On the Line

Who's Fishing for My Vote?


While driving back home from my local polling place today it occured to me that I was more informed about the candidates than in years past. Today was a Republican primary for county commissioners, clerks, a sheriff and two congressmen. A pretty full slate that would likely draw good voter turnout.

It also dawned on me that despite the fact that all of the candidates vying to be elected have pretty good web pages with details about their missions and backgrounds, they were kinda sparse in the personal and lifestyle department. Sure, they all mentioned family, and there were some requisite mentions about "caring for the environment," I was hoping that someone running for office here in seaside Martin County, Florida would have said:  "In my spare time I go fishing." Or, even boating or diving. Something. Even a candidate running for Congress, whose son owns a local fishing rod manufacturing company, did not list fishing as a favorite activity. But I figure he has to fish, right? I mean, C'mon!

I voted for him, whether he fishes or not. Besides, the alternative was voting for an outsider, a true carpetbagger!

Most voters are looking for someone like-minded right? I want to put a bona fide "salt" in office. Sometimes those photos of the candidate with the kids and wife or husband walking on the beach wearing trendy beachwear seem so damn staged, you know? Especially when they are all pasty white.

My hometown is nuts about recreational fishing, and it is located on the St. Lucie River, which joins the Indian River Lagoon just a two-minute boat ride through an inlet to the Atlantic ocean. Recreational, and to a lesser extent, commerical fishing, pumps big bucks into our economy, as is the case throughout the coastal U.S.  The health of my local waters and fisheries suffer badly at times due to agricultural pollution, and there are always issues regarding suburban growth and its effect on our fishing habitat.

So yeah, I would probably give a candidate more serious consideration if he or she came out and said something like, "My aim as your elected official is to establish a balance between economic growth so long as it does not adversely affect our waterways because it is also my goal to catch plenty of snook, tarpon redfish and trout today, and I want my kids and grandkids to do the same for years to come."

I would wave signs on street corners for a candidate who made that kind of stand.

I just wish someone on today's ballot was really "fishing" for my vote. 

On the Line

Don't Feed your Fish to Fish

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

Predation in oceans, rivers, lakes and streams is a fact of life, or death, as the case may be. It is the rare angler who has not witnessed large apex predators, such as sharks and porpoises, or alligators in fresh waters, home in on the scene where he or she is catching fish. Like it or not, an appreciable number of released fish, and even fish locked in battle with an angler, fall prey to something bigger and badder higher on the food chain.

So, what to do when this happens? Keep hooking fish and hope for the best? Or, elect to stop fishing when and where the chances of your catch being "lunched" (particularly those that you plan to release, or must release due to regulations) are high?

Yesterday, I was fishing the surf near my hometown in Stuart, Florida. The surf is chock-a-block with juvie bay anchovies right now. There is a brown ribbon against the sand for miles, hugging the beach to escape the jacks, Spanish macks, blue runners, snook, and small and large tarpon feasting on the numbers. And, there are lots of big sharks, blacktips and menacing bull sharks in particular.

At one point, I cast a streamer fly to a rolling 30- pound tarpon, only to have it grabbed by a chunky ladyfish--naturally, right?  As the ladyfish struggled, the tarpon turned and attempted to eat the lady. The ladyfish jumped off, the tarpon slowed, but then panicked and shot out of there.

 "What spooked that 'poon?" I wondered aloud, until an 8-foot bull shark surged ahead right on that tarpon's tail. I doubt the shark caught the tarpon, but had I hooked the tarpon, the shark had an easy meal.

In the next ten minutes, I spotted at least a half-dozen more, cruising the same lane outside the minnows where the tarpon were. It was obvious what they were after. I stashed my fly rod at that point. Though I came to primarily jump tarpon on fly, I have no desire to feed tarpon to the sharks, as way too many anglers do, though not purposely in places such as Florida's Boca Grande Pass.

I wish every angler would make this decision whenever faced with a similar situation.

    

On the Line

Catch-and-Release-to-Survive

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

During an address to the sportfishing media during the week of the ICAST sportfishing trade show in Orlando earlier this month, American Sportfishing Association (ASA) President and CEO Mike Nussman announced the launch of a commendable public awareness program, FishSmart.

