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Commercial waterway creates
outstanding flathead catfish habitat
outstanding flathead catfish habitat
TOP: Josh and Joey
Pounders, professional
catfish anglers from
Mississippi, show off a
flathead and a blue
catfish they caught
while fishing the
Tennessee-Tombigbee
Waterway system near
Columbus, Miss.
BOTTOM: Josh
Pounders, a pro catfish
angler from the state of
Mississippi, shows off a
large flathead catfish
he caught while
fishing on the
Tennessee-Tombigbee
Waterway system near
Columbus, Miss.
Pounders, professional
catfish anglers from
Mississippi, show off a
flathead and a blue
catfish they caught
while fishing the
Tennessee-Tombigbee
Waterway system near
Columbus, Miss.
BOTTOM: Josh
Pounders, a pro catfish
angler from the state of
Mississippi, shows off a
large flathead catfish
he caught while
fishing on the
Tennessee-Tombigbee
Waterway system near
Columbus, Miss.
Popularly known as the Tenn-Tom, the 234-mile Tennessee-
Tombigbee Waterway links the Tennessee and Tombigbee rivers in parts
of Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama for commercial traffic.
More than barges move through this waterway. Giant predators rule
these waters. Legendary catfish waters, the Tennessee River runs 652
miles and connects with the Mississippi River by way of the Ohio River. The
Tombigbee River flows 200 miles through northern Mississippi and
Alabama, eventually merging with the Alabama River to flow into the Mobile-
Tensas River Delta near Mobile, Ala. When the waterway opened in 1985,
giant flatheads in those rivers moved into the Tenn-Tom system.
Now, 10 lakes along the Tenn-Tom system combine for a total surface
area of 44,000 acres. In addition, numerous tributaries, stumpy backwaters,
oxbow lakes and swampy flats create some of the best flathead habitat in
the nation. In November 2009, profession catfish angler Joey Pounders set
the Mississippi state record for flathead when he caught a 77-pounder in
the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway near Columbus, Miss. He kept the
whiskered brute alive for more than a day before officially weighing it. In the
tank, it spit up 19 shad and possibly lost several pounds.
“That fish could have weighed more than 80 pounds when I first caught
it,” Pounders estimated. “I was fishing a hole about 17 to 18 feet deep with
a fallen tree on the bottom. I surrounded the tree with three rods and
dropped a live shad on a fourth rod directly into the tree. It hit about 10
minutes later and I fought it for about 15 minutes.”
Flatheads may exceed 123 pounds and prefer to hunker down in
woody cover during daylight where these voracious predators devour
anything they can swallow. At night, they often prowl the shallows. Eating
almost exclusively fish, flatheads relish shad, sunfish, small drum, other
catfish and bullheads.
“When targeting flatheads, fresh bait is the key,” said Josh Pounders,
Joey’s brother and a fellow professional catfish angler. “We normally use
live shad about six to eight inches long. When catching bait, we might catch
1,000 shad, but only use 20. I like shad about six to nine inches long.”
When looking for flatheads, use a depth finder to scan for channels or
drops with access to both deep and shallow water. Prowling flatheads like to
enter washed out banks, submerged treetops along eroded shorelines,
stump fields or other cover that might hold prey. Logjams along a river
bend create excellent flathead habitat. Bracket a good spot with several
rods, but always drop meat right down into the thickest cover.
“When fishing for big fish, we use baits that a 3-pound channel catfish
can’t handle,” Joey advised. “A 5-pound flathead can eat a 9-inch shad. I
caught the state record on a 7-inch shad. Fishing for big flatheads takes
patience. It might take a while to get a bite. When it bites, wait to set the
hook. A flathead typically takes the bait with three tugs. It won’t completely
take it until about the third pull. That’s when we set the hook.”
For big cats, rig a three-way swivel on 80- to 100-pound test braided
line. Tie 18 inches of 50- to 60-pound test monofilament to one eye and
add a snelled 7/0 or 8/0 wide-gap circle hook. On the other swivel eye, tie
36 to 48 inches of 20-pound test monofilament for the sinker. With the hook
leader shorter than the sinker line, the baitfish swims off the bottom.
“Many people think they should put the bait on the bottom, but a catfish’
s eyeballs are on the top of its head,” Josh explained. “With the current
running, holding the bait off the bottom makes the bait look more alive even
if it’s nearly dead. We also use lighter line for the weight because flatheads
run to cover when hooked. If they wrap the weight line, we can break it and
still catch the fish.”
