Hi everybody,

Are you guys ever using stringers for keeping fish alive for catch&release? Are they suitable for such a purpose? I have heard that tournament pros in their livewells use stringers to attach fish for easier handling, culling etc. Is that true? The use of stringers has been suggested to me as a good alternative means to keeping nets for keeping bass alive at bank fishing, but I have serious doubts. Any input will be greatly appreciated....

Thanks!

Maybe I am missing something ...... :-/

If you are going to release them, why do you want info on stringers and why do you put them in nets right now??

neither a stringer nor a net are good for "storing" fish and/or keeping them alive.  Stringers just maul the gills, nets can rub all their protective coating off.  If you are catching and releasing...you shouldn't be using either one.

Pro's don't use stringers in the livewell..they use a culling system which either clips on to the fish or is hooked on to the fish.  They don't do this for "catch and release", they do this for ease of determining which fish is the smallest that they can get rid of for the bigger fish they just caught.

That is like what pro's use for fish in livewells...nothing invasive, nothing harmful, and nothing to "keep" them.

I hate to say this but whoever gave you the info you stated is a fool.  

And like KU said, if you're releasing them..then why would you be wanting to use a stringer or a net to begin with?

Guys you need to understand that Cybasser fishes tournaments on the island of Cyprus in the Mediterranean Sea. They can't use boats. It is a shore fishing tournament so he is asking if there is a good way that can help him keep a limit of fish for a weigh-in when he has to hike sometimes miles to and from the starting point. He wants them to be healthy enough for release after the weigh-in

Guys y'all are missing some thing!

CyBasser is in Europe, info maybe a little difficult to obtain

 

Sampo makes a nylon stringer that would work for you. Clip the fish by the lip and because the clips can slide up and down the line the fish are not all bunched up. By clipping the lip your not going to mess up the gills. You want to use the long stringer so that the fish have room to swim and not be bunched up.

Chris , do u mean this one?

The patented locking action of this stringer holds fish securely without tearing up their gills, keeping them alive. Each stringer is made of nylon and is six feet long

Do you guys have a live weigh in or are weights and lengths measured in the field.  I know you guys hike some big distances around some of these huge reservoirs.  I would think carrying your gear would be taxing enough, nevermind trying to carry 5 bass and enough water to sustain them for the hike back.

Yeah that is the one I am thinking of. The clips swivel so your not going to have the fish get twisted up in the line. The clips also slide up and down the line. They make a 10' one also. They have them in the Netcraft Catalog www.jannsnetcraft.com if you want to look at it.

I was going to make a post similar to KU, but now I understand.

I think anything with clips and spacers could work.  A clip in the lower lip near the front shouldn't do any real damage.  The key would be to keep the fish separated and getting oxygen to them.  finding a spot with a little current and facing them into it should keep them alive, if not very happy.

Good luck and have fun.

PS  I think it's really cool to have international members.

question - Why no boats?

I was going to make a post similar to KU, but now I understand.

PS I think it's really cool to have international members.

Yes .... noowwww I see!!!!  I knew I was probably missing something

When I initially read this post a certain thing popped into my head.  A couple years ago I saw a dad and a son fishing off a dock as I was passing by.  I overheard the dad talking while I was fishing some deeper water nearby and I noticed they had a stringer FULL of bluegill and bass.  The dad gave the son another bluegill he just caught and told him to put it on the stringer "So that fish won't go tell the others (fish) they were there". :-?  Then I watched them leave a little while later and put all the fish back.  The dad took the fish off the stringer and midway through he says " Oooooo, some of these are going to make it" :-/

When I first read the post I was wondering myself.Anyway,what about the baskets they make for fish?In my pre-boat days that is what I used for crappie.

A basket will kill the fish if it's not dangling open from a boat.

Fish hooked through the mouth from a good stringer have a good chance of living. Hooking a fish through the gills with a stringer is bad business for the fish.

