# Caesars Creek 9-13-21. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED



## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

So a few months back I promised my nephew that I would try to get him out for an all night catfishing trip on the boat. Well the stars and our schedules finally aligned and he did not have school today due to a teacher conference day… So yesterday I called his parents And asked if I could pick him up at 4 PM to teach him how to catfish last night. We put in at the north pool ramp by 5pm, armed with a small tub of wax worms and started the first part of our mission, catching the bait...








I taught him everything I could about locating bluegills and fishing docks, rock piles, brush… He caught on quick And got to work.
After we filled the live well with a dozen or so good gills ranging in size from 3" to 7" we headed for the main lake… There was a few drop offs that I knew about that I have had good luck with channel cats In previous years So we headed in that direction…we had the boat set and anchored in position by 7 PM… the next part of the mission was to have a couple good ham sandwiches that I packed for dinner…








After dinner we set the rods and I taught him some basics of casting and setting a hook with a bait caster……








We cut up a few gills, using their heads, the bodies, and one live gill on the last rod...Now we wait…
Right at dusk we got one good Run of the clicker and hooked up… But the fish got wrapped in a log or a stump and broke off about midway through the battle… We were both disappointed but we quickly re-rigged and continued on with the mission. I taught him the basics of fishing knots, weights, leaders, and hook sizes... he caught on quickly and rigged up the rod and we were back in the water… we Had a few more short runs but basically the rest of the night was silent…....Until 3 AM…

We both woke up to a clicker screaming so loudly and fast that I swear I think smoke was going to come out of that reel if it continued!… Like any good angler with a kid would do… i picked up the rod and set the hook and passed it over to the kid…The fight was on… it Took roughly 5 to 8 minutes… And I made a good scoop with the net and got the fish in the boat… The kids eyes were as big as the moon and he was shaking like a leaf (and to be honest I have to admit I was a little shaky myself ) His first cat was a 15 pound channel!








we basically hugged and high-fived and hooted and hollered for a good five minutes after that… I've personally never caught one this size out of Caesars…
I asked him how he felt and before I could get my sentence out he was rebating and cutting another gill to get the rods back out! We did just that and never had another bite… Until 6 AM… had I known what was about to happen, I would've brought a clean pair of shorts for myself to change into ) We were both sitting there having orange juice and donuts for breakfast when another clicker screamed as loud as it could… Same process, only this time I let HIM set the hook... I knew this was a big fish when he set the hook and the rod yanked back down and nearly broke against the rod holder… The fight was on… It took him nearly 30 minutes… And he got this thing to the boat and I about crapped my pants... measuring at 47" and every last bit of 25 pounds...I have thoroughly and completely spoiled this kid for his first real cat fishing trip...








.... I told him the importance of catch and release on big fish… We let this big girl go… And then I taught him how to correctly wipe the slime off on his shirt… And pick his doughnut back up and finish it…Welcome to manhood kiddo…

Mission accomplished


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## Ol' Whiskers (Aug 11, 2004)

9Left said:


> So a few months back I promised my nephew that I would try to get him out for an all night catfishing trip on the boat. Well the stars and our schedules finally aligned and he did not have school today due to a teacher conference day… So yesterday I called his parents And asked if I could pick him up at 4 PM to teach him how to catfish last night. We put in at the north pool ramp by 5pm, armed with a small tub of wax worms and started the first part of our mission, catching the bait...
> View attachment 475865
> 
> I taught him everything I could about locating bluegills and fishing docks, rock piles, brush… He caught on quick And got to work.
> ...


Great trip, great story, smile bigger than the fish! I'd say you hooked him for life as a CATTER. You took me back thirty-some years with Young Whiskers. Congrats on a very good trip for both of you.


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## Ron Y (Dec 2, 2020)

Kids expression says it all... good job


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## garhtr (Jan 12, 2009)

Can't beat a trip like that !
Of course that little man is going be bugging you to take him fishing everyday 

Great story, felt like I was there. 
Good luck and good


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## Pike (Apr 7, 2004)

Way to go (both of you)!


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

That is a great night. Kudos to both of you. Did you weigh that flathead? A 47" flathead should weigh more than 25 pounds.


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## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

Southernsaug said:


> That is a great night. Kudos to both of you. Did you weigh that flathead? A 47" flathead should weigh more than 25 pounds.


Man I have no idea about the growth rate… But we did stretch a tape across it and it was 47 inches on the dot… Now the scale… LOL… That was a very cheap plastic bass pro scale that an 11 year old kid had in his tackle bag… So it very well could have weighed more than that....I do know that when I lifted it over the boat in the net, I was worried about straining certain muscles… LOL


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## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

Southernsnaug....Thank you so much for bringing that up… I did check growth rate scales in Ohio… That fish was probably well over 30 pounds… I appreciate you bringing that information to light


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## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

So for now I guess I could probably safely say it was 30… It was a $6 plastic scale in the kids tackle bag… LOL


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## polebender (Oct 29, 2011)

Very nice fishing experience!


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## sliprig (Apr 6, 2004)

Southernsaug said:


> That is a great night. Kudos to both of you. Did you weigh that flathead? A 47" flathead should weigh more than 25 pounds.


