got another catfish again!

[Santaaa]

I got another one tonight. I landed one that was 24 and half inches long. It was another channel catfish. I got it on another fat head minnow. I was fishing with my girlfriends dad and well he was impressed when I landed that monster fish. I got him cut up in my freezer cause he screwed with me for to long. He had 5 or 6 hooks in him and most of them were mine. My girlfriend said her dad was impressed I knew when they would start hitting and I knew what time they would stop altogether. I don't think that is uncommon for people to sit and wait and fish a spot so much that you know what time they will start hitting and what time it is worthless to fish for what you are after. I use my watch and I started timing around when they would start hitting and when they would just stop and averaged the times and well I have a good idea of when to start and when to stop. I heard catfish are best in Spring and Fall. I can't wait until fall. I am hoping to get some record setting fish. You never know with the way it has been going for me. I know far fetched dream of a state record but who knows maybe with a bit of luck and a few prayers maybe I can break the state record come fall. I am so excited for fall to come and me to hit into even bigger catfish hopefully. I love to fish for catfish. They are so fun. I will get pictures as soon as my girlfriend developes the pictures.
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[mattscru]

Hey buddy it sounds like your turning into a rea catman! And even better than that your starting to learn the fish's habits. When and were they are going to bite is one of the toughest things to master in our sport of angling. Honestly I dont think anyone could ever actually master that. I caught 2 cats fishing for shellcracker on the fourth, one was about 3lbs and the other a pound and a half. But not like the monsters youve been bringng in lately. No you do realize as the seasons change and the water temps change the fish will more than likely move to differant spots and develop differant feeding habits. So just be awhare of that as fall approaches. Keep up the good post and I cant wait to see the pics of that big kitty!

Good Fishing, Matt
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[Santaaa]

Never thought about the temperature changing. Well then I am going to enjoy them while I can and then start hunting for them come fall. I am still new into fishing for fish other than blue gill. Well I know the reason they sit up there is because it is a sloped off spot that goes deep and they can snag food if they come up from the deep on edge where it slopes off into the water and they grab it as I wind the minnow in slowly dragging it on the bottom. I bet they just move out farther where it is deeper. Well you probably know water stays warm deeper and it takes longer for it to cool back down from the summer. Just got to get the line out farther which I can but I don't get any hits until I get closer to where it slopes off all of the sudden. I have yet to get any hits before 6:30 and I don't get them after 9:30. I never thought it was a big deal to know that. Go figure. I was surprised it impressed my girlfriends dad. I mean I did not have hard time figuring it out. Just fish every night for a week and fish when you would normally fish for wha tyou are after then remember the time when they start and what time you get no more hits at all and do it all week. Whatever your earliest hit was for the week start fishing then and quite when you have never gotten a bite past a certain time. Always remember the start times which is easy and always check the time on your last catch and remember it. Keep fishing until they just stop hitting every night for the week always fish for at least an hour after they stop hitting just to make sure. I have tried all sorts of bait minnows are best. Minnows are their favorite food where I fish. Don't ever touch dough baits and don't ever touch chicken liver. I only got one on a nightcrawler an 18 inch one. I got all the rest on fat head minnows. Study the terrain to find them. Do your research on the internet. Look up as much information as you can about them and see what is a concensus among the different pages and generally it is going to work. For example catfish come out early evening. That is a concensus for most all pages I visited. It is agreed that the best time of day is early evening. I know catfish like minnows and they like to wait where the land slopes off and goes deep into the water. They also like the bait to be dragged slowly on the bottom. If you leave it sit they don't bother hitting. My guesss is because the water is very muddy and hard to see and the movement makes it easier to see. Also, from keeping aquariums I learned awhile ago that catfish like smooth bottoms but also like where there are bigger rocks around also for cover along with trees under water. drift wood. If you lose a catfish they will come back just keep fishing where you got your last hit. They always come back for an easy meal. They seem to hit around the same spot. How do I know it is the same fish? I have found my hooks that were on when the line broke still stuck in the fishes mouth. I got to get better at fighting them but learning to fight them without losing them takes time. I lose alot of hooks and sinkers dragging on the bottom as I always hit into rocks and trees. If you aren't losing weights and hooks on trees and rocks you are fishing the wrong spot. If you aren't getting hits move the sinker closer to the hook or farther away from the hook. It will drag the bait closer to the bottom or let it float up a bit higher. Its like using a bobber but reverse idea. Where your sinkers are set is very important. Just like setting your bobber determines how close to surface your bait sits setting your sinker determines how close to the bottom your bait sits. Its why I like removable split shot. It makes it easier to move. Probably most people already knew that moving your sinkers can help get you hits. I have spent hours fishing and hours researching general catfish habits. It is fun. Hopefully they just move farther out where it gets deeper. If not give me a few weeks and I wil find where they went and then I will learn what bait works best again and I will learn what times they start hitting and stop hitting. Also how you tie your hook is important. If you tie it wrong the hook will come undone when you are fighting a fish. I like to take the line stick it through the eye hole and then I like to wrap it around the hook then pull it back through the eye hole then there is a bit of a loop before you pull it all the way tight and I stick it through the loop and pull it tight and then I cross the end of the line with the line above the hook and pull through the loop and I do that three times and then I pull on the hook to pull the knot tight. The harder you pull the tighter it gets. It will not break. As the fish pulls it just tightens the knot. When it has a little give it loosens a bit not alot just a little bit. Then it pulls tight again when the fish trys to run. I have yet to have this knot break. I have had the line break but it is my own fault. I am still learning how to fight them. Give me time and I will get better. Mostly been I set the drag to high or I pull up the fishing pole for too long. I am getting better but I have a ways to go before I am good at fighting them. If I can I am going to get a second fishing pole like I have but with lighter test pound line on it and I am going to go up to this place where there alot of carp and I am going to go there and fight them so I can get better at fighting big fish. It is so much fun fighting that big catfish in last night. I hope I can get another one tonight. I am going to go look for some recipes. I am going to cook some tonight if I can and take some to work with me as the first one I got that was large a woman at work cooked for me. As long as I make it taste good. It may be awhile before I can gets pics as it is on a regular old camera with film.
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[Simp]

the spot i fish the most has a curfew, and you can't be there after dark...crappy lil town. i can go to my friends house and catch catfish, but its in lil closed off ponds, kinda like havin em in a barrel.
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[tubeN2]

Good job on getting the Cat and better job on getting your tackle back from the past.[cool]
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[Santaaa]

try early evening before it gets dark. They bite best early evening not in the dark. I never get hits past 9:30.
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