Latest catch (on bare hook)

Yesterday - just a 1.5 lb Channel catfish - on small bream / yoyo - let it go

Last night before bed - one harmless water snake - was already drown / dead by time I found it on yoyo / small bream

This AM - a 2 lb plus channel catfish (didn't weight it cause I took it to crappie fishermen under the bridge - they were not catching any decent size crappie so I gave one of them the catfish

This last fish is only reason I'm updating blog (usually don't report ever catch if I let it go - snakes - etc. but the fish I gave away was taken on a bare hook on a tied / floating noodle on my fishing pier

I tried a new set up - with two hooks on the drop line - one at top was 4/O J hook and one at bottom was 3/O treble hook. I had a 2-3" shad on the top hook and had planned to put magic bait (stink up the area) on the bottom hook - but was running low so I did not bait the bottom hook.

Well you guessed it the catfish had the un-baited treble hook in his mouth (his tail had got snagged with the other hook that had the shad) - my best guess is that the catfish stole the shad then turned and bit the bare hook cause the bare hook was in his mouth and he was hooked solid i.e. he was NOT snagged on the bare hook it was completely in his mouth

This is not first time I've got a catfish on a bare hook - happened before on trotline (even happened a couple times in daylight - hook may have been shiny - but this is first time it happened on noodle.

So the lucky crappie fisherman has catfish for lunch today. BTW: the two guys down there were two of 4 guys that use to fish under the bridge every morning in the spring and fall. They usually start catching them in mid Sept -until Dec - so it wasn't surprising that the big ones haven't started biting down there yet - just little ones.