Fishing Thread 2012

[M0hi]

So i've been catfishing lately and it's something I've only done a few times. I've used stink bait, chicken livers and hotdogs and had minimal success. a few cats around 5 lbs. Any suggestions?

You wouldn't believe it, but here's my breakdown of catfish caught this summer (I have used each of these baits several times)
Worm: 1 (8lb seen above post 116)
Shrimp: 1 (5-6lb)
Stinkbait: 0
Chicken liver: 0
I haven't used cutbait, but from what I've seen the biggest cats are caught on cutbait, some decent to big size are caught on chicken livers.
However most frequently would have to be worms.

EDIT: A basic strategy is to just sink the worms (or any catfish bait for that matter). Also, cast your baits in the same area to make a large scent trail that lures cats.

[thart1991]

I've used worms.. Sheepshead kept biting. I caught my biggest on cut bait and caught another on chicken liver. I've had a lot of action from chicken livers but they don't stay on the hook worth chit.

[lhprop1]

I just wanted to try it, I threw most of it away because no one else would touch it...I wouldnt eat it again unless I was starving to death.

Smoked carp is edible. It's not the best, but it's not turribul.

[lhprop1]

Cliffs-
Horrible day for fishing
Go fishing, nothing for hours
By some random miracle, many fish in 1 hour in an unexpected spot.
Happen to any of your guys who have been fishing a long time?

You probably stumbled onto the right spot during a major. A major (or minor) is a period in the solunar calendar when the moon and/or sun is aligned just perfectly. Sometimes, it's when the moon is directly overhead (which can be during the day), sometimes it's based on the confluence of moon rise/set with the sunrise/sunset, and sometimes it's when the moon is directly underfoot. No one really knows why, but fish absolutely "turn on" during this 1-2 hour period that happens a few times a month. If you're lucky enough to be where there's fish when one of these majors or minors is occurring, you're going to have great fishing.

I fish muskies a lot, and they're considered "a fish of 10,000 casts". When you're chasing a predator that elusive, it really helps to pinpoint when these times are and try to be on the spots most likely to hold fish when they occur.

http://www.muskyhunter.com/moon-secrets/

http://primetimes2.com/pages/4-astrotables.html

Congrats on the PR kitty and the onslaught of the big pigs. Those great days are the ones you'll talk about for a lifetime. If you're looking to hook into some bigger cats, you should really start fishing rivers.

[M0hi]

If you're looking to hook into some bigger cats, you should really start fishing rivers.

Thanks I was aware of major and minor periods, but I always thought they were a minor thing. Not as major as a full moon or something like that. Thanks a lot for the advice, I've only been to 3 places stocked with musky, only fished for them once. One of many fish I want to catch.
I would love to fish a river, but being in Illinois I have these available to me.
Mississippi 4 hour drive
Illinois River 2 hour drive
Fox river 30min drive (a tributary to the Mississippi) however it's always so brown and slow moving without much water geography (pools, logs etc), and the major areas to fish for them are not well placed. I have tried this river twice and only caught a carp.
Dupage River (tributary to Fox) a VERY small river and all I've seen are carp and snapping turtles.
Also my fishing buddy hates river fishing because it's hard, I want to do it more frequently because it is so challenging with a lot of potential.
Any advice for my situation, farthest I've driven for fishing is hour and a half into straight up backwoods for premier lakes such as Musky Capitol of Illinois: Shabbona. And even that is a rare trip.
Thanks to you I just looked up one of the better areas of the Fox river to fish, which is an hour drive North following one road. (Fox Chain O Lakes). I'll make a trip for that next weekend and see what happens.

[thart1991]

I live like 5 mins from Illinois and the Rock river is in northern Illinois and is decent sized. I've seen some huge cats come out of there.

[PowerD]

I live like 5 mins from Illinois and the Rock river is in northern Illinois and is decent sized. I've seen some huge cats come out of there.

Ive caught pike and seen walleye taken out of the rock when i used to live in wisconsin

[44hunter]

So i've been catfishing lately and it's something I've only done a few times. I've used stink bait, chicken livers and hotdogs and had minimal success. a few cats around 5 lbs. Any suggestions?

Hands

[M0hi]

Hands

I think I know what you talking about:

[TonytheOnly]

I have the most luck cat fishing with big minnows,this little bait shop right down the road from my favorite fishing spot sells the large (4-5'') minnows for 2 bucks a dozen. I fish them at the bottom for cats or higher up for crappie and bass. Cat fish are more predatory than most people think.

[Aguy2diefor]

My Recent catch. Sturgeon

[thart1991]

My Recent catch. Sturgeon

Very nice. Where was that at? I've always wanted to catch one of those.

[Aguy2diefor]

Very nice. Where was that at? I've always wanted to catch one of those.

Winnipeg, MB. Canda bro...That is actually a small sturge..big ones are atleast twice it size

[thart1991]

Yeah I know they get huge! Canada/10 I need to get up there some time.

[thart1991]

Went catfishing for 16 hours straight last night until 6:30 a.m. Had tons of small bites, caught two soft shell turtles and had a very large cat on that fought for about a minute then found it's hole and buried itself. I waited 3 hours for him to come out before walking out in the river and reaching in there to find my hook stuck on a chair.

[HairyScandinavian]

New pic of Me


Biggest smile I've ever not seen.


Big boy with one of the stringers of Drum, there were 2 stringers like this and they were starting a 3rd.
This kid squatted 275 and deadlifted 405 when he was 15. He's 16 now and hasn't been lifting at all for a year.


