Fishing · Reference · Intermediate
Handlines, Limb Lines and Trotlines: Rules and Hazards
Passive lines catch fish while you sleep, and they are also the gear most often restricted. Verified limits from Texas and South Carolina, and the line injuries nobody warns about.
This is for educational purposes only. Not professional medical, electrical, or safety advice.
Warning
Never wrap fishing line around any part of your body, and never enter moving water to retrieve snagged gear. Hook, line and tag limits vary by state and waterbody — check yours before you set anything.
- 01
Know which device you are using
A hand line is held; a limb line or bank hook is staked and left; a trotline is a long mainline with drop lines. North Carolina's inland rules recognize a hand-held line with a single bait for nongame fish, with basic inland fishing privileges required — that is not blanket permission to take game species by bare hand line. Every state draws these lines differently, so read your own regulations for the waterbody you are on.
- 02
A worked example: Texas throwline
Texas allows a throwline with no more than 5 hooks, one end attached to a permanent fixture, with a float and a valid gear tag. Its noncommercial float must be at least 6 by 3 inches and may not be orange. The tag is valid for 6 days after setting. Use is restricted to nongame fish and channel, blue and flathead catfish, and many waters are closed to it.
- 03
A worked example: Texas trotline
Texas caps a recreational trotline at 50 hooks, with no more than 100 hooks across all your devices, a mainline no longer than 600 feet, and hooks spaced at least 3 horizontal feet apart. Metallic stakes are not allowed. Tags go within 3 feet of the first hook at each end and are valid 6 days — tag validity is not permission to leave the catch unchecked for 6 days.
- 04
A worked example: South Carolina set hooks
South Carolina allows a recreational licensee up to 50 set hooks, generally with a set-hook permit and stated age exemptions, and requires each set to be labeled with your name and customer ID. Set hooks must be removed before 1 hour after sunrise and may not be reattached before 1 hour before sunset, with bait and river-specific exceptions.
- 05
South Carolina trotlines add a depth rule
Recreational limit is 1 trotline with a maximum of 50 hooks, with a tag and a white floating marker, and you must inspect and remove fish at least every 24 hours. From April 1 through October 1, during the specified daylight interval, the line must sink to the bottom or hang at least 4 feet beneath the surface. Stainless-steel hooks are prohibited.
- 06
Treat loaded line as a cutting hazard
Never wrap line around your fingers, hands, limbs or torso, keep loose coils clear of your feet, and keep a cutter accessible. Line under load can cut or constrict, and a line anchored in current can entangle a person. Do not wade or swim into a river to retrieve snagged gear. No agency has published a 'safe' river-stake configuration, line strength or maximum current — do not invent one, and never substitute barbed wire for fishing line.