ICE FISHING UTAH

[TubeDude]

Thanks Pat, it is really frustrating not finding the fish, I just keep wondering what other type area I could try... I did notice that the area that was previously my go to spot, had much clearer water this year... I thought that would help make it better, but maybe it was just a sign that there aren't any fish there stirring it up this year... Well I hope when I find them, they are all schooled up in a big pile so I can catch a bunch and make up for wasted trips in the past... Any tips on getting cold cats to bite this time of year?  What would you rig up with to get them to take your offering?  Thanks Jeff

No top secret stuff about catching cats through the ice.  First ya gotta find some.  Then you gotta put something tasty where they can take their time looking it over and sniffing it.  They still eat under the ice but they slow way down...almost to a stop at times...but they do occasionally munch something.  I have caught cats from several Utah waters under the ice.  But never more than a few and one or two on a trip is more likely...if any at all.  
The one thing that was common to most of my winter cat catches was that they were on small jigs tipped with small pieces of bait...being fished for other species.  Nightcrawler was the most common munch.  But have also caught them on waxworms and pieces of fish flesh.  Howsomever, I have caught cats under the ice by deliberately fishing for them with whole crawlers or minnows being allowed to sit on the bottom...or being suspended a foot or so off the bottom...and fishing with an open bail to allow them to move off with the bait.
If you put "ice fishing for catfish" in your search engine you can find a few videos that show how others fish for cats around the country under the ice.  "In Fisherman" has had a couple of segments on that if you can find them.
Another thing I can reckymember is that winter cats sometimes tend to hang out near each other...in loose schools.  So whenever you score one cat, your chances of getting one or more others seems to be greater.  But there's always the search for that first one.