Cat fish at Brownlee

[idahoron]

Well I got back tonight from fishing at Brownlee, and the weather was NASTY! We fished Friday from about 1:00pm with a break, to dark. We fished all day Saturday, and Sunday morning until about 9:00am.
[font "Times New Roman"]I could not wait to get there, and I about got my self a speeding ticket. When we pulled up we made camp fast, and I hit the water in the float tube. It was raining so Jacob decided to let the crazy old fat man go alone. I fished until about 3:00pm and went to camp. Jacob took some pictures of the first fish I got there. They were 3 cats and a crappie I kept for bait.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]At 5:00 I couldn’t take it, and I wanted to go back out. Jacob was thinking I was crazy because it looked nasty with the clouds moving in. So he fished from shore and I hit the water in the tube. He took my picture with a good fish, and then he got a GREAT bass. It was 18” long and put up a heck of a fight. Then it started to rain for real. I mean it was coming down in buckets. At the same time I was reeling fish in as fast as I could. When the lightning started to hit and the thunder started to clap I got off the water. Jacob took more pictures of the monsoon.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Saturday it rained until about 8:00 and we got out late. The wind was bad, and we went out anyway. Jacob got a couple of cats and headed back to the shore. I got several and released the one’s that were under 18” and headed back ready to get out of the wind. [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]That evening I went back out and again the clouds looked like rain.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Jacob decided to fish the shore with my buddy John. Jacob got a couple more fish and John got his third fish Saturday night.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Up to this point all the fish I got were on my medium weight rod with 8 pound test. I went back to the places I got fish before and found nothing. Then I went over by Jacob and John. I went down the bank a ways in the tube. I saw some things on the fish finder I liked. The bank went from 15 to 25 foot and the sharp drop had fish on it. [/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]I cast parallel with the bank and went to work. The ultra light was hit BIG time, and the 4 pound test was singing. Jacob got a poor picture of me fighting a good sized cat with my UL.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Soon I got another hit on the UL, and at first I said to them “I think it is a small one”. Well when it came up I saw it was BIG and it headed to the bottom and it took me forever to get it in. When I landed it I said this fish is different. I think it is a flathead catfish! Man I have only been successful at cat fishing a few times now, but I KNOW that is a flathead.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]The sky’s opened again, and it rained buckets but not as long this time. I pounded the fish again in the rain. We went back to camp, and the rain quit. We boned out three fish, and we had fresh fish for dinner Saturday night.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Sunday started out windy. Jacob, and I both went out in our tubes and I got one small cat about 18” and turned him loose. At 9:00am Jacob had enough of the wind and I went to camp with him. We got ready to go home, and headed for the cleaning station. I got a few pictures of my flathead, and the other fish. I forgot to take Jacobs picture with his cats.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]I wish Jacob had got more cats from his tube. He just didn’t want to deal with the rain, and wind.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]John got 3 catfish. One of his was 28” long and was heavy.[/font]
[font "Times New Roman"]Jacob got 4 catfish, the three fish he kept were between 18” and 24”. His bass was an amazing fish in my book. I have never seen a Bass that big, but I don’t fish that much for them. [/font]
I got 18 catfish on the trip most were between 20” and 24”. It was an amazing trip for me, but little on the slow side for Jacob and John. I want to go back next week but the reality is this will probably be my only trip this year. It was fun while it lasted.
I hope I get the pictures loaded right.
Ron
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[windriver]

Great Report and nice pics. I will be at Oxbow the third week in July. Can't wait.

Windriver
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[EZOP]

Nice report, you got me all excited about the fishing has picked up. I'll be heading back up there next week again. Nice flathead, I still haven't caught one of those, them bass look like a nice size also. Which end where you at?
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[idahopanfish]

Awesome job and ggood eats.
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[idahoron]

We were camped at steck park. The bass came from down stream a ways. We had a great time. The crappie I saw were all small. People were keeping 6" to 8" crappie. I saw one basket full of little crappie.
The cats were in spots and when you found the good spots you were in. Ron
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[Bigfishdaddy894]

