Record-breaking catfish caught in Colorado

Great catch, what a fat belly.:plastered:

Record-breaking catfish caught in Colorado
http://www.ksdk.com/graphics/bullet1.gif 1 day ago

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AURORA, CO (KUSA) -- Avid angler Mike Stone has one heck of a fishing tale to tell for the rest of his life.
Stone set a new state record July 26 when he caught a 35-pound channel catfish during one of many trips to the Aurora Reservoir.

"I've been coming out to Aurora Reservoir pretty much every weekend, rain or shine, since 2003," Stone said. "That morning I planned on fishing for trout and walleye but never expected to catch a catfish, much less anything of that size."

The Colorado Division of Wildlife says Stone's unorthodox combination of a sinker and a floating jig head tipped with a night crawler proved irresistible to the mammoth fish which took the bait almost immediately.

"I had just cast my line into the water and started to pour a cup of coffee when I saw the tip of my fishing rod move and jerk," Stone said.

It took 15-minutes but Stone eventually landed his prize catch after the tussle.

The fish was weighed on a state-certified scale by DOW officers as 35.22 pounds, nearly 2 pounds heavier than the previous record set in 1994 by John McKeever at Hertha Reservoir in Larimer County.

Stone hopes to have his record, 37-inch fish mounted soon.

"It looks like this fish and I are going to be joined at the hip, at least as long as the record holds," he said. "I'll be happy if my record lasts anywhere near as long as the previous one."

The DOW says they will add Stone's catch to the Colorado Fishing Records.

"We want to congratulate Mike Stone for his exceptional fish," said Greg Gerlich, DOW fisheries chief. "It's always exciting when a record is broken and we get to enter a new name into the books."

Stone told the DOW he credits his wife for providing added motivation in his early morning angling pursuits.
What makes the story even more impressive is that Stone says a week later his friend made another monster catch in the same area.

http://www.ksdk.com/news/local/story...storyid=181717