# Big flathead stories



## JSeeger

As if yall cant tell from the few posts ive had here, Im a giant flathead (cpr) junkie! 

Im always on the lookout for the best watering holes that contain the potential for the biggest flatheads and until recently, aside from the special occasion with a buddy out of state i have always been bank bound.. Lemme tell ya ive hoofed some miles on the GMR and Ohio rivers! Lol..

Welp with that being said, the spawn is upon us and that gives me every opportunity to have the boat as prepared as ever and ready to chase the biggest flatheads that this ole state has to offer. The spawn sucks overall.. But it gives me a chance to put more time into, "racecar," and family life as well rather than divide between the 3.

With the lull of the flatheads version of a dead sea; i think this would be an opportune time to talk some stories of GIANT flatheads, whether it be one that weve caught or one monster we have hooked and couldn't do anything with except for hang on and slowly apply some drag until that last big mudslick he kicks up in shallow water is the ticket that breaks your line and your heart/pride.

By BIG im talking 50#+, potential state and world record fish. If theyre fish that you have successfully caught- lets see the pictures to go along with the story! 

This ought to be fun!.
-Justin


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## slimdaddy45

I'm also a flathead junkie lol my last big one was 65# caught out of the Muskingum River after I caught it I went back to the same place a week later hooked into another monster on a 12'' yellowbelly .Had a hard time getting him off the bottom but when I did get him to come 20' of water almost up to the boat and that was it lost him like he just let go of the bait so I reeled in bait was still on and alive so I casted it back out and got a 20 # but the big one was big or bigger than the 65 it felt


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## JSeeger

slimdaddy45 said:


> I'm also a flathead junkie lol my last big one was 65# caught out of the Muskingum River after I caught it I went back to the same place a week later hooked into another monster on a 12'' yellowbelly .Had a hard time getting him off the bottom but when I did get him to come 20' of water almost up to the boat and that was it lost him like he just let go of the bait so I reeled in bait was still on and alive so I casted it back out and got a 20 # but the big one was big or bigger than the 65 it felt
> View attachment 264871


That 65 is a giant! Hell I'd like to know some details about that catch

One bigger than that and were taking record class fish! 

Did you even get a look at him, he slip drag at all?


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## JSeeger

Really that's all we got? Lol


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## winguy7

My first flathead catch was in North Carolina at lake tillery. This was after years of hunting them down in Ohio, with squat to show for it. The moment I arrived there...about three in the morning, I went to the boat house and threw in my lines. I sat on that dock for three days straight, drinking until until the heat and alcholol put me to sleep for a couple hours here and there. I got no bites, as always. So I begrudgingly left my poles in the water and climbed into an acutual bed. Two hours later I got awoken to hear "Hey you got something on one of your poles". Followed by " Some guys on a boat said your line got wrapped around a bouy and it's being drug around the lake". So I stumbled out of bed, half drunk but pretty happy. I knew the bouy they where talking about and it was big. Sure enough, when I reached the boat house this big old bouy is cruzing right in front of it. After a few frantic unwraps of braided line from the steel cable that anchored the bouy, I pulled him up...sure that this one was going to be at least a 40lber. I got treated to a 15lber, lol. That damed little flathead had pulled a 60lb bouy 150 yards from where it sat. But still, it was a flathead. The rest is history, I still fish until I can't drink anymore though...from shore...in a private spot....catching those 40lbers.


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## slimdaddy45

JSeeger said:


> That 65 is a giant! Hell I'd like to know some details about that catch
> 
> One bigger than that and were taking record class fish!
> 
> Did you even get a look at him, he slip drag at all?


No didn't get to see him and yes he took plenty of drag all I know he was big .Well both were hooked in a creek mouth in 20' of water on the Muskingum river on big yellowbellys and big bluegills


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## slimdaddy45

Where you from I JUST GOT A NEW TO ME BOAT 19.5' THAT AT LEAAST 3 PEOPLE COULD FISH COMFORTLY ONCE I GETA MOTOR ON IT AND A FEW OTHER LITTLE THINGS I CAN HIT THE RIVER YOU WOULD BE WELCOME TO GO BUT I WONT GAURUNTEE YOU FISH LOL


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## JSeeger

Im from new carlisle bud. Way westward in the state


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## Fisherman 3234

This is a recap of my personal best catch:

