Nice Catfish

[Bedrock Bob]

Here is my toddler with a fish he caught.

He was fishing with a little collapsible backpacking pole and a crappy little spinning reel loaded with 8 lb. test line. 

He took all the line off the reel and he chased him down the river. Somehow he managed to get him in the net. The fish went about 80 yards downstream jumping and thrashing before he landed him.

He weighs 9.75 lbs. Not a huge catfish but plenty big for crappie tackle in a river full of snags.

He was using a chunk of cut carp for bait.

[BMc]

Nice fish. Channel cat, Bob? Only reason I ask is the split tail which makes it look like a cc rather than a blue or a flat head.

[Bedrock Bob]

Yes. A channel cat is what I call those fish. A blue has the long fin underneath a and a pointed head. And the flatheads are camoflauge with the goofy flat head and eyes on top.

I am not sure that I am correct on all that but that is how I grew up naming them. I know the flathead for sure. Sometimes channel cat and blue cat can be confusing to me. But the long fin on the bottom I call blue cat and the pointed tail and short bottom fin I call a channel cat.

[hardtimehermit]

That's a good story, and your son has tons of skill to end up with that cat on land! Looks tasty 

[BMc]

1 hour ago, Bedrock Bob said:

Yes. A channel cat is what I call those fish. A blue has the long fin underneath a and a pointed head. And the flatheads are camoflauge with the goofy flat head and eyes on top.

I am not sure that I am correct on all that but that is how I grew up naming them. I know the flathead for sure. Sometimes channel cat and blue cat can be confusing to me. But the long fin on the bottom I call blue cat and the pointed tail and short bottom fin I call a channel cat.

That's the biggest channel cat that I have seen. Caught a ton of them night fishing at the base of the caballo dam at the confluence of the river and the backwater eddy current, Back in the day before it became a state park. Average size about 1.5 to 2 lbs. Mighty fine eating. Much better, IMO, than their bigger cousins.

[IDdesertman]

'Cats are my favorite of all fish. So much fun to catch and hard hitters. I have definitely never seen a stringer like that. Pretty much the definition of going "loaded for bear." 

[Bedrock Bob]

5 minutes ago, hardtimehermit said:

That's a good story, and your son has tons of skill to end up with that cat on land! Looks tasty 

He and a buddy of his caught a bunch of nice walleye a week or so ago and we ate them tonight. Man what a treat. 

I love catfish and he does a great job at filleting and cleaning them. So I am looking forward to eating that rascal too.

He caught his first fish at about a year old. He does not realize it but he is quite a hand at it. I pretend to be the chingon and so far he goes along with that premise. But I suspect he has almost as many merit badges under his belt as I do.

No doubt I would have lost that one. From the way he tells it his reel froze up and the fish spooled off all the line. He just ran down the river behind the fish and wrestled him into the net by handlining him.

His silly rod and reel is a joke. I tried to run over it with the truck a couple times last season. I think he got it at the thrift store about ten years ago. It is truly an abomination. I bet the line on it is at least five years old and as beat up as the toes of his hiking boots.

[Bedrock Bob]

34 minutes ago, IDdesertman said:

'Cats are my favorite of all fish. So much fun to catch and hard hitters. I have definitely never seen a stringer like that. Pretty much the definition of going "loaded for bear." 

That is a d ring stringer. We used to spearfish underwater for big fish and that is what we used. It is super quick and easy to get a big fish on and will never loose one.

Those dorados in the Sea of Cortez are big fighters. When you shoot a spear into one you really have a rodeo on your hands. Once you get them.on that stringer they can thrash and raise hell and not tear you up too bad. And the stringer is on a long rope so when an eel or a shark decide to eat your catch you have a couple feet of free line between your leg and Jaws. 

You can put a hundred pounds of fish on one and hoist them into the boat without bending it. I bet I can string 15-20 big carp on one. 

Trident divers supply sells them. I think A.B. Biller spearguns has them too. I have had them for 30 years and I love them. If you catch a fish that can tear one up you need a lot bigger boat.

[matt]

That's a big catfish. Nice catch! What's the best way to eat them? We eat trout and fry them in some butter on foil in the bbq.

[Bedrock Bob]

We use seasoned corn meal and deep fry catfish, walleye and bass. 

Trout I usually bake in foil with butter and lemon too.

 

[NvAuMiner]

Nice cat gents!!!  Way to work it in with what you had.  Patience is the key.