03-25-2003, 02:44 PM
[cool]I keep suggesting fresh mackerel, but only a couple of guys have tried it and both let me know that it worked well for them. It's cheaper than shrimp, it has a powerful fishy smell that drives kitties nuts and it is usually available in most fish markets...especially asian oriented.
That being said, I probably catch more cats by accident, on my "bait bugs", with a small piece of worm or fish flesh...during the daytime...than most people do who fish all night with the "nuclear" baits. And, both in Willard and in Utah lake, some of the biggest cats are oriented to eating live fish. They will chomp on crankbaits, spinner baits, jig and pig, twisters and about anything else you fish for the more glamorous species.
Fishing Bear River and Cutler above the dam can be a different proposition. The cats in these waters act more "traditionally"...feeding in low light periods and responding to baits with a bit of "character". But, again, mackerel, squid, smelt, anchovies or other odoriferous salt water tidbits are worth trying...along with the ubiquitous shrimp, chicken liver, nightcrawlers, sucker meat and whole chub minnows.
When fishing for the big boys, use big baits. And leave the bail open on your reel, to allow them to run a few feet without feeling the tension. When they stop to mouth and gulp the large bait, then you can set the hook with some degree of confidence.\
I used to have lots of fun with the Willard Bay channels all through the middle of the day, by tossing out unweighted baits and then setting my rod down across the rocks...with the bail open. If I felt a snooze coming on, in the warm summer sunshine, I would make a couple of wraps of line ahead of the reel around an empty aluminum can. If a fish picked up the bait and started pulling out line, the can would tip over and make noise to alert me that I had a customer. That works great at night too...especially when you are fishing multiple rods with several cat anglers. When it gets noisy, the fun is in full progress.
By the way, if you fish a whole crawler or a dead chub at Willard, don't be surprised if you pick up the occasional walleye or wiper. Sometimes those glamor species just got no class, and don't know that your bait is meant for catfish.
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That being said, I probably catch more cats by accident, on my "bait bugs", with a small piece of worm or fish flesh...during the daytime...than most people do who fish all night with the "nuclear" baits. And, both in Willard and in Utah lake, some of the biggest cats are oriented to eating live fish. They will chomp on crankbaits, spinner baits, jig and pig, twisters and about anything else you fish for the more glamorous species.
Fishing Bear River and Cutler above the dam can be a different proposition. The cats in these waters act more "traditionally"...feeding in low light periods and responding to baits with a bit of "character". But, again, mackerel, squid, smelt, anchovies or other odoriferous salt water tidbits are worth trying...along with the ubiquitous shrimp, chicken liver, nightcrawlers, sucker meat and whole chub minnows.
When fishing for the big boys, use big baits. And leave the bail open on your reel, to allow them to run a few feet without feeling the tension. When they stop to mouth and gulp the large bait, then you can set the hook with some degree of confidence.\
I used to have lots of fun with the Willard Bay channels all through the middle of the day, by tossing out unweighted baits and then setting my rod down across the rocks...with the bail open. If I felt a snooze coming on, in the warm summer sunshine, I would make a couple of wraps of line ahead of the reel around an empty aluminum can. If a fish picked up the bait and started pulling out line, the can would tip over and make noise to alert me that I had a customer. That works great at night too...especially when you are fishing multiple rods with several cat anglers. When it gets noisy, the fun is in full progress.
By the way, if you fish a whole crawler or a dead chub at Willard, don't be surprised if you pick up the occasional walleye or wiper. Sometimes those glamor species just got no class, and don't know that your bait is meant for catfish.
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