Has anyone read the story? A lot of people have mixed reactions from it. I feel sorry for the poor guy who caught this fish, having so much respect for the fish and having to catch your biggest fish in your life to only have it die. (was it going to die?)

http://thebigpull.wordpress.com/2009/02/26/a-steelhead/

My opinion, this was a huge steely, but I have heard and seen bigger fish come from the Skeena river system in BC. Now, did they approach the IFGA, dont know, but I know a lot of guys who wouldn't even think of it. The fish belongs to the river and the river belongs to the fish.

Your comments?

BTW- I cant wait until I can wrap my hands around one of these. One of my top 3 fish I want to catch is a steelhead.

dats a big feesh

That is a great trophy fish! As for it dying, fish live, fish die. I keep some of the fish I catch, others I let go. I'm glad he could get a great mount from it.

Pretty incredible fish. He says it was bleeding heavily from the gills and he didn't expect it to survive. I keep a fish on rare occasions. Seems that there's no subject that escapes screeching extremists anymore.

Seems like he's a good guy who cares about the places he fishes. Can't ask for much more than that in my opinion.

I wonder how the fish tasted?

I have a similar fish story...not as large of a steelhead, but nonetheless an awesome experience that I will treasure forever...

Fishing on the Tannin river in late April on Prince of Wales island tied into the fish of my lifetime. I was using a 7 wt with sinking tip and throwing purple egg sucking leeches across and down. When the fly just started rising off the bottom in the current after the drift was complete was the optimum time for the steeleys to hit. I was with a local native Alaskan guide and we had caught maybe one or two other fish that day when it happened...my fish of a lifetime hit the egg sucking leech just as it was rising and the fight was on. This is a very small river, one you can easily walk across. The fish went completely berserk...jumping wildly. After a lengthy fight, it literally died just in front of me. The magnificient fish had fought its heart out literally. I was stunned and overwhelmed. The guide was also humbled by the awesome display.

I didn't want the fish to die in vain, but could not legally keep any steelheads. I can't describe how sad it was to see that dead fish and know it would be wasted. Finally, the guide said he knew of a way he could hide the fish and make sure its life wasn't taken in vain. He risked his professional status to take that fish....and I was extremely grateful.

At 38 inches it wasn't all that special as steelhead go, but it was my largest steelhead and will forever remain as the fish of my lifetime because of the brilliant life ending fight of the fish.

If you ever, ever get a chance to go steelhead fishing, by all means do it...hock the farm, sell the cows, etc. if you have to but everyone that fly fishes deserves once in their lifetime to go steelheading.

Wow, what a fantastic story! Thank you for sharing!

I have already started to plan my trip to chase the elusive steely.

Sell the cows?!?! Surely you jest? Bite your tongue, sir.

One thing that has always struck me about what ever my chosen field of interest for a hobby at a given time is how much strife can be generated between people within a hobby, often with detrimental results. For instance, within the shooting community there are huge rifts based on what kind of weapon you shoot or what type of shooting you do (i.e. the "evil" black rifle crowd, cowboy action shooting, long range competitors, etc).

Lots of actions we take as anglers are well intentioned and well thought out with good reasonable foundations for taking said actions. With that being said, if someone does something that is an affront to the fishing belief system held by some within our ranks they are, at best, ridiculed and, at worst, made to feel so alienated that they actually leave the sport.

Reasonable measures are the steps that lead to the banning of whatever sport you enjoy. Make no mistake, fishing is a bloodsport, which actually used to be a good thing. Just because many of us go barbless and practice pure catch and release, does not mean that it is completely harmless to the fish. No matter how careful an angler you are, you will eventually kill a fish, whether you witness its death or not. If that is a new realization for you, and if it makes you uncomfortable for more than a few seconds, you may be participating in the wrong leisure time activity. Jamming a hook through the jaw or lip of a living thing is not harmless. However, it is justifiable as a sport and a way to feed your family.

These reasonable measures are what those who are opposed to whatever sport you enjoy will use to tear it apart. PETAs tactics of late are more aimed at showing how reasonable they are as a group. Keep in mind the old parable about the frog in the pot of water and how small temperature changes go unnoticed by him. As long as an angler follows the rules and regulations and is well intentioned in their actions, it's probably best for the rest of us to keep our opinions to ourselves, or risk being part of the forces that seek to shove their agendas down our throats.

Fish are fun to catch and fish are tasty. I see no reason those two things should be mutually exclusive. The main reason I practice catch and release is because I'm too stinking lazy to clean them.

Now look how you made me get all serious. Can someone make a carp or trout joke please?

Wow that fish is just supreme...I cannot imagine catching one like that...I would faint on the spot if I did, I believe!