Trout Catch and Release 5 Tips to Properly Do It

Trout Catch and Release can be properly done using these simple 5 Tips.

If you wish to catch and release your trout you can try these tips that will help you to do it properly.

This Trout Catch and Release fishing post will cover…

1. Use a Trout Fishing Net
2. Avoid Excessively Handling Your Trout
3. Shorten the Fight With The Trout
4. Do Not Fish When it Is Too Hot
5. Crimp The Hook Barb
6. Help Protect Your Trout

You can read more about properly done Trout Catch and Release Below.

Trout Catch and Release Done Right

When fishing for trout, whether for stocked fish or their wild counterparts, you will be using a valuable resource that warrants careful conservation.

Unless you plan to eat it, every trout you catch should be handled with care.

This article presents five tips to help you improve trout survival when you practice catching and releasing.

Use a Trout Fishing Net

The best argument for using a fishing net is that the alternatives are terrible.

You can’t literally “land” trout – dragging a fish across a sandy or grassy shore will damage it.

You should not let the fish hang down from your line.

Nor should you squeeze it excessively to control it.

When you can place your trout in the fishing net.

You will have full control and be able to keep the fish in the water while you carefully remove the hook.

This will increase the chances of your trout surviving the ordeal and alive.

Even after it has been released back into the water.

Avoid Excessively Handling Your Trout

Your trout fishing net plays a major role in the next tip, which is to avoid over-handling the trout.

Trout have a protective slime on their skin which, if touched by something dry, will come off, leaving the fish exposed to diseases.

Keep the trout underwater as much as possible during the hook removal process/

Give it a moment to catch its breath, and with wet hands take a quick photo before releasing the fish.

Shorten the Fight With The Trout

Properly landing a trout takes time and patience.

You need to keep the pressure on the fish, allow violent head shakes, be ready for jumps, and guide the fish where you want them to go.

If you rush the process you could lose the fish, but if you take too long you could be life-threatening.

Don’t fight your trout to exhaustion – it stresses them out.

If you exhaust and stressed out your trout you may not be catch and release it back into the water.

It will not have the strength to survive and it will shortly die.

Do Not Fish When it Is Too Hot

The importance of keeping the fight short is even more important when the temperature starts to rise.

Trout need clean, cold water to survive; this type of water contains dissolved oxygen.

When water heats up, it also cannot hold oxygen.

Trout living in oxygen-depleted waters become very stressed and often cannot survive capture and release.

So if the water temperature is in the 70s, choose another species to follow.

Crimp The Hook Barb

Trout have an extremely delicate mouth, so you can crush the barb of your hook when fishing for it.

With other species, like bass, after breaking a barbed hook from the jaw of the fish, you would be hard-pressed to find damage.

With trout, you can break the fragile jaw plate very easily.

This is one of the coolest parts of a trout’s distinctive head.

But it’s also a functional part of the jawbone.

If this part of the jaw is damaged, the trout will not be able to properly open and close its mouth.

Whether you’re using a lure, spoon, small bait, or fly, bring a pair of needle-nose pliers to your barbs so you can release the intact fish.

Taking just a couple of seconds to crimp the barbs on your hooks will increase the chances of your trout.

Is just a simple thing that you can do so that your trout will not be damaged.

Help Protect Your Trout

Many trout fishermen will tell you: compared to other fish, trout is a precious and limited resource.

Every time you manage to release a fish, you honor the animal and give another angler a chance to enjoy the same thrill you experienced.

Please keep these tips in mind so that you can enjoy catch and release trout fishing in the most efficient way possible.

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Hope this post was helpful, tight lines everyone! Fish On!