View Article - Arkansas Game and Fish Commission

Delta
Blues
Mississippi River Home to Arkansas’s Heavyweights
By Randy Zellers
Mighty Mississippi is synonymous with the blues, and
no city in Arkansas embodies that heritage more than
Helena-West Helena. Each Columbus Day weekend, this
small town’s population explodes as tens of thousands of
people from around the world visit for the King Biscuit
Blues Festival.
But the biggest blues in town can’t be found onstage;
they live just beyond the levee in the river made famous
by artists Big Bill Broonzy, Willie Brown and Muddy
Waters. The water teems with blue catfish, many reaching
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weights that make largemouth bass look downright dainty.
“I’ve been catfishing the (Mississippi) River for about
15 years and guiding seasonally for the last four,” said
Brad Stout of Action Outdoors Fishing Trips in Rosie,
Ark. “There aren’t many experiences you can have that
are as good as when one of these big cats puts a bend in
your rod.”
Mississippi River guide Brad Stout landed this 116-pound blue catfish
near Helena-West Helena in 2008. Photo courtesy of Brad Stout.
Bait a Hook
Most bank anglers looking for catfish use bait that would
turn a skunk’s nose, but Stout says that’s far from the truth
when angling for big catfish.
“Channel cats and some smaller blue catfish may take
something sour, but I’ve never heard of one of these big blues
being caught on stinky bait,” Stout said.
Stout’s bait of choice is shad or skipjack, and he’s been
known to spend an entire day catching bait before a
catfishing trip.
“We’ll throw cast nets and drag crappie jigs to catch shad
and skipjack,” Stout said. “We concentrate on areas just below
dams and where muddy and clear water meet. It can be a lot
of work, but you need the right bait if you’re after the big
fish.”
Keeping bait fresh is a priority if you’re after a big blue.
Stout doesn’t worry about keeping them alive, but he does put
the bait on ice or freeze it for future trips.
“Fresh bait stays on the hook better and attracts better fish,”
Stout said. “I have a cutting board on the side of the boat like
you see on deep-sea fishing rigs to cut bait right before we put
it in the water.”
Heavy Gear
Fishing the Mississippi isn’t for fairy wands or fragile line.
Every aspect of Stout’s setup screams Big Fish.
“For fishing while I’m anchored, I use extra-heavy rods and
reels made for deep-sea fishing,” Stout said. “For drifting with
the current, I’ll downsize to a heavy-action rod like most bass
anglers use for flipping.”
Those rigs are equipped with at least 80-pound-test braided
line, holding hooks as large as 10/0 (the same size many
offshore tuna anglers use).
“Bait up that hook with a large
steak of shad or skipjack,” Stout
said. “I can get about three good
steaks from an average skipjack,
and I’ll run a second hook from
the line to the bottom of the steak
to make sure I get a good hook-up
on the hit.”
something that catfish can use to break the current and sit.
The current brings the food to them as long as they can stay
put without spending much energy.”
Current also means adding a lot of weight to line to keep it
near bottom.
“When we anchor, we try to keep the bait in one place,”
Stout said. “It’s pretty common to use weights up to 1 pound,
and I’ve added as many as three of them to my line when the
water’s swift.”
Anchor Down
Anchoring in the river’s swift current can be very dangerous
if it isn’t done correctly. Stout suggests anglers use anchors
that will get a firm bite, but will pull free easily. Keep a knife
handy near the bow of the boat to cut the line if there’s an
emergency.
“I know guys that have sunk their boat anchoring,” Stout
said. “You always want to keep the bow of the boat pointed
upstream and pay attention to the current.”
Position the boat upriver from concentrated fish along a
drop-off or current break and cast out the line.
“The current will pull the bait with it, so try to cast upriver
of your actual target so the bait settles in the right spot,”
Stout said.
It’s a waiting game. Stout often sets out multiple rods to
increase his chances and keep himself busy while waiting for
a bite. Reels equipped with a bait-clicker let him hear if a fish
is taking the bait and pulling line.
“The hit can be just a few good taps at first,” Stout said.
“But when they start taking line steadily you need to get over
Brad Stout uses good depth finders and GPS units to find fish and stay
on top of them. Photo by Mike Wintroath.
Scouting Swift Water
Big catfish are deep-water
dwellers, often in or near river
channels that reach 60 feet or more.
But there’s more to the puzzle than
finding a deep hole. Stout says
riprap walls along the channel and
wingdams with revetments are
prime areas to start scouting.
“We cruise ledges and drop-offs
while watching our electronics,”
Stout said. “You’re looking for
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to that rod and set the hook hard and fast.”
Sometimes a hooked catfish won’t be moved. The angler is
fighting the fish and the current. That’s when the predator
has to go to the prey. Stout suggests anglers tie a buoy to the
end of the anchor line and detach the boat. After the fish is
landed, go upriver to the waiting buoy and hook up to the
anchor line.