Hey Ron I was up there the same time you were I think. I was camped at the lower park and seen you in your Float. It sure rained A LOT that weekend. I was with my daughter. The camp spot was great until a group of kids showed up around midnight and were so loud with the foul language that my kid woke up. The next morning we fished and caught a lot of nice sized cats like yours. Went back to the camper and well some adults showed up to the "Kid Party" Boy they had some language just like the kids. They were playing some rap music with the loud bass all darn day. I packed up and went to the upper camp ground and talk to the Host and she said she and her husband were afraid to go and talk to them. I told her I would take care of em but I really did not want them to come and mess with my camper or truck. So I decided to leave late in the night around midnight. Boy was that a muddy sloppy mess getting out of there but it was a all and all good trip. It is just too bad that people have to be so obnoxious......[mad]
I was camped by a old timer who was from Eastern Idaho boy him and his wife were so mad at those kids and adults I reassured them I would watch over them to make sure the kids did not disturb them. Before I left I went back down to the old timers camper and let him know I was leaving and he told me he would be fine that he was off early in the am anyhow. He said he would make a lot of noise for the kids around 0500 hrs HA HA HA.... Anyway good fish and pics.... Maybe see ya around again.......
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[idahoron]

The camping was hillbilly hell. The young kids were cussing like crazy F this F that.
One of the cussin kids came through my camp and found me when he least expected it. We played out a scene from "grand torino" and he left and didn't come back.
The Motorcycles, 4 wheelers, dune buggies. Then the loud boats, it never stopped. Then one shirtless hillbilly sees a snake going under a rock and decides that him and several other shirtless hillbilys and others can "move" the rock and kill the snake. They move the rock and Hillbilly #1 grabs a shovel and beats the snake like it was a mattress full of bed bugs. Then he brings it to our camp and says he is going to throw it in the lake at our camp. I told him that if I drug it in I would put it back in his camp. Then they stocked up the loud music, starting out with Reba, and finishing with Journey or something like that.
The old fella you were talking about was he in I think A1 ? I talked to an old fella over there.
I need to put somthing on my tube or truck that says I am from BFT.
The guy in this picture tried to drown me with his boat. You can see what happened.
Ron
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[Bigfishdaddy894]

Ya that sure was him his boat shortly after that stopped running and he had to paddle just like that in his photo. Yeah the older fellow was in A1 and I started out in A2 the hillbillies with the red car and Big toothless woman. Now no one be mad but its the truth they were all very loud....I tried to upload a photo last night but it would not let me. I will try again here is my set up..... Hope the pic is not to big.

Neal
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[Bigfishdaddy894]

Sorry one more thing I forgot Ron I remeber where you were I think that hillbilly was behind you as well. The people I was talking about where behind me as well... Do you have a white truck w/ a pickup camper that you off loaded along with a boat?
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[idahoron]

No, I was in the next one with the Toyota Tundra with the camper shell. We had a tent . Ya the guy behind me, the one in the piucture was nicknamed Hillbilly delux. Were you there when he jump started the boat with the dodge pickup then the pickup would not start?
I felt bad for the people in the pop up camper across from us. They were hillbillyed out of their spot.
The camping there was not good but the fishing was, at least for me. Ron
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[idahopanfish]

Do you know if there were any people camping up the reservoir (not in the camp ground) some of my friends that have gone up there camp along the river, do they still alow that there?

I am considering the to go over the 4th for a couple of days.
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[idahoron]

There are fishing spots along the river as you get to steck. The problem with staying in them is the rail road.
Most of those spots say no trespassing but people do it just to cross to go fishing. If you camped there it would be very close to the rails.
If you go past steck there is a road that keeps going but it is VERY rough and rocky after you pass the boat ramp.
If you want to catch catfish you need to get up there it is a blast. Ron
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[idahopanfish]

Yes it's that road past Steck Park I am talking about, My friend said they had gone to the end of it and set up camp, but they didn't mention it being too rough, but maybe it has changed. Did you notice anyone camping there? The cherokee should handle it, but it might be tough on the red trailer.

Did you use the TD method of fishing for the cats? but probably needed more weight? Nightcrawlers & minnows?
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[Bigfishdaddy894]

Hey Idahopanfish be careful on that road it dead ends A LONG WAYS BACK there it can be nasty road to travel at times with the recent rainfall who knows about it now. Good luck and be carefull..

Neal
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[idahoron]

With the amount of rain we have had I think the traffic has turned up the rocks. I didn't drive down it because I had my hiway tires on. I didn't want to rip out a side wall.
I work for a fish farm so I got some trout to use as cut bait. I used a 2/0 hook, and the bait was 1 to 1.5" wide and about 3" to 4" long. I used a swivel and a piece of split shot about the size of a pea.
I targeted spots where the bottom was going from about 10' then it would drop off to about 20 to 30 foot. I would fish that drop off.
If you can stay in place that is great. If you can find an eddy that the water will drift the bait into a hole like I said above it will work great. Slowly trolling and I mean SLOW works great too. Don't use much weight
Big bait big fish!
Good luck, I am headed out the door to strike.
Ron
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