These hard-fighting fish shouldn’t be seen as an incidental catch
Many catfish are caught by accident fishing for trout and redfish. While live or dead bait is best, I have seen them caught on spinner baits, spoons and even topwater. However, since they are primarily bottom feeders with small eyes, bottom rigs using live or natural baits are best to specifically target them. Cut fish, live worms, minnows, and shrimp all work well for attracting these catfish.
Blue and channel cats are both available, with the blues generally being larger. Although similar in appearance, channels, particularly when younger often have distinct black spots. The easiest way to distinguish between the two is that the blues have a straight, flat-bottomed anal fin while the channel’s fin is rounded. The other catfish species, the flathead, is rarer in these areas, but a few spotty catches have been reported.
Handle with care
You’ll often hear fishermen speak of “being stung” by a catfish. Although their whiskers (barbels) look like they can sting you, they are completely harmless. What you do need to watch out for is the spines on the tips of their pectoral and dorsal fins. A thrashing catfish in a kayak can easily inflict injury with one of these spines. Handle the cats with a net or lip-gripper and you should have no problem keeping them under control. The larger the catfish, the blunter the spines. Therefore, the smaller ones are more likely to stick you.
A typical rod and reel combo that you are confident in using to catch redfish is all that is needed for these catfish. While some blue cats in these areas get quite large, if your set-up can handle a bull red, you should have no issues with a big blue cat.
Terminal tackle is fairly basic. A typical bottom or Carolina rig with various weights of sinkers (depending on current) and a stout J-hook, is all that is needed. For those with enough patience to wait for the fish to eat and then simply reel, rather than setting the hook, Circle hooks work well for catfish also.
What works best
Catfishing can be a waiting game, so an anchor or stake-out pole to keep the kayak stationary is a big help. Seek out deeper cuts, canals, and drains to post up and cast to the deeper areas. As with trout and reds, some tidal water movement is always best. Since you are fishing with a static bottom rig, the current helps carry the bait smell and vibrations to attract the fish to your line.
As noted above, live and dead natural baits are best, but one great exception is Gulp! baits. This scent-filled artificial is seeing its fair share of freshwater catfish catches. (I know that pesky hard-head cats are also quite fond of Gulp!) If the bite is slow, move to a similar nearby area. I have seen days where a move of less than 100 yards has resulted in many fish where the other spot yielded none.
Many kayak anglers are enjoying the incidental catch of these catfish without putting two and two together and realizing that they can be specifically targeted. With just a little change in baits and techniques, your favorite trout and redfish spot just might become your new favorite freshwater catfish spot.
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