"In fresh water we've done a great job in reducing fish mortality with fish that anglers catch," said Nussman. "More than 80 percent of anglers who caught fish that they could have kept, reported releasing some of them. In saltwater alone, the number of released fish exceeds 200 million annually, and with increasing regulations such as size limits, bag limits and seasons this number is sure to grow."

"However," as Nussman noted, "One of the keys to successful catch and release efforts is having the right kind of tackle that improves the chance that released fish will live. The overall FishSmart program is designed to address this and other fisheries conservation issues, such as angler education, head on."

It is a message that anglers have heard before, if not from an organization that represents our sport. This outdoor writer, and many others, have hammered this message home time and time again, with the realization that it does fall on deaf ears all too often. Particularly the ears of anglers who chase world records or look for headlines, or claim that the lighter the tackle, the more a fish can "show its stuff."

Sure, a long slugfest with a tough gamefish is thrilling, but in the long run, not ideal for that fish if it is to be released. What I hear all the time is that using tackle that shortens the battle measurably "takes the challenge" out of cathcing a fish. I will cite examples such as the guy I know who refuses to use a fly rod heavier than a 6-weight and light tippet for big Florida bonefish. Or the sports I have come across who are dead-set on catching big tarpon on spin tackle more suited for redfish. I used to fish with a fellow who cast a 4-weight fly rod for tailing redfish in the heat of summer and then babied them on his light tippet forever. It took 10 minutes to revive them to swim away, barely, and I am convinced they were a shark's lunch soon thereafter. I do not fish with him anymore. And I hope he doesn't do that anymore.

It all boils down to what is essentially "stunt" fishing and what is responsible catch-and-release fishing. If you plan to put your catch on ice for dinner, by all means go as light as you dare. Although most anglers beef up on tackle considerably when out for meat, don't they? There is even some evidence that overly long, drawn-out fights build up lactic acid levels high enough to affect the quality and flavor of fish flesh, so keep that in mind.

If you plan to release your catch, tackle up accordingly to catch them as quickly as possible. Otherwise it's just catch-and-release-to-die.

This hefty dock snook, caught by angler Jon Macca, was landed on a 9-weight fly rod in under two minutes, held out of water for less than 10 seconds for a quick photo, and swam away in great shape.   

On the Line

Pick the Right Stick  

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

A trip to Flamingo on Florida Bay this past Sunday further solidified my fishing philosophy: Pick the Right Stick. Though my plan was to fly fish for tailing redfish, andI fact did hook and land the first redfish I spotted and cast to with my 8-weight rod, things changed in a heartbeat.

The wind died, and the flat looked like an ice skating rink--not a ripple. The sun was now high enough to light up our world, which makes fish-spotting easier, but in a tradeoff, fish see you better, too. The reds were all singles, and as my host Richard Kernish said: "They aren't tailing as much as yesterday. Yesterday they were "flopping over" standing on their heads. And we had some wind and a light chop.

Translation? Easier fish to approach and feed. "Dumber" fish.

We would pole silently to within 70 feet of a fish, and it would feel us and would move off irritably, pushing a wake as it did. After a dozen refusals on long, long casts, and showing them the fly pretty darn well most times, we knew what time it was: Spinning rod time!

I jumped on the poling platform and Richard tied on a nice, fat plastic jerbait, Texas-rigged. A single red tailed up 120 feet away. Richard launched a long cast just beyond the fish, which had no clue. Richard twitched the bait. The redfish pounded it. Richard's rod bent double. And he looked back at me with that look that said, problem solved. And we repeated the scene a half dozen times in the next 15 minutes until the water rose further and the fish dissappeared.

"We would have caught 20 fish if we made the switch earlier," Richard commented later. No doubt, we would have. But that's okay, we have scored big numbers many times on fly. But on this day, casting from even a full fly line's distance just did not cut it.

Do I prefer fly casting? Sure. But I also like to catch redfish after going to bed at midnight, rising at 4 a.m. and driving 170 miles to fish for maybe 6 hours. So, I will do what it takes without reservation. I pick the right stick. Every single time.

