Help on the chain

[mrpike1973]

Hi guys,

Was out last weekend by koetter island got 4 cats that was it.

Has it been slow? and should I be fishing shallow or deep.

Not looking for your spot just general depth. Used to hammer them but the last 2 years have not been worth it lately.

[Rick G]

Shallow....sometimes very shallow. Try casting to large brushpiles along shore. This time of year, i prefer to use a weighted hook and a float. Keep the bait up off the bottom.

[mrpike1973]

Thanks for the tips Rick! I have been live bait rigging. the float I have not tried but will now. Thanks again

[Coleman]

What Rick said....but if you're looking for Cats, just find banks with nice drop offs and downed trees.  Floats with a circle hook tipped with a crawler or basically anything Gulp works great.  

I also fish East Lake a lot when fishing is slow for Walleye and Bass.  I catch tons of cats in those shallow muddy bays.  Just find pockets with no weeds and cast your float into those areas.  It's pretty shallow, I mean like 2 feet deep.  But, with all the warm temps the weeds are pretty crazy this year, so I've only fished it a couple times this year.  Both times were pretty successful.  

One thing I've noticed over the past two years is the quality of cats has been on the increase.  I'm not catching nearly as many small fish, and more of the 4-7lbs fish range.  Not catching as many fish either.  So, I'll take that.  Catching these fish on a 7'6" Light action rod is a blast.