An important part of your fishing is knowing how to land your catch. It's heartbreaking to have a nice fish in close and then lose him through poor handling. The most important thing to remember when you are about to land a fish is to keep its head up so it can't fight well. Raise the rod tip to hold the line tight. If you are using a net, be sure to leave enough line between the trout and the rod tip so that when you raise the rod and push it back to bring the fish in, you can reach him with the net.
Beginners often reel in too much line and get the fish to within four or five feet of the rod tip.
Then they find that they can't get him close enough to net. The safest way to land a fish is to beach it. If no low bank is handy, you can fight a fish until he is tired and then pull his head against a bank or an upjutting rock and pick him up. Hold him gently. The tighter your grip, the more likely he is to spurt from your fingers, break your leader tippet and escape.