A new state record Blue Catfish has been certified by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio State Record Fish Committee.

An Ohio state record Blue Catfish, weighing 96 pounds is only the second blue catfish to fulfill a new state record category established in 2008.

Chris Rolph, of Williamsburg, was fishing for catfish from a boat on the Ohio River near Cincinnati in the early morning hours of Thursday, June 11, when he hooked and landed a 54.5inch blue catfish with a 36-inch girth weighing 96 pounds.

Upon landing the fish after a 30-minute battle, his fishing partner that night, Jon Owens of Amelia, knew they had just boated a new state record catfish and the pair immediately headed back to Schmidt Field ramp from where they had launched.

Later, that morning Rolph, who kept the fish alive in a large aerated stock tank, had the fish weighed on certified scales at Bethel Feed & Supply.



Catch & release

Rolph’s record blue catfish was caught using cut skip jack for bait at approximately 12:45 a.m. Together, the fishermen caught five small catfish before hooking the state record. Rolph wanted to release the fish unharmed therefore special arrangements were made to have the fish examined and photographed that morning by the chairman of the OWO State Record Fish Committee. Afterward, the record blue catfish was safely released into a large farm pond.



Old record

Rolph’s blue catfish replaces the previous record held by Keith Setty from Lynchburg, who caught a 57-pound, 3.2-ounce blue catfish from the tailwaters of Meldahl Dam on the Ohio River.

Joint studies conducted by the Ohio Division of Wildlife and Kentucky Fish & Wildlife found blue catfish populations in the lower Ohio River were substantial enough to warrant down listing the species from “endangered” to species of special concern. Down listing the blue catfish opened up sport fishing opportunities for anglers on the Ohio River, resulting in the fish being added to the state record fish list by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio in 2008.



Plentiful in the Ohio River

Ohio Division of Wildlife fisheries biologist Doug Maloney, at Wildlife District Five, identified Rolph’s catch as a blue catfish. Blue catfish is the largest growing catfish in the Ohio River often weighing in excess of 100 pounds. The Kentucky state record blue catfish is 104 pounds and was also caught from the Ohio River.



Record keepers

Ohio state record fish are certified by the Outdoor Writers of Ohio State Record Fish Committee. Assisting in the process is fisheries biologist with the Ohio Division of Wildlife. For more information on Ohio’s state record fish program go to www.outdoorwritersofohio.org.



Megan’s Day

Megan Moore and her hunting partner Tim Gildersleeve were at it again, this time for turkey. Megan and Tim got up around 5 a.m. and were in the woods just before 6.

There were several turkeys roosted in the area they set up at, yelping and gobbling all around them. Megan felt confident it was going to be a good day.

She had even commented to Tim driving over to their spot that this was going to be the day, “I will get my turkey, today!” Megan was set up at the base of a nice tree and Tim was about 5 feet away doing the calling. Megan doesn’t feel experienced enough yet to utilize the calls.





Seein’ ain’t getting’

The weather was perfect! A little chilly in the morning but it got warmer out as the morning progressed. They saw 4 nice toms out in the field and were hoping that they would come to their decoys. As Tim kept calling, Megan just sat there, as quiet and lifeless as she could. Nonetheless, as the hour went on the toms stopped responding to their calls and walked away to the other side of the field.



Shakin’ off the chill

After a while, they stood up slowly and hid behind a tree in order to stretch and shake off the morning chill. Tim signaled Megan to follow him and they started sneaking through the woods.

Tim kept calling as they walked when finally they heard a lonesome gobble, not too far away, either.

Megan was wound up by this point! They stood there for just a minute trying to listen and key in on the big boys position.



The ambush

Suddenly, Tim pointed to where he wanted Megan to set up. It was up on a small rise, they had to lie down to be undetected. By this time Megan was ready, ready for the monarch to come bustin’ through the woods. Again, Tim was just a few feet away from her, workin’ the bad boy with some sweet talking turkey calls. The more he called, the more he gobbled back and he was pounding it to say the least.



Hey, bird, move it!

Finally, Megan saw him; he was in full strut about 10-12 feet away from her. Excitedly, she held her breath.

He was right on the edge of the woods and only had to walk a few more steps. Megan thought to herself, just a little further and hammer time.

Then he stopped, Megan was still holding her breath and trying not to yell, “Hey bird, keep moving, I only need one or two more steps and yer mine!”

Tim yelped one more time with the mouth call and that was all she needed. The burley old bird moved a few feet and Megan pulled the trigger, ka boom, down he went!



Is he mine?

Her emperor started flopping as they normally do but that only lasted for a few seconds.

Megan breathed a sigh of relief as she took off her camo hat and asked Tim "Is he mine?" Tim just laughed and said, “Yea, now let’s go get him!”



The prize

When they got into the field to claim her prize Megan wasn’t expecting him to be as big as he was, well at least to Megan he was big, 22 pounds with a 7.5-inch beard and 1.25-inch spurs worth of big. She lugged her turkey and gun across the field for the long walk back to the truck where they took pictures.

Megan was so excited and proud of herself she called just about everybody she knew within a 5-minute time frame.

She also sent pictures through her cell phone to all of them as proof positive.



Final chore

They took the turkey back to the farm after getting him checked in so Megan could learn the fine art of turkey dressing (how to properly clean him).

She kept the tail feathers and the beard which are mounted on a small plaque.

Megan’s final comment was, “I will say this… that was the best turkey I had ever tasted!”

Sunderlin is a freelance writer from Geneva. Reach him at djss@roadrunner.com.



DATEBOOK



Conneaut Fish & Game 3D Archery Schedule

n The club has fired up its 3D shots. The dates are as follows: July 18, Aug. 15-16 and Sept. 12-13. Shoots are sponsored and attending 5 out of 8 qualifies shooters for a sponsor’s prize raffle. All shoots start at 7 a.m. and last shooters out at 1 p.m. Donation is $8.00 per adult and $5.00 per child 13 and under. $$$ 50/50 shoots available, crossbows welcome, 30 Rinehart targets at each shoot, “hunting scenario set up.” Food and beverages available. Please, absolutely no Broadheads. For more information, call Darin Harper 813-6042.



Monroe Sportsman’s Trap shooting

n The club will be hosting several ATA & OSTA trap shooting events this summer. They will also be having several Wednesday evening ATA Registered shoots, July 8, 22 and Aug. 5 For more information, call Adam Berrier 858-2104 or 223-5947 or Sara Dean 576-0877. You can also go online at www.monroesportsmansclub.com or email at sara@monroesportsmansclub.com.



Outdoor Education Weekend

n Ashtabula Rod and Gun Club along with the Ashtabula County Wildlife Conservation League will be having their annual “Outdoor Education Weekend” held at Ashtabula Rod & Gun Club from Friday, July 17 to Sunday, July 19. This is a free weekend for boys and girls from ages 11 to 17 years old consisting of a full array of outdoor education, the state required Hunter Education course along with hands on experience in rifle, pistol, black powder, shotgun shooting, archery, water safety and many other outdoor related activities. Seminars will be held on Bow Hunting, Survival, Turkey Hunting, Trapping and Field Care of your harvest. All necessary items to participate in the weekend long camp out will be provided at no cost to participants. For more information and to register call Skip Crane 466-4937 or Paul Callender 992-7596.