The thump of a large fish indicated that I had a bite. I set the hook, and the reel screamed as a large catfish took off on a run. After a 20-plus-minute fight, the fish came to the boat, and a big blue catfish was brought aboard for photos; it was then quickly released back into the depths of the Tennessee River for another angler to catch. We caught a couple more big blues before the action slowed.

That fish was the largest catfish I’d ever caught in my life! I have fished with Richard several times over the years, and we always had good luck catching a variety of fish on the Tennessee River.

I was fishing with my old college buddy from Tennessee Tech University: Capt. Richard Simms, owner of Scenic City Fishing Charters in Chattanooga, Tenn. (richard@sceniccityfishing.com). Richard and his team of guides conduct guided fishing trips on Lake Chickamauga and the Tennessee River, as well as Nickajack Lake and the Cumberland River, for a wide variety of fish. Richard specializes in regularly putting clients on big catfish, and we hit them on that day!

We started out fishing right below the tailwaters of the dam of Lake Chickamauga, using light tackle to drift live golden shiners. We caught largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, spotted bass, white bass and catfish. Drifting live bait will also produce striped bass when you are not expecting a striper! I hooked a good one on one of our trips, but unfortunately, I lost it during the long fight. (I messed up! Lol!).

Later in the day, Richard switched to drifting chunks of fresh chicken breasts for catfish (primarily blue cats). We caught a bunch of blues and had a great time. Later, we drifted downstream into deeper holes and fished for the big boys! Latching onto a 30-pound-plus blue will get your adrenaline going full blast!

Richard uses light tackle: a 7-foot, medium-action spinning rod with 8-pound test line. At the terminal end, he attaches a barrel swivel and a 2- to 3-foot section of 20-pound test shock leader, with a 3/0 or 4/0 circle hook. A couple of split shot are attached to the leader about halfway up from the hook. Hook your bait on, cast upstream, and allow it to drift down with the current. Feel for bites as the bait bounces downstream with the current. When the line stops… fish on! Set the hook.

Fishing with live bait and chicken chunks produces a lot of action. Catching fish on the light tackle is fun and exciting! All fish, no matter what the size, put up a great fight in the current, and it is a lot more fun to catch them than on heavier tackle. Using live bait on light tackle also produces a lot of fishing action on a variety of fish, as well as using fresh chicken for catfish.

River current is critical for good fishing. Too much current moves the boat downstream too fast, while too little does not produce a quality drift and can be less effective for catching fish.

Lake Chickamauga and the Tennessee River, as well as Nickajack Lake and the Cumberland River, are excellent places to catch a variety of fish and enjoy a great day on the water all year. Richards sends out a regular Scenic City Fishing Charters email newsletter and has a Facebook page listing current fishing information.

I have used that same rod and reel setup and live bait with rigging to fish on my home waters on the Tennessee River below Kentucky Dam, and the Cumberland River below Barkley Dam. I have caught some big smallmouth bass while fishing off the bank, just below the dams. I always have a ball fishing this method with live bait below both dams. Using live bait is very productive, both on the rivers and up on the lakes. It will produce fish when artificial lures send you home empty-handed.

I have also fished on my home waters with a guide using similar techniques to catch striped bass and white bass below Kentucky Dam and Barkley Dam. Give these techniques a try on your own rivers and catch some fish this season.

Blue catfish and a variety of other catfish can be caught on the Tennessee River and the lakes that make up the chain of lakes encompassed by the Tennessee and Cumberland Rivers. Take a guided fishing trip and enjoy some exciting fishing action this season.