Posted on 07/21/2005 10:39:06 AM PDT by nickcarraway
SIX MILE — A 52-pound flathead catfish caught in Hartwell Lake didn’t survive long as a family pet.
The mammoth creature hauled in by Clarence Reid died just days after the fish, dubbed "Big Fin," was placed inside a 2,100-gallon decorative yard pond with a waterfall and nearby gazebo.
The fish received notoriety earlier this month in media services from as far away as India for landing in the Creek Bend Drive pond and not the family’s skillet.
Mr. Reid said he could not bring himself to fry up what became a pet. A family funeral was held for the catfish. "Zach really liked having him around," Mr. Reid said. "We couldn’t eat him."
Zachary McAlister, 7, Mr. Reid’s cousin and a student at Six Mile Elementary, was fishing in a Keowee River section of Hartwell Lake with Mr. Reid and nephew Austin Reid, 13, a student at Westminster Middle School, when the monster fish took a bite out of the cut bait.
It took a 30-minute battle to get the catfish in the boat, but the short ride home was enough for the fishermen to forget their hunger pangs and to let their newfound love for the animal persuade them to put the prize in the pond. "I named him Big Fin," Zach said.
Zach still has plenty of pets around the Reid house, including dogs, cats and a goat.
Mr. Reid’s wife, Deborah, said the fish was ugly, but it could stay in the pond. If it got too big for the pond, Ms. Reid said she was going to get a new, bigger pond.
Mr. Reid said he still is trying to catch a bigger catfish, at night, to avoid the sweltering hot days, but the late thunderstorms can be a bit unnerving.
"I don’t mind the rain so much. It’s that thunder and lightning that you don’t want to be around," Mr. Reid said.
The state record flathead catfish tips the scales at 79 pounds, 4 ounces. The record has been on the books since 2001, when Jessica Preston of Gilbert hauled in the fish from the Santee Diversion Canal.
Kind of reminds me of a swimming pool story I heard once...LOL
Couldn't have been as ugly as your one eyed monster! I just can't imagine hauling in a catfish that big. I sure would love to net one that big for you babe!
Should have just taken pictures and turned it loose to begin with. Not everyone gets a chance to tangle with a 52 lb fish.
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