Caught a first

After work today I hooked up the boat and went to a nearby lake for a few hours. Casting a paddletail swim bait, I had a fish crush it in 3fow and the fight was on! Rod bent way over, drag peeling, I could only figure it was a big pike or a really odd carp. NOPE! Neither. After a good long battle, I got the fish in the net and it was a catfish! I couldn’t hardly believe my eyes. If I were to guess, I’d say it was in the 5-7 pound range.

It’s my first ever cat. And I learned quickly these fish are STRONG! So much fun.

I think the only species left for me to catch now are trout, salmon and musky. And if I’m super lucky, next month maybe I can scratch musky off my list with our trip to the Big V.

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nice! wait till you catch one on 4lb panfish gear. now that is a fun ride!

they are a blast in shallow water!

When they crush a crank bait on the river they’ll almost take the rod out of your hands. Just hang on!

Yes walleye gear is outmatched by eater sized catfish.
Reek havoc on crankbaits for sure!

They are a fun welcome surprise. It seems like I catch 1 or 2 a year. I caught a rather nice one on Sat. What a fight on 8lb. test ( it probably took me 10+ minutes to land ) I estimate the weight of the one I caught at around 16-18 lbs. The place I catch them only seems to have BIG ones. Have never caught a smaller one there. I now know why so many people target them.