A great time to catch blues is during their spawning season in the
early summer months of June and July. Blues like to hide deep
down in out of the way places, but in the early mornings or late at
night, you will find them wandering the open waters. Night
time is usually the best time to catch them.
Blues rely almost completely on their sense of smell, not sight, in
looking for food. This means two things - one, they don't go
for artificial lures. You can almost never catch a blue cat
with anything other than live bait. Two, they love any kind
of bait that stinks. Catfish are known for this, but blues
especially love tuna, shrimp, other fish and even other
catfish. The bigger blues will eat nothing but live fish, so
this is the bait to use.
When fishing for blues, use a good, heavy rod and reel. They
put up a good fight, and you might have to really wrestle one to the
shore. You should go with a shorter line, so that it is less
likely to break. Trotlining is also a great way to catch
blues easily.
Flathead Catfish
Flatheads are known by their distinctively shaped head.
Usually they are orange or brown in color. They are the
second largest species of catfish to blues, and make great trophy fish
for you to show off to your buddies.
Look for flatheads in big rivers and streams. They live in
just about any big body of water, and prefer to stick to areas where
there is lots of cover. You might have to poke around a bit
before you find out where they are hiding. Flatheads can be
pretty elusive fish.
Flatheads have a wide, smooth mouth, and the best way to catch them is
to use big, extra sharp hooks. You should always sharpen your
hooks when catfish fishing, but this is especially true for
flatheads. Lots of anglers get one on their line only to
watch it swim away and disappear because their hooks aren't sharp
enough. You should also be sure you have a good, strong pole,
because flatheads are fighters.
To get the full "Catching Channel, Blue and Flathead Catfish" article you'll need to download it here.
