on the main lake.

[img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

[Thumper]

I think that the Spring and Fall/Winter steelhead (our very own Skamania strain hatchery fish) are very bright when they arrive in the rivers and hold up well. My comments about grungy dark fish apply to the chinook that come in from the lakes in September/October. These are very large fish, but seem to arrive already starting to turn dark. The times when I have been there only a few hens were still at all bright.

The snaggers on these rivers have the "art" of lining down pat. I stood on a bridge over the Salmon River watching a bunch of dark chinook males courting two semi-bright females while a couple of "fishermen" selectively snagged the females in the gin-clear water. It was amazing to watch.

A funny thing about the big-city fishermen snagging these fish is that most are using $400 GLoomis rods! You have never seen so many GLoomis rods as among the well-heeled snaggers of the Salmon River.

Every Ifish member really should spend a few days in Pulaski, NY in September or October. The beauty of the Salmon River and the surrounding foliage in the fall is stunning. The locals are super people. The fish are thick. But it ain't fishing in our sense of the word.