07-21-2018, 11:12 AM
I went fishing at Lincoln Beach yesterday afternoon. Got up early to go in the morning, then life happened and I didn't get a line in the water until 3:00. A few weeks back I had asked what the best time of day to go catfishing was and TD and others said, "Whenever you can." So I took it to heart and went. I thought with the cloud cover, a little breeze and highs "only" in the low 90s I might survive. And this time I finally remembered to take a small towel to wipe the sweat out of my eyes.
When I first got there it felt like one of those dead days when you don't even get a nibble. Well I got several nibbles and eventually landed a 7 1/2" white bass on my shrimp and worm; sure looked funny hanging from my 6/0 hook. Soon thereafter I got a hard bite and thought I was tight to a mudcat as they have plagued me there lately. But it turned out to be a small channel, about 21". Oho, I thought, maybe this middle-of-the-day fishing isn't so bad after all. A bit later I saw a big black form slicing through the water like a barely submerged torpedo. He was headed straight for my bait and I braced myself. But nothing. Then a cast later I had worked my bait back to the same spot when my bobber disappeared and I was fast to what was definitely a bigger fish. When I finally got him landed he measured out to 26.5 inches, tying my biggest cat which I caught last week in virtually the same exact spot. I've always loved sight-fishing but never thought I'd be doing it with cats.
When I got home my wife asked me why my shirt was all wet. I told her I fell in and she believed me for a while.
So now I woke up at 3:45am and can't go back to sleep. I guess I'm Jonesing for some catfishing to ease my addiction. I'll be heading out soon.
P.S. In the attached photo below you can see where he has lost a bunch of skin right behind the pectoral fin. He looks even worse on the other side with several big round sores where he had been battling with other males over spawning rights.
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When I first got there it felt like one of those dead days when you don't even get a nibble. Well I got several nibbles and eventually landed a 7 1/2" white bass on my shrimp and worm; sure looked funny hanging from my 6/0 hook. Soon thereafter I got a hard bite and thought I was tight to a mudcat as they have plagued me there lately. But it turned out to be a small channel, about 21". Oho, I thought, maybe this middle-of-the-day fishing isn't so bad after all. A bit later I saw a big black form slicing through the water like a barely submerged torpedo. He was headed straight for my bait and I braced myself. But nothing. Then a cast later I had worked my bait back to the same spot when my bobber disappeared and I was fast to what was definitely a bigger fish. When I finally got him landed he measured out to 26.5 inches, tying my biggest cat which I caught last week in virtually the same exact spot. I've always loved sight-fishing but never thought I'd be doing it with cats.
When I got home my wife asked me why my shirt was all wet. I told her I fell in and she believed me for a while.
So now I woke up at 3:45am and can't go back to sleep. I guess I'm Jonesing for some catfishing to ease my addiction. I'll be heading out soon.
P.S. In the attached photo below you can see where he has lost a bunch of skin right behind the pectoral fin. He looks even worse on the other side with several big round sores where he had been battling with other males over spawning rights.
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The older I get the more I would rather be considered a good man than a good fisherman.