I arrived to the river at dawn for a full day of fishing. It was a beautiful June morning, air temp was in the mid 50s and the river was up but not stained. I made a last minute decision to bring my heaviest Catfish combination with me to have it set while bass fishing. Got baited up with a fresh 14" shad with the tail cut off on a 10/0 king khale hook and casted out into the swift current with an 8 oz no roll sinker and got my bait set. I started bass fishing and was doing really good, when I turned my head and saw the tip of my rod do the the old tell tale dip. I picked up my rod and set the hook, all I felt was the weight of the fish and a few slow head shakes (felt like hooking a submarine). The fight was on!!! I fought her for 20 minutes trying to keep her from diving towards the bottom where she would surely snag me on a rock or a piece of rebar. Luckily, while I was fighting the fish, I yelled to a fellow fisherman for some help to net this beast. I finally got her positioned to go down the closest set of rapids that feed into an eddy which would bring her right back to us to net her. She made a huge swell at the surface, I knew she was big, but how big??? She came up again and I got a pretty good look at her, I did not want to lose this fish!!! She made one last knuckle biting run and finally tired out. We barely got her into the net due to her size!!! She measured 46" long, my new personal best Flathead!!! I was screaming and laughing like a madman, I've been after a fish like this for 12 years!!! The only thing that stunk was that I forgot my scale. Looking at length charts, the weight of the fish was likely between 45-53 lbs!!! After a quick photo shoot, I took her back to the water to be revived and sent on her way. It took her 5 minutes to regain her strength, she slowly fanned her tail and slid back into the depths. Hopefully one day in the future, I run into old Catfish Hunter again!!!


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## Skip2myalou

That’s the Indiana state record I caught and let go. On the Ohio river. Black Friday. I like to fish for flatheads in the fall when the weather cools down and the fish stack. That usually means Halloween. After that I chase Blues all winter. But it was a warm fall so we were catching the flatheads all through November. Marked a good spot I know holds flatheads late in the year. Marked a monster behind a boulder in 45 FOW. Set up on her and started pitching live shad her way on linecounter reels. Thought we would have to wait for a while(4-6 hours if ever) to get her.... nope. Second rod we placed behind boulder buried in about 10 minutes. After a good fight in open water we netted her. Went 84.7 pounds on my digital scale. Choice was to kill her for a record or release. She went back into the water and my name isn’t in the record book. Still proud of the right call. That’s my cousin holding her. He is 6’6” to put in comparison.


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## JSeeger

Skip2myalou said:


> That’s the Indiana state record I caught and let go. On the Ohio river. Black Friday. I like to fish for flatheads in the fall when the weather cools down and the fish stack. That usually means Halloween. After that I chase Blues all winter. But it was a warm fall so we were catching the flatheads all through November. Marked a good spot I know holds flatheads late in the year. Marked a monster behind a boulder in 45 FOW. Set up on her and started pitching live shad her way on linecounter reels. Thought we would have to wait for a while(4-6 hours if ever) to get her.... nope. Second rod we placed behind boulder buried in about 10 minutes. After a good fight in open water we netted her. Went 84.7 pounds on my digital scale. Choice was to kill her for a record or release. She went back into the water and my name isn’t in the record book. Still proud of the right call. That’s my cousin holding her. He is 6’6” to put in comparison.


Awesome fish man! Congrats on doing the right thing


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## slimdaddy45

Skip2myalou said:


> That’s the Indiana state record I caught and let go. On the Ohio river. Black Friday. I like to fish for flatheads in the fall when the weather cools down and the fish stack. That usually means Halloween. After that I chase Blues all winter. But it was a warm fall so we were catching the flatheads all through November. Marked a good spot I know holds flatheads late in the year. Marked a monster behind a boulder in 45 FOW. Set up on her and started pitching live shad her way on linecounter reels. Thought we would have to wait for a while(4-6 hours if ever) to get her.... nope. Second rod we placed behind boulder buried in about 10 minutes. After a good fight in open water we netted her. Went 84.7 pounds on my digital scale. Choice was to kill her for a record or release. She went back into the water and my name isn’t in the record book. Still proud of the right call. That’s my cousin holding her. He is 6’6” to put in comparison.


That's a good one for sure I release all my big fish now days but will say the 1st ever big fish I caught back in 91 I didn't have a scale plus I never caught a fish that big yea I had to go show it off and get it weighed 56.5# 46.5'' long I tried to keep it alive but it died on me so I cleaned it and ate it which was really good so don't let people tell you big ones aint good eating cause they are they way I cleaned it and soaked in saltwater but anyway thru the yrs that Ive learned how long it takes for a fish to get that big and you just don't catch them on a regular basis I decided to release all of them now since I haven't ate no fish for many yrs now got some bad at a relatives house and aint ate it since plus its a job to clean a monster my last big one 65# is still swimming I now carry a scale and a camera cause there's nothing like hooking into a hog like that so I will never keep a big one again even tho they are good eating


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## Gottagofishn

Well then.... Those are some truly amazing fish! 
My personal best is wayyyy smaller than those I'm afraid. 