Another stringer.


Tent/camp site.


Big pile of Fiddler crabs cornered.

[44hunter]

I can hear the police reports now.

A family of what appeared to be gangsters or bank robbers are catching all the fish..

[M0hi]

I fish a very low pressure lake (as in hardly anyone fish's here) for a few hours. (1 mile walk from closest parking)
Only has bass sunfish blue gill and carp as far as I know, deepest part being 22ft deep bay
Caught two small LGB, 10inch caught on worm
7inch caught on a 4inch deep diving crankbait. Wasn't expecting that.
Lots of wilderness to walk through though, dealing with ant bites on my knee that turned into a bright red rash, mosquito bites on my legs. And still paranoid of finding another tick on me. (had 3 huge ones on me that I found day of trip)

[thart1991]

My girlfriends catfish. 8 lbs.


The other night. All above 5 lbs.




And tonight me and my friend started building our ice shanty. 6x8 and going to be pretty bada$$. Will post pics when finished.

[lhprop1]

Nice cats.

Let me know if you need any advice on building your fish house. Just a heads up, but 6' x 8' is really small, especially if you plan to fish 2 people in there. The first fish house I built was 8 x 8 and once you get your heater in there, there isn't much room for two people to fish.

[thart1991]

Nice cats.

Let me know if you need any advice on building your fish house. Just a heads up, but 6' x 8' is really small, especially if you plan to fish 2 people in there. The first fish house I built was 8 x 8 and once you get your heater in there, there isn't much room for two people to fish.

It's already 75% done. We got a tiny heater and it seems like we would have lots of space at this point but I guess we'll find out. Built almost the whole thing in one day so building another next year wouldn't be too hard if this ones too small.

Did you put any tables or stuff like that in yours?

[lhprop1]

It's already 75% done. We got a tiny heater and it seems like we would have lots of space at this point but I guess we'll find out. Built almost the whole thing in one day so building another next year wouldn't be too hard if this ones too small.

Did you put any tables or stuff like that in yours?

In a house that size, there's no room for tables. There's room for you and a small friend, two buckets to sit on, and a heater. Make sure you watch out for the heater in a confined space like that. A piece of clothing can catch fire by just brushing against it.

Also make sure it is well vented because a small house like that can leave you with Carbon Monoxide poisoning pretty quick if you have it sealed tight. If either of you start to get a headache, open the door and let it air out immediately.

What are your plans for insulation?

[HairyScandinavian]

Back. Had a good relaxing trip. We didn't get to the island until about 11:30 PM Friday night, kind of a wet boat ride over as the wind was coming from the wrong direction. We setup camp and started catching Black Drum and Reds right away. Hit the tent around 5am and back up at 8am to start at it again. Saturday night I went around and collected Stone Crabs and a few Blue Crabs and we boiled them up in some Z's crab boil and feasted on crab claws for dinner, amazing... As usual I didn't take any pics so relying on friends to send me a few they took. I did get video of the 7' gator that stole some hardhead scraps from the crab bait pile. I'll put some more pics up later as they trickle in from others. Here's a shot of my oldest boy with some drum and a shot of us in the boat after dropping off some crab traps, that's a little channel inlet you have to hit just right and twist around to avoid running aground and it's skinny so boat has to be up on plane. It's fun navigating that channel and fun watching other boat come to a sudden stop after ramming into the sand bar lol.

[thart1991]

Just regular insulation in between outside/inside walls. We built benchs on both sides and built the middle of the floor to pull out when we want to fish. And thanks for the tip I'll be sure to keep some air in it. We are putting 3 windows in it.

[lhprop1]

Just regular insulation in between outside/inside walls. We built benchs on both sides and built the middle of the floor to pull out when we want to fish. And thanks for the tip I'll be sure to keep some air in it. We are putting 3 windows in it.

If you haven't already insulated, you may want to consider styrofoam for insulation between the studs for a number of reasons.

1. It won't rot/get all nasty if you don't have a vapor barrier
2. It's easier to install
3. Most importantly, you can save some money by leaving off the interior paneling (or just putting 24" paneling on the bottom). This does two things. First, it makes the house much brighter by having a white surface for the light to reflect off. Second, the styrofoam gives you a place to hang lures and stuff to.

[thart1991]

If you haven't already insulated, you may want to consider styrofoam for insulation between the studs for a number of reasons.

1. It won't rot/get all nasty if you don't have a vapor barrier
2. It's easier to install
3. Most importantly, you can save some money by leaving off the interior paneling (or just putting 24" paneling on the bottom). This does two things. First, it makes the house much brighter by having a white surface for the light to reflect off. Second, the styrofoam gives you a place to hang lures and stuff to.

Yeah I actually have some of that at the house too. I will probably end up doing that. Thanks.

[JWP58]

anyone fly fish?

[HairyScandinavian]

anyone fly fish?

Weekend before last I took my teenager and two of my buddies to the coast, buddies caught a bunch of black drum on fly rods so now my boy is hooked. Got two fly rods and reels and a box full of flies. Poor kid spent his entire paycheck on it.

[thart1991]

I caught a 25 pound snapping turtle 2 nights ago while cattfishing. Freaking huge, I almost kept it to eat but decided against it. Maybe next time.

[FGCUCody]

How many of you miscers have been fishing??

I have been slaying walleye and northern pike for the past few weeks on the river with jigs and minnows.
Here are some pics of some Northern me and a friend caught this spring so far.

Let me know what you're catching and what you used to catch them!

I caught a big ol' rooster snatch