Catfish 3-19-06

[flip1up]

My son and I went below Chick. dam this afternoon. We caught 15-20 I recon, he caught his biggest ever 23+ pounds, all blues. I'm going to try to get a picture on here, we will see if I can figure this out.

 

[flip1up]

Maybe now

 

[DHaun]

That's awesome! I bet he is really proud! Were you tied up to the wall somehow, anchored, or just drifting around? How long did it take him to land that 23lb cat? What lb test?

 

[swamp donkey]

I bet your son is proud of the catch. Keep him interested in fishing and I'm sure you and him will have some great times together. Thanks, S.D.

 

[flip1up]

We were just going from hole to hole behind the turbines, pitching 3" shiners to the back and letting them fall, sometimes they wouldnt make it to the bottom before one would have it. This is a great place to take kids for catfishing, they are ALWAYS there when tva is not generating. Easy catching for the kids. I usually use a 7.5' heavy stick (flippin) with 20 lb. stren. He said this was the best weekend of fishing hes had, his biggest Crappie and his biggest Blue Catfish. I'll bet a jigging spoon would kill them in there.

 

[jon the fisherman]

that is great pics. Looks like you will have a fine fishing partner for years to come.

 

[flip1up]

David, it did take him a while, probably 5-6 minutes. He said it made his arms weak. I use to always set the hooks and then hand the rods to the kids, but today he started doing it all himself. Funny how when we fish like this I am told since they ( he today) bring all the fish in that I'm getting skunked.

 

[Bprice]

Glad ya'll had a great time Flip... I'm proud of him for the beautiful Orange he's wearing!

Maybe I'll get me one of them youngins one day to clad with orange and take fishing with me emoCool

 

[flip1up]

Yea Brandon hes pretty upset that we got beat and are out of the Tournament now, hes a big U.T. fan.

 

[fisherpal2k]

Good job flip1up. Glad you are taking the time to take the kids fishing. No better way then to get them out and when they start enjoying it enough to rib you a lil bit then you know it is all worth it. Great job to the lil guy and maybe he will remember this a lot of years from now and take you to a honey hole someday..emoLaugh But I would have to dress mine in dawg red...emoLaugh emoLaugh

 

[JerDog]

Hey, those are some good cats...you keep any to eat? Is there a safe size catfish to keep without having to worry about PCB's? Anyone have the history of Chattanooga and how the TN river got so contaminated that they had to give a warning not to eat the fish?

 

[flip1up]

We threw them back. I think they say if you eat a meal or two a month then your alright, something like that. We have quite a few Crappie fillets in the freezer and didnt really need anymore right now. Most of the ones we caught were great eating size though, 2-5 pounds.

 

[DHaun]

Here is an article courtesy of RSimms I read last week:

http://www.chattanoogan.com/articles/article_81970.asp

It came out just in time for me to show my girlfriend - When we had our crappie fish fry last week her Mom said she could not make it because she thought the fish were not safe to eat... That's fine - just leaves more for me!

 

[JerDog]

Very informative article. Its good to get an update on the situtation and put some folks minds at ease.

 

[flip1up]

My experience with catfish, especially blues, are that they prefer live prey 10 to 1 over something dead. I always do alot better with lively fresh shiners. I have caught alot of them over the years on crankbaits, spinnerbaits, jigs and various other baits that look alive and natural. I like eating them alright, but for my taste they are just a little fishy. I wouldnt let the warnings scare me away from a good catfish fry every now and then though.

 

[drumking]

The secret to good tasting catfish (without the fishy taste) is in the cleaning process. Fillet them like you would a bass or crappie, rinse a little bit so that you can see the "fat" line easily. Most of the contaminants that they may have will be stored in the fat. It will either be on the back or in the belly. Rarely both places. Trim off the fat line, take out the lateral line and then rinse them with a garden hose with sprayer nozzle set on shower. When you begin to rinse them this way, it will look like you took a cup of detergent and threw in the water. They will foam and foam what seems like forever. But only about 3 or 4 minutes and then the water will begin to run clear. I make sure to trim any red streaks off the fillet where I took the skin off too. They are so mild that way and it doesn't make any difference whether the fish are 3 pounds or 30 pounds. You can't tell a difference in the taste. They are wonderful, coated with Zatarins Southern Style mix and deep fried at 375 degrees for about 5 minutes or so. Enjoy.emoAngel

 

[Guest]

One way we catch a lot of blues is drifting below Nick. Dam in the last couple of weeks of April. Go up to the wingwall and dip up the gizzard shad. These are 10-15 " long and you can see them boiling up when the turbines are on. Cut out the entire gizzard/gut section and put the hook through the gizzard and then stick the rest on the best way you can. We use at least an ounce sometimes 2 on the long drop of a threeway swivel. This way as you drift the weight will be on the bottom and the bait will be above it. Start the drift under the LAST set of overhead powerlines--- The ones that are furthest from the dam. There is somethig on the bottom under the first set of lines that will hang you up. Hang on tight! One evening last April we did 13 drifts and boated 11 blues from 10-14 lbs each. Not real whoppers but definitely fun because there are 30-50 # in there also.We got to see some of those big ones but always on the front decks of somebody elses boat.emoScratch good luck. hope it helps

 

[minner]

flip1up

I am not familier with that dam but are you actually going into the dam underneath and fishing in the "garage" looking part?
Thanks for the info.
minner

 

[Guest]

The powerlines run from one bank to the next. They are maybe 500 yards below the face of the dam. There are catfish up behind the boils(turbine discharge) but it can get tricky getting in there and anchoring off on the holes in the concrete if the turbines are on. If they are not running any turbines and the water is calm it is easier to fish back in the ''garage looking'' areas but most of the time when the water is turned off --the bite turns off also. We just fish for the cats from the 2nd set of power lines down to the SINGLE huge steel barge tieoff. Oh yeah , we release every cat caught because of the pollution warning on them down there.

 

[flip1up]

minner, if you were asking about Chick. dam, yes throw it right to the back of those "garages" and let it fall to the bottom. Like I say, only when they are not generating.