Who says catfish ain't ugly? Have you ever looked a really, Big, Old, Flathead in the eye? Now First of all he really is flatheaded! And the top of his head and body are a dark green color. And the the jaw muscles of a Great Big Flathead are strong enough to hurt your hand if he gets hold of it, and you ain't got no gloves on. Thats a nono people! Flatheads get Big,(and I mean Big!) mean, real mean,(I'm talking splinterin' anything but an UglyStick mean!) (Where was I?) Oh yeah, Big, mean, and U___G___L___Y! Let me repeat that! Ugly! Boy, Ugly! If you're just plain lucky enough, and smart enough to have some Deep Sea tackle with you, and you hook a real big Flathead, (and some of them DO get over a hundred pounds,) Believe me if you get im' in, That ugly old man is gonna be the the most beautiful fish you've ever seen! Catfish fight. Let me rephrase that. Catfish FIGHT! They fight like nothing else in freshwater! Yes I know about Largemouth Bass. Love them. They fight like an alleycat. And they are viscous! The Big Cats tho, they have thier size going for them, which increases thier strength. proportionatly. Let me describe catching a big one. It's the middle of the night and you're getting tired and sleepy because nothing's happened for awhile... Then out of the corrner of an eye you catch the tip of your 12ft. long rod vibrate a couple seconds, then begin a slow dip as the line starts moving out toward deeper water, weaving just slightly side to side. With a grin you grab your rod and start to haul it back over your shoulder to set the hook! Then the grin falls off your face and hits the ground as the line screams off the reel and the rod bends down intoo a U and your arms feel the ache of straining muscles while "Something", "Something under the water", almost tears the fingers off your hands with the strain of keeping your rod from being torn out of your hands, for the next, oh, 73 minuets while the rod keeps threatning to crack every few seconds and the line whips back & forth up and down the river, heading for deep holes and running out over flats and making all out mad rushes across the river. And when that Giant head finally breaks water right at your feet, yes, you'll be in the water, at least the edge of it if it's that type of bank or sandbar. It's going to look at least three feet wide at first. Not that you will be taking your eyes of of it! Your first thot will be "Whats that"? "Where's my shotgun"? "Hey! when did it start raining"? See, this is why I suggest getting a Deep Sea Rig. And about 2lbs. of Nightcrawlers along with a couple lbs. of Raw Chicken liver. A Gallon milk jug full of blood wouldn't hurt either. I mean Chicken blood of course. and a few well preserved chunks of cut bait. Take the live fish with you if you can. Shad is probably the best. Thats for Channel cats mostly. They get big to. But for Flatheads you'll need live bait. Bluegills or Goldfish or shad. And I don't mean minnows! I mean live fish at 6 inches and up. up to a pound mabey, depending on the location you're fishing and the size catfish you're after. Take some pantyhose and cut the toes out of them for liver bags to help tie it on the hook. Remember two things. 1. Check the baitshop for the best type of Catfish hook available. 2. Possibly the most important thing to remember. If you have any wish for it to be safe to ever go home buy your own pantyhose! Don't use your wife's! |