Fishing is a great outdoor activity whether it’s just you alone or you with your friends and family. Catching catfish can be extremely fun and challenging at the same time. I am going to share a few tips I have picked up over the years that might just help you land your next big catfish.
First and foremost you must be patient. Patience is a must when waiting for a fish to strike your bait. Some people tend to cast their line in the water and then five minutes later when they have not caught a fish they reel in their line and see that the bait is still on the hook and then cast out their line again only to reel it in again a few minutes later. This is not the way to go about it.
You need to leave you line in the water and be patient. If there is not a bite after about 45 minutes to an hour then you can reel in your line and check to see if you still have bait left on your hook. If you still have your bait you might want to check out a different fishing spot. I have found that if I have not caught a catfish or at least had a bite then the fish are not in that area and when I find a different spot I usually have some luck.
Another thing to do to help your chances with the catfish is to bring at least two fishing poles with you and use different baits on each one of the fishing poles. If you can afford to bring more that two poles that would be great. By having different baits in the water you can determine what bait the catfish prefer that day and use that type of bait on all of your fishing poles.
Just make sure to check the local laws and determine whether or not you can have more than one line in the water. Some lakes only allow you to have 1 fishing line in the water per person. Bloody baits like chicken liver and beef liver seem to work very well in attracting catfish. Yes I said beef liver. I have caught a large number of catfish using beef liver. The beef liver stays on the hook better because of the gristle in the meat.
Keep a tight line. Keeping a tight line is where you reel in the slack until your fishing line is tight. This allows you to feel the slightest bump or nibble. This is very important because there will not always be a hard hit when the catfish bites your bait and hook. And if you don’t have a tight line you could miss catching the fish because would never have know it was there in the first place.
Another thing that I have found that helps in catching catfish especially larger catfish is to be careful that I don’t cast a shadow on the water if I am fishing from the bank. Catfish get spooked easily if they see a shadow on the water. The catfish will associate the shadow with a bird or other animal that will try and catch them.
Last tip is to be sure not to use soap that has a fragrance to it. Fish can smell very well and if they smell the fragrance from soaps or colognes and perfumes on your bait they are less likely to take your bait. And be careful of other things that might leave an unpleasant scent on your hands. But no matter what the outcome of your fishing trip is just remember to have fun and leave the place cleaner than you found it. It only takes a few minutes to clean your area after fishing.
