Bear RIVER cats

[fearfish]

I was woundering how people where donin with the cats on the river i just cant seem to find any decent ones on the river right now i havent done any night fishin yet mite be why but not even my deep fishin holes are doin good heck iv tryed worms cut carp stink bait iv just got a skunk following me around i guess
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[SkunkedAgain]

This time of year the cool muddy runoff seems to push the cats into the sloughs and out of the river channels. Look shallow and follow the spawning carp. The cats will be around there. Oh and for some reason I haven't been able to catch many fish after 9:00 ish at night so I'm not wasting much more sleep until the water warms way up so the cats start shopping at night. Good luck J
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[fearfish]

Thats not a bad idea man i think i mite have to try that cuase if the little ones are bitein the big ones should be to i would image if you got one big one doin that there would be alot more to follow to
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[SkunkedAgain]

Seems like this time of year I just catch little cats in the channel, but the better fish are on the prowl looking for food in the flat shallows. Good luck with them. J
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[fearfish]

Yes that is true this time of year i always get the little 10 in cats to i will post my finding if i find some
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[SkunkedAgain]

Sounds good and hope they show up for you... J
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[lavaman]

Jeff I lucked out between storms this weekend and caught a couple Channels...one was smallish at 19" but the other was a fat 24". Amazing how much of a difference those few inches allow for a tough 'reel-in'. Even though they weren't contest worthy, it was good to get out. I did catch my first carp of the year so that is saying something. Not sure where they've all been hiding.
I'm sick of the wind already how about you..
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[setthehook]

cats are shallow in the warmer water right now! keep at it and the bigones will eventually show up. its slowed down recently from cold run off and weather. Water temps dropped back to the mid 50's this weekend. fishing should pick up more and more as the water worms back up...

good luck
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[gmwahl]

Look on flats in one to two and a half feet of water right next to the river channel. This time of year I won't waist my time in water deeper than 5'. The big ones seem to be most active starting around 10:00-11:00pm and last until around 1:30-2:00am this time of year. I've also done well in the early afternoon in those same types of spots.

Most cats, and especially the bigger ones come up out of the depths after dark and hunt for easy prey, and I usually start my night time cattin' around Memorial Day and it stays pretty consistent in those spots until around the end of July or so, then I start getting more in the deeper water right next to the shallow flats. Either way the flats always play into my fishing plan.

Also, if it's a big one you're after don't bother with stink baits, livers, etc.
Those baits work great for small to medium and even the occasional big cat, but for consistent big cats I ALWAYS go with as fresh as possible cut bait like carp, suckers, or chubs. I like a 1 1/2" x2" piece of cut bait at least 3/4" thick or sometimes even bigger. It sounds huge, but it isn't and actually keeps the dinks at bay.

Just my experience with them though, individual results may vary![]

Mike

P.S.
A boat make a night and day difference, less travelled spots pay off better!
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[fearfish]

I like the advice of big chuncks of fresh bait i fill the same and thanks for the imput i do good when its summer and they are in them deep holes but cant seem to find them this time of year always struggle
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[fearfish]

We are on to something here
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[sharksugar101]

Just got back from a day on the river. Launched my boat in Tremonton and went up river a couple of miles and fished where ever the current was slow and did pretty good. Caught about 15 or so decent sized cats. Fished the shallows but didn't do as good as the deeper holes. Thought I wouldn't do very good when I seen how dirty and fast the water was. Took everything my motor had to make it up river!
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[SkunkedAgain]

Hey Derek that sounds like a better report! You are right on a couple inches making a big difference on those cats. Due to the contest making us all think we need 30" cats we don't give those 24" fish much credit, but they are dang nice fish. In fact anything over 22" seem to be really nice fish. They sure can pull and give ya a great fight. I'm glad to hear things are picking up a little, even if I can't get out for a while yet. Thanks for adding to this report. J
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[SkunkedAgain]

Nice job, they are sure a fun fight. I've been trolling for the cats and when they hit while you're trolling it is sure exciting. They thrash and tear things up like ya got a krocodile on the line. Man I need to get back out I'm missing it. Good luck and have fun. Later J
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[sharksugar101]

I've caught them trolling by accident but never really tried it for cats. How do you troll for them?
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[SkunkedAgain]

Best success has been with carp minnows drug about 1mph in shallow areas where carp are wallowing. Takes some time and practice it's not as easy as trout. If you're serious about it, I could show you sometime. Does work best from a pontoon or float tube. I hooked up my electric motor to a PWM to be able to troll slow enough and it seems to work. Next trick will be the side planers so I don't have to do as many "S" turns. Later J
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[sharksugar101]

I wouldn't mind adding that to my bag of tricks. Sounds like a fun way to catch them. Maybe one day we will run into eachother out fishing and you can show me! I seen them doing something similar on rivers in the deep south. They would rig up a three-way swivel with the weight on the bottom and tie a worm harness or a spinner blade in front of their minnow and the current would suspend it off the bottom. Up until a few years ago I would just fish off the bottom for cats because that's the only way I knew how to catch them.
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[Halfastfisher]

I just noticed this thread. I live on the river and not that I am an expert or know much about cat fish (because I dont), but I feel the bigger cats are either in the dam or in the lower bear. The river up north gets so much pressure with folks hook and cooking that its hard to catch big ones. The bridge by my house on saturday alone had ten poles in the water around it. I walked down to the bridge and the group had left and a new fisherman had shown up. I asked him if he had any luck. He said no, I mentioned that he was following a herd of folks that just left. He didnt believe me and said that he never sees anyone here. I just rolled my eyes. But that is just my thoughts. A heck of a lot of pressure competing for a few good sized fish. Dont misunderstand me, I like to eat a good catfish myself. I am just saying there is a lot of pressure.
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[sharksugar101]

I always thought that river got alot of fishing pressure to until I started taking my boat up and realized how big it was. There still are some good hiding spots for them big cats. I think it's one of the most underestimated fisheries up north.
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[fearfish]

So true cutler gets hit way harder then the low river most of it you beed a boat to fish i love it
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