Sign up for Afternoon Headlines and get the day’s biggest stories in your inbox. But there’s a time where the fish caught provides for her in the form of a healthy meal. “I always throw the big ones back in the pond. I’m always on the lookout for a great pond. Want more Kansas Living? A mistimed grab as the fish flopped and he would risk the six-inch, razor-sharp steel hook stuck in the jaw of a fish being deep in his hand or arm, stapling him to the writhing fish. “‘Just a little while longer,’ I tell him. The fish was so big and so strong it took two men, working knee-deep in mud and brown water, to subdue it. Finch said the fishing in the Kansas River has never been better in his 42 years. Location: … The tackle box holds her trade secrets. It’s so clear, she says, Kelly can see to the bottom in some spots. She does have a lucky, go-to lure made by a company called Mepps. “The fish dragged me into the water before my folks could help me,” Kelly says. The next morning they learned that what had once been deep water in front of their camp had largely silted in with this spring’s heavy rains, pushing the big fish to other parts of the river. At times their shallow-running boats, with special motors, barely skimmed by in two feet of water. As well as native fish, huge schools of invasive Asian carp are also blocked by the dam and offer big blue and flathead catfish easy meals, in one- to five-pound bites at a time. “But I would go anytime, anywhere. When we compare to our neighboring states, we have exceptional bodies of water here in Kansas.”. Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand. KDWPT wants to help determine for the angler how much benefit a place is, for example, to help them find the biggest and best walleye, crappie or channel catfish. Receive great customer service and products available through Farm Bureau Financial Services, plus exclusive benefits and services through our many partners! “The biggest bass I’ve caught came from there, about eight and a half pounds,” Kelly says. Big flathead and blue catfish travel up the Missouri River and hang a west at the mouth of the Kansas. They cast lines with sniper-like accuracy to be on this side of some current, or this side of a rock pile. The giant fish weighed 2,664 pounds! Record Blue Catfish. They are more abundant in the Missouri and Mississippi rivers than anywhere else in the state. Few places in America can match the fishing in the 50 miles of the Kansas River between the Bowersock Dam and the Missouri River. Copyright © 2021  Kansas Farm Bureau  • www.kfb.org  • Privacy Policy. According to local legend, fish as big as 200 pounds have been caught in the river. Finch predicted bigger and better things after dark, when the biggest of catfish normally prowl. Boaters heading along at a fast speed once hit such a boat-stopping sandbar, Finch said. And there’s a watershed in Oklahoma on my granddad’s land. Given the size of the water and the bait, catching that 5-pounder would've been like catching a 15-pounder on the Kaw, which is why I still recall the fish … 28 1/2 inches Rod & Reel w/jig & pig Private Pit Lake, Cherokee Co. 05/03/08 Tyson Hallam, Scammon SPOTTED BASS (KENTUCKY) 4.44 lbs. You can do it by yourself, with your friends or with your grandkids. Kansans can find a list of tournaments to compete in online at www.ksoutdoors.com/Fishing/Tournaments, and can join fishing clubs to learn more. While most anglers would consider any fish over 12 inches to be a slab, ... especially in the south. Fishing is the neatest thing. When Kelly wants to use her bass boat to fish she heads to Cowley State Lake. She owns a baitcaster pole, a crappie pole, an open-face reel, a topwater rod, a worm rod and a can-do-it-all rod. It weighed 80 pounds both times." Recently Kelly joined the Winfield fishing club and hopes to compete in more tournaments in the coming years. This river monster was the biggest fish caught in the river, and some even said it’s the biggest catch in North America. To transfer them she will put fish in a bucket with an aerator then release them in a different pond. Weight: 143 lbs (64.86 kg) Length: 4.75 ft (1.45 m) Location: Kerr Lake, Virginia, … She remembers her first fishing pole decorated with Snoopy emblems for her birthday as a toddler. From there the river flows about 150 miles east to where it meets the Missouri River in Kansas City. Kansans can now take the written portion of their driver’s license exam online, the Kansas Department of Revenue said Tuesday. She’s even been known to take a pair of shorts and a hat to work with her to be able to hit the water after her full-time job as the Chautauqua County Farm Bureau coordinator. And of course, she carries a pole at all times, even in the winter. The online exam is offered through Intellecutal Technology Inc., which announced the web-based program amid the pandemic, according to a news release. A fisherman has caught the biggest ever wild brown trout to be pulled out of a British river - an 11lb beast FIVE times the average size. Aug 14, 2015 @ 5:44pm I think the biggest fish I ever caught so far was a 3.2lbs Pike. Tiger shark: 1,785 pounds 11 ounces (810 kg.) “Over time, farmers have constructed farm ponds that are stocked with tremendous fish. March 25, 2001 - Here's a 23.5 Lb Channel Cat caught on Milford Lake, Length;37.75 Inches, Girth; 23.5 Inches. At 82-and-a-half pounds the fish is the size of most 10 year olds! I'm lvl 8 at the moment and I was just wondering whats the biggest fish you have ever caught in the game so far? The BIGGEST Fish Ever Caught In The World100M is the #1 place for all your heart warming stories about amazing people that will inspire you everyday. “Fishing is so relaxing to me and  it’s the great unknown, too. This Pacific Bigeye Tuna was caught in Cabo Blanco, Peru.Flick Ford. Josh Hackathorn ducked and jabbed like a boxer. Loveless says anglers get a spiritual sense of connection with nature around them and that’s why they love it. Big flatheads have been a constant in the Kansas River, and blue catfish have been coming on strong since commercial fishing for them was stopped in both the Kansas and Missouri rivers. 