I agree, that fish had to be in the mid to high 30's at 47". That one picture is worth a thousand words. He will remember that trip for the rest of his life. One question, cut bait or live?
Slip


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## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

sliprig said:


> I agree, that fish had to be in the mid to high 30's at 47". That one picture is worth a thousand words. He will remember that trip for the rest of his life. One question, cut bait or live?
> Slip


We did put a 6" gill On one of the rods all night… Never got touched…But both of these fish, the channel and the Flatty, came on about a 2 in.² piece of cut Bluegill


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## fishdealer04 (Aug 27, 2006)

Awesome job Carl! Was cool getting that text from you this morning with those pictures...nothing like making a guy jealous while he is at work 🤣 I would agree that at 47" that fish is over 30 pounds. Regardless of the weight though that will be a memory you and him will both remember for the rest of your lives.


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## matticito (Jul 17, 2012)

Holy smokes that's a fish!


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

I handled a lot of flatheads in my day and that fish is pushing 40 pounds, a lifetime catch for your nephew. My guess is 35-38 lbs. It's a bit thin or it would be over 40. I caught two that were 44 & 42 pounds and both of them were in that 45-47" range, but they were both fat tubs. Either way, he has braggin rights for sure


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## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

Southernsaug said:


> I handled a lot of flatheads in my day and that fish is pushing 40 pounds, a lifetime catch for your nephew. My guess is 35-38 lbs. It's a bit thin or it would be over 40. I caught two that were 44 & 42 pounds and both of them were in that 45-47" range, but they were both fat tubs. Either way, he has braggin rights for sure


Gotcha... thanks southernsnaug... actually after Hearing what you have to say and talking with some other reliable cat resources on the phone last night (Salmonid)...I'm beginning to think that in all the excitement, I missread that tape and it probably said 37" and not 47…. I appreciate your guys experience And thoughts on that.


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## 9Left (Jun 23, 2012)

Well OK then… I forgot that I had laid that catfish on the back deck of the boat to take a picture...








I zoomed in and found some small stains on the carpet and used that hatch on the left side as a reference… Even as a rough reference,I measured the distance… And it measured out to 38" this morning so honestly i think It was a case of excitement and adrenaline and I miss read that tape… Either way… It's a fish of a lifetime for me or the kid! But Really... much appreciate people that gave me there Experiences on the growth rates…Good luck everybody and thanks again!!


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## Tin Guppy (Mar 20, 2007)

What ever it measured it was still a great fish Carl,glad you guys did good. Now you need to get him out on the ice with us.


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## Bass knuckles (Sep 23, 2014)

Nice report n pics, them some big kittys!!


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

Woe, what the heck, an honest fisherman. Dude your supposed to swear it weighed XX pounds. (just having fun) Whatever it weighed the young man done well and it's a braggin fish. Looking at the picture it's still close to 30. To top it off it's still swimming around. I thought of your nephew yesterday. I was trolling and my right rod went off, screaming. Soon as I picked it up I knew the slow methodical pulse and deep runs. It was about a 10-12 pounder. It went back in the lake too.


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## buickfan70 (Apr 18, 2018)

Job well done! Be sure to send those fish in for his FISH OHIO pin and certificates they were great catches for sure.


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## Saugeye Tom (Oct 6, 2010)

Hey carl.......😁


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## Southernsaug (May 23, 2019)

I Wouldn't bet any money using that chart as a guide. You'd be out some cash when the fish hit the scales. Length to weight calculations are used as an estimator using a predetermined condition factor "K" factor. Each species has it's own indexed value to plug into a formula. That value is usually standardized from a species chart, (i.e. the standard value for trout is 3500 ), but it can very from region to region and the true value used by biologist is calculated from historic records. Take flatheads for example. If you have a flathead from a rich southern lake it may be very rounded and would weigh more than a flathead of the same length from a northern lake with less growing season and less forage base. Then if you look even further you will find that stream fish are even more streamline and are calculated at a different "K" factor. You only know the proper factor to use by having sampled a large number of fish from an area and comparing actual weights to the "K" charts. This is why I cringe when I see someone like "In Fisherman" tries to look smart and generalize scientific processes and apply them to large geographic areas. They end up misleading people.

Here's a catfish chart from Missouri that is pretty accurate for our area. They are geographically about the same as Ohio. Even then there are regional differences.



https://mdc.mo.gov/fishing/species/catfish/catfish-weight-chart



The Missouri chart shows a 6 pound difference on a 47 inch flathead. This is why biologist seldom use charts over actual sample weights.

Sorry for the rant. As an old fishery guy we dealt with a lot of public crap because some TV guy spouted off how smart he was.

To get back to the original point and context, by the Mo. chart and using 38 inches the kid's scale was pretty good. I still think the fish is heavier then that. Most of the ones from Ohio lakes I have seen will weigh close to a pound an inch once you get over 36-40 inches. The Mo. chart looks right for stream fish, to me. The only way to know is with a good scale.

He still has a bragging fish at the end of the day.


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## Saugeye Tom (Oct 6, 2010)

Close enough for a 50 pounder for me


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## bwhntr4168 (May 18, 2005)

Absolutely Beautiful ❤


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