Angler Report: Upper Lake Mary

Carson P.:  With the help from my new friend Conner, we caught and released a 24.7 pound, 35.5 inch channel catfish July 27!

One of my good friends knew a local kid named Connor Euing who wanted to go fishing but didn’t have anyone to take him so we took him to  upper Lake Mary. The main objective of the evening was to catch crawfish but I brought two big rods to cast out for catfish while we waited on our traps. I took them near the spot I had caught my last big catfish and I threw out the lines with some new bait and scent I was experimenting with. I joked to Connor that I hadn’t caught a big catfish in quite awhile but if something would happen to take the bait it would be a monster and he would have to help me bring it in.

After setting out the crawdad traps and setting up the rods, about 25 mins had past when I heard the drag running on my bait runner and as soon as I set the hook I saw a giant fish surface about 100 yards out and I knew it was a big fish. I called Connor over handed him the rod, instructing him how to reel in and let him have a battle that he will never forget. The fish made several hard runs and after about 15 mins, Connor was able to bring him close enough for me to land the fish. This was one of the most memorable catches I have ever had, mainly because I was able to make Connor’s day and he was able to bring in and release the biggest fish he had ever seen.