44 inches Apr 21, 2016 - The largest fish ever caught and approved as IGFA All-Tackle World Records. “No music, I just listen to the birds chirp and the cattle in the background.”. She does this to keep populations up and to balance the varieties of fish. Kelly says she snagged one of the biggest fish she’s ever caught with that little pole on a private pond. The 56-pounder hit a big chunk of raw carp meat. Now, 20 years later, fishing is Kelly’s number one pastime. As a small girl in 1969, she remembers her grandfather, commercial angler Richard Higgins, and father catching a flathead catfish of about 100 pounds. Finch, nicknamed the Kaw River Man, has reeled in flatheads weighing 81, 87 and 88 pounds from that stretch. “We have quite a few 70-pound fish being caught, and even some in the 80s, both flatheads and blues,” he said. Here are your best bets for bass fishing in Kansas. Last edited by KJ; Jun 17, 2019 @ 4:20am < > Showing 1-15 of 32 comments . As for this summer, Kelly is looking to meet her immediate goal. The Kansas River, known as the Kaw to locals, starts at Junction City where the Republican and Smoky Hill rivers join. She goes in during the hot part of the afternoon but hits the water again as soon as the summer day cools down. Location: Ascension Island, British Overseas Territories. “Usually I know the land owner and I always get permission, but my family has a lot of acres with about 10 ponds. According to the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT), it is one of the top-rated state and community lakes in Kansas in terms of densities of four popular fish species. The Fishing Atlas shows the location of all public waters, as well as those farm ponds enrolled in the F.I.S.H. These days most serious anglers release big catfish so they can continue to grow, and keep only a few smaller ones to eat. Kelly says she has encountered some criticism of fishing as a hobby or a sport. Pacific Bigeye Tuna. Commercial fishermen, who fished mostly with huge nets, dodged game wardens the last 50 years after net fishing was outlawed. Shifting silt and sand, especially pushed by high current, can quickly form a barely submerged sandbar where deep water had been a few weeks before. The soft light of a lantern showed a big blue catfish with a five-gallon head and whiskers the size of licorice sticks. “It all depends on the person and how they fish. The biggest catch on our list is a whopping 76-pound black buffalo that was caught this spring. Recently, she posted a photo of one of her catches on her Instagram account, holding a bass. program. April 04, 2014By Stephen D. Carpenteri The Kansas state-record largemouth is 11 pounds, 12 ounces. “Some people might not understand that you can catch the same fish over and over and it doesn’t hurt them,” Kelly says. At 80.4 pounds the fish is well short of the Kansas and world-record flathead of 123 pounds, caught at Elk City Reservoir in 1998. I can go fish all day and catch one right after the other or be out all day and not get a single bite. -- An Olathe woman has set the unofficial record for the largest blue catfish caught in a Kansas lake. That said, a very select few anglers have managed to catch fish that rank among the biggest largemouth bass ever caught. An angler also keeps a collection of rods for strategy, Kelly says. Courtesy IGFA / igfa.org The KDOR launched KnowTo Drive Online last week. gekco. While she won’t share the details, Kelly is willing to offer that she likes plastic worms or lizards to use in late summer and uses a lure called a Texas rig. So much so that KDWPT offers an online and hardcopy Fishing Atlas for folks to locate farm ponds for fishing. Swimming, barbecues, boats and tans are big parts of the summer scene in Kansas. The museum chronicles the glory days of commercial fishing on the Kansas River, from 1870-1970. In late summer, Kelly can catch anything there, she adds, and the crappie at Cowley State Fishing Lake are huge. But I caught him from a tangle of brush in a dogleg turn of Fall River, above the southeastern Kansas lake of the same name, on a tiny crawdad-imitation crankbait. Cowley State Fishing Lake, 13 miles east of Arkansas City along U.S. Highway 166, is made up of 84 acres of water. That fish was a seven-pound bass. Larry liked using fly tackle. Small fish from upstream get washed over the dam and, rolling in the turbulence, are easily caught by large predators. Loveless says Kelly has it figured out on how to deal with critics. It’s far from the only “monster fish” to come from Kansas. Program and currently, about 1,900 acres of ponds and more than 70 miles of streams on private land are available through this program. The new record surpasses the previous mark of 52 pounds, 2 oz, previously held since April 6, 2001, by Greg Megibben. Oct 6, 2014 - The largest fish ever caught and approved as IGFA all-tackle fishing world records. Kansas is the latest state to adopt the service, KDOR said. Even at low levels, the Kansas River is mined with huge rocks or logs just inches below the surface, waiting to destroy the bottom of a passing outboard motor. “So, if I’ve been fishing that pond and keep catching the same size fish, I know it’s overpopulated.”