Flooded Whiskers - Red River Valley Flooding and Catfishing
Catfishing, an Odiferous Adventure
Flooded Whiskers - Red River Valley Flooding and Catfishing
By Matthew J. Breuer
So much news coverage in the Midwest these days relates to the Red River of the North, the waterway that runs south to north into Lake Winnipeg. This border between Minnesota and North Dakota is famous for being the concession for Hudson Bay Trading Company in North America. It’s famous for being one of North America’s biggest channel catfish factories, and the home to some of the largest channel cats swimming. It’s also famous for its flooding and destruction. It’s said to be a 100-year floodplain, but in recent years those numbers may need to be re-checked…
Being in a 100-year floodplain doesn’t mean that your region is expected to flood once every 100 years, rather that there’s a 1 in 100 (1%) chance that the region could flood. The fact that 2011 marks the 3rd consecutive year with massive flooding in the Red River Valley is an anomaly.
I recently chatted flooding and catfishing with Captain Brad Durick of Grand Forks, ND. Capt. Brad is one of the Red Rivers’ most popular guides. At the time of our discussion the water was crested at nearly 50 feet, over 20 feet over flood stage. When I asked Brad if he was nervous about the water levels and the effect it’ll have on the fishing he optimistically replied “The 2011 catfish season on the Red River is going to start out slow but the outlook for the season is stellar based on past experience. These same conditions happened in 2006 and 2009. The wait to get into the river was long but well worth it with the aggressive fish in the system. One weekend in 2009 I had the pleasure of boating 143 channel cats with a 17-18 pound average. That is truly something special.”
I grew up roughly an hour from Grand Forks, and I attended college at UND, not far from the banks of the murky Red. I knew the catfishing was good, and tasted it in bits in pieces as a youth and while pretending to be an adult in college… but I had no idea it could be as good as it has become. I witnessed the spectacular bite in 2009, and Capt. Brad attributes the massive fish in recent years to the floods. “When the floods run later than average it allows the water to warm, and with all the dams to the north flooded the pre-spawn run starts and a mass migration upstream begins. With flooded dams there is nothing stopping the fish, therefore the trophy fish spread farther into the downstream reaches of Grand Forks and Fargo making for fabulous fishing” stated Brad.
As sure as the sun will set, the flood waters will recede and the flow will settle down. Brad thinks that as soon as the water slows a guy needs to be on the water, “Once the river levels and flows settle, it is game on for catching catfish. The best locations are along cut banks or any kind of current breaks. The river is typically high during the pre-spawn so the fish are looking for places to rest and wait for an easy meal.”
Like the City of Grand Forks, catfish are resilient and they will press on, disallowing the floods to hinder their spirit. Come mid-to-late May the fish will probably be getting ready for their spawn, and the fishing should be stellar. Brad talks about the late flooding and the spawn. “With a late flood the spawn is typically 2-3 weeks later than normal but with good amounts of water and a warm summer it takes almost no time at all to get back on the bite. If you fish aggressively you can fish right through the spawn and not really notice it is going on.”
If you’re new to catfishing it’s a relatively cheap sport to start, and once you get used to rigging up the necessary equipment it’s a breeze. I’ve tinkered with several rod and reel combos over the years, and I’ve found that a St. Croix Surf Rod does the job nicely, and cheaper glass rods like the Ugly Stick Big Game or Catfish are indestructible and they handle big cats very nicely. 7-9’ rods are recommended. Team the rods up with an Abu Garcia bait-caster lined with 65-80 lb. Power Pro and you’re set. For weight you’ll want to invest in heavy (2-6 oz.) No-Roll sinkers. The flat side of the No-Roll allows your bait to settle and not get rolled around by the current. An 8-14” leader with a large octopus or circle hook at the end finishes off your rig. Baits preferred are cut-up sucker, goldeye, and later in the season, frogs. Brad reminds anglers bringing their own boat, “Make sure you have a good anchor an enough weight to keep the bait in the strike zone and be very careful of floating debris in the river.“
If you’ve never been to the Red River to chase cats, be sure to put it on your bucket list. There’s nothing like the pull and roll of a 25 lb. channel catfish in heavy current. It’s a whole new world when you’re saddled up below the banks of Grand Forks or Fargo, ND. The scenery is dirty, but has a beauty all its own.
