More On Thermocline and Catfishing Q&A [CR EP 13]

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Catfishing Radio Episode 13

Catfishing Radio episode 13 starts out with some show announcements and covers some information on Jug Fishing 101. This is an expansion on the jug fishing ebook I released in 201), “How To Make The Best Catfish Juglines For Jug Fishing”. This was in in depth guide on making the juglines that I have sold for years under the Redneck’s Juglines name.

In the Jug Fishing 101 course I took the information in the book and put it into a video format training course with 180 minutes of video and audio training on jug fishing for catfish. Everything from making and building catfish juglines to rigging them, and the best catfish baits and information on where to fish for blue, channel and flathead catfish is covered in the Jug Fishing 101 training series.

Thermocline and Catfishing

After the introduction and information on the Jug Fishing 101 course I expand on some of the information covered in Catfishing Radio Episode 12 on Thermocline answering some of the common questions I have been asked since that show was released. I talked in depth about fishing in lakes or reservoirs with aerators and how aeration effects a thermocline (or more so whether a thermocline will develop or not in these bodies of water). Then we move into some of the questions I have had about locating a thermocline with a fish finder. I talk about some of the problems with locating a thermocline with a color fish finder, talks some about fish finder settings and then more importantly, trusting your fish finder.

I go in depth about how you should focus less on finding that “line” on your electronics that represents a thermocline and more on what you should be looking for, why you should be looking for it and again more in trusting what you are seeing and having confidence in that.

Catfishing Q&A

After the section on thermocline effects on catfishing I go into some catfishing questions and answers and dug really far back into the mail bag with some really old questions.

Questions covered in this section include:

Q: I have been on your site about 3 weeks and you may have answered this before,but i would like to know what rod holders works the best for you when fishing out of your catfish boat. Are they custom made or are they store bought? I haven’t found any that suit me and my aluminum boat.

A: I talked a bit about Bee Ready Rod Holders

Q: Do you know how people make the blood bait where it is just blood dried out and cut up. I planned on making it for trotlines for channel catfish in a nearby lake. So what would make it firm enough to
use?

A: I covered some of the basics of making blood bait for catfish and some of the common catfish bait recipes for making blood bait.

Q: I reside in the State of Michigan. I love to catch catfish (channel cats)and have been doing so since 1992. Since that time my biggest catch has been a 14 pounder. I use to pull them in when nobody else could, but the last two years has just been miserable. I believe its due to the weather, or at least that’s my excuse. I mainly fish the same lake which is called Pontiac Lake. It’s about 6 miles long and runs from Waterford to White Lake. The majority of the lake is about 5 to 8 foot deep with two big holes of 20 to 30 feet deep. The lake has many channels and for the most part covered with a sandy bottom and lots of tree stumps. It is naturally fed from the Huron River. I’m using 15 to 20lb test with 2 to 3oz weights when fishing from shore. I keep my weight at the bottom and use a leader line about 8 inches up. My bait of choice is raw uncleaned shrimp, shell and all. I’ve tried everything under the sun and the shrimp produces much more results. I have sat for 10 and half hours once already this summer and never got a bite. Years ago I would of had at least 20 in that time span. Please help figure why they are not biting like they used to, the lake is full of them. Thank you.

A: I cover my 15 minute rule, how using too much weight will effect the catfish bite (especially channel catfish), the use of a three way rig and looking at some other catfish rigs like the slip sinker rig or santee rig and a variety of other topics regarding fishing for channel catfish.

Q: Two things i would like to know about: 1. I have been building my own trotlines, and wonder how you make them and store them. Any instructions/advice? 2. I have also been experimenting with trapping minnows and crawdads for live bait. Any instructions/advice?

A: I cover some basics on making trotlines and the best ways I have found to store them. My preference for jug fishing over trotlines and some information on using minnows for catching catfish, fishing with crawfish and how I go about catching crawfish and some other basics on catching bait.

Q: I find your web sight to be full of valuable info when it comes to blue catfish, thanks for posting all the info. I fish here in Oklahoma & am fairly new to the blue cat thing although i did land a 66.9 lb. lake record at sooner lake last year.   Do you day fish for blues when things heat up like mid June & July? If so are you fishing deep or shallow ?  I’m wondering what techniques to use when it gets hot out to catch blues. 

A: I talk some about fishing for blue catfish in the summer months and the challenges with that, and my preference for fishing for channel catfish in the heat of the summer.

Q: If you find a spot you want to set jugs in, after you get you’re first jug out how far do you go before you set out another one, 6 feet between jugs more or less?

A: I talk about some of the basics of jug fishing and what to watch out for when setting juglines, as well as how to determine how far apart to set them.

Q: Many say that channels and blues are very similar in looks as well as aggressiveness when eating. My question is does drifting work as well for catching channels as it does blues. We do not have blues in the
area of southwest Virginia that I live but have nice channel catfish in the lakes and rivers.

A: I talk about how to tell the difference between blue catfish and channel catfish, the difference between the bite of the two, the Secret Channel Catfish Rig and how that helps with the ultra light channel catfish bite as well as some information on drift fishing for channel catfish and other catfishing techniques.

Make sure to check out Jug Fishing 101 if your interested in learning more about jug fishing.