River Rumors: Three Generations, One Record Catfish

River Rumors: Three Generations, One Record Catfish

By Keith “Catfish” Sutton

A summer evening on the Ohio River turned into a memory three generations of one West Virginia family will never forget when 28-year-old Tyler Harmon landed a 72.75-pound blue catfish, the new West Virginia state catch-and-release record.

Harmon, of Ravenswood, West Virginia, had originally set a much more modest goal for the summer: catch a blue catfish weighing more than 50 pounds. Instead, a spontaneous fishing trip with his 4-year-old son, Walker, and his father, Rodney, produced a fish that shattered that goal and established a new state record.

“Last night I decided to take my boy and my dad out to do some fishing on the Ohio River,” Harmon wrote on his Facebook page following the catch. “I had a goal this summer to catch a catfish bigger than 50 pounds. Little did I know I would set the new state record for a blue catfish.”

The three-generation fishing trip took place the evening of Aug. 28 as daylight faded over the Ohio River near Ravenswood. According to Outdoor Life, the family launched their 18-foot aluminum boat, moved to an area of slower current and put out four catfish rods baited with cut creek chub minnows. The family had been fishing for less than an hour when one of the rods bowed.

“We hadn’t been fishing very long before when one of our rods bowed, I picked it up, and I knew it was a big catfish,” Harmon told Outdoor Life. “We were just trying to get a small catfish for my 4-year-old son to fight when a huge one took our bait.”

Harmon said the battle lasted approximately 20 minutes. Fishing with 40-pound-test line, he had to contend with submerged brush as well as the boat’s anchor line while trying to keep the fish under control.

When the fish finally surfaced, Walker wasn’t convinced his dad had hooked a catfish.

“Whenever it surfaced the first time, my boy saw it and started flipping out thinking it was a shark,” Harmon told WOWK.

The fish eventually came alongside the boat, where Rodney netted it and the father and son worked together to get the giant aboard.

“We sat there looking at it for a few seconds, and I realized that it might be big enough for a state record,” Harmon told Outdoor Life.

The family weighed the fish on a scale they had with them, then knew they needed an official weight. Because it was late in the evening, however, getting a certified weight immediately wasn’t possible.

Their next challenge was keeping the fish alive.

Harmon said they loaded the blue catfish into a livestock tub in the back of a pickup and eventually took it to D&D Bait Shop, owned by his friend Seth Rhodes. The shop had a large aerated bait tank where the fish could be safely held overnight.

“It was about midnight, and we knew we couldn’t report it to the state fisheries folks until the next morning, Harmon said.”

The following day, West Virginia fisheries biologist Ryan Bosserman arrived at the bait shop to officially measure and weigh the fish. The blue catfish measured 48.15 inches in length, with a 33.5-inch girth, and weighed 72.75 pounds on certified scales.

The weight was enough to establish a new West Virginia catch-and-release blue catfish record, surpassing the 71-pound fish caught by Michael Ramey in May. Ramey’s fish was also caught from the Ohio River near Ravenswood.

For Harmon, the significance of the catch went far beyond the record.

“Knowing that three generations was on my boat to experience this once in a lifetime catch, is a memory I will remember forever,” he wrote on Facebook.

The experience also made an impression on young Walker.

“We were just kind of out there hoping to catch a small catfish for my boy to reel in,” Harmon told WOWK. “We got it in the boat, and he turned to my dad, and he said, ‘Papa, that’s a big fish.’”

Harmon hopes the experience sparks the same passion for catfishing in his son that he has developed over the years.

“I hope he remembers it and has the same passion that I do for it,” Harmon said. “And hopefully, he’s there for the next one or [he] catches the next one.”

The record-setting blue catfish was caught on a HellCat rod made by Catch The Fever. The company has a promotion offering a cash prize to anglers who break a state record while using its gear or wearing its apparel. Catch The Fever later confirmed on social media that Harmon’s catch qualified for a $20,000 prize.

As for the record fish, Harmon chose to return it to the Ohio River.

“The tackle shop is right near the Ohio River, so after it was weighed on certified scales I released it near where it was caught,” Harmon said.

He may eventually have a replica mount made, but the memory of the catch is already one that won’t need much embellishment.

“I had a goal this summer of catching a fish over 50 pounds, and I pretty much shattered that goal,” he said.

And apparently, shattering one record has only created another goal.

Harmon now has his sights set on West Virginia’s flathead catfish record—a mark that has stood for approximately 70 years.

After one unforgettable evening with his father and son, it seems the record chase is just beginning.