SAFE LANDINGS
A massive jew emerged from the depths and the two anglers stared in disbelief. The fight had gone on for many minutes with some long runs and periods of stubborn resistance. Now the prize seemed close enough to land. The net was small and shallow but as the fish surfaced the assistant made a frantic lunge. The net grazed the fish, and startled, the jew dived away. Hard words and more rod work followed. Then a very tired mulloway reappeared and lay exhausted on the surface. The assistant tried to scoop the fish from behind and managed to lift it part way onto the jetty. As he lifted the jew gave a last kick and dropped out of the net. The line snapped and the fish slowly rolled away, lost forever.
Every fisherman has a story like this. The escape of a big fish hurts for a long, long time. Safely landing fish, particularly large powerful ones, is not easy We all need to develop proficiency to avoid disasters.
Over the years, anglers have developed a range of highly effective methods to land fish. This article describes the tools and explains the procedures that form these techniques.
TOOLS
In nearly all cases the risk of losing a fish increases dramatically if you try to lift it. Many anglers rely on a range of tools to assist them rather than chance the line breaking.
