12-23-2010, 11:58 PM
RE "Strawberry is a high enough elevation, I am not sure how often the water temp gets above 75°."
Maybe not 75 degrees, but it will often hit 70 during August heatwaves. And I have repeatedly read that 70 degrees is when the danger zone is hit with trout. (as the source you quoted indicated) The other problem is the temperature gradient. When a fish is yanked from below the cold thermocline to the warm surface, that induces fairly major physiologic stress on the fish. Both the high water temps and the severe gradient are not factors when ice fishing, which is a good thing.
RE "Is this true also with multi poles? Where the fish has more time to suck that bait all the way in?"
Valid point. If an angler is not actively fishing a second rod, there would be increased risk, but the way an ice fishing bite is, they still don't seem to swallow the hook nearly as much as during the summer. It might be a good idea though if an angler was only doing C&R on the hard deck, to fish just one rod.
RE "All the studies I have read state extreme hot and extreme cold are equally bad.
The hot thing keeps coming up as well. "
Certainly, no argument there.
Finally, whether they are "fragile" or not, handle with care and you can be fairly confident that the fish you release, summer or winter, will be back for you to catch on the next trip.
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Maybe not 75 degrees, but it will often hit 70 during August heatwaves. And I have repeatedly read that 70 degrees is when the danger zone is hit with trout. (as the source you quoted indicated) The other problem is the temperature gradient. When a fish is yanked from below the cold thermocline to the warm surface, that induces fairly major physiologic stress on the fish. Both the high water temps and the severe gradient are not factors when ice fishing, which is a good thing.
RE "Is this true also with multi poles? Where the fish has more time to suck that bait all the way in?"
Valid point. If an angler is not actively fishing a second rod, there would be increased risk, but the way an ice fishing bite is, they still don't seem to swallow the hook nearly as much as during the summer. It might be a good idea though if an angler was only doing C&R on the hard deck, to fish just one rod.
RE "All the studies I have read state extreme hot and extreme cold are equally bad.
The hot thing keeps coming up as well. "
Certainly, no argument there.
Finally, whether they are "fragile" or not, handle with care and you can be fairly confident that the fish you release, summer or winter, will be back for you to catch on the next trip.
[signature]