More Hand-Grabbing or Noodling for Catfish in Mississippi
Day 1: The Ladies Hand-Grab Catfish Also
Editor’s Note:We had so many requests last week to see more adventures of hand-grabbing catfish at Ross Barnett Reservoir that we decided to run the rest of the story. Hand-grabbing catfish out of wood boxes there are from 2-feet to 6-feet deep is a really-exciting sport. The grabber has to go under water, stick his or her hand into a wooden box while holding his breath, find a catfish in the box and then try to get his hand in front of the catfish to entice the big flathead cat to bite that hand. Now once the catfish bites that hand, the grabber puts his fingers and the palm of his hand inside the mouth of the catfish, while his thumb goes outside the catfish’s mouth and under the lower jaw.
Once the grabber has a firm grip on the catfish’s’ mouth, then he tries to gently lead the catfish through the hole and out of the wooden box where the fish has been hiding. As the grabber pulls the catfish out of the box, he or she wraps the catfish around his stomach and uses his other arm and hand to hold the catfish tightly up against him. Then the big fish won’t roll, twist and get free. All this catching, biting, grabbing, pulling and locking the catfish around the middle of his or her body takes place underwater, while the grabber holds his breath. In most magazine articles and videos seen on hand-grabbing or noodling catfish, you usually see some big guy or wiry youngster going underwater to get the catfish.
However, at Ross Barnett Reservoir near Jackson, Mississippi, catfish-grabbing is a family affair. Wives, girlfriends, sisters and brothers all enjoy the sport of hand-grabbing. And today, Kim Jones, with her hand-grabbing partner, Stephen Bowden, will show you how it’s done.
