Adventures with catfish

[thatchergreg]

After replacing the battery in my truck Saturday morning I made a trip to the Malad River to catch some suckers for bait. Usually its easy to land a sucker or carp in that stream, no luck this time. It was catfish, catfish, and more catfish, and nothing over 12". The water was a bit frigid, easily in the 50's since Devil Creek reservoir was 58 degrees on Friday. The trophy of the day was this lunker, at 4" long it would take top honors in the cat contest if I had entered.

I went to Willard this morning, launching at the North Marina at 7 a.m., water temp was 63 degrees with a slight breeze and few bugs. I decided to try a new spot in freeway bay where I have found some ledges and troughs. It turned out to be a good decision. Using blue/silver, orange/silver, and green perch fligs tipped with perch and chicken I landed 15 cats and lost several more. Two were 16" and the rest were between 19" and 23" and weighed up to 4 1/2 lbs. As I was thinking of calling it a day a fellow Lund owner pulled up to swap fishing stories. He seemed a bit skeptical when I told him I had caught 13, then while we were visiting two more cats clobbered the bait including a pudgy 20 incher that weighed 4 1/2 lbs. I love it when the fish cooperate. The cats had big bellies and must be stocking up groceries for winter.

[Cowboypirate]

The Mallad is getting to be a favorite spot for me to sneak away to. Not cause of the size (everything we have caught so far has also been less than 20") but cause its is so different than anything else. Cookie was getting itty bitty chubs on a salmon egg hook there a few weeks ago.

[thatchergreg]

The Mallad is getting to be a favorite spot for me to sneak away to. Not cause of the size (everything we have caught so far has also been less than 20") but cause its is so different than anything else. Cookie was getting itty bitty chubs on a salmon egg hook there a few weeks ago.

A couple months ago I stopped at the spot where Cookie found the catfish skull this spring. A young lady had just caught and released a 24" cat.

[Tin-Can]

Greg, my oldest son is coming up from Carbon County this week. We were planning to fish Willard on Saturday 10th, but weather forecast is for wind and possibly rain.  So we now plan to get out there this Friday for a few hours.  

Hope to put him on some Cats. Our last trip for his birthday to UL / LB he got skunked..........

[thatchergreg]

Forest,
What a coincidence,  one of my brothers will be here this weekend and wants to catch some catfish. It looks like we'll launch early at Willard north and hopefully find some cooperative fish.