Fish Storage - Catfish

I am wondering how everyone is storing the catfish they catch while out on the water. I have tried keeping mine in a basket that is tied to the side of the kayak and dropped in the water, but that creates a lot of drag when paddling to the next spot. Plus the bigger catfish don't exactly fit in there that easy. I have thought about putting the catfish on a stringer that is then tied off the the kayak, but I think that would have just as much drag as the basket and might be difficult to untie the stringer and then put the catfish on it and then tie the stringer back on the kayak. Just wondering how others might handle this or any tricks/tips. Also, do you "de-barb" the catfish when storing them so they don't cause injury to you or other catfish?

Thanks for the help and tight lines.

Cut the fins off and chunk em in a cooler that's in the tank well.

Small igloo marine ice chest. I don’t keep anything that is too big to fit in it.

Hanging them over the side will also attract snakes. I caught one trying to munch my LMB I had on the side once.

Yes, I am the devil. I sometimes keep smaller bass lol. But yeah a cooler is good idea or just deal with the drag I guess.

I only like keeping the smaller eater size so they mostly fit in my cooler. I've never worried about barbs.

Thanks for all the tips. Keep them coming.

Sounds like a cooler in the kayak is the way to go. I have seen the fish bags, but I think the barbs would just tear those up.

Also, what size coolers are you guys using on your Kayaks for fish storage? I have a Pelican Catch 100.

The igloo 25 quart. I also mounted two rod holders on it

Not long ago I saw an ice chest with a long funnel built into the lid. It looked like the end of a leaf blower. With the cooler loaded in the rear storage area of your yak the funnel came forward under your armpit. You put the fish in the opening and it slid back and into the cooler. Solved the problem of turning around in your seat and opening the lid. I can't find that anywhere on the web now. Might just build it myself if I can't find it. Will let you all know.

I've wondered why nobody has come up with something like that?
What I do is use a cable type stringer with the plastic coating. It doesn't twist especially with catfish because it has a swivel and float on one end. I use one of those zig zag cleats to attach the stringer and have a hook on the tag end that you feed through the gills or punch through the lower jaw.
Before I paddle back to the launch I put into an ice chest or if it's cool I just lay them in the floor of the kayak, but that's a little messy with the slime.
I have also used a heavy duty leaf trash bag to place them in as well and it works.