Fisherman Reels In Monster Catfish ‘As Big As Him,’ Takes Trophy Photo Before Releasing

Illustration - Wikimedia Commons | James Willamor

There’s no need to teach this man to fish.

Angler Kevin Moore caught the trophy of all trophies while fishing on Wednesday, Feb. 6. He took a fishing trip to Montgomery County, North Carolina, with modest ambitions to spend a peaceful afternoon on the water. Hours later, Kevin had a monster catfish in his arms.

Kevin was fishing at a secret spot on Lake Tillery: we’re willing to bet that after this impressive catch, Kevin may be keen to keep it secret!

The angler used cut shad (a smaller, game fish) as bait, and boy, did it work! The catfish that Kevin caught was “almost as big as him,” according to Kevin’s sister Karen Saunders.

Kevin revealed that he'd actually snared two catfish during the trip but was only able to reel in one. But the fish he did manage to haul onto his fishing boat weighed something between 80 and 100 pounds (approx. 36 to 45 kilograms), or so said Montgomery County, who shared Kevin’s astounding catch on their own Facebook page and estimated the weight of his haul.

For context, that’s the same weight as a teenager, or a slender adult. Phew!

The photos are astounding. Kevin’s clearly a weightlifter as well as an angler: supporting the entire weight of the humungous fish in his arms, Kevin makes it look effortless.

But kudos to the conscientious angler, who decided not to keep his catch and diligently released the huge fish back into the lake.

Not before taking a number of trophy shots, of course! This was a catch to remember.

Montgomery County were clearly excited about the discovery of such huge fish in their waters. “That means this is out there to be caught again,” they wrote, on their official Facebook page. “You can bet there will be people visiting Lake Tillery because of this publicity,” they continued, excitedly.

The huge catfish will have no idea that it has contributed to the touristic popularity of Lake Tillery in being caught—thanks, catfish! All in a day’s work, we’re sure.

“Pass this along to any people you know that like to fish!” Montgomery County continued.

We’re not sure the frenzy of anglers that will flock to the lake in search of the monster fish will be getting any tips from Kevin: if we were him, we might be holding this “secret fishing hole” location pretty close to our chests!

There are certainly plenty of fish in the sea, as the old adage goes, but a giant catfish in a lake is something pretty special.