| Catfishing Articles |
John N. Felsher's Catfishing Adventures
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Catfish offer landlocked anglers
opportunities to catch monster fish
opportunities to catch monster fish
Billy Blakley, a guide for Blue Bank Resort on Reelfoot Lake, Tenn.,
nets a catfish caught by one of his clients. Catfish provide
outstanding sport in most states and can give anglers opportunities
to catch huge fish for little cost.
nets a catfish caught by one of his clients. Catfish provide
outstanding sport in most states and can give anglers opportunities
to catch huge fish for little cost.
Catfish offer landlocked anglers some of their best opportunities to
catch extremely large fish, sometimes exceeding 100 pounds, for little cost.
Most sport fishermen catch three main species of catfish, flatheads,
blues and channel cats. Ornery loaners, flatheads prefer large lakes and
reservoirs with heavy cover, especially wood, but they also thrive in large
rivers. Flatheads can reach 100 pounds or more. Mike Rogers holds the
official world record with a 91-pound, 4-ounce specimen he caught in Lake
Lewisville, Texas, in March 1982.
Blues prefer clean, flowing rivers, but also live in reservoirs. Some of
the biggest blues in the country swim in the Mississippi River and its major
tributaries. Old frontier stories tell of anglers landing blue catfish weighing
more than 300 pounds while fishing in the Mississippi River during the 18th
and 19th centuries. Officially, Tim Pruitt landed a 58-inch, 124-pound blue
near Alton, Ill., in May 2005 to set the world record. It had a 44-inch girth.
Channel catfish look very similar to blue cats, but don’t reach gigantic
sizes. In July 1964, W.B. Whaley landed the world record channel cat, a 58-
pound fish, while fishing in the Santee-Cooper Reservoirs of South
Carolina. Both channel and blue catfish sport forked tails. Channel cats
have thick and fleshy barbels whereas blue cats have thin, light ones.
Voracious predators with distinctive flat foreheads and wide mouths,
flatheads have squared tails.
Because blues and flatheads reach such impressive proportions,
catfish offer big game action to freshwater anglers far from the coast and
on a tight budget. People often pursue them with simple, inexpensive
equipment in a variety of habitats from major lakes and rivers to drainage
canals and city ponds. Highly adaptable fish, catfish can live almost
anywhere, often preferring muddy waters that other fish avoid. Even small
ponds and creeks may harbor enormous catfish.
While blues prefer flowing water and may swim hundreds of miles a
year, flatheads hide like cantankerous hermits in thick wooded cover and
rarely move far from home. Big flatheads burrow into deep holes near
submerged logs in daylight, but at night, they come out to prowl the
shallows around fallen trees or other structure for prey. About 96 percent
of a large flathead’s diet consists of live fish, mostly shad, sunfish, suckers
or other catfish. The rest consists of crawfish and assorted morsels.
For flatheads, fish around major structure at night with live bait. Hook
a squirming shad on a modified Carolina rig. Attach a small egg-shaped
slip sinker two or three feet above the hook. Tie a barrel swivel below the
sinker. To the swivel, tie two to three feet of premium leader attached to a
stout hook. Hook a live baitfish through the lips, tail or under the dorsal fin
and let it swim freely near structure. The slip sinker keeps the bait near the
bottom, but allows the fish to swim naturally. It also allows a big catfish to
gulp a bait while feeling little resistance.
People don’t need to work nearly as hard to find blues and channel
cats. Blue and channel catfish eat almost anything. They prey upon live
fish, but also scour the bottom for scraps. They readily devour fish chunks,
night crawlers, crawfish, cheese, shrimp, commercial stinkbaits, livers,
kidneys, dog food and other morsels. A bait with an odor or that oozes an
oily slick attracts the most cats, which can home in on tasty smells from long
distances.
To concentrate catfish in a small area, many people toss pieces of
liver, dog food, blood or animal entrails into the water as chum. Puncture a
can of cheap dog food and hang it over the side of the boat so that it oozes
meat particles and juices, not enough to feed a catfish, but enough to keep
it interested. During hunting season, many sportsmen throw away pounds
of prime free catfish bait. Deer hunters can freeze kidneys, hearts or livers
from their kills. Waterfowl or bird gizzards, hearts or other entrails make
excellent catfish bait or chum.
Many people believe that they can only catch catfish in the summer.
