I've heard stories about catfish this big in the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers, but have never caught even one myself. One Missouri man just landed 3 of them and these mammoth catfish are nearly as big as he is.
I grew up fishing with my dad in Missouri which makes me anything but an objective judge. However, science has now declared that fishing is infinitely better in Missouri than it is in Illinois and the numbers don't lie.
The internet loves declaring the best and worst of places and I prefer to focus on that first one. There is now a lake in Illinois that's been named the best in the state for a very specific type of tourist. Let's explore.
Something is stealing fish at night along the Meramec River in Missouri and if you ask the campers and fishermen, they'll also tell you they're hearing things they simply cannot explain.
Here's a pro tip for getting the attention of a Missourian. Tell him or her that you have found an awesome fishing spot they didn't know about. The likely response will be skid marks under their feet as they make tracks to their fishing rod and tackle box and vehicle. There's a Missouri lake that might inspire that response as it's been called the most underrated fishing spot in the state.
I spent many a weekend in Missouri fishing with my dad. We were very fortunate to catch a ton of bass and catfish, but apparently I was missing out on a key trick when it comes to landing humongous catfish like a pro - cooking spray.
He came so close. A Missouri boy just caught one of the biggest sunfish in history and came within an ounce of shattering the state record for a fish like this.
There's nothing in my life so far that has been quite the same as me sitting on my couch, laughing at some idiot because he was caught red handed out in the woods. Anyway. I can help you NOT be that idiot when it comes to catch and keep trout fishing season.