CATFISH I’ve seen the light.

[Guest]

After the Cool Cats on the ice gathering Icehawk talked myself and Wigeon into targeting Catfish Saturday morning. We fished a 40-foot hole on the chain from 7:30 – 11:00. Unbelievable is about the only way to describe the action. All three of us had continuous action for 3.5 hours. We were jigging in 25 – 40 feet of water with fish showing up from 15 feet down to the bottom. The fish seemed to hold a little more consistent in 40 feet of water. We managed a few nice fish 4 – 5 pounds, I say nice because they were the nicest of the day and I haven’t fished cats much. Numbers were the amazing thing. I quit counting after 20 and all three of us agreed we iced well over 80. I would compare it to a good sunfish bite with a lot more pull. It was a memorable day with a few pictures and all the fish going back in the lake.

I might be hooked!!!!!!!

[Mark Christianson]

So I am not the only one!!!
I was dangling stuff in front of Cats about a week ago on the Horseshoe Chain for the first time. I had no idea what to expect.
Better than any darn walleye fishing I have done through the ice hands down.
Same details for us.
25-35 ft of water, fish anywhere from 15ft to the bottom, and nearly non-stop activity for 3+ hours.
An absolute gas. Although, fishing on 4 inches of ice was a little nerve rattling when there is 20+ inches not too far away.

[jlm]

I love catching 'em but I hate touching 'em. Any advice to us poor fisherman who are scared of eel pout and cats...not to mention snakes, eels, and anything else long skinny and slimy? I never fish them in the Winter but in the Summer I usuall grab them with a plyer and pull the hook out. I never touch 'em. Glad to hear you guys had some luck!

[Mr. Pike1]

I share your views on cathing cats threw the ice. I have fished for many many years and I have always been for the most part a catch and release guy who loved the thrill of the chase and the bending of a pole. I have spent far to many hours on far to many lake chasing walleye's threw the ice to only bend the stick a few times. What makes the horseshoe chain a unique fishery is that you can have outstanding catfish action during the day followed by a nice quality crappie bite with the occassional bonus walleye mixed in. You also may get into into a school of rock bass which are a blast threw the ice as well.

[andy j]

I miss fishing those cats, was one of the first ones to do it out their, I just moved to duluth and have not got any info about iceing cats out of the st. lous river. Jlm, there are a few ways handle cats, the easyest is to just lip them like a bass, they are harmless, just carefull with the dorsal fin. There are catfish every where in that chain, ceder island was real clear last spring, you could see down 15 feet, I kid you not, There were cats all over the place, fun thing to do in the spring, see lots of fish, huge carp, cats, and walleyes to.

[Royce Aardahl]

Now that sounds like fun! Got a bunch a few years back under the ice down by the 10th street dam in St. cloud. So if I were to head to the chain what would be a good area to start looking. Thanks!

[feverpetal]

Yeah, you can pretty much just grab 'em by the lip, they're ugly but fairly harmless. There's a thing called "noodling", where these guys wade into the river and find the holes that the big cats dig into, and they just dive down, stick their hand into the catfish's mouth, and pull them up. They don't have real teeth, just kinda like sandpaper. PBS had a special about two weeks back called "Oklahoma Noodling", didn't watch it, but you can find pictures online of guys holding up fish near as big as they are.

fp

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"Cast riiiiight....there."

[Guest]

eyeguy
I am by no means a expert on fishing Cats but from what I've been told the best place to start are the deeper holes in the chain. Lots of guys fish near the Meth hole on Horseshoe there are plenty of Cats there but they have been pressured and are a bit more difficult to catch. I guess I would look for a different hole that might hold cats but might not see as much pressure.

[BT3]

Now that sounds like a fun new adventure. How far is the chain from Big lake? If any one would like to meet up and give a few pointers sometime this year ye let me know I have all the gear needed but this would be very new to me. This weekend would not work I am selling the ice house and need to stay close to home just incase a buyer wants to look at it. That and the Pike are really bitting the last few days. Do most guys jig with one hole and use a bobber rig in the other or do you guys use tip ups I bet a tip up would really add to the fun as well. Some one buy my shack so I can go on Sunday.

