That was no catfish on the end of the line

Maybe you could be fishing for channel cats and pull in a new state record hybrid striped bass. That’s exactly what happened to Richard Knisley of Washington Court House on May 24.

“I was fishing for catfish in the shallow water of the lake near the creek at Deer Creek,” said Knisley, 41, a truck technician in Jeffersonville. “When it hit, I thought it was a big channel cat.”

He was obviously after a bit cat, since he was using a spinning rod with 15-pound test monofilament line, baited with cut shad.

“When I got it close to shore, I could tell it wasn’t a catfish,” he added. “It weighed 20 pounds on my scale, but it was still in my net.”

When he had the fish weighed on the certified scale at the Kroger in Washington Court House, the official weight of the fish was 18.32 pounds. The old record for a hybrid striped bass (a cross between a white bass and a striped bass) in Ohio was 17.68 pounds, caught by Rosemary Shaver, also at Deer Creek, in 2001.

Although only weight is used to determine the record, Knisley’s hybrid striper measured 31.75 inches long and 24.5 inches in girth.

Debbie Walters, fish management supervisor at the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s Xenia office, checked over Knisley’s catch and certified it as the new record. They then sent the paperwork to Fred Snyder of the Outdoor Writers of Ohio, which records all state record fish.

For more information on the Ohio state record fish, visit outdoorwritersofohio.org.

Closed doors: I know this doesn't have much effect on people from this area, but I got a bit of bad news the other day when I found out Lunkers had closed. Lunkers was a large tackle store — hunting and fishing, etc. — located in Edwardsburg, Mich., for 30 years. It also had a fine restaurant called Anglers Inn, but the owners couldn't keep it afloat, financially.

Since my son lives in that area, called Michiana, Lunkers was a frequent stop when we visited. I make it a point to buy most of my tackle from shops around the Miami Valley, but I did shop at Lunkers to buy a Michigan fishing license, live bait and maybe some hooks or sinkers.

Two South Bend businessmen are trying to raise money ($1.5 million) to help the owners reopen. Check it out at helplunkerscrowdfunding.com.

The real tragedy is Lunkers was the place to buy the best Bloody Mary I have ever seen or tasted. Now, possibly, it’s gone forever.