Some of thee funnest flying I have ever done! Spent one summer towing a bird in Northern Quebec in the late eighties, Longranger L1. Longlining skills don't come into play much, generally you are setting it down in a farely large area and I never bothered hanging my head out the door much for the pick-up/set-down, just used the rad alt, as long as it's not swinging (you should know how to stop/control swing prior).
We flew lines navigating from portable VOR stations we set up, keeping the rad alt at 200 feet to keep the bird (on a hundred foot line) out of the trees (not many trees over a hundred feet in Northern Quebec). It could be tricky in the hills, but we flew some 8 hours a day or more, so you get the hang of it quick. It was a fun summer!