This doesn’t quite fit your problem but could be of use.
I had some catfish disappear years ago. They were older than yours though.
When trying to figure out what happened, I was told catfish are very particular about where they spawn
The guy that came out and looked at our pond said they...
I used to fish a local lake from the bank a ton. Never caught much.
Started killing it when I put the kayak in. It's very enjoyable.
Get a one hand paddle for slight steering corrections one handed. Kinda like a big ping pong paddle.