Did a little Catfishing this summer

[FlyTyingPhotographer 0]

This year was a busy year for me workwise and I haven't had much time to get out and do any fly fishing. I did manage to get out at night after work a few times to do a little Catfishing. These are a few shots of a 26 1/2" Channel Cat that I caught in August on the Schuylkill River in Pottstown, Pennsylvania. There's also a few shots of rigs that I use in the river for catfish. The Spin-N-Glo is a steelhead rig. But, It works great for cats when there's enough current to turn the blades. The Spin-N-Glow floats. So, It keeps the bait off the bottom. But, It takes a heavy sinker to hold it in place. I usually use a 1 to 1 1/2 oz. sinker and about a 2 1/2 foot leader connecting the Spin-N-Glow rig. I also use heavy baitcasting rods that were designed for Musky fishing and 20 to 40 lb. braided line. When the River is low and there's not enough current, I use a different rig than the Spin-N-Glow. This particular cat took a hot dog. I generally use either hot dogs or frozen Smelts with the Spin-N-Glow rig. I turned a 32" Channel Cat loose 2 years ago that I caught on a Smelt. The 26 1/2 was also released. There were 45 and 65 lb. Flathead Cats taken from the Schuylkill recently. You'll either want to stay close to your rod or use a reel that has a bait clicker that allows the fish to run with the bait like on the Garcia Ambassadeur 6500. Cats this big can pull a rod into the water with no trouble whatsoever.

 

 

 

 

Now this was tricky photography. Because I was by myself and had nobody to hold a flashlight while I focused the camera. This was done with a Yashica FX-3 Super 2000 manual focus film camera. I used the light from a headlamp I was wearing to focus the lens in complete darkness at 3:00AM. The lens was a Yashica 50mm F1.9, Kodak Portra 800 film and Vivitar 283 flash.

[FlyTyingPhotographer 0]

Anybody ever try fly fishing for catfish ? Believe it or not, I have an idea for a catfish fly.

[sniksoh 0]

Believe it or not, I have an idea for a catfish fly.

 

does it resemble a hot dog

 

just kidding.

 

yes i do some catfishing at night when i cant see my fly. ha ha

 

some days me and a couple buddies will find a creek and chub fish for about an hour and catch a couple dozen chubs. we usually slit the bellies and put them in the freezer and fish them that night, but my uncle told me when he was younger him and his friends made stink bait by chopping the chubs into little cubes and putting them in a mason jar. after that the burried the jar in a hole underground and let it sit for about a month. then when your ready to fish just dig it right up and go. i was thinking about that but i hate using stink bait...it stinks really bad believe it or not.

 

i have seen some flies for catfish most of them resemble an eel or a leech.

 

this is me a few years ago when i had long hair lol. i caught this one out of a urban pond on a nightcrawler.

Nathan069.bmp

 

sniksoh

[smallieFanatic 0]

great fish!

i've never tried catfishing with a fly

[FlyTyingPhotographer 0]

I was thinking about pulling the synthetic stuffing out of an old couch that's falling apart and tying some flies with it. I could call them "Couch Potato Flies". Anyway, I'm thinking a glob of this stuff tied on a big hook in the shape of an egg and soaked in beef blood should be a killer Catfish fly. Wrapping it with fine wire should keep it together fairly solid. Fished dead drift in the slow runs of creeks and rivers, along the bottom, I'd bet the Cats would take it. You'd have to have a jar of beef blood to resoak the fly. When I was about 18 I worked for a few weeks at a slaughterhouse and there was some guys that came by and wanted a container of blood. They gave it to them free of charge and when they were asked what they wanted it for, they said "We're going shark fishing and we're using it for chum to attract sharks." I would bet it would attract Cats as well. You might need a hefty rod to toss a big glob of this stuff. Like an 8 or 9 weight rod. But, then you'd need that kind of muscle to fight a big cat anyway.

[Brian Brown75 0]

Cat fishin is my seconf favorite besides fly fishing i use a dead night crawler dipped in stink bait and tied to a dock support over night and 80 percent of the time theres a catfish on there i also like dropping a minnow and night crawler under the dock then read a magazine til they bite

[FlyTyingPhotographer 0]

Yeah, Catfish aren't particularly fussy. They'd probably try to eat a brillo pad if you soaked it in blood or stink bait. I once saw a picture of an enormous catfish that had a basketball stuck in it's mouth. It tried to eat a basketball that was floating on a lake and it got stuck. Someone posted a picture of it on the Internet. The fish was still alive when they found it. The basketball was removed and the fish turned loose. That was a lucky fish, because it surely would have died had it not been found.

[lykos33 0]

Yeah, Catfish aren't particularly fussy. They'd probably try to eat a brillo pad if you soaked it in blood or stink bait. I once saw a picture of an enormous catfish that had a basketball stuck in it's mouth. It tried to eat a basketball that was floating on a lake and it got stuck. Someone posted a picture of it on the Internet. The fish was still alive when they found it. The basketball was removed and the fish turned loose. That was a lucky fish, because it surely would have died had it not been found.

 

 

In some parts of North Florida and Alabama and Georgia folks wade the rivers and stick white towels or diapers into old sunken logs. The huge(100 lbs plus sometimes) cats bite onto it, they are then pulled out...or rather "rasseled" out...Being from the land o' gators...I ain't stickin my hand in no sunken logs.... :scared:

[lykos33 0]

Yeah, Catfish aren't particularly fussy. They'd probably try to eat a brillo pad if you soaked it in blood or stink bait. I once saw a picture of an enormous catfish that had a basketball stuck in it's mouth. It tried to eat a basketball that was floating on a lake and it got stuck. Someone posted a picture of it on the Internet. The fish was still alive when they found it. The basketball was removed and the fish turned loose. That was a lucky fish, because it surely would have died had it not been found.

 

 

In some parts of North Florida and Alabama and Georgia folks wade the rivers and stick white towels or diapers into old sunken logs. The huge(100 lbs plus sometimes) cats bite onto it, they are then pulled out...or rather "rasseled" out...Being from the land o' gators...I ain't stickin my hand in no sunken logs.... :scared:

[Fishkill 0]

The catfish that I have caught (uasually when the waters running slow) In rivers go after crawfish and baitfish pattern bass flies. A catalpa worm bugger too. Its uasually an accident though..But for a split second Im always shure its a big black or striped bass!

[tidewaterfly 0]

I like to fish for them too, and use heavy bait casting outfits also. I've caught channel cats on flies many times while fishing for other species, and have occasionally caught them on crankbaits & spinnerbaits, while bass fishing. I once caught a blue catfish that was over 10 lbs on a small spoon & ultra light spinning rod while fishing for crappies. That was fun!

[FlyTyingPhotographer 0]

I caught channel catfish on spinnerbaits while I was bass fishing and I have a friend that caught a 10 lb. flathead cat on a plug while trolling for muskies. They will chase lures !

[Frogfish 0]

I've only caught catfish on cut bait. My PB channel is 38.5"

[letumgo 0]

Here a cat fish I caught last summer on a simple leech pattern.

 

http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php?sho...&hl=catfish

 

 

[FlyTyingPhotographer 0]

Nice Fish !