How To Handle Bass.

[PhishLI]

I look at it like a sanctioned fight in a ring or a cage. I want to win, which means I'm going to hurt my opponent to some degree, but I really don't want them to die.

 

I'm usually wading, so I keep them submerged while unhooking them. A quick pic or two followed by a release period with side to side wagging until they feel strong, then off they go. Big or small, they get this treatment. That's all I can do.

[FrnkNsteen]

Do you suppose fish realize we are the ones that hooked them?

 

Or are they thankful to us friendly humans that saved them from what ever it was and set them free?!? ??

[Clumsy fisherman]

OK, how do you land, handle and safely release a fish that you catch on a pier, with rails, that is several feet above the water. I am not being sarcastic, this is an honest question.

[Hammer 4]

11 hours ago, Clumsy fisherman said:

OK, how do you land, handle and safely release a fish that you catch on a pier, with rails, that is several feet above the water. I am not being sarcastic, this is an honest question.

There is a lake 10 mins from my house, that has concrete piers with hand rails about 4' off the ground, and for that reason I don't fish there.

If you happen to hook into a say 6lb bass, and you have to lift it 10' in the air, there are to many things that can go wrong.

Your line could break, as could your knot. The fish could thrash about and tear the hook out it's mouth. And then there's a slight chance your rod could break.

So, lets say you still want to fish there, use a heavier rated rod, use heavier line than needed, and finally double check you knots, and maybe leave a tad more tag end, just in case it slips.

Still, IMHO there's still a chance one of the above may happen, I think it's a crap shoot.

And I realize that guys fish off off higher piers in the salt, but they are using much heavier gear. Hope that helps. Oh, and have some sort of small container with fresh water in it, to Wet your hands if need be.

[Choporoz]

On 8/4/2022 at 5:45 PM, FrnkNsteen said:

That is my wife's pet peave when we are watching fishing shows. She's constantly saying "Shut up and get it back in the water". 

Exactly same in this house

[casts_by_fly]

20 hours ago, Clumsy fisherman said:

OK, how do you land, handle and safely release a fish that you catch on a pier, with rails, that is several feet above the water. I am not being sarcastic, this is an honest question.

Depending on the pier, a long handled net or a basket net on a rope. That’s how the saltwater pier guys do it. There was a place we fished steelhead in Erie that you were on a break wall.  Similar deal with a long net. 

[FrnkNsteen]

21 hours ago, Clumsy fisherman said:

OK, how do you land, handle and safely release a fish that you catch on a pier, with rails, that is several feet above the water. I am not being sarcastic, this is an honest question.

I've had the same concerns. There is an old limestone quarry pond with bass in it out behind our property. I walked back there one day to try fishing it and the only reasonable access was a ledge over a cut face that was about 12 ft off the water.

 

I flipped a tube around some of the limestone chunks and caught a couple bass around a couple pounds and had to hand line them up the cliff. Unfortunately, i had no way to release them other than to just drop them back down into the water.

 

I could only point them nose down and let them go. Felt so bad after the first couple that I just packed up and went home. Haven't gone back there to fish again since. ?