PA Angler Breaks Maryland Blue Catfish Record by 13 Pounds

Shawn Wetzel, 27 of Orrtana, Pennsylvania, caught a whopping 80-pound, 12-ounce blue catfish on February 23 in the Potomac River near Fort Washington. The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) confirmed that the blue catfish was a new State record, annihilating the previous record holder by 13 pounds. "The rod went down hard, and I knew it was something big," said Wetzell. "At one point, I was on my knees trying to lift the fish, and my back was burning."

The previous record fish weighed just over 67 pounds and was caught in 2008 by Ron Lewis in the Potomac not far from where Wetzel caught his fish. Blue catfish are native to the Mississippi River Valley and were introduced to the James and Rappahannock Rivers in the 1970s. Since then, the fish have reproduced and spread throughout the tidal Potomac River system. Flathead catfish, another non-native invasive species, and blue catfish have subsequently turned up in the Nanticoke, Susquehanna and Northeast Rivers, Upper Chesapeake Bay and other waters.

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/dnrnews/pressrelease2012/031212b.asp

That's an impressive fish and an impressive catch.

Yeah it's a monster, but definitely beatable. The Virginia record blue cat (caught in 2011) was 143 lbs (pic below). The James River is only a few miles from a Potomac. These fish got into those rivers and have been doing nothing but eating.

Would a fish that big taste any good?

ORIGINAL: Accountant

Would a fish that big taste any good?

Depends on the fish. People bay tens of thousands of dollars for 500 lb tuna.

In the case of blue cats, the traditional wisdom is that smaller is better. I only catch and release em though, so I have no idea.

Depends on the tuna. That was a record. They typically go for a lot less - but still a lot more than catfish .

I beg to differ with catfish. I don't think there is any decline in taste based on size. From my experience.

you like trout and pike?? and you didn't say anything about walleye?

I don't fish from a boat and I catch them all the time. Head down to a river throw out some minnows if you can or use some 3" curly tails. You will get some right now but they are out of season

Yea they are in there. The Yough River is close to my house in irwin and I throw curly tails and catch them a good bit..

Bigger cats taste good too, if you know how to clean them. Trim off ALL BELLY MEAT. Also, when you take the skin off, keep your fillet knife 1/16" or 1/8" into the meat, leaving that dark red meat on the skin and not on the fillet. Cut the fillets into 1" cubes, bread/batter, and fry. Quite tasty. It's a little extra work, but it's worth it.

Amygirl, I totally agree with you on the crappie and panfish. The only fish that is better eating than panfish is walleye. 'Eyes don't have much fight in them, but they are the best eating fish in the world. Go out as soon as season opens, find a hole in the river that is 10' or more. Then, tie on a 1/4 oz chartruese, pink, or white jig head and put on a 3" twister tail (any of the above three colors). Finally, lip-hook a 2-3" shiner and toss it out. Keep it bouncing on the bottom. Let it set on the bottom for a few seconds between bounces. Fish slowly. Let me know how you do.

Yeah! Finally, someone who understands! Why throw the big ones back so that someone else can catch it? Eat that hog and let the little ones grow up to be big ones!

Agreed. It's annoying how people jump on you every time you talk about keeping fish. Usually the guys that complain about it are the guys with fish mounted on their walls. Those fish were killed just for a trophy. Noone even got to eat them. That's a complete waste. At least I eat my fish. I wonder if the sarcasm of my previous post was evident? LOL! Oh well. Someone always has to have an attitude on here.

ORIGINAL: wirenut45

verbatim, if your argument stands, where,d that last record come from? obviously they kept the biggest fish before that. ,n, now an even bigger one.don,t make sense to me.

Just my opinion, unless you plan on eating the fish just take a picture and let her go. A picture or a reproduction mount look just as nice as the real thing.

No problem. PM me if you have any other questions. I'm happy to help.

ORIGINAL: Amygirl

ORIGINAL: slabdaddy

Bigger cats taste good too, if you know how to clean them. Trim off ALL BELLY MEAT. Also, when you take the skin off, keep your fillet knife 1/16" or 1/8" into the meat, leaving that dark red meat on the skin and not on the fillet. Cut the fillets into 1" cubes, bread/batter, and fry. Quite tasty. It's a little extra work, but it's worth it.

Amygirl, I totally agree with you on the crappie and panfish. The only fish that is better eating than panfish is walleye. 'Eyes don't have much fight in them, but they are the best eating fish in the world. Go out as soon as season opens, find a hole in the river that is 10' or more. Then, tie on a 1/4 oz chartruese, pink, or white jig head and put on a 3" twister tail (any of the above three colors). Finally, lip-hook a 2-3" shiner and toss it out. Keep it bouncing on the bottom. Let it set on the bottom for a few seconds between bounces. Fish slowly. Let me know how you do.

Thanks for the tips