Safely Releasing Gamefish

You’ve just fought and brought alongside a formidable blue marlin. The mate has secured the leader. Now comes a crucial decision: should you attempt to retrieve your hook(s)? This step is fraught with potential hazards: injuries to the crew, damage to the boat, or fatally wounding the fish.

Assessing the Situation

Firstly, understand the behavior of the fish. Is it a massive blue marlin or a smaller, more manageable sailfish? If the fish is wildly thrashing, the risk of injury to both the crew and the boat escalates. Veteran Captain Bubba Carter of Tijereta advises, “Most of the time with an agitated fish, it’s better to just leave the hook and cut the leader close. It’s about releasing them in good condition rather than risking lives or the fish itself for a hook.” Remember, the size and agility of smaller marlin like whites and stripes could turn a simple retrieval into a chaotic event in seconds.

Advanced Release Techniques For Safely Releasing Gamefish

When targeting blue marlin, the type of hook used plays a significant role in the release strategy. Using circle hooks with pitch baiting simplifies matters—just cut the leader. However, if the marlin swallows a lure, retrieving the hook might be considered. Here, specialized tools can aid the process once the fish calms down on the leader.

The Capt. Billy Black Pro Series Dehooker

This tool, crafted from surgical stainless steel, features a T-handle and a U-shaped end. It works by sliding down the leader, where a simple twist can free the hook. Alternatively, it can help retrieve a lure by sliding it up the leader for safer handling.

ARC Dehooker for Diverse Applications

Another essential tool is the ARC dehooker, designed for a variety of fishing conditions, from inshore to deep-sea. Its unique design allows for easy hook release, enhancing the survival chances of the gamefish.

The Snooter: For Critical Recovery

In cases where a marlin appears exhausted and discolored from the struggle, the snooter becomes indispensable. Conceived by Roddy Hays, this tool consists of a PVC tube and stainless steel cable, designed to safely revive and control large marlin by towing them until they recover.

Capt. David Brackmann is another snooter convert, who has fished the fertile waters of Cabo San Lucas and the Pacific on the Caliente. He reports great success with larger blues and blacks but not so much with stripeys and not at all on sailfish due to their smaller bill diameter. We use it all the time on bigger fish that you want to get the hooks out of but still have a way of securing them so they can be revived before release, he says. We take the engine on that side of the boat out of gear and bump the other in forward once we have the marlin under control”it a system that works great in rough seas too.

Accurate Release Assessments with Release Ruler

etermining the weight of a catch-and-release fish has traditionally been guesswork. The Release Ruler changes this, providing a reliable estimation of weight based on fish length, which is invaluable during tournaments and for accurate record-keeping.

Release Rulers are available for a wide variety of both inshore and offshore species including marlin, sailfish, tarpon, snook, mako shark and many others, and may also be customized. Feature your boat, team, tournament or fishing club and they become a memorable gift or even a memento of a particularly memorable catch.

Essential Tools for Responsible Angling

Release tools like dehookers, rulers and snooters are probably among the cheapest in terms of cost of any item in the cockpit but they can certainly make a big difference in the survival rate of those fish you choose to let go.

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