If you've never spent a weekend camped on the bank of a creek, running trotlines or limblines or just fishing with your usual rods and reels, you may find that it's a great way to spend a couple of summer evenings -- and it can fill your freezer with some tasty catfish filets!

Oklahoma doesn't offer as much in the way of public stream access as do some neighboring states, so getting to the hotspots at lots of streams will require you to be on pretty good terms with a landowner. But it can be worth the effort: Such private spots sometimes feel almost no fishing pressure for months or years at a stretch.

And many streams are readily accessed by the public; even spots that get considerable fishing pressure can still be worthwhile. Stream fish tend to redistribute themselves up and down the streams as fishing pressure and other factors affect fish populations.

You can catch catfish all year long in Oklahoma, but summertime is one of the most enjoyable times for fishing in streams -- truly is a fishing activity in which the whole family can participate.