Took a friend catfishing in the lake today. Morning started off slowly. Broke off the first fish that I had on. Had my line break on the 2nd fish. Put that rod and reel down and picked up my spare and didn't break off again. We started off fishing near Harrison Bluff, but finished up down at the dam. Most of the fish we caught was between 12:00 and 1:30 PM. We caught 16 on shrimp that had Muskrat's secret formula on them. We kept 6 for the table and released the rest. The 6 that we kept weighed 44.5 pounds. My friend forgot to bring a hat and he looked like a cooked lobster when we finished. I usually carry a spare cap in the boat but must have taken it out. The fish came on the hump that is between the 3 and 4th spillway from the turbines and in 42 feet of water.emoSmile emoGeezer
catfishing-chick-7-13
- Thread starter drumking
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polo-dog
Well-known member
Great info DK! I have always wondered what those areas that looked like humps on the map were like down there. What depth is the water around them?
craazyboutbass
Well-known member
Shrimp work really well, as of my experience! Glad you had a great day on the water!
Polo, the depth on the turbine side of that hump drops rapidly to ~65 to 70 feet. On the spillway side of the hump it drops to 53-57 feet. It is 36 feet on the top and it is only about 1 or 2 gates wide. Very sharp ridge that runs out at an angle to the Northeast for about 300-400 yards. The catfish like to hang out on the edge of the drop from the turbine side and ambush prey that comes over the top in the current. Blues are notorious for suspending and that is what these fish were doing. We were fishing just off the bottom and most of the time you would just see and feel your line go slack. What was happening was the fish were suspended above the bait, would go down and pick it up and swim back up to the level they were suspending in. When that happens to you, crank 2 or 3 rapid turns on the reel handle and set the hook hard. That's what it took yesterday.emoSmile emoGeezer
TennesseeTalker
Well-known member
Dang DrumKing .. sounds like FUN!!! What pound line were you using on the broke off poles?
Hmmm ... does Muskrat's secret formula make them poop like Dhaun's????
Just curious.
TT
Hmmm ... does Muskrat's secret formula make them poop like Dhaun's????
Just curious.
TT
DHaun
Well-known member
Thanks for the great report drumking! I was 17 the first time I fished that area and it was my introduction to (successful) deep water catfishing. 4 of us piled into a 14 ft. flat bottom and drifted that hump (or one near it) using night crawlers and an old flasher unit.
The owner of the boat knew exactly when we were going to get bit watching that flasher and rods would bend just after he called it on every drift. I was immediately hooked and surprised wondering how he knew exactly where the fish were just by looking at a circular flashing light. I had forgotten all about fishing that spot for cats until I read this post. I guess I am so busy in the river I forget to go above the dam. I think I have been just above the Dam once or twice since then looking for striper and struck out.
The owner of the boat knew exactly when we were going to get bit watching that flasher and rods would bend just after he called it on every drift. I was immediately hooked and surprised wondering how he knew exactly where the fish were just by looking at a circular flashing light. I had forgotten all about fishing that spot for cats until I read this post. I guess I am so busy in the river I forget to go above the dam. I think I have been just above the Dam once or twice since then looking for striper and struck out.
TT, I was using 20 lb test line, but it obviously had a couple of bad places in it that I didn't see. I usually check my line for the first 10 feet, but I forgot to do that today. At least that's what I'm blaming it on. Trilene Big Game 20 lb is usually very hard to break. I have at times when I was hung up to wrap it around the cleat of my boat and break it with my trolling motor.emoAngel
rsimms
Well-known member
I need to remember that "cleat" trick. I've dang near cut my fingers off trying to break 50 lb. braid & 40 lb. Ande leaders for clients.
David, one of the best places that I have found on that side of the dam is going to be lost when they build the new lock. If you ever walk the riverpark and start at the dam, you can see an old photo of a small ridge that is now parallel to the present lock. The edge that is nearest the lock wall can be dynamite. I jigged up a 30 pound flathead there last year and I don't know how many big blues that I have hauled up from that spot. The edge is 39 feet deep and falls into water that is well over 60 feet just about 40 feet from the wall. The northern end of that ridge is what I call my big fish hole. The largest catfish that I have ever caught came from that spot. Those big blues lay right at the bottom of the ridge facing into the current and at times that place is soooo hot.emoGeezer
polo-dog
Well-known member
Wow, DK you are really spilling a lot of specific info here. We really appreciate it. I may run down there some time and check it out. I love fishing drops in deep water that are electronics findable only. That makes the average fisherman unalble to find it for the most part. Open water and underwater structure just gets me excited! Thanks again.
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