March 11 was cold and windy in east-central Missouri when Tucker Mullinax, his uncle John Mullinax and friend Doug Knight left for a birthday fishing trip for Tucker at 5:45 a.m. They drove 45 minutes east to meet Wally Maier, a charter captain for Show Me Catfishing Trophy Guide Service located near St. Louis.
As dawn was breaking the anglers and guide loaded into Maier’s 26-foot SeaArk Pro Guide aluminum boat, then launched into the Missouri River for a red-hot half-day of catfishing.
Using heavy boat tackle and revolving spool reels spooled with 80-pound test braided line, 80-pound mono leaders, and 6/0 Eagle Claw hooks, Maier anchored at a known catfish spot near the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi rivers.
Maier baited hooks with cut shad baits, and the anglers went to work. Soon a blue catfish took a bait and Tucker shortly caught an 8-pound catfish, followed by an 11-pounder and then an 18-pounder.
Quite the Birthday Present
Then about 1 p.m., a big fish took a bait, and the 6th grader got into the fish fight of his young life.
“That fish took off and ran a bunch of drag from the reel,” said Tucker. “It took about five minutes for me to get him near the boat, and for Capt. Wally to net him.”
As Tucker got the catfish to the boat, and Maier dipped it with the net, Capt. Wally said to Tucker, “there’s your lifetime fish, buddy.”
When asked if he had trouble landing such a big fish, Tucker said he almost fell out of the boat when he tripped during the catfish battle. Fortunately, his uncle John grabbed him by his belt and kept the birthday boy from falling into the muddy Missouri River.
“The fish was huge, fat, bigger around than me,” Tucker said. “It weighed 78 pounds, almost as much as me, and I weigh 97 pounds. My head could have fit inside its mouth.”
Catch and Release for the Win
After weighing the heavyweight blue catfish, the anglers made photos of Tucker’s catch and released the fish back into the river. The guide service releases all catfish weighing over 10 pounds to preserve the big fish stock.
Smaller catfish are generally considered better eating anyway. The fishing crew that day had six fish total, with some smaller ones to take home to eat. They caught six fish that day, with Tucker boating four of them – making it a birthday to remember forever.
Capt. Maier says big catfish are on a tear now in his region of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers. He and other guides stay mobile with their trailered boats, traveling to the best spots as catfish move around.
While Tucker’s giant 78-pounder is huge, especially for a 12-year-old youngster, Maier says big blue catfish are being caught regularly now.
“The next day my guided anglers caught an 83-pounder, and the following day an 82-pounder,” he said. “Another guide in our company just got an 85-pounder for a client.”
Tucker’s fishing day was done about 2 p.m., and he got home well before dinner hour. His 78-pounder is the biggest fish of his young angling career, but he’s hopeful for bigger fish in his future.
“My dad told me before we left to go fishing that he’d pay to have my catfish mounted by a taxidermist if it weighed over 50-pounds,” Tucker said. “I’m pushing him now to have a replica mount made of my fish, but he said he wanted proof of how big it was.
“I’ve got the photos and a video of my fish, so I think I’m good.”
