Cattin' the Chain

[Rick G]

Got on the lake today at 8am and it was darn cold -18 I think so jumping around looking for fish was not an option. Instead I and my buddie opted to sit in the perm and wait it out and see what would happen. The first couple hours were dead we didnt get the first bite till 10. We stuck it out till 3:30 and in that time we got two smallies both were good size, two catfish( both under 20in) one 16in eye and one tiny crappie as well as a few missed fish. Was using the 1/16oz blue and white frostee spoon with a small live crappie minn. Lots of red on the vexi but more sniffers than eaters today.

[catfreak]

Hey, at least ya got some fish. I was thinking about going out tomorrow around 3 or so, but I don't think draggin my portable across the lake is gonna be any fun till this weekend.

[cloudshadowgrass]

Thanks catfreak! I'm excited to get out there and talk to people that have been on here and pick a few brains. Hope to see you out there!

[catfreak]

No problem. Anybody else that hasn't checked out that link should take a peek. I've never been to the event but it does sound like a lot of fun. Now I've just gotta talk my g/f into making some food for it, seeing as I can't cook and I don't wanna show up empty handed. lol

[duckslayer27]

Cool Cats is a great event!

I am planning on cattin this weekend and was even thinking of trying to spear some cats. I was wondering if anybody has tried this yet. The family ate the last of the fresh fish last night and thought this would be a fun way to keep a few. See ya on the ice.

[cloudshadowgrass]

Yeah I hear you there. Not sure what my wife will make but I know it'll be good. We have been trying to get out but kinda hard this year since she's 7 1/2 months pregnant! Hope to catch some cats!

[Shack]

I am planning on cattin this weekend and was even thinking of trying to spear some cats. I was wondering if anybody has tried this yet.

Good luck with that. Not the clearest water and all of the cats I have found have been close to the bottom in 20' plus feet.

Maybe a long retractable spear pole and an Marcum Camera

[Rick G]

I talked to a guy last week who tryed speering for northerns in the bay I got my house set up in. He said with the heavy snow cover seeing down more than a few feet is imposable. Not that the cats are not there because I have gotten em while fishing for gills in shallow water just not in the numbers that you would find in the deeper water areas.

[MinnesotaMuskie]

I am heading out on Sunday...If any sees a maroon Suburban, pulling a green side/brown roof house, with a couple kids...that is me...stop over show me how it done.

[NELS-BELLS]

Hey MinnesotaMuskie,

I saw in an earlier post that your boys wrestle. I'll bring my son out and we can circle off an area in the snow for the boys to wrestle while you and I fish. He's only a 4th grader but I heard that the Foley wrestling program is really weak this year so it should be an even match.

Seriously though, my son and I went out cat fishing last weekend and we had a blast. A small pink glow jig tipped with the middle portion of a crappie minnow worked for us. Good luck! We might be out on Sunday afternoon after the Annandale tournament.

Nels

[bbesser84]

is there much of a night bite for cats on the chain. I am assuming that since they can be caught all night during the summer this must be possible in the winter as well?

[duckslayer27]

Originally Posted By: duckslayer27

I am planning on cattin this weekend and was even thinking of trying to spear some cats. I was wondering if anybody has tried this yet.

Good luck with that. Not the clearest water and all of the cats I have found have been close to the bottom in 20' plus feet.

Maybe a long retractable spear pole and an Marcum Camera

I will let you know how it works. I talked with a guy last night and he is spearing on cedar in 5 feet of water and has seen a few cats.

[Shack]

Good luck Ducks and let us know how you do.

My experience reading up on channels in the winter on rivers like the Miss. has shown they school up in cooler water. Fishing the chain, this seems to be true also. They come in as a pack. If you find one, their should be more coming behind.

Personally I have not targeted them up shallow, as what I have learned the drops and shelves off of deep holes are where they are at. The water is not that clear, but depending how deep one can spear and still see, I would target the area a top a steep drop to 20'.

Good luck!

