The Battle - Part 2

The Battle, Part 2

Fishermen are known for their fish stories. Every angler out there has several. Most of stories get more fabricated as the years go by, but hey, we all do it. My story is a true fish tail but the one good thing about this tail is that I have proof about the one that “eventually” got away.
I went down to Cedar Lake to fish a little fish off with a buddy of mine named Charlie. The hours were from six to ten in the evening. It was just a fun tournament that a couple of guys threw together more for just bragging rights than anything else. Charlie and I started fishing points with worms and having little success. I decided to go back toward the Presley Lake spillway to see if we could catch some little fish for our unders. It is a slot limit so we have to have two fish under fourteen inches and that is a great place to catch them. We pulled up to the spillway and sure enough there was water running and the small bass were everywhere. We were catching several small bass and having a good time when I noticed this huge catfish kind of pourpising out of the water feeding on shad and whatever else he could inhale. He did it several times right in front of us. I picked up my crankbait rod and cast it over to where the fish was feeding. I did not think he would actually hit my Series Six but he did. I looked at Charlie with a puzzled look on my face and then set the hook. The fish never fought hard for whatever reason but it was like pulling in a cinder block. I could hardly move him. Now keep in mind I had ten pound Vicious Ultimate line on my Ardent crankbait reel. Hardly the right tackle for what I had hooked. My crankbait rod doubled over like a noodle as I dragged the giant in. I got him to the boat and Charlie immediately said no way to grabbing him. The flathead was much bigger than I thought so I gave Charlie my rod and put BOTH my hands in his mouth. When I did he clamped down on them drawing blood. It was all I could do to lift him in the boat. He was massive!! I had never seen a catfish so big before. Charlie and I started screaming like little girls in shear excitement. I lifted him back up and he took several pictures. I laid him back down in the bottom of the boat and thought, now what? I called some buddies of mine to see if they had a cooler big enough for the giant to fit in. We ran down the lake and found them. They too were shocked. I asked how big. The both said fifty, maybe sixty pounds. However big he really was, he was a true beast. We took a few more pictures and decided to tie him up on a log near the bank with a ski rope. I made sure the knot was good and had enough line so that he could swim around until it was time to weigh in. I just had to show all of the guys. So I did and then went back out fishing. Not caring about the rest of the night, Charlie and I decided to go in early and get the catfish. We pulled up to the bank and I saw the rope. But once we got right up to it, I saw that it was cut! Someone had stolen my fish! There was no way the fish broke that rope. I even inspected it and you could clearly see that it was cut. He was gone but I had proof that I had caught him. That was all that mattered. So that is my fish story. The one that eventually got away.