Been sitting here in the early morning quiet thinking about... fishing. Not just fishing but catfishing of course. I am thinking about how I got to be here at the point I am in this obsession of chasing big blue cats.

I started out riding my bike to the old rock bridge just outside of the little town I grew up in. We would put a worm under a bobber and catch yellow bullheads. My dad would take us to a paylake and we would catch a basket full of bullheads and go home and have a fish fry. I loved eating the crispy tails off those things. Later a friend of mine from work took me to go jug fishing for flatheads. What a blast, I took my son a few times and we really had fun. But when I came to Texas and got exposed to this blue cat thing I was hooked. I started watching every YouTube video there was about catfishing. I read everything I could find on the internet about catfishing. I talked to anyone who would listen about catfishing. I went catfishing with guides and I didn't just sit in the boat and reel them in, I asked question after question, I listened and learned. I bought a boat and started out floating around like an idiot. Then slowly began to figure it out. The seasons, the patterns, what they like when they like it. It takes time, but time well spent. As I grew as an angler I began to take my family, my kids and grandkids with me. I began to share what I had learned. I made a point of sharing my catches and the details of them. How deep, what bait, weather so others could use that to have success themselves.

Then at some point, I started getting asked questions. Guys saw my successes and thought I must know what I'm doing I guess. Mind you I still have days where I float around like an idiot but maybe they are fewer than they were a couple years ago. I have only been chasing these big blue cats for about 6 years. I know a lot of guys have been doing it their whole life. I think those guys are lucky. I am blessed to be a technical person. I can read and watch and learn. I am also blessed to be a good teacher. I have always had a way of explaining things to people that makes it easy for them to understand. I love being able to share this sport, this passion and see it have the same affect on people that it does on me.

But... what does it all mean? It means I get the chance to enjoy the sunrise with my grandson. It means I get to sit in my boat with my daughter with no distractions, except the fish and just talk. It means I get to make new friends. It means I get to make memories with friends old and new alike. It means I get to enjoy God's creation in a very special way. Blue Cat Bob and I always marvel at the fact we can be on the water on Lavon right in the middle of the metroplex with the city buzzing around us and be a thousand miles away from it all.

But what does it all really mean? It means in this world where everything seems to be trying to drive us apart, in this thing we love to do we have something that brings us closer together. That's what it means to me.

GB & TL...

^ I love that, Tim.

The greatest gift of all is having an attitude of gratitude, being truly thankful for all the blessings from God that we can all get out and enjoy in everything that He created.

The water, the birds, the fish, and everything our creator made.

Wow, very well spoken guys. I'm starting to realize that the very thing that I strive for (giant blue cats) is actually one of the lesser rewards! I think for me, it's the conversations and fellowship we share when we are on the water that is probably the most valuable to me. Tim, I bet in the end we would all trade every single one of our catches for one more day on the water with a loved one, whether that be a daughter, grandson, wife, friend, etc. It's the time that means the most!

Excellent post!

Amen to that.

I have been blessed to have made many new friends thanks to the Texas Fishing Forum that I now get to share our passion for fishing with.

My buddy Donny, aka Gophish.



My giant buddy Catfish Tim.



My Catfishing n00bie partner in crime, Geno, aka skeetmaster



I have also been blessed to have met a bunch of y'all at El Gato's cat'n get together.

Ken Aka KEGracing



David aka z289sec





Aint that the truth. My Dad died pretty young back in the UK, and he used to fish for whoppers. This is him with a big barbel caught on the rIver Thames west of London. He only fished for big fish, and when he caught one he was on cloud nine.



Yup, I would give anything for a day with him fishing for big cats on my boat...

Very nice post , thanks for stirring up memories...
I have fished and had a fever for fishing for as long as I can remember , as a kid when I was left to my own devices I would find a creek or pond with my bike and fish for perch ,I had a cousin who felt sorry for me and took me a few times for bass and catfish when he saw I couldn't get enough of chasing fins. I had an uncle who chased and caught very big flatheads on the rivers of west Texas but I was really too young for him to take me on any of those trips. I was lucky enough to have another uncle who really didn't know much about fishing ( he grew up catching crabs in New York ) but he really sacrificed his time and took this kid fishing as many times as I asked him to .
He has alzheimers now and is really going down hill very fast and I would give anything to be able to spend some more time on the water with him and show him a good time like the times he took me when I was a "hard to deal with youngster"
That is the biggest reason I fish with my kids or their friends nearly exclusively , I just want to pay it forward as time on the water learning from my mentor was some of the favorite memories of my childhood.

Tim, I didn't mean for this story to sound so emotional but there it is with all these emotions... WOW , I appreciate the memories again sir - good stuff right there

Good stuff guys!

Totally Agree!

[quote=skeetmaster]Wow, very well spoken guys. I'm starting to realize that the very thing that I strive for (giant blue cats) is actually one of the lesser rewards! I think for me, it's the conversations and fellowship we share when we are on the water that is probably the most valuable to me. Tim, I bet in the end we would all trade every single one of our catches for one more day on the water with a loved one, whether that be a daughter, grandson, wife, friend, etc. It's the time that means the most![/quote]

Geno, you said it all right there! Two weeks ago, I lost my fishing buddy of over 30 years. For 30 plus years, if one of us was fishing or golfing, the other was there also.
I think of him every day. I feel lost when planning a fishing trip.
The catching is great, but the communion of two like souls enjoying the wonders of our creator is what bonds us.
God speed Charlie. Fair winds, tight lines, straight drives and all one putts.

Gophish, sorry for your loss brother. I know how much I cherish the time I get to spend with my brothers and good friends from back home when they come down. I will miss that when I can't do it anymore. And I would give anything to take my dad fishing one more time...

So sorry for your loss, Donny.

I hope he got to get on your new boat at least once before he passed.

None of us get off this round ball alive.

Carpe Diem.

Thank you guys. It really is about the time we spend together.

Donny, I had no idea you were a golf guy! Man I hope we can go swing the sticks together sometime. I don't get to play as much as I used to. Three of my golf buddies moved to the east coast at the same time together about 4 years ago and since then I kind of traded course time for lake time. Actually, it's been a pretty good trade! I'll hit you up on the mobile and we'll see if we can make it happen.

Bob, I'm really liking this British slang LOL!

I gave up golf. I sucked at it anyway but after back surgery I thought I would be better off not twisting myself up. Besides as I tell my daughter, If I have enough time to play golf, I'm going fishing...

Geno, I haven't played for about two years. At 73, I am beginning to have shoulder problems. If I play, I pay for it for several days afterwards. When my grandson visits, he likes to go to Top Golf. I usually hit about 20 to 30 balls and then just relax and watch him. I do miss playing. At one time we had a five-some with a standing tee time every Sunday.