Catch and Release unharmed ?

[rls1936]

Made my firt trip to Taney this week. It was everything I'd imagined. Everyone was respectful and willing to help if asked, but one thing disturbed me. 95% of the anglers are very careful to release their fish unharmed, but there were a few exceptions. One guy was beaching every fish, letting it flop on the rocks for 1-2 minutes while it tired itself out, then when it stopped flipping, unhooked it and dropped it from a height of 2-3 feet into the shallow water. Others were squeezing fish around the middle, to measure them, when they were obviously over 12 inches, and taking their time about it. Saw a older lady do this to a fish that was at least 15 inches to measure. Seems they thought they were catching bass. What do you do in this situation, kind of ruined the trip to see this.

[MOBass]

It's always hard to see someone not handle a fish to be released in a proper manner. Sometimes they just don't know how. You can sometimes offer a little advice on how to better release fish but be prepared for mixed results. On one end you may get a sincere thanks for teaching someone a better way to do it and on the other you may get a very irate person growling at you.

If it looks like someone is a novice and just needs a little education I'll usually say something and try to offer some help. On the other hand if it appers to be someone that should know better or just doesn't care I'll keep my thoughts to myself. I am not out for a confrantation while fishing....at least with a human. I'll fight the fish all day long.