Catfish

I'm a long time salt-water fisher woman. I grew up in the NYC area and spent alot of time fishing Long Island and Northern New Jersey shore waters. I've caught hundreds of flounder, fluke (summer flounder), bluefish, ling cod and other salt water fish. But, I had never been fresh water fishing before in my life until Dodger and I thought it was time to try it.

We decided to start with the stocked lakes at the county parks nearby. They've just finished stocking trout and have started catfish. Figured we could get the feel of it that way and not be too discouraged! Dodger caught a nice sized trout the very first time out, which really served to whet both our appetites. We've tried all kinds of baits and lures. There's so much to choose from! We've pretty much settled on Berkley Power Bait, though. It seems to be what they're going after, at least around here. So... for those of you who are familiar with fresh water fishing, I have questions. Like...

DO CATFISH EVER DIE?

Yikes! We caught some of them last week. Now, what I've always done is just toss whatever I've caught into the cooler. By the time I get home, it's died a natural death and I can fillet it up with a clear conscience. Well, these guys simply refused to die! In fact, after we thought they were dead they revived and were breathing away! (Yes, catfish "breathe." It is a truly disturbing sight to behold!) We froze 'em. When they thawed, they started breathing again! We left them out of water for four hours. They were dead, I'm tellin' you. Their fishy-lips had turned blue! They were DEAD! Getting ready to start filleting, I rinsed them in cold water... they started breathing again... in unison!! I was ready to name the darn things and keep them as pets!

Finally our neighbor and Dodger's good friend came over and literally skinned the things alive! The thing is, even after she cut their heads off, they kept on breathing!

I had nightmares!! There's got to be a better way! What do you do, shoot 'em?

Next question... how long can bass hold their breath, and do I need a baseball bat to do the deed?

We're going to try bass at the "real" lake later on this week. I know that bass fishing is an art form in itself, so any advice at all will be appreciated!

Bass Fishin'!

Okay, so yesterday we get up early and drive up into the mountains to the "big lake." We are going to catch some bass! We've got brandy new rigs: spinnerbaits, poppers, wiggly plas-tek make-believe creatures (I would have loved this stuff when I was a kid! Eeewwww!!) in every color and configuration. We are READY! We are bass fishing!

We are catching trout by default.

The nerve of them!

Can't they tell the difference between a trout set-up and a bass set-up? Stupid fish! They just jump on the hook for the ride! There's no challenge! Where are the bass?

They're probably just beyond that rocky ledge where the lake-bottom drops off there. You know the place... that spot where we lost an expensive rig with each and every cast. I know they're there. I can see them... their little fishy hands cleverly untying each carefully tied spinnerbait and watching gleefully as our fancy-schmancy rigs drift to the bottom of the lake.

Son-of-a-fish!

Did you know that the chance of losing a rig rises exponentially with the retail price of said rig? Uh-huh. I kid you not. It's a mathematical reality!

So... we are bass fishing. Unfortunately, the bass aren't aware of that fact. I'm poking around in our supplies looking for something to munch to pass the time when I catch a quick movement from Dodger out of the corner of my eye. I turn around, thinking she's got another trout on the line, but she's not even holding her pole. She's peering out at the water, pointing and muttering something.

"Fake." I hear her say. Okay... she must be talking about the wiggly plas-tek creatures. Maybe one of the lost rigs has surfaced?

"Fake!" She says again. There's more to her sentence, but the wind has picked up and all I can hear is... "Snake!" Hee, hee. I could swear she said snake...

Snake?! What?! Where?! HELP!!! I follow Dodger's gesture out onto the water and sure enough, there's a snake swimming toward shore!

Now, this is one of the things I will NEVER understand. This is no dinky little pond. This is a huge lake. Why is it that with all this shoreline available to it this snake has to choose this particular spot to come ashore? Oh! Of course! I had forgotten Murphy's Law of Snakes which states very clearly that all snakes will be irresistibly attracted to the person who fears them most!! Wanna see how fast I can grab my gear and make it to the safety of the truck?

Okay... so sometimes it's my turn to be the sissy-la la! I mean, there's Dodger, totally engrossed, fascinated by the thing as it slithers very slowly into the cover at the edge of the woods. She is the ultimate animal lover and is thoroughly enjoying this. I, on the other hand, am thinking about my naked heiny that was sticking out just moments before as I peed under the very same cover at the edge of the woods. There is a snake where my naked butt just was.

This is not making me happy.