. Sign up for our monthly e‑newsletter! When the river is up, and the current strong, dangerous undertows can be a serious problem, especially below the Bowersock Dam where many gather to fish. That’s bigger than most anglers ever see and big enough to feed 40 people. “Whatever’s Biting” categorizes bodies of water by their size and then ranks them by the overall fish densities for the most popular species. Tournaments allow anglers to measure themselves against each other. “I’ve seen people catching 40, 35, 20 (pound fish) all this last couple of weeks. Fins on the backs and sides are stiff and sharp as ice picks, and can penetrate a booted human foot from top to bottom with one flop. Fishing lures a hit for small-town teen entrepreneurs, A resort grows among the trees along Milford Reservoir, 8 places to kayak or canoe close to Wichita, Boating, camping, yurts – new reservoir could be your new playground, Kansas adds option to take written portion of driver’s license exam online, Valley Center school district may drop mask mandate in response to Ranzau complaint, Wichita aerospace company files for bankruptcy after major losses from 737, COVID, There’s already a deal for the old downtown Wichita library space? The biggest fish ever caught and approved as an IGFA world record was a white shark. But sometimes, when they come from our farm ponds I do fillet them and fry them. Flathead catfish typically occur in the large rivers and lakes in Missouri. Washington was in his 70s when he tethered a big hook to his hands and went into the river in search of big fish. When it comes to fish, Kansas is recognized as the land of giants. In the early morning summer hours, Kelly helps her family feed cows, then gets her pole to go fishing. A person commented, asking the question, “how can you do that to a fish?” Kelly says she immediately responded that she was proud of the bass, took a photo and threw it right back into the pond, unhurt and saw it swim away. It’s called the Fishing Impoundments and Stream Habitats (F.I.S.H.) The fish, caught by Jeff Wilkins in late March, was 45 inches (110 cm) in length and snagged in the Seven Points area of the lake. Visit www.ksoutdoors.com to find your next (or first) fishing hole. A halibut only slightly smaller was landed by an angler using a rod and reel in the Atlantic Ocean off Norway last year. But you still are likely to encounter fish of that size in a wide variety of Kansas' fishing spots. A 123-pound flathead from Elk City Reservoir has been the world record for nearly 20 years. Loveless says anglers fish for fun but if they have a competitive vibe then tournaments exist for them. The mouths of catfish are lined with thousands of sandpaperish teeth that can peel skin from forearms and wrists. Alfred Dean caught the beastly shark off Ceduna, Australia, on April 21,1959 using a porpoise as bait. Three others, while not officially recognized, however, may have actually caught an even bigger bass! She was reeling in a fish at the time, saw me sliding, threw her pole down and came over the dam to help me.”. It took one person with a rod and reel to get it close to the shore, two people to wrestle it to land, and all three to get it up the bank, weighed and released. “I have a five-year-old grandson who loves to fish, even when it’s stupid cold in November,” he says. In one night, he and his son once caught 1,200 pounds of blue catfish, the biggest weighing 72 pounds. Sixgill Shark – 1,298 lb. Atlantic bluefin tuna: 1,496 pounds (678.6 kg.) Two anglers in particular have managed to lay their claim to the world record largemouth bass, arguably the most sought-after prize in sport fishing. “That’s a nice fish, but let’s catch one that’s 80 or 90 pounds,” Finch said. To this date it ranks as the biggest bass ever caught by a bass angler who was actually targeting bass with an artificial lure. KDWPT Secretary Brad Loveless says the state issued more than 240,000 fishing licenses last year but knows there are an estimated 400,000 anglers who fish in Kansas. This fish measured 102 inches in length and weighed 515 pounds, the Huffington Post reported. “Kansas doesn’t have many natural bodies of water but has 9,000 stream miles that are fishable on private land,” Loveless says. At best that would be excruciatingly painful. He says he wants people to recognize the value of a fish, to the extent they throw it back to be caught by somebody else. You never know how big it’s going to be once they bite. But its color and size remain a secret known only by her tackle box. “We can’t find any proof of that,” Higgins-Dover said. And not one cast is the same as the next.”. Nebraska man catches largest fish ever caught in state Paddlefish caught near Gavins Point Dam weighed 113 pounds. And it’s not unusual to have a lure in my purse on a February day.”. 16 lbs 12 oz | Feb 2009 | Castaic Lagoon, California. In … "It was the biggest catfish I've ever seen," said Franklin County Wildlife Officer Charles Bonner, who certified the fish's weight. Then they run into the Bowersock Dam in downtown Lawrence, which was built in the 1870s to provide power to a flour mill and the town. “If there’s too many in one pond, they won’t grow,” Kelly says. “I could sit there all day and just cast,” she says. Date: November 21, … Caught by Jim Leonard while on board the fishing vessel CatfishFever. “I want to fish as much as I can this summer, even if it’s just for 30 minutes at a time,” she says. 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