In the deep blue lakes of Casa Grande, Arizona lurks a mysterious phenomenon known for keeping anglers and spectators nervous with curiosity. Of course I am speaking of the one and only Bologna Catfish… I am just messing with you, at least partially. The Bologna Catfish does not exist, however I did find out you can catch catfish using the mystery meat as bait!
I was visiting my grandparents in their snow bird home in Casa Grande a few weeks ago. Exploring Grand Canyon National Park, wandering through the Phoenix Desert Botanical Gardens, catching a Diamondback’s game and spending some quality time with family filled our schedule but there is always some time to sneak in a little fishing. Luckily my grandparents are fortunate enough to live right on a little man-made lake. The odds of catching a worthwhile fish in this chemically blue-dyed lake were slim, but you can’t beat the beautiful scenery.
After sitting for a short time we began to grow anxious for a bite. With nothing exciting happening we began to reel in and call it a day. Before our lines left the water my grandma, who I thought was joking, mentioned we ought to try some bologna. We contemplated the idea and thought, “Why not?” So we went to the fridge and dug into the lunch meat drawer pulling out an old, open package of sliced bologna.
My cousin and I joked around as we baited our hooks. We tried folding pieces in half, mashing it into a Power Bait-like ball, even trying to shape pieces like minnows trying to find the best way to get the odd bait to stay on during a cast. Quickly we learned there wasn’t a perfect way to do it, so we settled on just getting it on the hook and gently throwing our lines right off the broken down pontoon boat we were fishing from.
Then we waited…but not for long. Within 5 minutes I had felt the tip of the pole whip sharply and I pulled back to set the hook. I reeled in steady and true but had no clue what was fighting me. Reaching over the boats railing we netted the catch and brought the fish on deck. We were shocked to see it was a catfish! Maybe the whiskered fish was popular for the area but I had no clue. Honestly that was the first time I had even seen a catfish in person. So we took our photos and dropped the fish back in the water and just stood dumbfounded. Bologna? Seriously? Who knew it would make such a good bait?
We caught two or three more catfish that day even some small mouth bass using that old meat. Jokes were told, beer was drank and bologna-eating fish were caught. All-in-all it was a strange but fulfilling day of fishing.
So what did I learn?
- Listen to the locals and if it sounds crazy, try it.
- Fish wherever you can because who knows whats lurking in that water
Chad can be summed up by his idea of a perfect day: Waking up early to watch the sunrise over the mountains, warm cup of coffee in hand then grabbing his camera and fly rod, hitting the trail to explore some uncharted territory followed by cold beers and campfire steaks. Chad is often joined on his adventures by his wife, Tori, and their dog, Kona.