I live in central Ohio and usually only head down to the river in the fall. I like the variety of fish it offers up then. We went down to chase Hybrids and Eye's several years ago. I was pitching a 1/8th oz jig on 8lb test along a drop off close to shore when I had a good hit. Well, the fish just lumbered off not really caring what I was doing. I jumped on the trolling motor and headed off downstream after the unknown quarry. After dancing around the boat I ended up maybe a half mile downstream before it decided it was bored and finally rolled up to the boat. My daughter and her boyfriend were there to help net and take pics. Beautiful fish coming in at about 43"... not sure of the weight but it sure was pretty. It too was released, maybe it was the 65lber?
Ever since then I now chase the kitties too when I'm down there. Awesome fish!


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## Shortdrift

55#


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## Bassbme

Geez those are some toads!!!. Good job guys. I'm a bass junkie, but I've caught a few flatheads while fishing for bass. The biggest one I've landed was probably between 25 - 30#. That one came from Salt Fork. 

As far as the biggest one I've had on, and I really can't be sure it was a flathead, as I never saw it, was hooked while fishing a bridge piling in the Hannibal pool of the Ohio river. When I first set the hook I thought I was hung up on the trash around the base of the piling, then it started to move. I really couldn't do anything with it so after about 10 minutes I decided to try and break it off. I clamped down on the spool with my thumb so the drag wouldn't slip and hit the go button on my trolling motor. Dang line wouldn't break but I dragged it about 40' down river when it decided it wanted to go back to the bridge piling. 

My dad and I were fishing in a bass tournament at the time and I was 20 minutes or better into fighting this thing so I drove back up to it and did the process again, Got it about the same distance from the bridge piling and it started going back to it again, but this time the hook finally bent out. I had it on a jig so it was a pretty heavy wire hook. Got the jig back to the boat and it had that little piece of soft flesh stuck behind the barb that I normally get when I hook a cat fish.

Would have loved to seen how big it was. Definitely the biggest fish I've ever had on in my life time. So I can definitely see how you guys can be junkies for them. Those babies can pull !!!


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## slimdaddy45

I mostly fish for big flatheads aint nothing like hooking a freight train but heading to Florida next week for crappie and those green fish lol


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## pawcat

I love fishing for BIG cats. My best flat was lil over 55 lbs and have caught many BIG ones. I have switched over to targeting BIG Blue cats cause there are more of them and usually catch between 30 to 40 blues over 30lbs a year on average, my biggest Blue is 62lbs. I only fish the ohio river from Racine to Cinci. I love the fight of BIG BLUES WHEN DRIFTING...THAT MY THING.


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## Fish-N-Fool

Great fish guys...I remember a member who passed away a few years back named Robbie Robertson (could have his name wrong no disrespect meant RIP)???? He fished the lakes on the east side of the state and was a hard core giant flat head fisherman. He used a pontoon he had modified and a smaller boat to place baits. He made tremendous catches and shared pictures and techniques for a handful of years. I do know his catches he used to post could have filled this page and so to his stories (and I never met the man). 

I used to chase a lot of catfish on both the lakes and the OH River. My "go to" area was the New Richmond put in. I didn't get to fish near as much as I would like being a 2 hr drive down. We caught a lot of fish in the course of 6-7 years in the 20 and 30lb range both blues and flatheads along with plenty of channels of course. Seemed for us finding fish over 40 lbs was difficult We never boated anything as big as these giants so my "monster" story would be a non-qualifier, but always remember that 54lb fish surfacing by the boat - looked like a shark to us!LOL 

I sure miss Robbie's pictures and threads - guy caught more fish over 60lbs than I caught over 25lbs I'm certain!

I need to get me a boat again I miss that old Starcraft!


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## Slatebar

Just a few pictures of some I have caught over the years. I really have no stories about them. Only one I weighted was 52 or 54 lbs. (75 year old memory).. Also a couple pictures of a Shovelhead I think it was like 56lb.(bad memory)



































and Channel Cat my 12 year old at the time Great Grandson caught a couple years ago. I was not with him and his uncle the night he caught the Shovelhead, but His uncle had to hold him as the fish was actually dragging him. I was fishing with him the night he caught the Channel Cat. He was fishing with 2 rods and caught the Channel cat and a large Sheep Head both at the same time.. LOL the fight was on..


