Willard Catfish Fun 7-31-24 (With Video)

[TubeDude]

LINK TO VIDEO

I got a half day caretaker fishing pass for Wednesday.  Elected to go rassle some cats and get some fillets to replenish the freezer.  Good call.  Got lotsa tugs.  Only downer was all the smoke.  I had ordered a “no smoke” section but the order didn’t work.


Launched from the S. Marina ramp at Willard about 7ish.  Only a couple of boats launching.  Air temp 60…warming to 85 by noon departure.  Water temps went from 75 to 78.  Water level down from the high water mark of a couple of weeks ago by almost 2 feet.
 

Powered out to 20 plus feet of water…towing some crank baits.  No hits, no runs, no fish.  Rigged with a couple of bottom bounce rigs…one with crawler the other with white Gulp minnow.  Worked up to 23 feet of depth for about an hour.  Nada, zip, zilch.  Didn’t see much on TV either. 
 
Moved into the “zone” where I had seen fish on the way out…between 13 – 16 feet.  Dragged a bottom bounce rig on one rod and casted and retrieved a tandem jig rig on the other rod…with each of the two jig heads adorned with Gulp minnows.  Usually do well with those this time of year.
 
Got couple of missed hits and then first hookup about 8:30,,,on a white whirly flig and Gulp Minnow.  Wow! An under-footer catfish .  And the next fish was a juvenile wiper [b]on the Gulp jig rig .  Actually got a couple more of the “downsized” versions of each species as the morning progressed.[/b]
 

Finally found some larger kitties…out off the feed lot.  Got a couple on the Gulp Minnow on a white whirly flig, and several on a blue-silver whirly flig with a half chub minnow on the hook. 
 
 
I was surprised.  I expected to see large balls of young shad hanging out away from the dikes…as they have done in years past.  But even after covering a lot of water I only saw a few small shad clusters.   I’m sure they are massing up somewhere on the lake…and that is where the predators will be gathering nearby.
 

And even though I saw some other fish on sonar, I was never able to go bendo on the singles or doubles…and strangely even on the clusters.  All hits were isolated and after not seeing anything on sonar beforehand.  The fish were evidently just roaming and round and coming in from the side to intercept my offerings.
 
Once I found the good area I got quite a few hits.  I released a few of the smaller cats and kept six for the fillet board.
 

I trolled cranks all the way back to the marina.  Got two small whacks but no hookups.  I suspect the mini wipers were to blame. 
 
Off the water by noon.  Disappointed to find that the electric outlets on the fish cleaning station still don’t work.  But in anticipation I brought my trusty old American Angler 12 volt fillet knife and it worked fine for a catfish weight reduction program.

[Piscophilic]

Hey Pat,

Thanks for the report, I enjoyed the pictures ad video too! I'm glad you are able to get away once in a while. I hope your better half gets  feeling better soon!

[Cowboypirate]

Watched it. Now ya got cookie thinking cats. I had her ready to go after some more perch. Sent you an email. Not about this

[TubeDude]

Watched it. Now ya got cookie thinking cats. I had her ready to go after some more perch. Sent you an email. Not about this

Cattin' should be good off that fishing pier at the north marina.

I think my next trip might be for some Rockport perch.

[wiperhunter2]

Glad the cats are still treating you well at Willard, even the baby wipers got in on the act. Did you try the power outlets on the canopy support poles? Any problems with the power squad?

[BearLakeFishGuy]

I understand for those anglers coming to Willard Bay from the south that they would instinctively go to the south marina. But that ramp, cleaning station, docks, etc. are a mess nearly all of the time. I quit using the south marina years ago. It is worth about 1-2 more miles on the I-15 to exit at the north marina. Everything there is much nicer and I have not heard of any vandalism on your vehicles at that ramp either. AND...the fish cleaning station is always (at least for me) functional, the ramp doesn't have any hidden boulders to worry about, the bathrooms are relatively clean, and you can launch more easily as well. I get that if you're in a tube and you want to fish the feed lot area, but for boats, it takes about a minute to motor over to the feed lot, so that shouldn't be an issue either. Just curious why anglers use the south marina when there always seems to be issues with everything over there?

[TubeDude]

Glad the cats are still treating you well at Willard, even the baby wipers got in on the act. Did you try the power outlets on the canopy support poles? Any problems with the power squad?

Didn't try them this time.  But they didn't work the last two times I tried them.  Would need a short extension cord to use that for a fillet knife and I have done that in the past so I usually carry one.

Minimal boat traffic on the lake before noon.  Only about 3-4 fishing boats out of the south marina...and they scattered all over.  Saw one ski boat but it stayed way out away from where I was fishing.  Probably didn't see me or it would have used me as a slalom pylon like most other skiers do.

Haven't tried the north marina yet this summer.  TubeBabe and I used to fish inside almost exclusively in years past.  Got lots of cats and when the wipers were in we got lots of those too...without ever having to go outside.  That might be next on my list.  But with the addition of the big "waterpark" setup in the north marina...and the buoy line restricting watercraft from fishing along the east shoreline...it is likely to be less productive...at least in that area.  But it can also be good right in the main channel of the n. marina and over around the fishing dock.  Yep.  Gotta give it a try at least. 

The last few years I have stayed away from Willard until after Labor Day.  And then I like to fish the basin right off Eagle Beach.  Have had days in September there for four species...cats, wipers, walleyes and crappies.  They really hit on white Gulp Minnows or white shad plastics on a tandem rig with 2 1/8 oz. heads...lift and drop retrieve...right off the bottom.  I actually caught a 28" cat on one a couple of years ago.

Here are a few pics of the species that eat Gulps in the fall on Willard.