Tag: Catch And Release

Noodling: Cooking Pasta or Catching Catfish?

Noodling conjures up images of standing over a vat of boiling water, cooking some kind of Italian pasta to perfection. This may be one definition of the term, but in reference to one of the oddest fishing styles known, it refers to the art of fishing for catfish using only bare hands and a big stick for prodding purposes. That is correct; using only your bare hands to feel your way along the mud-caked bottom of a river in search of a catfish is called noodling. Better still, these catfish can weigh an awful lot.

Noodling, also referred to as grabbling, is legal only in certain states and was practiced by Native Americans long before the settlement of Europeans. To experience noodling you must plan a trip south to Arkansas, North Carolina or Mississippi. During the Depression, it was rumored grabbling became popular as a rapid and inexpensive manner of providing food for the family. Today, grabbling as a means of fishing for flathead, channel and blue catfish is mainly for entertainment, as most grabblers practice catch-and-release.

From late May to July, when the days lengthen and water temperatures become warmer, catfish seek out shallow water to lay their eggs. Sheltered secluded locations are preferred such as boat ramps, holes in rocks and sandbanks. Once the female catfish lays her eggs, she departs the nest, leaving the male catfish to guard the eggs and keep them aerated. The male will not leave the nest until the baby catfish are ready to leave as well. Catfish are very aggressive during spawning season. For this reason, care must be taken to avoid becoming victim to that aggression when noodling.

Locate bedding catfish by running your bare hands along the river bottom in search of an opening. For a bottom-feeding fish, the catfish is rather clean and delicate. Openings are easy to find because the catfish will continue to clear its home and area. Some experienced grabblers plan their trips during the winter when water levels are low, where it is possible to see potential hideaways that will soon be submerged. They then return to these locations during spawning season.

An angry growling sound, described by some as a thump, lets you know you have located your prey. Submerging yourself is required for a good portion of the grabbling expedition; clearly, the longer you are able to hold your breath, the easier it is to grabble. Once a spawning location has been identified, use a big stick to guide the catfish out of the nest to within arms reach.

Now knowing where your prey is, place your hand with outstretched fingers into the hole. The catfish will quickly become angered at your intrusion and will strike out, either hitting your hand or grabbing your hand while biting it with its mouth. He may clamp on to your hand and attempt to pull you into the hole, hence the need for additional assistance when attempting grabbling.

Clearly, noodling is not an experience everyone will enjoy, least of all those who are faint at heart, and injury is always a possibility. For some, the pasta-cooking scenario may be much more preferable. But for a hands-on fishing experience that anyone from the young to the elderly can delight in, there is nothing quite comparable.

Catch and Release Fishing

Fishing is a sport, but it has become less about survival and more about fun in recent decades. There is an issue of fish becoming depleted and many anglers are now employing the practice of catch and release fishing. Catch and release fishing is a great theory, but many people are doing it incorrectly and as a result many fish are dying. A few steps should be followed when trying to catch and release a fish. Once you get the hang of how to do it correctly, you will be able to enjoy your hobby and keep the population of fish full in your favorite stream or lake.

The best place to start is with the hooks. A fish that has a hole through its mouth is going to be more likely to survive than a fish with a hole in its lung or gill. If you happen to hook a fish in the gut, the best thing to do is to cut off the hook as much as you can then release the fish. Many times the hook will dissolve and the fish will spit it out, but they can also live with a rusted hook hanging from them. Whatever you do, do not tug on your line to pull a hook out or you will severely hurt the fish.

Fish are obviously unable to survive outside of the water. Therefore, the longer that it takes you to release them, the more it becomes as if you are suffocating them. The way that a fish is gripped when out of the water will make a big difference. For instance, avoid touch a fishs body with your bare hands. The fish have a slimy protective coat that will be stripped if you touch them with your hands. If you have to touch a fish, make sure that your hands are wet.

Part of the fun in fishing is to play out the fish. The struggle can be what some anglers wait all day to do. Fish are like humans; when they work out, they build up lactic acid. When you are fighting a fish, they are fighting too. Just like when someone works his or her body out and it feels sore, a fish experiences the same thing. The build up of lactic acid can be toxic to a fish even days later. Therefore, if you are going to practice catch and release, try to keep the struggle to a minimum.

Try not to let a fish flop around when you catch them. A fish that flops around can bruise or damage its internal organs, causing them to die later from the injuries that are incurred. You can also revive a fish if you need to do so. A fish is likely to run out of oxygen and pass out, so to speak.

In order to revive a fish, you place the fish in the water with their belly down and gently grasp their tail. Start to slowly move their tail back and forth until they give you the signal that they are ready to take off into the water. Sometimes you will need to repeat the process more than once, but dont let a fish go until they are ready. A fish that is not ready to swim could get carried away and swept into rocks or embankment and cause serious injury.