Girlfriends First Monster Catfish

In July 2013, the girlfriend (Jonous) and I took a trip over to Ohio to fish with Kip. We spent some time on the Muskingum the first night, and Jonous picked up her first ever flathead. 

The next night was on the Ohio, where I caught a small flathead about 8#. Then we caught some channel cats. We moved up into the Muskingum late at night, where I caught several more channel cats while Kip and Jonous slept. Around first light we headed back out onto the Ohio in some really cold conditions. Not long after getting set up we had a light bounce on one of the rods, then it bent double nice and slow. It was Jonous's turn, since I caught all those channels. She had a hard time removing the rod from the holder, but finally managed to get it out, and the fight was on. The fish was pulling drag, something she didn't realize as she was reeling as fast as she could. I reached over and tightened the drag a few clicks, and then left her to it. The fish stayed on bottom until it reached the boat. Kip kept saying "that's a big fish!" Upon reaching the boat, it tried to go under the boat and was headed for a snag. Jonous redirected the fish, at which point it headed for the motor. Jonous redirected the fish again, and brought it to the surface. I said "that fish is over 40#, and Kip said 42#. Kip slid the net under the pig, and we hoisted it in the boat. His scale registered 36#, and mine was bouncing between 35-39#. So we called it 36. This was the most awesome take down I have ever seen, and Kip agreed. Also the best fight I've seen in person. 

Here is the best shot of Jonous's new personal best flathead.

 That was it for that day. Next we made the trip back to Kip's house. Jonous and I went back to the hotel for about 2 hours sleep, before Kip called saying it was time to head out to fish with Robby Robinson(Katfish) So we headed off to Senaca for an evening with Robby. He had cooked some burgers on the grill, so we grabbed a bite before heading out. We didn't get any fish, but Robby had us on one of his big fish spots, looking for a trophy. The next morning we headed back to the hotel, for some much needed rest. This trip was the most fun I have ever had fishing. Way too many laughs to count. We're looking forward to fishing with Kip again anytime we get the chance. Big thanks to Kip and Robby for all the laughs and good times. 

Jonous and I at Senaca.

Here are a few more of my favorite pics from the trip.