While the waterway offers great flathead fishing, it also holds big blue
and channel cats. Some blues exceed 60 pounds. Although most channel
cats weigh less than 10 pounds, a few break into double digits. Not nearly
as finicky as flatheads, blues and channels eat almost anything. Big blues
prefer oily fish and often prey upon shad, sunfish and skipjack. They also
eat night crawlers, crawfish, mussels, cheese, shrimp, livers and almost
anything else they can gulp down. A big blue can easily eat a 5-pound fish,
but frequently takes smaller baits.
To book a fishing trip with one of the Pounders, contact them through
the website teampounders.com.
Tombigbee Waterway links the Tennessee and Tombigbee rivers in parts
of Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama for commercial traffic.
More than barges move through this waterway. Giant predators rule
these waters. Legendary catfish waters, the Tennessee River runs 652
miles and connects with the Mississippi River by way of the Ohio River. The
Tombigbee River flows 200 miles through northern Mississippi and
Alabama, eventually merging with the Alabama River to flow into the Mobile-
Tensas River Delta near Mobile, Ala. When the waterway opened in 1985,
giant flatheads in those rivers moved into the Tenn-Tom system.
Now, 10 lakes along the Tenn-Tom system combine for a total surface
area of 44,000 acres. In addition, numerous tributaries, stumpy backwaters,
oxbow lakes and swampy flats create some of the best flathead habitat in
the nation. In November 2009, profession catfish angler Joey Pounders set
the Mississippi state record for flathead when he caught a 77-pounder in
the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway near Columbus, Miss. He kept the
whiskered brute alive for more than a day before officially weighing it. In the
tank, it spit up 19 shad and possibly lost several pounds.
“That fish could have weighed more than 80 pounds when I first caught
it,” Pounders estimated. “I was fishing a hole about 17 to 18 feet deep with
a fallen tree on the bottom. I surrounded the tree with three rods and
dropped a live shad on a fourth rod directly into the tree. It hit about 10
minutes later and I fought it for about 15 minutes.”
Flatheads may exceed 123 pounds and prefer to hunker down in
woody cover during daylight where these voracious predators devour
anything they can swallow. At night, they often prowl the shallows. Eating
almost exclusively fish, flatheads relish shad, sunfish, small drum, other
catfish and bullheads.
“When targeting flatheads, fresh bait is the key,” said Josh Pounders,
Joey’s brother and a fellow professional catfish angler. “We normally use
live shad about six to eight inches long. When catching bait, we might catch
1,000 shad, but only use 20. I like shad about six to nine inches long.”
When looking for flatheads, use a depth finder to scan for channels or
drops with access to both deep and shallow water. Prowling flatheads like to
enter washed out banks, submerged treetops along eroded shorelines,
stump fields or other cover that might hold prey. Logjams along a river
bend create excellent flathead habitat. Bracket a good spot with several
rods, but always drop meat right down into the thickest cover.
“When fishing for big fish, we use baits that a 3-pound channel catfish
can’t handle,” Joey advised. “A 5-pound flathead can eat a 9-inch shad. I
caught the state record on a 7-inch shad. Fishing for big flatheads takes
patience. It might take a while to get a bite. When it bites, wait to set the
hook. A flathead typically takes the bait with three tugs. It won’t completely
take it until about the third pull. That’s when we set the hook.”
For big cats, rig a three-way swivel on 80- to 100-pound test braided
line. Tie 18 inches of 50- to 60-pound test monofilament to one eye and
add a snelled 7/0 or 8/0 wide-gap circle hook. On the other swivel eye, tie
36 to 48 inches of 20-pound test monofilament for the sinker. With the hook
leader shorter than the sinker line, the baitfish swims off the bottom.
“Many people think they should put the bait on the bottom, but a catfish’
s eyeballs are on the top of its head,” Josh explained. “With the current
running, holding the bait off the bottom makes the bait look more alive even
if it’s nearly dead. We also use lighter line for the weight because flatheads
run to cover when hooked. If they wrap the weight line, we can break it and
still catch the fish.”
While the waterway offers great flathead fishing, it also holds big blue
and channel cats. Some blues exceed 60 pounds. Although most channel
cats weigh less than 10 pounds, a few break into double digits. Not nearly
as finicky as flatheads, blues and channels eat almost anything. Big blues
prefer oily fish and often prey upon shad, sunfish and skipjack. They also
eat night crawlers, crawfish, mussels, cheese, shrimp, livers and almost
anything else they can gulp down. A big blue can easily eat a 5-pound fish,
but frequently takes smaller baits.
To book a fishing trip with one of the Pounders, contact them through
the website teampounders.com.