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## slimdaddy45

Fish-N-Fool said:


> Great fish guys...I remember a member who passed away a few years back named Robbie Robertson (could have his name wrong no disrespect meant RIP)???? He fished the lakes on the east side of the state and was a hard core giant flat head fisherman. He used a pontoon he had modified and a smaller boat to place baits. He made tremendous catches and shared pictures and techniques for a handful of years. I do know his catches he used to post could have filled this page and so to his stories (and I never met the man).
> 
> I used to chase a lot of catfish on both the lakes and the OH River. My "go to" area was the New Richmond put in. I didn't get to fish near as much as I would like being a 2 hr drive down. We caught a lot of fish in the course of 6-7 years in the 20 and 30lb range both blues and flatheads along with plenty of channels of course. Seemed for us finding fish over 40 lbs was difficult We never boated anything as big as these giants so my "monster" story would be a non-qualifier, but always remember that 54lb fish surfacing by the boat - looked like a shark to us!LOL
> 
> I sure miss Robbie's pictures and threads - guy caught more fish over 60lbs than I caught over 25lbs I'm certain!
> 
> I need to get me a boat again I miss that old Starcraft!


I have an old boat for sale its a 1974 SEA SPRITE 16' TRIHULL NEW TRANSOM LAST YR AND NEW TIRES N WHEELS ON TRAILER BUT IT DOESNT HAVE A MOTOR $450.00 ITS A GOOD OLD BOAT DOESNT LEAK A DROP


Fish-N-Fool said:


> Great fish guys...I remember a member who passed away a few years back named Robbie Robertson (could have his name wrong no disrespect meant RIP)???? He fished the lakes on the east side of the state and was a hard core giant flat head fisherman. He used a pontoon he had modified and a smaller boat to place baits. He made tremendous catches and shared pictures and techniques for a handful of years. I do know his catches he used to post could have filled this page and so to his stories (and I never met the man).
> 
> I used to chase a lot of catfish on both the lakes and the OH River. My "go to" area was the New Richmond put in. I didn't get to fish near as much as I would like being a 2 hr drive down. We caught a lot of fish in the course of 6-7 years in the 20 and 30lb range both blues and flatheads along with plenty of channels of course. Seemed for us finding fish over 40 lbs was difficult We never boated anything as big as these giants so my "monster" story would be a non-qualifier, but always remember that 54lb fish surfacing by the boat - looked like a shark to us!LOL
> 
> I sure miss Robbie's pictures and threads - guy caught more fish over 60lbs than I caught over 25lbs I'm certain!
> 
> I need to get me a boat again I miss that old Starcraft!


I have one for sale cheap its a 16' tri-hull new transom last yr new tires n wheels on trailer no motor though does come with a trolling motor doesnt leak a drop of water has a fishfinder on it good old boat selling because I bought a bigger boat asking $450.00 for it . Its had some big fish in it .All lights work on trailer has new bearings also


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## JSeeger

Slatebar said:


> Just a few pictures of some I have caught over the years. I really have no stories about them. Only one I weighted was 52 or 54 lbs. (75 year old memory).. Also a couple pictures of a Shovelhead I think it was like 56lb.(bad memory)
> View attachment 299625
> View attachment 299627
> View attachment 299629
> View attachment 299631
> View attachment 299633
> and Channel Cat my 12 year old at the time Great Grandson caught a couple years ago. I was not with him and his uncle the night he caught the Shovelhead, but His uncle had to hold him as the fish was actually dragging him. I was fishing with him the night he caught the Channel Cat. He was fishing with 2 rods and caught the Channel cat and a large Sheep Head both at the same time.. LOL the fight was on..


Awesome fish! 

What waters you fishing if you dont mind me asking? Love seeing the big healthy flatheads and seeing the young generation get after them as well.


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## JSeeger

Anybody been on some good flatheads yet this year?


