After reading this latest story about the guy on the Skagit killing the 40 pound King it made me wonder how people deal with the fish that dies on them during a closed season or when the fish is protected. Recently I was fishing a local river where Spring Chinook is closed to the taking of them but there are some Summer Steelhead available for catch and release. Well I got a nice Spring and after landing him proceeded to try to revive him. Now I figure I'm a pretty good fisherman and I enjoy catch and release. Well this King I hold on for about thirty minutes and everytime I let it go it goes belly up. I've released hundreds and hundreds of fish so I'm no green horn and this fish I just got in the lip. I also played him quickly as to not over tire him but he just won't get up and go. I felt like &^%$ to have killed such a beautiful fish, I'm only glad it was a buck and not a hen. My question is what do most of you guys think a guy should do when a fish dies when you've done everything right but it's just one in a hundred that won't get up and go. In the twenty years I've fished this has happened to me two other times but it's always such a shame to see. By the way, I don't believe this was the case at all with the guy on the Skagit but it just got me thinking how the general public might view this situation.

There are plenty of guys like that everywhere, poaching in clear violation....
I believe that if a fish dies that you are trying to C&R, keep it if legal to do so, if not legal, then let it feed the stream.

Fishbreath. although that is a very sad occurance I am sure you are aware that is extremely rare. There are people who would like you to believe it's common but it's not.

Anyway I strongly recommend not keeping the fish for 2 reasons. The heafty penalty. and because even a dead fish is not a complete waste. There has been a ton of research on the nutrients in streams. All of the studies basically say they there is a lack of dead fish in our rivers. Here in the northwest the salmon is both the top and bottom rung of the food chain. dead salmon decompose and are eaten by everything from insects to crayfish to otters and eagles. Some of these in turn become food for salmon smolts.
It's sad that this fish wont be in the spawning population but it is far from a complete loss.

I second what Robert Allen said. My classmate and I did a study on salmon decomposition in a river. Believe me they do a lot for insects which helps out the young salmon. Not just my opinion, it's a fact.

~ Dr Pepper

I will keep the fish if it is legal to do so. If it not legal to keep the fish, I just let it float belly up down the river. Then I try to learn from the experience, I will try to figure out what I need to do in the future to try to keep this from happening again.

Good call everyone While you hate to see it happen, it does occasionally, but it's important that if you really care for the resource, that you try to analyze what may have happened and try to avoid it (if possible) in the future. No reason not to keep it if you like to eat it and it's legal, but remember that feeding the river system is important as well ... fillet it and toss the carcass back in!