However, in late fall, catfish become more active, especially big blues.
People often catch the really big blues during the coldest months.
Often, catfish anglers enjoy solitude when pursuing their sport, especially in
the fall. They may find themselves sitting on a big population of large,
feisty whiskered fish with very few competitors, except other big catfish!
catch extremely large fish, sometimes exceeding 100 pounds, for little cost.
Most sport fishermen catch three main species of catfish, flatheads,
blues and channel cats. Ornery loaners, flatheads prefer large lakes and
reservoirs with heavy cover, especially wood, but they also thrive in large
rivers. Flatheads can reach 100 pounds or more. Mike Rogers holds the
official world record with a 91-pound, 4-ounce specimen he caught in Lake
Lewisville, Texas, in March 1982.
Blues prefer clean, flowing rivers, but also live in reservoirs. Some of
the biggest blues in the country swim in the Mississippi River and its major
tributaries. Old frontier stories tell of anglers landing blue catfish weighing
more than 300 pounds while fishing in the Mississippi River during the 18th
and 19th centuries. Officially, Tim Pruitt landed a 58-inch, 124-pound blue
near Alton, Ill., in May 2005 to set the world record. It had a 44-inch girth.
Channel catfish look very similar to blue cats, but don’t reach gigantic
sizes. In July 1964, W.B. Whaley landed the world record channel cat, a 58-
pound fish, while fishing in the Santee-Cooper Reservoirs of South
Carolina. Both channel and blue catfish sport forked tails. Channel cats
have thick and fleshy barbels whereas blue cats have thin, light ones.
Voracious predators with distinctive flat foreheads and wide mouths,
flatheads have squared tails.
Because blues and flatheads reach such impressive proportions,
catfish offer big game action to freshwater anglers far from the coast and
on a tight budget. People often pursue them with simple, inexpensive
equipment in a variety of habitats from major lakes and rivers to drainage
canals and city ponds. Highly adaptable fish, catfish can live almost
anywhere, often preferring muddy waters that other fish avoid. Even small
ponds and creeks may harbor enormous catfish.
While blues prefer flowing water and may swim hundreds of miles a
year, flatheads hide like cantankerous hermits in thick wooded cover and
rarely move far from home. Big flatheads burrow into deep holes near
submerged logs in daylight, but at night, they come out to prowl the
shallows around fallen trees or other structure for prey. About 96 percent
of a large flathead’s diet consists of live fish, mostly shad, sunfish, suckers
or other catfish. The rest consists of crawfish and assorted morsels.
For flatheads, fish around major structure at night with live bait. Hook
a squirming shad on a modified Carolina rig. Attach a small egg-shaped
slip sinker two or three feet above the hook. Tie a barrel swivel below the
sinker. To the swivel, tie two to three feet of premium leader attached to a
stout hook. Hook a live baitfish through the lips, tail or under the dorsal fin
and let it swim freely near structure. The slip sinker keeps the bait near the
bottom, but allows the fish to swim naturally. It also allows a big catfish to
gulp a bait while feeling little resistance.
People don’t need to work nearly as hard to find blues and channel
cats. Blue and channel catfish eat almost anything. They prey upon live
fish, but also scour the bottom for scraps. They readily devour fish chunks,
night crawlers, crawfish, cheese, shrimp, commercial stinkbaits, livers,
kidneys, dog food and other morsels. A bait with an odor or that oozes an
oily slick attracts the most cats, which can home in on tasty smells from long
distances.
To concentrate catfish in a small area, many people toss pieces of
liver, dog food, blood or animal entrails into the water as chum. Puncture a
can of cheap dog food and hang it over the side of the boat so that it oozes
meat particles and juices, not enough to feed a catfish, but enough to keep
it interested. During hunting season, many sportsmen throw away pounds
of prime free catfish bait. Deer hunters can freeze kidneys, hearts or livers
from their kills. Waterfowl or bird gizzards, hearts or other entrails make
excellent catfish bait or chum.
Many people believe that they can only catch catfish in the summer.
However, in late fall, catfish become more active, especially big blues.
People often catch the really big blues during the coldest months.
Often, catfish anglers enjoy solitude when pursuing their sport, especially in
the fall. They may find themselves sitting on a big population of large,
feisty whiskered fish with very few competitors, except other big catfish!
