STOP KILLING FISH!!!!

[powdork]

that's what i need to do. other than a few bigger catches, it seems like all i am teaching my daughters to do is kill fish. they're (the fish, not the kids) mostly too small to eat, but are almost always confined too a short life after releasing.
fly fishing isn't an option as i can't afford new gear for me and them. so here are some questions
1. we're almost exclusively bait fishing with worms and occasionally power bait. i'll often throw a lure while they fish, but with no success. will barbless hooks help at all or does it matter once it's swallowed as is usually the case?

2. are there good options other than bait for spinning reel shore fishing in the sierra?

3. is there a certain hook size that will keep the little ones (again, the fish, not the kids) from being able to swallow it?

and of course any other advice?

[bio-smear]

Teach them to be quicker on setting the hook.

[fez]

^^^^^^^^^^
that's the main one, but...

go barbless for sure. make sure you only have one point per line (clip or dont use treble hooks). try to extract the hook if you can, if its way swallowed, clip the line as close to the hook as possible and let the fish go.

You can fly fish with a spinning rig though. just put a good sized bobber a couple feet up the line, tie a fly on the end. the kids can cast the bobber and the fly will follow.

[powdork]

Teach them to be quicker on setting the hook.

i'll definitely give that a go as i've been letting them relax and walk away from their poles. will that work for worms as well as power bait. it seems like a lot of the tugs on the bobber are just the worms getting bit and not the hook.

the bobber/fly thing sounds like the way to go though, and i think they will love it.
any shopping recommendations? we tend to hit caples, blue lakes, echo lakes around sunset.
i also live on the upper truckee just s of the hwy 50 bridge and would love for them to be able to fish out the back door. i don't see much going on there at any time of the day though. i'm guessing it's not stocked since at least part of it is a Heritage and Wild Trout designation.

[WyoWill]

The bubble and fly trick should help solve your problem

[warthog]

I like that bobber and fly trick- think I'll try that too.

I would say stop letting them walk away from the rod. They won't get away with that later on, so don't teach it to them now. If they aren't fishing, then they aren't fishing. Do that around here, and your gear will go waterskiing behind a big fish.

[schwerty]

Listen to the advice above! Something you also might want to consider teaching your kids is to play the fish, especially as the water warms in the summer, as little as possible. Get it stuck in their heads that fishing is mostly about the part up to or including the hook set....after that the goal should be to land the fish as quickly as possible without being too rough on the fish. Gentle handling will help as will taking the fish off the hook while still in the water.

I don't know how old your kids are but you could possibly turn this into a game of sorts. Hype up that it's important for the fish they catch to be released safely and turn it into a friendly contest.

[Vinman]

also as far as releasing and extracting hooks, keep the fish in the water if possible while you are extracting the hook. Trout won't last more than 45-60 seconds out of the water before they are done for. And don't forget to wet your hands before handling trout. They are very sensitive to dry hands and if you disrupt their slime coat they can get an infection and die later on.

[hartzejr]

Circle Hook. They should help reduce the number of swallows.

[The Suit]

Maybe try zero-offset circle hooks. I haven't used them in freshwater, but when you're using live or dead baits for big saltwater fish they reduce gut hooking enormously.

[fez]

for flies i'd go with decent sized (nothing smaller than 14) foam body stimulators. chernobyl ant, madame x, hoppers, They'll float high, mimic a wide range of fish food, and will be easy to see. but that's basically choosing the flies for the fisherman, not the fish. Try one or two and see if they work. i dont know for sure, but i assume crappies will eat on the surface.

[GeoMatt]

You can fly fish with a spinning rig though. just put a good sized bobber a couple feet up the line, tie a fly on the end. the kids can cast the bobber and the fly will follow.

This is the set up I have for my son. He is 4yo and knows nothing about setting a hook. Catches lots of small sun fish, and maybe only 1 in 60 swallows a hook.

[powpowpowderwheels]

Try using larger hooks as well, use the largest you can that will still catch fish. Ask for a 'torpedo bobber' for your bobber/fly rig, its shaped for this purpose and the line runs right through the center of it.

As far as spinning gear, for trout in the mountain lakes I like to throw #00 and #0 mepps (black/orange, classic), the small panther martins (black/yellow, 'bee') and the smallest and second smallest kastmaster spoons in silver and gold.

[likwid]

Maybe try zero-offset circle hooks. I haven't used them in freshwater, but when you're using live or dead baits for big saltwater fish they reduce gut hooking enormously.

You'll miss a couple more fish but yes, they work in freshwater too.

Also crush the barbs on your hooks, it'll teach you (and the kids) to always keep pressure on the fish when reeling.

[45hill]

I'm with the barbless fly and bubble crew. The kids will love seeing the fish hit the fly, as do I.

[TheRealPoop]

I fly fish and still wonder somtimes if the fish is gonna be OK. I caught a real nice brooke today and its lip was bleading a little. I have read alot on proper handling, but I am not convinced that anyone reaily knows what happens.

[Denny1969]

I fly fish and still wonder somtimes if the fish is gonna be OK. I caught a real nice brooke today and its lip was bleading a little. I have read alot on proper handling, but I am not convinced that anyone reaily knows what happens.

I learned this trick from fly fishing celebrity, Rachel Andras (see Mikey Wier's Soulfish and Jamie Howard's Location X). To stop bleeding on a fish's lip, add direct pressure. I've tried it over the weekend. It works.

[MakersTeleMark]

To stop bleeding on a fish's lip, add direct pressure. I've tried it over the weekend. It works.

Or cut the gills out and wait a few seconds.

[yonskion]

about 20 minutes ago on the Deschutes in Tumalo, Oregon while walking my dog.....
I just grabbed a 10" trout with my bare hands as it was resting in the shallows. In celebration I killed it and am cooking it in the toaster oven and feeding it to my cats. I am a catch and release guy but this was a straight kill scenario.
Bare Hands TR 7/21/09

[WyoWill]

I worked with a woman who had convinced herself that every fish she caught was able to swim away and live a long, healthy life. Super warm water, played too long, hooked too deep, spawned out . . . it didn't matter. She was/is crazy. Even if you are the most careful angler and do everything right, you won't ever eliminate fish mortality unless you stop catching fish. Like my former coworker, you're fooling yourself to think otherwise.

[Jer]

And don't forget to wet your hands before handling trout.

Tons of people overlook this.

[powdork]

about 20 minutes ago on the Deschutes in Tumalo, Oregon while walking my dog.....
I just grabbed a 10" trout with my bare hands as it was resting in the shallows. In celebration I killed it and am cooking it in the toaster oven and feeding it to my cats. I am a catch and release guy but this was a straight kill scenario.
Bare Hands TR 7/21/09

in that scenario, you must bite into the fish right then and there. it's the only way.

[ak_powder_monkey]

You can fly fish with a spinning rig though. just put a good sized bobber a couple feet up the line, tie a fly on the end. the kids can cast the bobber and the fly will follow.

Ding Ding Ding we have a winner its what I did when I was 8

[yonskion]

in that scenario, you must bite into the fish right then and there. it's the only way.

right place & right time. I membered what I had read in the Curtis Creek Manifesto years ago and pulled it off, very lucky. Hard road to a meal muddling.

[2FUNKY]

You can fly fish with a spinning rig though. just put a good sized bobber a couple feet up the line, tie a fly on the end. the kids can cast the bobber and the fly will follow.

Use this one in clear, casts forever, fully adjustable, less wake:


Not this one: