Jump to content
  • GUESTS

    If You  want access  to member only forums on FM, You will need to Sign-in or  Sign-Up now .

    This box will disappear once you are signed in as a member.

tips 4 cats, Backwater???


Recommended Posts

Rusty, the water is terribly low for sure, I think it is about the second lowest I have ever seen it in my life on Monday and Tuesday. Fished Cats on a very windy last Monday with great results in the evening, the last month or so all my Catfishing has been done on deeper runs and holes with adjoining Mussel beds. Frogs and cut Goldeyes or Redtails are all getting fish about equal for me. Find the right spots these days and the Catfish are piled very thick in them.

The Sauger are going nutty these days too. Spent a few hours on Tuesday after a bit of afternoon rain had turned the mud to butter. World's easiest Sauger fishing on the Red that's for sure! We were catching 1 fish on about every 3rd cast or so. Lot's of puny Saugers to sort thru as is the case every year in the late summer/fall. Plenty of fish big enough to keep and eat too.....A Guy would have no problem at all getting a limit of eaters in less than an hour! Actually got bored now and then of catching fish, and I'd set my rod down and walk around a bit picking up sinkers, filled another 2# coffee can easily. After this seasons low water lead collecting I'm not going to need to by any large no-rolls or disc sinkers for quite a few years!!!

Fisky

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Don't expect them to be deep or in bottom of the hole.

They are more likely to be hunting up in 1-3' as the water cools, day or night. Once the water temp dives into the mid to lower 50's they will drop off into the pools. Then concentrate on the fastest breaks on the steepest slides with some cover (Rock or wood) above or below.

Flow and current is not an issue right now. So that means they roam where ever they wish, and far tougher to pattern.

I have had to sit longer on a location to get more bites with this low flow. Inside bends have been good to me, especially shallow tapering flats on inside bends. wink.gif

Good hunting Wiskers.

------------------
Ed "Backwater Eddy" Carlson

Backwater Guiding "ED on the RED"
701-281-2300
[email protected]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Listen to Eddy, go shallow. The tally for the 5 guide boats out of Stu's (Cats on the Red) today was just over 200 and most of them were in the shallow water. These kittie are FAT and I mean FAT. They are trying to make up for the lousy bite they were at the end of August. Hope this keeps up for a couple of wks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fiskyknut, where in the world are you fishing and finding sinkers like that?? Now that might be the next event for a get together like the frog stomp lol lol ...

Thanks Fellas for the tips. I went out this evening from 4-10:00pm. I tried deep, shallow, snags, inlets and up into the Redlake river from the Red and we boated only 4 cats.??? Wow it was tough.. Not too many runs either only missed about 3-4 fish. Nothing big only 6# and down. They were caught in 12 feet of water.

Had suckers, frogs, worms, leaches, steak, shrimp. All 4 fish were on the steak. Two hits on frogs and the rest not a nibble.

Gonna have to bring out the electric fencer soon lol lol

How is the water flow down by you Ed? Up here it takes a leaf 1.5 minuets to drift the length of my boat here... Not like I had time to even think of timing this sort of thing.........Your right about sitting a bit longer, I believe the cats are having to search for your bait rather than the current taking the scent to them. Unless they are activly feeding they are not going to know you are even thare for a lot longer time.

------------------
Wiskers Guiding Service
Red River & Minnesota RIver Channel Cats, Flatheads & Walleyes
Crookston, MN
[email protected]

218-280-0442

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hey Ed and fellow catters. Any thing you been doing to help out with this low water and no current in the river? It's been kinda slow here and can only find early mornings and after dark cats. Suckers have not been doing well at all lately. Frogs and steak are the only thing getting hits along with goldeye. Even they are pretty slow.

Most of the snags I use are now on shore, Deep water seems to not be the spot either.??

These conditions are quite unusual and making it a bit tough to get on cats consistantly.

Any extra tips will be appreciated.

A lot more dead heads in that water then one would expect now that you can see them.. sigh kinda scary we used to race over them.

Thanks a million. Rod tips up.......

------------------
Wiskers Guiding Service
Red River & Minnesota RIver Channel Cats, Flatheads & Walleyes
Crookston, MN
[email protected]

218-280-0442

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I hear ya. Making us catter have to realy work for them kitties as of late.

It's a good but frusterating challenge.


When you stop learning you might as well go home................"confushis says".

------------------
Wiskers Guiding Service
Red River & Minnesota RIver Channel Cats, Flatheads & Walleyes
Crookston, MN
[email protected]

218-280-0442

Link to comment
Share on other sites

BE, have you been across the border as of late? Is that a recent photo from up there? I may be heading up to my cousins place in east Kildonan next week for a bit of fishing.

Rusty, I've been grabbing those weights at the Drayton dam....They're everywhere! I actually found a couple of egg sinkers that are larger than a golfball and I estimate their weight at 8 ounces!!! The deeper runs I'm refering to are 3 or 4 foot max, and these holes are no deeper than 6 to 8 foot with Mussel beds on the front/upstream dropoff. It is about the deepest water around for miles in this area of the river though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

That photo is from back a ways, with a group from Chicago.

Stu's and da-boyz are tearing up the cats right now. If I could be there, I sure would be there.

We plan another trip soon. We are watching the greenbacks and hope to hit them and the cats soon.

------------------
Ed "Backwater Eddy" Carlson

Backwater Guiding "ED on the RED"
701-281-2300
[email protected]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I am thinking that we should plan a trip up to stu's country. A forums gang way of saying Howdy Neighbor.

Wondering how long that fall bite will last up there.??? Sept 26th weekend is rappidly approaching.

Anyone up for the trip???????????

------------------
Wiskers Guiding Service
Red River & Minnesota RIver Channel Cats, Flatheads & Walleyes
Crookston, MN
[email protected]

218-280-0442

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm just on my way out the door, up to LOW for the weekend, but once I'm back, I think I can commit. Looks like a fun time.

------------------
Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If all goes as planned I'm gonna be up that way from Tuesday thru hopefully Saturday of next week. My cousin told me a few days back that the Cats have been biting pretty darn good.

Found some interesting hooks with a little bend where the barb usually is that I'm gonna give a try Catfishing this time instead of squishing barbs on my regular US hooks.

Hopefully we'll find some of them Pickerals too!

Fisky

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pickerels???

Fisky, you DO have some Canuck blood in you, eh?

I'd like to catch a few kilograms of Pickerel and Jack and then go buy a 2-4 at the LC. After that, we'll put our touque's on and take the Ski-Doo's out for a rip eh!

Sorry for those of you who have no idea what that's all abooot!

------------------
Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My mum's a Frostback!!! Her whole side of the family is scattered around Mb. Stienbach, Winnepeg, Selkirk, Bousejour, Gimli, and other little towns here and there. Family has a 'cottage' up near Victoria beach and I have many fond memories going back to the early 70's of fishing up there on Traverse bay and the lower Red with my uncles, catching Jacks, Pickerel, and the occasional 'garbage fish'....Catfish! I was heading up there today for a fishing visit but had to put it off for a day on account of some BS....Bummer, now it's supposed to start raining this week so I may wait another week or so, see what the weather brings. Oh well the Pickerel bite will only get better and better. I got it kinda nice living near LOTW, and having relatives in Mb. that like to fish the Red and the Winnepeg rivers....Pretty much the only waters I fish outside of a trip or three to URL thru the winter. If it was'nt for all these great fishing locales that rarely dissapoint I'd go crazy for sure!!!

Hemlock, I saw your pic on the mainpage, nice fish. You did'nt happen to be in the Wigwam on LOTW around the end of May did you?

Fisky

[This message has been edited by fiskyknut (edited 09-16-2003).]

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Fisky, I was last in the Wigwam in March..late ice, wouldn't of been me in May. I drive through Wanaska regularly on my way up to the lake. That cat was my 1st ever. Tons of fun.

------------------
Hemlock
"Throw'm back"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Guest
This topic is now closed to further replies.


  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • JerkinLips
      41.6°F in Stuntz Bay Thursday morning.  Left my boat in the water to hopefully fish more before the lake freezes.  Caught four 9-11" walleyes in 2½ hours before I gave up due to the strong west wind.  Water level has not gone up more than a couple of inches at the most.  May be a good winter to jack my boathouse out of the water on the deep end.
    • Troy Smutka
      The calendar migrators from the Dakotas have been passing through central MN in trickles the past few weeks, and the recent cooler weather has some Canada ducks starting to show up. We have been harvesting mallards, pintails, gadwalls, wigeon, shovelers, greenwing teal, canvasbacks, redheads, bluebills, and ringnecks in decent numbers.
    • SkunkedAgain
      It doesn't look like the lake level has gone up at all. I was up a week ago and struggled to get my boat in and out of the public landing on the west end of Head O Lakes. I used my paddle to push the boat further out to deeper water. I could hear the hull moving over the sandy/muddy bottom near the launch.
    • JerkinLips
      Pretty tough.  Was catching about 2 walleyes per hour and the biggest was only 13".  Back up Thursday so I hope I have better success.
    • smurfy
      the kid and I always check our stands prior.......i'll go back to check the conditions of said stands before he gets there to see what we need. while i'm at it if i can i shoot at grouse with shells that appear to not have bb,s in them!!!!🙄
    • LakeofthewoodsMN
      On the South Shore...  With unseasonably warm weather, there are still some anglers hitting the water and most have been rewarded.  Limits of walleyes and saugers being caught, and the forecast looking ahead is favorable. The best bite on the south end of LOW has been in 22-28 feet of water. Water temperatures are dropping and as the temps cool further, the bite has been excellent.     Vertical jigging with frozen emerald shiners has been the program for most anglers.  Bring plenty of bait, as you’ll need to sort through some smaller fish and short biters.  Plenty of eater fish to be had, just have to do a bit of sorting.  Anglers are also reporting very good numbers of jumbo perch and occasional pike mixed in with the walleyes.     For those fishing structure, if you slide up on top of a rock pile, don't be surprised to catch a big smallmouth bass, there are plenty around.   This week’s hot colors have been gold, gold/glow white, gold/chartreuse, gold/orange, and gold/glow white/pink.     One tip, a stinger hook on your jig will catch you more fish if you start missing too many fish. On the Rainy River...  Bait dealers are reporting good numbers of shiners in the river this past week.  Interesting, each night is different.  Some areas have the small shiners called pinheads.  Other areas have the larger minnows.     The river is producing some nice walleyes in various spots from Four Mile Bay to Wheeler's Point, to Baudette all the way to Birchdale.  There are 42 miles of navigable Rainy River from the mouth to Birchdale with plenty of public boat ramps along the way.     Walleyes are being caught in various depths, but 15-25 feet of water has been good.   Jigging with live or frozen emerald shiners has been highly effective. Some anglers are also trolling crankbaits to cover more ground and find fish. Both methods are producing solid results. Sturgeon fishing has been strong.  The catch-and-release sturgeon fishing is open into the spring when it changes to the "keep season" on April 24th. Up at the NW Angle...  Fall fishing continues to be excellent. Points, neck-down areas with current, shoreline breaks, and transition zones from rock to mud are all productive locations for walleye right now.   It is traditionally a mixed bag up around the many islands in this part of the lake and this fall is no different.  In addition to walleyes, pike, jumbo perch, and crappies are in the mix.  A jig and minnow has been the most effective presentation. Good muskie fishing is the norm during the fall of the year and area reports have been good.  In addition to casting, trolling shorelines, points and neckdown areas has been effective.  Muskies are often targeting schooling tullibees this time of year. The weather forecast for the next couple of weeks is conducive for fall fishing.  If you don't deer hunt, or if you have harvested your deer, consider some bonus walleye action before the ice forms.  The bite continues to be excellent.    
    • leech~~
    • gimruis
      I'm not one to leave that to chance the day I need it.  I always check on my stands prior to the season.  Just like I always shoot my rifle before the season and I always run my outboard motor before fishing opener.  Too many things to go wrong without confirming it ahead of time.   I guess it could have been beavers but the house itself didn't appear nearly big enough along one ditch.  It was about the size of chair.  I've seen beavers houses many times before and they appear much bigger than that.
    • leech~~
      Good thing you made a check run.  That would have really suked walking into opening day.  Why do you think muskrats and not beavers?  
    • gimruis
      Well I checked on stands over the weekend.  Kind of a disaster.   All the ditches are plum full and twice as wide becauase muskrats have clogged an area.  I spent an hour unclogging it and the water is slowly moving again, but our bridges and planks were underwater.  The back portion of the land where the best stand is was inaccessible.  Hopefully that changes by Saturday.  I have a feeling the muskrats are just going to clog it back up again.   Tons of standing corn still too.  They've started on it, but being so wet now with more rain coming, whatever's there will remain there for the foreseeable future.   All the grassland is completely flattened like a pancake due to 3-4 inches of heavy wet snow.  That eliminates about 75% of the pheasant habitat in this spot.  Total buzz kill.  And this specific spot was one of my better producers last season because the grass was intact and lush through December last year.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.