If you want to volunteer for sandbagging efforts in the Red River Valley, contact www.rsvpnorthdakota.com. Once the flood is over, and you’re looking for an adventure on the mighty Red River, contact Capt. Brad Durick at www.braddurick.com
By Gary Rehbein
For me and many others, last year was a “Traditional” Minnesota fishing opener. Maybe not the weather (sunny and beautiful), but the over whelming boat traffic and the desired choice of fish, namely the walleye. Typically, A person knows what they are in for when they go out on opening weekend to a large, well known walleye producing lakes like Leech or Mille Lacs. These bodies of water draw plenty of attention because they are outstanding walleye fisheries and they are perfect for opening day regardless of the spring weather conditions.
Popularity wise, the walleye and walleye fishermen trump everything else on opener. An angler can go to nearly any of Minnesota’s waters and find some success on opener, the walleye in Minnesota is “King” in May. As the season moves along, some of the fishing pressure is reduced a little with the opening of bass and muskie. However, this season I am changing things up a little, I going “CAT” fishing on opener!
In recent years cat fishing is gaining momentum as desirable sport fishing opportunity. There has been much positive press about catfish, to include a Minnesota DNR research program to monitor catfish populations and movement of theses fish. Channel Catfish are the primary species in throughout Minnesota, with some notoriety to Flathead Catfish in the St. Croix, Mississippi, and Minnesota rivers in Southern Minnesota. The DNR has went as far as stocking cats throughout the metro area and in several lakes around Central Minnesota as a result of increase popularity.
Catfish have two very attractive characteristics. First, they fight like crazy with powerful runs and will do everything possible to stay down on the bottom. Second, they like to eat! They never seem to be picky with your offering. That is not to say Catfish will not become bait specific, but they will eat many baits that walleye would turn their nose at. Catfish have been known to eat everything from hotdogs and chicken liver, to special homemade prepared baits.
The question I hear most in the St. Cloud area is where would one go for good cat fishing? The obvious ones are the Mississippi River and Horseshoe Chain of Lakes. Others include: Big Swan Lake, Buffalo Lake, and Little Birch Lake along with many more in the area. There are plenty of lakes that have been stocked with cats in the central part of Minnesota to attract the avid cat fisherman. The main thing would be to look at lake survey data and stocking information. This information can be found on the Minnesota DNR website: Lake Finder page, www.dnr.state.mn.us/lakefind/index.html. By utilizing this resource an angler can see the numbers and size distribution of the fish they seek to catch. It has helped me find some new catfish waters that can be particularly productive.
This time of year can be dynamite for cat fishing, the water is warming nicely and the fish are in a pre-spawn feeding frenzy. While fishing the Mississippi river last year we had many mornings with catches numbering in the 20’s while only fishing 2-3 hours. Most of the cats we caught weighed around 2-5 pounds, we landed some fish in the 10-12 pound class.
Equipment is a simple affair when cat fishing, wether you are using bait casting or spinning gear, you will want to be on the heavy side. At a minimum anglers should not use equipment under 10 pound class. That means medium/heavy to heavy action rods, 10 - 20 pound test monofilament or 50-65 pound test super line, big sinkers in the 1-3 oz. category and an assortment of large circle hooks.
The weight and shape of your sinker is important; use flat sinkers as a substitute for traditional round egg shaped sinkers. It keeps the bait in your desired location much easer allowing water to flow over the top of it as it lay flat against the bottom. Egg sinkers will role with the current and will sweep down stream often getting snagged in the rocks and other obstructions.
Circle hooks have become a mainstay for many cat fishermen. Because of the catfishes willingness to engulf baits, traditional hooks will injure and destroy fish easily. Circle hooks will always find a secure location in the corner of the mouth making it easy to release your larger fish.
Locations with a current brake or windy shorelines are a good place to start when searching out cats. On rivers, fish are moving up stream with the anticipated spam approaching. Dams or other obstructions become the favored location for spring cats. In sections of river where the dam is many miles up stream, you may find large concentrating of catfish near deep holes directly below fast moving rapids with long stretches of shallow water on both sides of the hole. Follow the wind on lakes and other impoundments, windy brake lines and drop offs will hold many fish. Drift through these areas with your bait and use your electronics to find concentrations of fish.
Walleye fishing is great! They can challenge you abilities as an angler and are excellent at the dinner table. I will spend plenty of time chasing them throughout the year, but this spring I will find myself going after catfish. It is a change of pace that is refreshing and is very exciting. I’m not going with popularity this opener, “I’m Going “CAT!”
Once things settle down the high waters make for fantastic catfishing. Channel cats can be downright “cattankerous.”