Catch the Drift
Staying in one spot can be productive, but Stout’s favorite
method to find big blues is to drift with the current.
“Find a good stretch of river with a ledge or deep holes
along it and back down the river slowly while bumping your
bait along bottom,” Stout said. “You need a good trolling
motor to fight the current and keep your drift under control.”
For drift fishing, anglers should opt for 6- to 8-ounce
weights at the bottom of the line.
“If the current is swift, or if you’re having a hard time
feeling the bottom, go ahead and increase the weight,” Stout
said. “But lifting and dropping heavy weight all day can wear
you out.”
Feeling the bite requires more attention than it does when
the boat is anchored.
“A lot of times, it will feel as though you just stuck your
bait in a bucket of mud,” Stout said. “Sometimes you’ll get a
nice little thump, and every now and then, they’ll just grab
the line and take off.”
Stout advises anglers to reel as quickly as possible when
they can, before the fish starts to put up a fight.
“You’re traveling toward them in the current, and they
may be coming toward you,” Stout said. “You’ve got to take
up line as quickly as possible because they’re going to start
pulling like you just hooked a small bulldozer.”
Stout says some of the fish can be pretty tricky when it
comes to a fight.
“A lot of times, you’ll have one that just drags at the end of
the line until they’re almost in the boat,” Stout said. “Then
they bust out a power run and catch you off guard. If you’re
not careful, they’ll pull the rod right out of your hands.”
Let ’em Live
Stout urges everyone trying to catch big cats to keep
pictures and memories from their trips.
“We release any fish over 15 pounds or so,” Stout said. “It
takes years for these cats to get to trophy size, and if everyone
kept them, they may start to fade away. Once they’re that
big, they’re not as good to eat or easy to clean, either.” AW
TOP: Brad Stout uses heavy-action rods and reels designed for saltwater
fishing, and 80-pound-test braided line.
MIDDLE: Stink bait is fine for channel catfish, but big blues prefer
fresh-cut shad and skipjack.
BOTTOM: Big blues can trick anglers into thinking they’re done fighting
right before they take off again. Photos by Mike Wintroath.
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Something Lurks Beneath
Aug. 23, 2008, started like many of my catfishing trips. A couple of
fishing buddies, Joey Holman and Brian Barber from Newark, made the
trip to Helena with me to fish the Mississippi River. We caught three
decent fish anchored at one spot and decided to set up a drift on a section
of river that reached 60 feet deep.
The first drift yielded a good 20-pound blue cat and a few 8-pounders.
I baited a fresh 1-inch cut of skipjack and lowered it for our second pass.
The sinker bounced on bottom maybe three times before something
grabbed hold.
I said my standard, “There he is,” as I set the hook, and for the first 30
seconds or so, the fight was pretty typical. It felt like maybe a 40-pounder.
That’s when the fish realized it was hooked.
The reel’s drag sang out as line peeled from the reel. When my boat
started to move around like a bobber in the current, we all realized this
fish was the kind you dream about.
Each time I thought I was getting line back, another 100 feet zipped off
the reel. All I could do was hold on with white knuckles.
Ten to 15 drag-screaming runs later (I lost count in the chaos), the big cat
finally surfaced. I’ve caught a lot of big fish from the Mississippi, but when
this beast appeared in the muddy water, it sent a chill down my spine.
Joey and Brian grabbed our big dip net, and practically had to fold the
fish in half to make it fit. It took them three tries to drag it into the boat.
Joey and I put the fish on a scale and lifted it up from the deck of the
boat while Brian stood below, reading the scale. It took a few tries to lift
the monster off the deck.
The scale bounced between 115 and 120, and Brian conservatively
called it at 116, but we never could get the big cat fully suspended.
We quickly took some pictures of the cat, constantly splashing water
on it to keep it healthy. Once our photography session was over, we slid
it back into the river. It hung there for a second, then slowly faded out of
sight with only its feelings hurt.
I didn’t think the fish would make the world record (now set at 143
pounds), but never thought about Arkansas’s state record, which I later
learned was 116 pounds, 12 ounces.
Maybe we’ll meet again when it’s ready to claim the title.
– Brad Stout.
Just lifting a Mississippi River blue catfish can be a chore. Photo by Mike Wintroath.
More Than Words
Angling action for these
Mississippi River blue catfish is more
than words can describe. Arkansas
Game and Fish Commission Public
Affairs Coordinator Steve “Wild
Man” Wilson and AGFC Field
Editor Trey Reid captured the experience on the AGFC’s weekly
television show, “Talkin’ Outdoors.”
The show airs Saturdays at 9 a.m. on KNWA in northwestern
Arkansas, and Sundays in Little Rock at 9 a.m. on KARZ and 11 p.m.
on KARK. Episodes, including three about these catfish, are available
at www.agfc.com/talkinoutdoors.
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