1/24/08
Take advantage of this cold weather and go catfishing
By Terry Madewell

Terry Madewell Photo

Catfish action is good right now for fish in the 5-6 pound class, however a few big fish are being taken as well.

We’re right in the middle of the cold, nasty, dreary days of winter and fishing for many species is slow. But there is one common theme of good news throughout the lakes Marion and Moultrie, as well as most other lakes in the mid-state area. That common theme is excellent catfishing. Winter catfishing has become a very popular sport over the years and there are now many different ways of catching these wintertime catfish.

Depending on the weather and water temperature, the best way to catch catfish will vary right now. When the shad get bunched up tightly at lakes Marion and Moultrie, one productive method that has been a proven tactic for years is to vertically fish over the huge pods of shad.

That doesn’t work all the time, especially in the ever-changing weather patterns of January and February. To consistently stay on fish, there are some other potentially productive patterns. If one doesn’t work, perhaps another one will.

The pattern noted above is to use your graph recorder to look for the huge schools of shad. Once located, you will often mark “big fish” around the edges or just underneath the cloud of forage marked on the graph. That’s usually a good indication that it’s a good place to fish. However, you don’t necessarily have to spot individual fish to catch them. Sometimes the amount of forage is so large that it hides the feeding catfish.

In this situation, you can anchor over the baitfish, drop the bait down to just below the pod of shad, or where fish are marked, and fish. Usually fresh caught shad, using a cast net, make great bait. Hook two or three on a hook and when the fish bites, set the hook.

Sometimes this method simply doesn’t work. The water can get too cold, or the water can get too warm. The wind can blow too hard, and so on. It’s good to have a backup plan or two.

Chuck Porter has been catching a lot of catfish lately and he’s been anchoring and casting bait to the fish. Porter is looking for drops and ledges that give a shallow to deep access for catfish.

“The depth we’ll catch fish seem to vary from one day to another,” Porter said. “Usually, at least recently, the deep water has been where I’m having most success. So that’s where we’re focusing our efforts. But the key seems to be to keep checking different depths and places. I have found the catfish to be biting in the 12-30 foot range, but on different days, they will tend to congregate in a much more specific depth range.

“For example, they may be in a 17-20 foot range one time, but in a 22-25 foot depth range next time,” Porter said. “If you’re not getting bites, stay on the move and try different depths and different places. Eventually, you likely find the right spot and catch several fish from one small area.”

Drifting live bait and as well as cut bait has been another popular method recently. Drifting in the 15-30 foot depth range has produced a lot of action on blue catfish recently. Both lakes Marion and Moultrie have been productive. Most fishermen will drift along the edge of a drop, or over and around underwater humps. But finding forage in the area has been a real key to success as well.

A modified version of this is the controlled drift using the electric motor. Some guides are rigging specifically for drifting by having a 2-3 foot long leader with a two-inch cork float about half on the leader. The slip sinker would be placed above the leader. This will keep the bait near the bottom, but the movement of the drift and the small float, will keep the bait right at eyeball level of a big catfish. This has been an extremely productive method recently. This is true right now not only at lakes Marion and Moultrie, but at Lake Murray and Lake Wateree as well. Both of those lakes now have excellent populations of blue catfish as well as channel catfish. Of course at our home lakes, we also have plenty of big flatheads that bite very well in the winter.

When drifting fish, most experts agree that using bait that stays on the hook well is important. Shad will get fishermen plenty of bites because the catfish are feeding heavy on that forage right now. But shad are easier for the cats to rip off the hook, as well as when the bait is being pulled though the many snags on Lake Marion. Cut perch make great bait for blue catfish that stay on the hook well. Live bait is usually best for flatheads and live shiners have been productive, but fresh cut shad or live shad are also excellent.

As Porter said, the first key to success is to simply get out on the lake and go fishing.

“Sometimes, it may seem easier to do something other than get out in the cold, wet or otherwise nasty weather,” Porter said. “But if I don’t go, I get to thinking about what I might be missing and end up going anyway. So, make a plan to go and then go. Odds are good you’ll catch more catfish that way.”