Middle River Dispatches

A gumbo of fly-fishing, conservation, politics and days afield, for what it is worth....

  • Front Page
  • Fly Fishing
    • Fly Fish Virginia
    • Fly Fishing Instruction
    • Tenkara
    • Mossy Creek Fly Fishing
  • Conservation
    • The Roosevelt Mandate
      • The Roosevelt Mandate Articles
  • Politics
  • Antics
    • Why
    • Who is Tom Sadler
      • Biography of G. J. Thomas Sadler, Jr.
    • Contact Information
  • Campfire
    • Forum Rules
    • Forum Privacy Policy
  • Fine Print
    • Privacy Policy
      • Privacy and Unicorns
    • Terms of Use
    • Disclosures

Keeping ’em wet

December 27, 2016 By Tom Sadler Leave a Comment

As a fishing guide, a journalist and advocate being on the water, especially fishing, is one of the most rewarding parts of the gig.  Many times that means getting a photo of a happy angler with a fish.

Here’s the rub. The grip and grin, hero shot is great for the angler, but even when it is done right is not great for the fish and when done wrong can be deadly.  I’ve done it and it bothers me, a lot. Sure, I am careful when I set up those shots but I’ve always worried about it. Of course I want the client to have a memento but not at the sacrifice of my business partner the fish.

Enter Keepemwet Fishing. Bryan Huskey and the team are promoting responsible handling, photographing, and releasing fish in the future. And they are doing it the right way.

This is from the website:

ETHOS: WE BELIEVE THAT AS WE LEARN MORE WE HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO EVOLVE OUR MINDSET AND PRACTICES

Thanks to advances in science, we now have a better understanding of the impacts that handling can have on the long-term health of fish. We believe that anglers have the responsibility to apply this knowledge to their fish handling practices and should strive to minimize the impacts on the fish they release.

Keepemwet Fishing doesn’t believe in casting stones. Instead, we believe in mindfulness and positive progress. We know that we have all been guilty of mishandling fish in the past and recognize that we will likely err in the future, despite our best intentions. Rather than tearing down others for their missteps, we hope to promote this awareness so anglers are better equipped to properly handle, photograph, and release fish in the future.

We encourage our supporters to share this approach, to lead by example, and to serve as positive influences for other anglers.

The website has principles and tips that help anglers do a better job of fish handling. Take a few minutes to read them over.

There is also a link to Andy Danylchuk’s piece The Release – Fundamentals of fish and the path to responsible angling in Patagonia’s blog The Cleanest Line. Andy is a good friend and his experience and research on this subject is excellent. Again, give it a read.

If you are a recreational angler you should care about the resource. Spending a few minutes learning how to be a good steward is part of the program.

 

Filed Under: Conservation, Marine, Tenkara Tagged With: Bryan Huskey, keepemwet

Join us around the Campfire

You can start a conversation or join one on our forum. I call it the campfire.

Article Sections

  • The Roosevelt Mandate Articles
  • Hot Takes & Second Hand Smoke
  • Fly Fish Virginia
  • Fly Fishing Instruction

Politics

Insurrection most foul

Gerson’s article, “The U.S. must punish sedition — or risk more of it” captures much of what is going through my mind at this moment.

The post-election political theater has jumped the shark.

BLUF: Time to starve the conspiracy whack jobs and Trump sycophants of oxygen.

The Threat to Democracy is Real

“We opposed Trump because we recognized that what he stood for is an existential threat to the American experiment in constitutional democracy.”

More Posts from this Category

Categories

No cheating!

Creative Commons License
Middle River Dispatches by Tom Sadler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Copyright © 2021 ·News Pro Theme · Genesis Framework by StudioPress · WordPress · Log in