Best River Practices

Pack it in, Pack it out!

While there will be no plastic bottles provided y me on any guided trips, if for some reason you do bring a non-reusable plastic bottle, be sure and pack it out. Any sort of trash brought in should be brought out. If you see trash in the river bank or in the river itself, please remove it. I will have a trash bag in my pack.

“Tailing” Fish with a Mesh glove and best fish handling practices.

This is a common thing you see on the Salmon River. While I do not criticize others on the River for what they do, I do not use a mesh glove when handling fish. They should not be used. Using any sort of glove when handling fish is bad handling practice. Hands should be clean and wet when handling fish. Using a glove can remove the protective slime coat on fish. This slime coat helps protect the fish from disease. If taking a photo, be sure the person taking the photo has the camera or phone ready before the fish leaves the water. Fish should only be out of the water for a short time. If you can leave the fish partially submerged, that is best. A good rule of thumb for fish photos, “If you can’t see water dripping from the fish in the photo, you took to long”.

River Etiquette

This is something that is not always followed, either because people don’t care or at times it seems unavoidable. Do your best to allow others the proper space when fishing. Confrontation in the river is pointless. If someone “high holes” you, there are plenty of ways to go about dealing with it. Unfortunately it’s going to happen from time to time. During busy times on some rivers, an “acceptable” distance is a rod length, so about 10 feet. I personally think that’s annoying, so I usually find a different spot if it’s really getting to me. I won’t go out of my way to fight over a fishing spot. Also, if you see someone fishing in a relatively small piece of water,