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## Predator225

My family is originally from southeast Kentucky, eastern Pike county to be exact. Catching catfish was a way of life for them, they did it to survive - when they weren't killing themselves slowly in the coal mines. The particular bodies of water they fished were the Tug Fork of the Levisa River and the lower sections of Johns Creek, their primary target. This was all before DDT was sprayed across the region, and drilling and mining sunk the water table. 
They mainly trotlined, but they'd spend time fishing with rod and reel while camping out to run the lines in the morning. Unfortunately, they had the habit of tying lines off to trees on either side of the creek instead of a limb or smaller tree that had some give. Often when they'd check lines the following morning, forged hooks would be straightened. Sometimes, the entire trotlined was just gone.
They'd catch their fair share of 20-30 pound flathead and blues, but there are many stories of massive, unmanageable fish. One of them even had a name - Scrap Iron. He lived in the Tug Fork near where Big Creek emptied into it near Williamson, West Virginia. Two brothers, the Varney brothers, were obsessed with him. They hooked up with him several times only to be lost in what reportedly was an old automobile in the river. Was it the same fish every time? Who knows, but their obsession didn't stop until spraying for beetles with DDT caused a massive die off in the river.
My own grandfather had one hell of an encounter one morning on Johns Creek. He got into a little 12 foot John boat to run a line at the tail end of a run just as current was starting to pick up. There was a big oak that had fallen long ago and the main trunk still layed out into the creek. The trotline was upstream of the log and as he and a family friend, (named Beaver Bowman's) who was a rare ******* that couldn't swim, was pulled tight towards the log as they approached. My grandfather grabbed the line and started pulling. Without warning, the head of an enormous blue cat came up from under the boat. My grandfather immediately dropped the line and grabbed it by the jaw with one hand and the other just inside the bottom of the gill plate while directing beaver to keep it steady. 
It was then that the catfish must've realized what was happening, because all hell broke loose. By this time, the boat swung around downstream of the fish with my grandfather still holding on. What happens next is what gets me about the size of the fish - it's tail was on the downstream underside of the boat thrashing! Things were starting to get really unstable in the small boat, and Beaver sorta panicked. Instead of using the Winchester model 37 laying there, he he reached out and cut the line as my grandfather was trying to get something of a better grip. The fish was able to pretty much bury under and into the root system of the sunken trunk. They tried to get it to come out to no avail.
My uncle has told all of us that story as he saw it in person standing on the bank. I asked a few other relatives that were present also, one of which has fished for big blues in Virginia and Tennessee. He has said he has yet to see anything that came close to the size of that catfish. Unfortunately, you could just about jump across Johns Creek in it's mid reaches now, all that remains of those monsters is in stories. Fortunately, they inspired my passion to carry on with the family tradition.


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## twistedcatfish1971

...now that is a story! Much appreciated to read that.

Thank you.

Don.


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## sliprig

Years ago a few cat guys got together at Tanner Creek in Ind. Robbie, Doc (Tim) , Jigger, MrFish , Macfish and many others. Robbie catches were legendary. Here are a couple old links.
https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/reservoir-flathead-strategies/155489
https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/catch-more-flatheads/154575
https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/resolute-reservoir-flatheads/154058
Slip


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## sliprig

Oh, forgot CATKING


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## Shortdrift

I am not a dedicated catfish fisherman but was fortunate to have shared several flathead trips with Robbie (RIP) and Mike Magis. We would set up a lean to with cots and lay down after setting the lines and alarms. It was always a rush when the alarm started beeping and woke you out of a deep sleep. Now as I recall, Robbie never took a turn on the rods, he always stood by and enjoyed watching others enjoy the fish he guided them to. I often get out the pictures of those wonderful nights and the fellowship shared.
















Thanks for the memories Robbie


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## sliprig

The amount of big fish he and his wife caught was amazing. He always shared his knowledge and camp with any OGF/OGF member who asked. He put a lot of people on big fish and always practiced catch and release. He was ahead of his time, left us way to early. RIP


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## JSeeger

sliprig said:


> Years ago a few cat guys got together at Tanner Creek in Ind. Robbie, Doc (Tim) , Jigger, MrFish , Macfish and many others. Robbie catches were legendary. Here are a couple old links.
> https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/reservoir-flathead-strategies/155489
> https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/catch-more-flatheads/154575
> https://www.in-fisherman.com/editorial/resolute-reservoir-flatheads/154058
> Slip
> 
> View attachment 361985


I started following robbies tactics close to 20 years ago as a middle school kid obsessed with big flathead. 

I've spoken to him a few times over the years in regard to his wealth of knowledge and he was ALWAYS willing to offer advice. Gone far too soon, RIP.


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## JSeeger

sliprig said:


> Oh, forgot CATKING



Always been interested in talking to CATKING as he shared some great information in a post about Eastfork lake over the years including the report of knowing of many being caught over 50 and two over 70. 

This is another lake I can't wait to fish hard with the boat


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## Predator225

Amen to that. When I wanted to expand my flathead territory outside of Northeast Ohio about 15 years ago, I sheepishly messaged and approached Robbie about my thoughts on where to go and how to fish. He couldn't have been more helpful and exact in the locations he gave me. I think about him every time I'm catfishing.


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