  

EYE CANDY

Sneak a Peek at Fly & Light Tackle Angler 

Here is a sneak peek preview of the FLTA PROFILE department which will be a interview with Joe Mahler. The video shows some of the look and feel and the interactivity that will be available on the magazine app. 


http://youtu.be/l48hkkulZ8Q?hd=1

On the Line

Nurture Your Young Anglers

by Mike Conner, Editor-in-Chief

This morning as I read over the final proof for our first issue's GENERATIONS column--in which Kenny Wright offers his insightful tips for teaching kids to love fishing--my recent trip to the local WalMart fishing department came to mind. First of all, I always advocate giving your local tackle shop your business, but when my favorite shops don't carry something I desperately need, well, Wally World gets the sale.

While there, I came across parents and a boy of about 12 going through the rack rod spinning combos with puzzled looks. And dad gazed over the wall of lures while rubbing his chin. I gathered a few items, and as I walked by, the mom asked if the rod-and-reel their boy was holding could "catch a snook." It was a budget 12-pound outfit, spooled with what looked like 15-pound-test mono. I grabbed it, and told them it certainly would, but they would need to tie on a bite leader of 30-pound test at the least. And that just got me blank stares.

"Have you ever fished for or caught a snook?" I asked. They had not, and in fact, had little fishing knowledge, but said they witnessed an angler land a big snook at the beach that very morning while they looked for seashells, and their son badly wanted to do the same. "It fought like crazy!" the boy gushed.

They had no way of catching live bait, had never fished with lures, so I gave a short clinic right then and there, but what they needed was hands-on instruction. Dad told me they could not afford a boat guide, or expensive equipment, but wanted my help to pick out one or two good snook lures, and advice on how to "reel" them. I explained that to him, then suggested they go down the street to a particular tackle shop (and buy the test of mono leader that WalMart was actually out of) and ask my good friend behind the counter to show them a good knot to tie on a leader, and one to tie on the jig, spoon and plug that I picked out for them. They were happy, thanked me and prepared to head for the check-out. As they did, I told them that even if the snook did not bite, they might catch a jack, ladyfish or a bluefish, and the boy turned to me, smiled broadly and said, "I only want to catch one of those snooks!"

And his attitude is understandable, having witnessed a great catch, but I can only hope that he caught any fish at all, because he would certainly enjoy those as well. I am fortunate that my dad fished and brought me into fishing gradually, starting with bream and bass, and in time, saltwater species. Like the boy at WalMart, many kids have parents that do not fish at all, so they have to get "the bug" somewhere else.

Fishing Parents: The first "Generations" column, "Eyes Wide Open," is one you should read. Compare notes with Kenny Wright. He's a dad raising three young anglers.
Non-fishing Parents: Inquire about kids' fishing programs at local tackle shops or online.

On the Line

DON'T Rip Some Lips

By Mike Conner, editor-in-chief


Last week during a quick afternoon fly fishing trip to a local beach, I was passed two young fishermen, with spinning rods rigged with swimming plugs in hand. They asked about my fly rod and asked if I had caught a snook yet. I replied that I had just started casting, and one of them said "Should be snook along here in these bait schools. I'm ready to "rip some lips!"

By now, you may have noticed that Rip Some Lips has become a favorite cliche if not a "battle cry" for some anglers. I think it is macho B.S. most of the time.

Well, in the case of snook, it is closed season now through the summer in Florida, and catch-and-release should be practiced with every effort to not rip some lips. A good start would be to avoid using treble hooks for fish you plan to, or must, release. You can still use that favorite lure that comes stock with trebles. I would suggest: replacing the trebles with single hooks. Or, at the least clip off one of the three "legs" of that treble, and then crimp down the barbs on the remaining hooks. Leave a bump; you will be surprised to see how well the hooks will hold in a fish's mouth (see photo for examples). Or you might just fish a single hook lure, like a soft plastic or spoon.

These measures will not only save on wear and tear on that fish. It will also allow you to remove hooks more quickly to get that fish on its way--a good idea especially in hot summer water.