By Holly Chow
Spring brings flooding on the mighty Red River which is 550 miles long and snakes its way from the United States to Manitoba and eventually drains into Lake Winnipeg. The flooding can be ominous, and this year it seems that it may reach records breaking heights. Having said this, once things settle down the high waters make for fantastic catfishing. Channel cats can be downright “cattankerous” and fight like you have just set your hook on the tail gate of a Chevy truck as it runs down the highway. With the flooding the numbers of cats seem to become ten-fold and last season during one of my trips with my children and their best friend Lindsey we boated over 60 cats with 3 of us on rods in just 4 hours.
Their vicious appetites after being semi dormant over the winter months is incredible and it seems they have built up more fight than when they left in the fall. Typically first bite means getting the bait to catch these monsters. I use cut suckers which can be found in the ditches of the flooded river banks of smaller rivers. It is not uncommon to have to throw at least 6 to 8 ounces of weight to stay on the bottom as the current will still be fast and furious which creates an even big challenge to landing these monsters. I have used the Okuma Tundra’s for a couple of years now and find when adding 40lb. test to these reels they stand up to the fight very well. The rods take an terrible beating during this time it seems the rods will explode at any minute but they instead stand up to the monsters and have proved that they are an worthy advisory.
One of my favorite spots on the river is where the banks that are covered in the white limestone forms a beautiful 3 foot shelf and then drops to nine feet and then to the center of the channel which during flood times can be as deep as 20 feet. When fishing this spot I pitch one rod very shallow, actually with-in feet of the bank on shore, it seems the large majestic cats comb the shore looking for that easy lunch. The second rod I place at about 9 feet and the last at about 14 feet. With this technic it is not uncommon at all to have all three rods active at once. Now keeping the lines separated and netting the monsters as they all come towards the boat takes a little practice and most of all timing.
After countless hours spent on the river and hundreds of clients I have picked up the “handle,” “Mamacats.” It seems only fitting as I am the only female guide on the river and have the years behind me to cover the “mama” part.
Prime time for fishing the mighty channel is from May 15th to June 15th river permitting. See you out there and if you need a tip or two, wave me down or just stop and say “Howdy.”
Mamacats (aka Holly Chow)
Catfishing, an Odiferous Adventure
Catfish have an extremely adapt smell/taste mechanism that keeps their body in food during the life of the fish. A catfish is a slave to his stomach, so use it to your advantage.
By S. L. Merriam
When a wise man once said, “The more you know - the more successful you will be.” I quickly added that pearl to my tackle box and it has never let me down. This is especially true when fishing for catfish.
You know what cats look like and you know how they taste, so how can something so ugly taste so good? We will worry about the table recipe later but for now let’s learn what recipe works for putting them in the boat.
The name catfish comes from the prominent barbels along the head which resemble cat whiskers and are used as feelers as it feeds. Catfish are bottom feeders and negatively buoyant, due to a reduced sized swim bladder and a heavy, bony head. This air bladder is also part of their hearing and is used for sound production. Their body shape is cylindrical with a flattened belly which provides easy maneuvering when bottom feeding. The whiskers are important in detecting food as their eyes are small and in dark, deep, muddy water are pretty much useless. This means they rely on touch and smell to feed.
Blue, Channel and Flathead catfish are found throughout the southern and eastern parts of the country, the lower Midwest, and areas west of the Rockies. All catfish are omnivores meaning they will eat about anything that comes along but for consistent results while fishing, bait works best. Here in the Midwest, catfish range in size from a young 15-inch blue cat that will average one pound to mature fish, such as 30-inch blues that average 10.5-pounds. The flathead cats are larger and at 30” will average 12-pounds. Monster cats found in Vietnam can tip the scales just over 660 pounds, something U.S. fishermen don’t have to worry about.
The flattened head that provides a disctintive profile allows the fish to dig through bottom sediment and debris while their mouth, which contains no holding teeth, can expand to a large size. Catfish generally feed through suction or gulping rather than biting and cutting their prey like bass, trout, or the salmonoids. Many times throwing a hook with a glob of stink bait into a lake or slow backwater is the best way to find out if there are cats in that body of water.
In lakes, rivers, and ponds, preferred water can range from fast and clear to brackish and slow moving as cats are very tough fish and seem to survive warm water quite well. Being omnivores, catfish will eat pretty much anything that fits in their mouth, but since smell is their strongest sense and used to locate potential food it is best to play to that strength. Leaning to capitalize on this sense should be your primary weapon when searching for a limit. Since aggressive cats can be caught on fast moving bass lures you should never underestimate their ability to catch live bait. Live minnows fished on the bottom provide motion, which the feelers can sense, and odor, their strong suit for locating food.
