When Barnes showed me Larry’s x-ray, I said, “I could’ve gone all week without seeing that.” I said, “You could have gone all week without telling me that.” Apparently, when Kussman wrestled the monster from his hidey-hole with both hands stuffed in its mouth, the big fish spun, snapping the bone in the middle of his left hand. In a phone conversation just before our trip, Barnes mentioned he’d have to find a replacement fishing partner because a big fifty-plus pound flathead had broken his regular buddy, Larry Kussman’s, hand the previous week. I screwed up my best poker face and once more answered, “Sure, why not?” Around that time, I got a call from Barnes asking if I was ready to give hogging a try. In 2018, the opening day was moved to May 15. In previous years, the AGFC has set noodling season from June 1 through October 31. But it was still a long way off before I’d have to face my trepidations. When Arkansas Wild approached me last winter about taking a trip with Chris come summertime, I said, “Sure, why not?’ At the same time, the thought of sticking my arm in a dark, submerged hole seemed counter-intuitive.
He has hosted would-be noodlers from Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Texas, Florida, Louisiana and even Australia at $200.00 per head. His experience and expertise have garnered television appearances on the Outdoor Channel, Animal Planet and Catfish Kings. Whether you call it noodling, hogging or grabbing, 44-year-old Chris Barnes has been pursuing sizable catfish by hand for nine years now. According to my guide on a recent catfish noodling expedition, Native Americans were catching big fish by hand well before European arrival on these shores.
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