Landing Nets and Dehookers for a Faster Release

A net can control a fish beside a boat, pier, or bank, but not every fish needs to be lifted. When a net is appropriate, NOAA recommends wet, soft knotless mesh or rubber because those materials cause less damage to eyes, fins, scales, and protective mucus.

Inspect the mesh and frame for broken strands, sharp edges, and hooks left from a previous fish. Wet the net before use and avoid letting a fish beat against a dry deck or hard shoreline.

The hoop must accommodate the fish without folding or squeezing it, while the handle must let the angler reach the water from the actual fishing position. A long pier and a low skiff are different problems.

A larger net is not automatically safer if it is too heavy to control. Choose a tool the user can position smoothly while another person manages the line and surrounding hazards.

NOAA recommends dehooking in the water whenever possible. A dehooker can reduce direct handling, but it needs to match the hook and be secured where it can be retrieved immediately.

Keep a line cutter beside it. If a swallowed hook cannot be removed easily, the official guidance is to cut the line as close to the hook as possible instead of prolonging a damaging extraction attempt.

Learn how the net folds, how the dehooker captures the hook bend, and how the cutter works with wet hands. Practice on an empty rig rather than learning while an animal is out of water.

Clean and inspect the tools after the trip. Salt, sand, corrosion, damaged mesh, and tangled lures can turn a good release plan into a delay on the next outing.