Quote Originally Posted by fishmounter View Post
etucker1959 Thanks for releasing those fish, so someone else can have a time catching them. When I used to fish for catfish, (when we would illegally spend the night at a popular LA area park, just to catch the giant catfish at night) I landed many catfish over 5 pounds, (up to 20!) by hand. You can land catfish with your hands, if you are careful and know which 3 fins are dangerous. You just need to know where to place your fingers, so their pectoral fins are between them. And you can also grab them like a bass, by the lower jaw. Sure they will bite down, but they don't have sharp teeth. Just never put your fingers in their gills unless you want to keep them.
I'll make a confession about the net. I'm almost 60 years old and getting down on my hands and knees to grab a fish isn't as much fun anymore! lol A smaller fish 2 pounds or less I could easily bounce (gently) with #6 test. These bigger fish 3+ pounds don't bounce on 6 pound test! lol