Catching/Fighting:
Proper catching practices begin before you even hit the water. Assuming you have done your homework, you will have some idea of the tackle needed to subdue your quarry. Always match your tackle to the environment and the species being targeted. When choosing your tackle, make sure that it is capable of subduing the fish as fast as possible after hooking it. While fishing a 3wt with 5X for yellows on the Vaal might get you more hookups, does this set-up have enough pulling power to subdue fish quick enough to ensure that the fish is not exhausted when landed. Fighting a fish results in exercise induced stress and lactate build up in muscles. The longer the fish is subjected to this stress the more lactate builds up in their muscles, eventually resulting in the fish being exhausted beyond the point of recovery. While you may eventually be able to subdue a strong yellow on a 3wt and 5X, the fight time will be significantly longer than if you used a 6wt with 3X, resulting in unnecessary stress to the fish and a lower potential for recovery after being landed.
While matching your tackle to the conditions and target species is critical to reducing fighting time, we also need to understand the various techniques and methods we can use to fight fish more effectively. To fully elaborate on fighting techniques is not the goal of this article and I urge you to read up on the topic and learn various techniques that you can use to get fish to the net quicker. For starters and to give you a solid background on fighting our strong yellows and big stillwater trout read this article by fly fishing guide Fred Steynberg. For those wanting to know how to put the brakes on bigger fish check out this video by Aardvark McLeod, detailing how to use the butt section of a fly rod to apply maximum pressure to saltwater brutes.
Without going into too much detail, an angler needs to know the limits of their tackle and understand how hard they can pull on their equipment. When applying pressure, know how to use the butt section (backbone) of your rod using your back and legs. Practice the techniques at home to get a feel for them and understand how much pressure your knots can take.
Don’t bring a knife to a gun fight
Make sure you have the right tools for the job