All your bad experiences and examples for botched C&R are a result of bad practices in handling hooked fish. If you practice C&R you better switch to single hook to begin with, learn how to unhook a fish outside your boat without touching. And even if you must have a trophy shot you can do this with high chance of survival by using a C&R friendly net, net the fish and keep it in the water outside your boat, have your camera man ready with the camera, carefully with wet hands grab the fish out of the net supporting the fish on tail and belly, lift up and in the camera and 5 sec later back in the water. Any salmon will survive that fine.
The bad reputation of C&R stems from crappy knotted nets, fish being thrown on the boat floor and left flopping around, stepping on it while yanking out trebles and stingers, grabbing them with dry hand either just by the tail or in the gills and lifting with point load, holding the fish while buddy looks for the camera, probably dropping the fish at least once before picture finally taken....
Do it right and no problem. We better get good with this because the days of meat fishing will be over soon and if you want to continue enjoying your hobby you better learn the sport in fishing!
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^this!!!^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
I'm stunned when I see some of the behavior of guys out on the water when they think they're doing the fish such a big favor when releasing it . Get the net out? Never. I don't care what the net is made out of---a net is for killing a fish. A fish intended for release should NEVER go into a net. A fish that's going to be released should never come over your gunnel.
It's Not much of a mystery on how to properly release a salt chuck spring in good condition:
1)) Use a stout rod, minimum 25 lb test rating
2)) Use a minimum of 30 lb test mainline AND 30 lb test leader
3)) ALWAYS use single barbless hooks---guys who talk C&R but use trebles in their anchovies----who are they kidding?????
4)) Have a gaff and a cotton glove next to you at all times
5)) Lift the rod tip and get hold of the main line with a free hand (gloved if possible)
6)) Lay your rod down with the reel on free-spool or with a loosened drag, then hand line the fish to the side of the boat
7)) Hook the header with the gaff, lift the leader so the gaff goes down into the bend of the hook then pull the leader downward at the same time you lift the gaff anchored in the bend of the hook. The fish falls off and swims away. If No. 2 hook is buried, repeat procedure on No. 2 hook
If you don't see your hooks, cut the leader.
This works on any fish that swims that doesn't suffer barotrauma.
I take 3 week trips in the summer. Everything goes back until the last two days of the trip. Then the net comes out. If I shoot blanks on those 2 days, that was my choice.
I never touch these fish that go back. Springs are delicate creatures. And they live to see another day if you treat them delicately. A heavy rod and stout leader is a good place to start. I stow my Sage 3106 for the first few weeks of the trip because I think it's too soft a rod for C&R. But on the last two days of the trip, that 3106 is a killer....