Channel cats favor crawfish and smaller fish, so look for them at varying depths over rock or gravel bottoms that provide crawfish habitat, then other forms of cover that attract baitfish. In the warmer summer months, catfish can be found in areas with moss, which they will feed on.
Flatheads are caught primarily on live bait like shiners and chubs and occasionally on cut or prepared bait. They are the second largest of the catfish species and will lie under submerged logs or other large structure. Prime fishing time for catching flatheads is after dark.
If your bait resembles food in any way and emits an odor it is likely to attract the interest of catfish. Each ardent catfish expert has created their own secret recipe using ingredients that range from fish, chicken, shrimp, liver, and meat to strong smelling bait like anise and black liquorish The long whiskers and sensory organs of the catfish are always in search of an easy meal and things we think stink will make them lick their lips as the smell is carried on the current
Stink baits are not a secret and the basic rule is: If it stinks it will be good. Competition between anglers for the best stink bait is like a chili cook off - without the gas. You are guaranteed to clear the sinuses while smelling things never enjoyed before in your boat. The stronger the smell/flavor the farther away from a catfish it will work.
One day after taking only a few cats I noticed one angler doing quite well all by himself. When the wind changed I knew why, the odor coming from his boat was so strong it made my eyes water. When I circled around to the upwind side to see what he was using he told me it was the homemade concoction his Daddy taught him some 30 years ago. When he looked up and smiled proudly I noticed there was a cigarette filter hanging from each nostril. I was speechless – but hey - he had a full stringer.
The only requirement, other than smell, is that your bait must stay on the hook. Using a net sack solves the problem for a loose concoction while solids will stay hooked on their own. Commercially available stink baits are made to have the consistency of dry cheese so they will stay on the hook. While water borne aroma is what attracts the cat to your bait you don’t want the water to wash the bait away before your quarry arrives.
Homemade Catfish Bait
Hot dogs
Strawberry Kool-Aid (2 packages, unsweetened)
Several cloves of garlic
1 Slice several hot dogs into 1 -inch pieces and place them in a jar.
2 Add the 2 packages of unsweetened Kool-Aid and the garlic cloves. Fill the jar with water and let marinate overnight.
3 Run a hook through a chunk of hot dog with the barb exposed, and you're ready to catch eating-size channel cats, blue cats and bullheads.
4 Salt your bait Add 1 cup of non-iodized salt for every 10 gallons of water in your baitwell. The salt adds an attractive scent and firms up the bait.
• Spearing With Rice
When spearfishing a shallow spot, sprinkle white rice (throughout the area. The grains will make the bottom of the lake easier to see, which will help your depth perception.
• Go for the Heart
On heavily fished bass waters, go for the heart of cover with your first casts rather than picking around the edges and working your way inward.
• Trail Some Scent
Hook a fish's air bladder to your spoon or jig. The scent will create a trail in the water, and the action makes it look like a leech.
• One-step waterproof gloves
The next time you waterproof your boots, use the leather gloves you wear icefishing to apply the ointment Two birds, one stone.
• Red Worms
Soak worms in pickled-beet juice to give them a bright-red color and toughen their skin, making it harder for fish to steal them.
• Crappie Combo
Work a small crankbait in combination with a spoon to entice strikes from suspended crappies. Tie a three-way swivel to your line and attach a 12-inch leader with the crankbait to one eye of the swivel. To the other eye, tie a casting spoon on an 18-inch leader.
• Tiny Tools
Pick up an eyeglass-repair kit that contains a tiny screwdriver. It's great for replacing split rings on crankbaits and other lures.
• Spinnerbait weights
Instead of spending a fortune on an arsenal of different-weight spinner-baits, simply peg bullet-shaped worm weights above your lure.
• Save your Eggshells
When fishing for crappies, bluegills or perch, sprinkle crushed eggshells over the side of your boat. As the white fragments drop through the water column, they attract die curious panfish, as well as baitfish.
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Catfish Fillets
2 c. cornmeal
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. red pepper
Oil for deep frying
1 c. flour
1 lb. catfish fillets
1 tsp. black pepper
Mix meal, salt, peppers and flour together. Roll catfish in mixture until well coated. Deep fry catfish at 350 degrees for 3 to 4 minutes or until golden brown. Serves 2.
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