[MinnesotaMuskie]

I will also...my boys are 12th, 9th, 6th grade...V/JV at the Kiffmeyer Duals @ Tech on Saturday otherwise we would be out on Saturday. Little guy voted for catfish over a tourney

[NELS-BELLS]

I will also...my boys are 12th, 9th, 6th grade...V/JV at the Kiffmeyer Duals @ Tech on Saturday otherwise we would be out on Saturday. Little guy voted for catfish over a tourney

Good luck at Kiffmeyer Duals. I hope you guys beat Hastings.

[JBMasterAngler]

My fiance will be working at the duals tomorrow...gives me ALL weekend to fish!

[catfreak]

Hey everybody. I think I'm gonna try to spend the day on Horseshoe tomorrow. I'd like to try the southwest bay and earlier on this thread somebody mention an access on the west side of the lake. I looked on google earth and I can't find the access. If anybody can help me with specific roads or directions that would be great. Otherwise I'm just gonna have to drive that way and hope it's easy to find.

[so haaad]

There are no public accesses on Kron's Bay, it's all private property. Drifting snow is making driving out on the chain a little more challenging, even just to the meth hole. 4-wheel drive is a must.

[catfreak]

You mean there's no access on the western part of Kron's Bay?

[catfreak]

Well I found the access on the west side of Horseshoe that supposedly wasn't there. It's a little steep for my car but I might try making it next time I go out. Didn't have a shovel today and there were some pretty monster snow drifts out there.

Riverfishingmiss, do you fish out in that small west part of Kron's Bay? If you do you should send me an email and maybe we can try to get together, I could really use some help. lol. My email is [email protected].

[Rick G]

Just got back from two days up north chasing panfish on a few small lakes I have always wanted to check out with mixed results. I wish I would have stayed home and fished the chain as some of my friends did good on long on sun and again tonight for crappies. The people I let use perm on cedar said they got a few cats on sun. night.

[Rick G]

Cat freak you can make that hill with a car as I have seen it done more than once. Yep I got a house in krons it is the farthest one one the southwest shore un 26fow in a multi species spot. The (access) over there is private property but is not posted. Im not sure who owns it but have seen alot of cars and trucks come down it. I come across from 22 or out from my friends cabin.

[DTro]

Did fairly well today on the cats. Lots of little guys with several nice ones mixed in. Little ones were loving the chicken liver, and the bigger ones preferred sucker minnow.

Biting very lightly, a spring bobber helps with the finiky bite.

It's quite possible you might get to see some of the fish we caught today in the near future.

Nice running into you out there Borch.

[Borch]

The bite really turned on after you guys left. Ended up catching way more cats than we could count. Silly things prefered chicken liver both big and small kitties. Thanks for leaving some behind.

My son got his first cat and many, many more before we headed home around 7:30 tonight. Here a couple of pics with the wrong date date stamped on them. Got that fixed now.

Here's a nice one he got later.

Nice bumping into you guys as well.

[aanderud]

My nephew and I were out last night, we had a blast. Liver was a hot ticket, but mostly smaller fish there and bigger ones on minnows.

[Borch]

Nice putting the smackdown on some kittys. Your nephew looks like a natural.

[aanderud]

Sounds like you guys had a good night. Too many to count, eh? Brandon was definitely counting, he had to break his record of 16 crappies last time I had him out :-)

[Borch]

Well more than a guy could keep track of with the bite the way it was.... I'm pretty sure I could count that high.

[duckslayer27]

Made it out sunday morning after sleeping in and ohh what a weather change can do for cat fishing. It was truly a day to remember. Arrived on the lake at about 9 A.M. and the cats went nuts. The bite was hard and often. Cut bait on a dead stick and a large rattle jig was the ticket. Alot of smaller fish with the bigest goin around 8 pounds. Good to see the different age classes of fish. Seen alot of guys headed to Koetter, how was the ice and the bite.

[50inchpig]

Were the roads in the west basin replowed after the drifting last weekend?