Could you possibly build a  rectangle frame about 30"Lx 18"x18" out of wood or aluminum and screen it with say, chicken wire or something similar? You could have a door to put your fish in the box and have foam flotation mounted to the top. A ring with a rope to push it far enough off the bank to float.

Hi again,

Thank you all for your answers. Indeed, the stringer is one of the means we consider for our shorefishing tournaments.

Boats (of any kind) are not allowed in our reservoirs by law. So it has to be shore. Until last year we had a weigh-in at the end which meant lots of trouble for keeping the bass alive, and we did have some casualties (of bass I mean!).

For our spring competition we are changing the format to fishing along predetermined lengths of each bank (2-3 miles total), with judges being present who will "patrol" the in-limits areas and check the sizes (weight and length) in the field. Each participant will have three (or more) nets or stringers which will be left (marked of course) on the shore for the judge to check them. We are doing this with the sole purpose of the welfare of the bass.

Both the stringer and nets have advantages and drawbacks. The stringers are cheaper, slightly easier to carry, but the fish have to be hooked on them, and there is the additional risk of a bass tying itself around some obstruction. Nets are more expensive, take a bit more space, but they allow the bass to move freely in them. There is though indeed the potential of damage being done during the collection of the fish (ie removing slime and scales), though since they will be wet this risk is minimized. A third alternative we look into is the use of "keep sacks": Large dark, micromesh nets designed for use in specimen carp fishing in Europe. These are intermediate in cost, take similar space to the BPS nets, cause less damage to fish, but we have yet to find a good retailer for them.

At least we are doing everything possible for the welfare of our green finned friends!

And, of course, any additional input will be welcome!

Guys, from the sounds of their rules over there maybe we shouldn't gripe so much about jet skis and wakeboarders.  At least we can launch a boat.  The good ole USA is still a great place to live!  It's also great to know that folks all over the world are enthused about catching "green" fish and we have some of them on this board.  Good fishing, Cybasser .  Before the days of bass tournaments we used to keep bass on stringers and if you keep them cool and separated they stand a pretty good chance of surviving.  We didn't like to eat dead fish back then .

Cybasser, why don't you tell us about how you fish over there, what the water and bottom are like, and what kind of tackle and bait you use.

changes my perspective, sorry for the harsh tone of the first post.

Cybasser

Have you seen the English style match fishing. They have wieght bags that they keep there catch alive and wieght every 1/2 hour. Buddy comes along with a huge dail gauge on a tripod and records your wieght then I believe they are put in another bag until the tourney is over.

Could you have a pin tournement were each angler buys there limit of safety pins then have holding areas along your 2-3 miles.

In Canada we have a T.V. station World Fishing Network they have a website that you can watch these English match fishing it's called Fishmania it's pretty cool.

I like the Pro Tarpon from Boca Grand Florida they bang boats and land tarpon then tie them to there boat and drag them to shore for wieght in. Thats were I would stay, to manny beach bunny's for fishing.............maybe.

Garnet

changes my perspective, sorry for the harsh tone of the first post.

No offense! I understand it was a bit unclear as I put it! :

Cybasser

Have you seen the English style match fishing. They have wieght bags that they keep there catch alive and wieght every 1/2 hour. Buddy comes along with a huge dail gauge on a tripod and records your wieght then I believe they are put in another bag until the tourney is over.

Garnet

Hi Garnet,

Yes, I am well aware of them. English - style matches are frequently held here for roach, bream, and carp. Those net - "keep nets" - though are not very useful because they are quite big and a bit unwieldy to hold or carry as you walk around shores filled with rocks, stumps, and brush. We need something that can readily fit in a backpack. The BPS version of them seems far better.

Regarding the weigh-in, the plan is that if we catch a keeper we put in the net (or stringer), and the patrolling referee comes along, weights the bass, and releases it in situ without the anglers necessarily being present. The net or stringer will be marked by the (two-person) team's name, and one of the team members will collect it as he walks back along the shore. Obviously, in this way, it is likely that most teams will present more than the required three fish, but at the end, independently of how many bass the team caught, only the three largest will be eligible.

Again, thanks for the great input!