[jlm]

Bring your shack with, maybe one of the guys on the lake will take her off your hands!

[IceHawk]

For catching cats a variety of things will work. For aggressive cats I use spoons, weasels,pimples,buck-shots and of course my favorites Glow Devils. I usally pinch off the head of a fathead or shiner, basically fishing them like a walleye. The key is to locate cats that are high in the water cloumn, these seem to be the most aggressive. When a school is located drop down to the cats, jiggle it up they will follow or if they dont react hold it still level with them and watch for the strike. You want to fish with a limber tipped rod because alot of times all you will notice is slight weight on the tip.

For non aggressive fish I tend to use cut-bait- cut up pieces, of suckers shiners or fatheads. I hook these on a hook of some sort, then I drop down to the level of the fish and let is sit still watching the tip for a strike. I have been useing T-bones Rock-n-Reels with great success, these have enabled me to key in on the lightest biteing cats. Another thing I do is downsize to ultralight gear-4 lb test, small spoons etc when the bite gets tough. Another technique that will get fish is a live minnow and bobber rig when there in a nuetral mood.

Catching cats is a blast, theres not a real lot involved, its like any other fish once you locate them, there is always a technique that will get them to strike!!!

[Deputy Grizz]

What do you guys use for bait for those cats?
(please don't say "mice, of course!")
Sounds like outstanding fun!

[LaVoi]

I am hoping to get out to fishing the chain for the first time this weekend. This will also be my first time targeting cats. I was just looking for any tips to help a novice cat fisherman out. I have heard to fish deep, does that mean fish the deep break, or should a guy find a flat of deep water? I have heard to use crappie minnows, any other suggestion? Thanks for any help. LaVoi

[Mykal]

LAvoui, IceHawk pretty much nailed the presentation. This year we are finding pressured Cats in the known hotspots. This requires the finesse techniques that Icehawk described. We are finding pockets of unpressured Cats that are very aggressive, but as your first time out I would stick to the main lake and stay on the trails. Stop at Southside Bait, get a map and look for the 50 foot hole on Horseshoe. Work 45 up to 30 feet for your best action, but don't rule out shallower water. If you get rock bass move a little deeper. A couple feet along that steep edge can make a big difference. I would recommend meeting up with someone who knows the lake before venturing out. There is a large underwater spring North, NW? of Hammers Point that is usally open water. The entire chain is a river system and there is always open water and thin ice out there. Good luck.

[Mr. Pike1]

Mykal makes a great point that it is a river chain and you should be very carefull out there. That being said we drive our mid-size and full size trucks out there...We should probably head our own advise but hey when there are fish to be caught your logic seems to get off target..

[Mr. Pike1]

Mykal makes a great point that it is a river chain and you should be very carefull out there. That being said we drive our mid-size and full size trucks out there...We should probably head our own advise but hey when there are fish to be caught your logic seems to get off target..

[LaVoi]

Thanks guys for the heads up on ice conditions on that lake. After nearly putting my truck through on a lake up north a few years back, I don't like to take any chances anymore. That being said, are any of these holes that hold cats possibly close enough to walk to? Also I was looking at the map, is the public access the only place to get on at. That area of the chain just looks like the ice would be a bit chancy. One more question regarding the fishing. When have you guys been finding the best times of day that the cats have been biting? Thanks for the help, LaVoi

[This message has been edited by LaVoi (edited 02-06-2004).]

[This message has been edited by LaVoi (edited 02-07-2004).]

[Rebels75]

Coming from rural Illinois, I didn't know there were any other fish than Cats. One of the easiest ways to handle them is to get one of those cotton gloves that has been dipped in the liquid rubber and has about 1/16-1/8 inch of covering. Otherwise if you're planning on keeping them to fry (they taste fantastic) you can cut the line just outside the mouth and retrieve the jig later while cleaning your catch.

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