Okie Noodling profiles the culture and sport of noodling, barehanded fishing.

OKIE NOODLING profiles the culture and sport of noodling, the deep-rooted Southern practice of barehanded fishing. This intimate, and often violent, tradition has its roots in Native American hunting practices and has been passed through generations of southerners for hundreds of years. The Sooner State is one of the last to allow this ancient and controversial fishing technique. Through personal stories of Oklahoma - fisherman, game wardens, noodlers and historians, OKIE NOODLING, a one-hour documentary, gives a voice to this vanishing feature of American rural life. Noodlers dive into creeks, rivers and lakes swimming under embankments in search of catfish nesting holes. As Burkhard Bigler of the Atlantic Monthly explains, “Wading along the shore or diving to the lake bottom, (the noodler) reaches into likely nooks and crevices, wiggling his fingers and waiting for a nip. When it comes, he hooks his thumbs into the attacker’s mouth or thrusts an arm down its throat and waits for the thrashing to stop. If he’s lucky, the thing on the end of his arm is a catfish.” The result is scraped and bloodied limbs and occasionally broken bones. Each noodler bears the scars of the battle.

Okie Noodling

What's This?

What's This?

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Okie Noodling

Release Year: 2001

Duration: 57 min

Availability: Worldwide

OKIE NOODLING profiles the culture and sport of noodling, the deep-rooted Southern practice of barehanded fishing. This intimate, and often violent, tradition has its roots in Native American hunting practices and has been passed through generations of southerners for hundreds of years. The Sooner State is one of the last to allow this ancient and controversial fishing technique. Through personal stories of Oklahoma - fisherman, game wardens, noodlers and historians, OKIE NOODLING, a one-hour documentary, gives a voice to this vanishing feature of American rural life. Noodlers dive into creeks, rivers and lakes swimming under embankments in search of catfish nesting holes. As Burkhard Bigler of the Atlantic Monthly explains, “Wading along the shore or diving to the lake bottom, (the noodler) reaches into likely nooks and crevices, wiggling his fingers and waiting for a nip. When it comes, he hooks his thumbs into the attacker’s mouth or thrusts an arm down its throat and waits for the thrashing to stop. If he’s lucky, the thing on the end of his arm is a catfish.” The result is scraped and bloodied limbs and occasionally broken bones. Each noodler bears the scars of the battle.

Director

Bradley Beesley

Producers

Bradley Beesley - producer

Damon Cook - co-producer

James Payne - co-producer

Cinematography

Ari Palos

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Comments

Posted 09/17/09 by Kimberly

I saw this show about 4 years ago and I thought it was so cool!! I really want to try it but I love my hands entirely too much!!

Posted 08/10/09 by Mike Savi

stop cryin about this fish protecting thier nest i went to school for marine science i still fish every day FAG

Posted 08/10/09 by terrijwolf@aol.com

Shut It! Do you reproduce w/fish?? Sick. What do think INDIANS (your politically ‘correct’lingo: Native /the real Americans-which I’m sure U R not/ have been & still are; doing! If a redneck gets bit- oh well 2 bad, they’re not suing U-there’s no shortage of BOTTOM FEEDERS except 4 people like U. MIND YO B’NESS!!!!!!!!!

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