*Big Blue*

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Reekfish
Reekfish's picture
*Big Blue*
<p>&nbsp;</p> <p>Tonight, Josh and I braved tall grasses and prickly bushes to walk down to the river by our apartment.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-RDBpmY-ml4Q/T6CgIOz1KQI/AAAAAAAACO0/9qoREHcquIk/s640/P5010125.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 480px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The spider lilies were blooming... so pretty!</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-9wkgd9z_p1c/T6CgarPsNJI/AAAAAAAACO0/9mzVjFvev0w/s640/P5010129.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 480px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-1DTGmJKnHT4/T6CgZg2SYlI/AAAAAAAACO0/Ik3xL3IsGzM/s640/P5010130.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 480px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>The flowers were nice, but things really got exciting when I hooked into a <em>beast</em>! Damn, this fish was strong! It was something big for sure. I was working with less line than usual on my reel, and I got awfully nervous when I almost got spooled a couple times. Luck was on my side tonight, though, and after an intense battle I landed my biggest-yet blue catfish!</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Tb1cIdJsLJw/T6CfeAMyloI/AAAAAAAACO0/OBrUXW3DmW0/s640/P5010108.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 480px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-lXU3Ulq_dGw/T6CfclRT5xI/AAAAAAAACO0/1HORKs3yTLM/s640/P5010112.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 480px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-fAlKrYghONc/T6CfzV1FR6I/AAAAAAAACO0/cXhVnc39zA0/s640/P5010121.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 482px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/--YpNTPVo01U/T6Cf40f08OI/AAAAAAAACO0/N1DsNOXSPp8/s512/P5010123.JPG" style="width: 384px; height: 512px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><img alt="" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-Tnx5D9BK76g/T6CgDGwcA8I/AAAAAAAACO0/UyGF92ZXVj0/s640/P5010124.JPG" style="width: 640px; height: 480px;" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>We are gonna be eating catfish for <em>weeks</em>! <img alt="yes" height="20" src="http://www.roughfish.com/~roughfis/sites/all/modules/ckeditor/ckeditor/plugins/smiley/images/thumbs_up.gif" title="yes" width="20" /></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>
Corey
Corey's picture
Awesome!!!!!!!!!

aLL awesome Joyful Joy!

Heidi
Heidi's picture
Really cool!!

Pretty amazing!! But you didn't kiss it and let it go?   :( 

"Can you pull the leviathan in with a fishook?" Job 41: 1

 

shorefisherman
shorefisherman's picture
Just catchin monster blue

Just catchin monster blue cats in my summer dress....epic.

MNbowfinangler
MNbowfinangler's picture
Dress

Just catchin monster blue cats in my summer dress....epic.

 

It is a slimy, crusty dress now.

Outdoors4life
Outdoors4life's picture
You two.....

You two are awesome!
Joy it is awesome to see your list of catches grow. Not too often to see a woman holding a big cat in a dress.

It is all perspective!

Acer Home Inspections

DavidG
DavidG's picture
Great catch Joy!  

Great catch Joy!  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DavidG Blog:  http://www.boundless-pursuit.com

D.T.
D.T.'s picture
Very cool! You two seem to

Very cool! You two seem to get into some damn nice fish. And some really crazy expeditions too. Wasn't it you two who got into a nasty rain and neddles camping trip once?

Ken
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.

Reekfish
Reekfish's picture
Yep, worst night ever

"Wasn't it you two who got into a nasty rain and neddles camping trip once?"

@DT: Hahahahaha, yes, that was us! Worst hour of my life... scraping through thick burning nettle during an epic lightning storm in the middle of the night. Oh, it was terrible! Hahaha, we laugh about it often though, now that it's over!

 

@Heidi: Nope, we'll be feasting upon it. Blue cats are a non-native species in SC, so I don't have too much guilt about harvesting him/her. Plus, looks like he/she had a good long life to get so big!

 

@Y'all else: Thanks! smiley

Moose439
Moose439's picture
Sweet fish! Everytime you

Sweet fish! Everytime you guys post I get more and more excited for June! To bad that awesome creature had to die though....

Reekfish
Reekfish's picture
@Moose- It's never fun or

@Moose- It's never fun or easy to make the decision to take a life... especially since I'm a major softie. But we've gotta eat something. And it doesn't get more fresh or local than that!

Moose439
Moose439's picture
Right on, I just prefer not

Right on, I just prefer not to eat fish that can grow to insane lenghts and girths. That fish may have grown to over a hundred pounds if it hadnt been harvested. Also large predator fish have alot more mercury in them, which is bad fa ya brain. Its kinda like eating a musky to me.........

Reekfish
Reekfish's picture
@Moose: I understand your

@Moose: I understand your point, but there's definitely no shortage of blue cats here in SC. Lakes Moultrie and Marion are world-class blue cat waters, and the cats are present in almost every drainage. The DNR wants you to harvest 'em, too:

"There is no daily limit for blue catfish and this encourages the high harvest levels that help minimize competition with native species and maintains optimal blue catfish growth rates."

(from http://www.dnr.sc.gov/news/yr2012/feb16/feb16_catfish.html)

 

As far as mercury concerns... we won't be eating any of the red meat (isn't that where the greatest concentrations are?). That'll be used for shark bait, along with the big scraps of meat from near the spine. So nothing's wasted, and we'll have to use fewer small fish for bait. Win-win.

 

Plus, catfish is recommended as a low-level mercury fish, according to the FDA. Not sure if they had a size criteria, though. At any rate, I think it's okay in moderation at least, say once a week.

Dr Flathead
Dr Flathead's picture
That is a really nice Blue

That is a really nice Blue for sure!  My mental scale puts it right around 20lbs.  Its crazy how it looks so much like a male Channel in spawning colors.  Most Blues that size you see are so pale.  And I've seen that before with other Blues you all have gotten too, darker colored ones.  Weird, must be a SC thing.  Tannin stained water?

Gary
Gary's picture
Holy cats! (pun intended)

Holy cats! (pun intended) That's an awesome fish in a beautiful environment!!!  And if I'm not mistaken, I think I recognize the rod/reel combo in the photo behind the fish on the rock... wink

Next month on the Missouri outing I'm taking with Josh I'm hoping to get my first blue catfish... fingers crossed... if he's even half that size I'll be happy!!! 

Do not meddle in the affairs of BAGMAN, for thou art crunchy and good with Old Bay seasoning...

 

weedfish
weedfish's picture
a wonderful catch....

a wonderful catch....

beautiful area you have chosen to live and fish in...

summer dresses and fishing eh?

if i stood a chance of catching a catfish like that around my area (toronto) i would go so far as to where a summer dress too if it would help to lure and catch the fish....

if Ken posts he knows a spot  to catch such a cat fish... i promise to where a summer dress for the catfish photo....smiles

congrats on the experience.... 

remember your place among all living beings

"the future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams"......eleanor roosevelt

"rotten fish" why are they so much smarter than me