Your Questions About Fishing Tips For Catfish

admin answers:

Well catfish prefer fresh baits like cut bluegill , shad , shiners, chubs, and suckers. Also chicken liver, and fresh shrimp work well. You can make it simple catfishing just use the bait I mentioned , a size 1 hook , a sliding weight about 1 foot above the hook. Cast it out and let it sit .

Catfish like deeper water in the day and come into the shallow water to feed at night. I prefer night fishing but day or morning fishing is good also

here is some more info that should be easy to understand

I cut bluegill or fish across their body in pieces about an inch wide like fish steak peices bigger chunks for bigger catfish . Use a fairly large hook size 1 or bigger depending on the size and type of catfish your after, for big cats I use up to a 4/0 size hook with a bigger chunk of bait or live bait.

For flathead catfish I recommend live bait such as live bluegill or shiners.

I fish for cats on the bottom most of the time but channel cats often hit cut bluegill using a bobber , I like to have the bait 3 to 4 feet under a bobber if I am fishing with one.

I use a bottom rig with about 2 feet of leader and them use a small styrafoam float about 5 inches from the hook. This way your bait is floated about 2 feet off the bottom it works excellent.

The leader length will vary depending on the bottom . If its grassy use a longer leader . If its a Mud bottom I like a 18 inch leader from swivel to the hook. Grassy bottom 2 feet or more. I put a small float about 5 inches from the hook . This floats the bait off the bottom and cats see it easily and grab it.

You need to use the proper size hooks and sinkers for the type and size of cats your fishing for. I use a 1 oz or larger sinker when fishing with live bluegills for the big cats. And a 1/2 oz sinker for cut bait ,for channels and blue catfish. Use as small of a float as possible . Just enough to keep bait off the bottom and visible to the cats. I like the styrofoam floats . They can be cut to just the right size.

Keep a tight line and good fishing
here is a rough drawing of my catfish rig
http://tinypic.com/29ld89y.jpg

admin answers:

Read about it in field and stream while you are sitting on a tropical beach.

admin answers:

Hey brian, catch a blue gill cut it up in chunks and use that for cat fish. Just caught two 7+lbs with that sunday afternoon. North lake, east side. Also I got hits on power minnows the little blue and green ones a lot of small bass in the lake 3-4 inches. There is still a lot of flotsam so rig weedless or with the sinker on the bottom.

admin answers:

Channel cats are fun. Night time is when they eat most. I fished off the bottom using frozen anchovies or shad. Cut them up when they are froze and let them thaw a little. That way the stink will be more effective in the water and the cat will be easier to hook because the bait is soft. Or you can thaw them a little bit before you fish but cutting them up while they are thawed will be more messy. I hold my pole at all times so i can feel the bite right away, its better this way because sometimes cats can be picky and drop the bait after they feel the hook. The bigger ones are more likely to be ‘leader shy’. Believe it or not, i caught a channel cat during the DAY, off of a CRANKBAIT. Supposavely they are very predatory fish and are known to actually HUNT contuary to what people always say they are bottom feeding scavangers.

admin answers:

If you can, book a day with a local guide. To my understanding there are no bad guides around Sac, just some that are better. They have to give value or fail in business. One day will give a tremendous jump start on leaning about the delta and stripers.

If a guide is not in the cards, go to a local bait shop and ask questions about what has been working currently.

The heavy weight sounds wrong for most places. Maybe they are talking about the deep ship channel where there is a strong current and the bait or lure must go to the bottom. A variety of sinkers to 4 ounces should be enough to fish most waters. The less weight practical will give a better feel of when a fish takes.

Check the “Fish Sniffer’ web site or print copy at local news stands.

Good luck