I learned that flatheads were not scavengers and required live fish! My first flathead did not come on a rod and reel, but on a limb line. My fishing buddy at the time, Steve, and I, set out a dozen limb lines at a local lake. Our bait for the night was bluegill. I think we must've gotten lucky that first night. No sooner had we gotten the last limb line set up, then we heard a large commotion in the water. Running along side the bank to see what was going on, we found out that we had caught our first flathead! It weighed 20 lbs.
We quickly realized that we wanted to target these large fish with rod and reel only. Our first few attempts produced nothing. However, through perseverance, we eventually succeeded at catching flatheads on a rod and reel. The waters we fished were the same waters that we had, for several years, fished for channel cats, never realizing that the much larger flathead swam in the same water. Through the years, I lost contact with my buddy, and now have others that I enjoy fishing with.
My son Steven, named after my buddy, and my wife Rhonda, who is quite a trooper, wading through creeks with me at night and getting eaten up by insects. But she hangs in there, and allows me to keep baiting her hook for her. Catfishing for me is all about memories. And if you don't have that special friend or family member to share that "fish of a lifetime," or "the one that got away," then you're missing a piece of the puzzle. It also helps to have someone to hold the camera. Ha! Ha!
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