Wherever you fish, catch and release is an important part of the sport. Sometimes you have to let a fish go because it’s out of season, falls inside a protected slot limit, or you’re fishing a catch-and-release-only season. Other times you simply choose to release a fish for conservation reasons. Either way, there’s a right way and a wrong way to handle a fish you intend to put back.

On Lake of the Woods, there’s a tremendous population of big walleyes, and they are a blast to catch. During the spring Rainy River season, walleye fishing is all catch and release. On top of that, the lake’s slot limit requires that all walleyes between 19.5 and 28 inches be released to keep the fishery healthy for the long haul. Add it all up and there’s a lot of releasing going on.

Whether it’s walleyes or another species, a giant or a little guy, if your plan is to let the fish go, it pays to understand the steps that give it the best possible chance of survival. A little planning and a quick, careful release dramatically improve those odds.

Start With the Conditions

Right off the bat, fish survive a release better in shallower water and in colder water temperatures. Keep that in mind out on the lake. If you’ve got a hot walleye bite going in 36 feet of water in August, the mortality rate on released fish will be higher than if you were catching those same fish in 20 feet, or in colder water. If you’re pulling fish out of deep water on a warm day, consider catching a few and then moving shallower.

Technique Matters

How you hook a fish has a lot to do with whether it survives. A fish caught on a jig is usually hooked cleanly in the mouth, because you set the hook the instant you feel the bite. With a live-bait rig, where you let the fish “take it” for a moment before setting, the odds of a deep hook go up.

When a fish is hooked deep, the best thing you can do is simply snip the line off close to the hook. No matter how careful you are, digging a deep hook back out does far more damage than leaving it. The fish’s body will often deal with the hook over time; it won’t survive having it torn out.

Plan Ahead and Have Everything Ready

The single biggest favor you can do a fish is to minimize the time it spends out of the water. The clock starts the moment it leaves the lake, so don’t make it wait while you dig through tackle boxes. Have your gear staged and within reach before you ever set the hook:

• Needle nose pliers
• Jaw spreaders
• A bump board or tape measure
• Your camera or phone

With everything ready to go, you can land the fish, get it out of the net, pop the hook, take a quick measurement, snap a photo or two, and slide it back in the water in seconds rather than minutes. The faster that whole sequence goes, the better the fish’s chances.

Wet Your Hands and Protect the Slime Coat

Before you handle any fish you plan to release, wet your hands. Dry hands and dry surfaces strip away the fish’s protective slime coat, which is its natural defense against parasites, infection, and disease. Wetting your hands first helps keep that coating intact.

For the same reason, try not to wipe or rub the slime off the fish’s sides during handling. Some fish carry a lot of it; a couple of the slimiest you’ll meet on Lake of the Woods are pike and muskies. There’s a reason pike picked up the nickname “slimer,” and it’s a good thing for the fish.

How to Hold Each Species

Knowing how to hold a fish keeps the fish safe and keeps you from getting cut or stuck. Small fish are easier than large ones, and most anglers pick up the techniques quickly. You learn fast how to grip a perch or white bass without catching the sharp gill plates. Sunfish anglers know to smooth back that top spiny fin. And where catfish and bullheads are popular, it’s worth learning how to work your hand around the two side fins and one top fin that carry barbed spines.

On Lake of the Woods, most of the releasing involves walleyes. A good way to hold a walleye is by the tough cartilage in the gill area of its head. The key is to keep your fingers on the outside of the actual gills. The real gills are red and that’s where the fish pulls oxygen from the water, so never touch or grab them. Slide two or three fingers along the outside of the gill area and up into that firm cartilage. For walleyes over 10 pounds, support the body with your other hand under the belly and hold the fish horizontally rather than letting it hang vertically.

Bass and crappies are easy. They don’t have sharp teeth and their mouths are big and inviting, so they’re usually held right by the mouth.

Pike and muskies are typically held in the firm cartilage of the gill area with one hand, with the other hand supporting the body horizontally if it’s a big fish. Keeping good control of these predators through the release improves their odds. In the old days it was common to hold pike by the eye sockets, but that’s frowned on now because it can blind the fish.

Big Fish: Horizontal, Not Vertical

This is the rule that matters most for the giants. Large fish should be supported horizontally, never held vertically by the jaw or gills. In the water, fish swim and live horizontally, and their bodies are built for that. Hanging a big fish straight up and down puts the full weight of its internal organs and tissue in a position they were never meant to bear, and that weight can cause real internal damage.

Lake sturgeon are the clearest example, since these can be enormous. Never hold a sturgeon vertically. They are so heavy that internal organs and tissue can actually tear under their own weight. With a really big sturgeon, also avoid holding it by the gill cartilage. The damage there is unseen, and a fish that swims off looking fine can die days later.

The best grip on a big sturgeon is often one hand on the tail, which is firm and easy to hold, and the other hand under the belly, supporting the body horizontally. A truly big one takes two people to cradle. And if you don’t need the fish in the boat at all, pop the hook while it’s still in the water alongside the boat, or in the net if your net is big enough to hold it.

Don’t Drop It, Don’t Touch the Eyes

Try hard not to drop a fish during the release. The damage from a drop is obvious. And keep your fingers away from the eyes on any species, because touching them can blind the fish.

The Release Itself

When you put the fish back, move it gently side to side to push water through its gills. Don’t move it forward and back, that can actually drown the fish. Hold it upright and ease it side to side until it kicks and swims off on its own power.

If the fish had a long fight or spent a while out of the water, reviving it can take a few minutes. Have patience and stay with it. The fish’s life depends on it.

To find out more about fishing Lake of the Woods, check out www.LakeoftheWoodsMN.com.

For a list of lodging options, check out www.LakeoftheWoodsMN.com/Lodging.