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most salmon anglers return their catch
Is that for conservation reasons? Is there a rule? I haven't done it for 50 years. Everybody seemed to eat all the trout and salmon they caught unless they were v small. I got a 27 pounder once. It reached from my chin to my ankle. But I used a lure, which seemed shameful at the time.
the skill levels tend to be higher
I've seen those carp fishing programmes. There's lots of specialist knowledge but I don't see much skill in plopping your hook in the water. Casting is on another level. The big challenge of worm + float is the boredom.
nick_h.-
For that precise reason, sometimes there are actual rules, but generally to conserve the species voluntarily. One of the trout I returned is probably the biggest in a 5 mile stretch of the Darent, prime breeding stock, I also returned the same fish two years ago.
I totally fucking envy you a 27lb salmon, which almost certainly wasn't returned.
Colin_the_Bald
This is a reflection of the innate snobbery of humanity, the mongrel breed inhabiting this septic isle being amongst the worst. Everyone seems to want to look down on someone. Coarse fishing can be bloody expensive, the poles used by match anglers cost three times as much as the most expensive salmon rods and the skill levels tend to be higher. You're wrong about fly fishers banging everything on the head and giving it to cook to prepare dinner, most salmon anglers return their catch and I returned three trout yesterday.
Just consider the snobbery between road, tt , MTB, gravel and the humble commuter (who is probably the most legitimate user of bicycles).