Channel Cat in the Columbia...... Update....

[Tacklebuster]

While fishing for sturgeon last Saturday below the Horsetail Falls area, we hooked three channel cat in the 5 to 8 pound range. These were not brown bullhead but true channel cat. I have caught channel cat in the Big Willy and the Multomah Channel but never on the main stem Columbia itself. I never thought to try until now. I guess my question is how many times have you guys accidently hooked a channel cat while sturgeon fishing on the Columbia between the gorge and portland area?

Being an Alabama boy, this has an eyebrow raised for me. I guy would think the Bonny area should be full of them but if so, more incidental catches should happen. I plan on a night trip in the spring in the area targeting shallow water for these critters and would appreciate any input any one can give that has either targeted these guys or has ran across a cooler full by accident.

[ 11-15-2003, 06:02 PM: Message edited by: Tacklebuster ]

[Capin' Dan]

TB, I know the John Day river is supposed to have plenty of them up above the John Day Dam. I have heard of people targeting and catching them around sauvies. Never any numbers in th ecolumbia that would have me targeting them. Give me a yell and I may bring my boat up and keep you company when you go for htem. I will throw out my crawfish pots and try and get some quality bait for them

[SturgeonKing50]

I have caught several below St. Helens. They were around 5 lbs. Boy was I surprised. Darn good eating though. The way things are going with the sturgeon we may have to target these guys more often.

[Capin' Dan]

SSSHHHHHHHHHH, Don't let the ODFW hear that they will have a special tag on them for extra $$$. The tribes will have to get their 99% of them, I wander which fin they will clip on them. What the slot limit would be. dates and such. :dance: :dance:

[Shaker-King]

I was also surprised when I caught one while Sturgeon fishing at Columbia City. This was in late August just before the run started. I've been fishing the area for about four years now and this was the first one I have seen. This one was 11#.

[Sturgeon 42]

I caught one at the mouth of the Willamette more in the Columbia 2 yrs ago along with a keeper Sturgeon.... :grin: :grin: :grin: ( also caught one in the Toyota hole earlier this year.)

[River Ranger]

had a friend that caught one below bonni on whole shad a few years ago.He said it wen't about 15 to 20 lbs.

R.R.

[fishchaser]

We used to fish for channel cat's before we figured out what Sturgeon were. :bowdown:

Plus since sturgeon is closed for retention,
:mad:

you can keep cat fish. They eat just as well as Sturgeon. YUMM YUMM :dance:

[LazerFisher]

Not sure if you can legally fish them at night when they are the most active. I have caught boatloads of them in Oklahoma and they are fine eating… graemlins/lurk.gif

[Short Hop]

I have a good friend who spends a week every summer catching a ton of these things at the mouth of the John Day. I have also caught a few in the Gilbert River, but they were all on accident. I saw a guy targeting them up in there one time and he had a bunch in the 5 to 10 pound range that he got out of the log jams. Good luck if you want to try and find 'em. Let us know how it goes.

[foxer]

Fairly certain you can fish for Catfish, crappie, bass etc at night in Oregon.

[Nanook]

You find em' Chris and I'm there. Night fishing would be a blast. :grin:

Rick

[6horsekicker]

What do you use for bait?

[dawhunt]

I've never caught one but when I fished sturgeon at Bonniville dam,I did see two caught by a guy fishing for sturgeon.They weighed around 5#'s a piece.
Bob

[FishSniffer]

Well, this is encouraging. I'd resigned myself to thinking catfish were few and far between here in Oregon based on everything I've read so far. Anyone else want to chime in an tell where you've caught these in numbers?

Snif snif snif. Lookin for clues. I sure love a good blackened catfish steak.

[Dipnet]

Back in the old days you could fish for sturgeon all night,in Washington anyway. That was a lot of fun!! Spent many a night in a tent waiting for the bell to ring on our rod. It's really funny seeing 2 grown-ups trying to get out of a pup tent in a hurry when the bell goes off!! :laugh:

Dipnet :grin:

[CATCH AND EAT]

Tacklebuster, them there cat critters ain't gonna do's ya any good come-a January. That thar is a Sturgeon Challenge, not cat fish challenge boy!!! Somt'm ta be a think'n 'bout sonny. :grin: :laugh:

So did ya keep 'em? They are good eating :cool: . And if your teeth are bad they are easy to gum'em up. :tongue:

[Longhunter]

Well KY Hog Hunter is not the only Kentuckian on I fish, and I spent many years Cat Fishing. I believe we only have Channel Cats here in this area and in some parts of the country will get up to 30LB, the Fatheads get a lot bigger.

They feed just like Gator's and eat same things and love live bait. Here are two site have lot of info about them and fishing for them, BOC. has just about all the info one will ever find.

Anyone who wants to try chasing these guy's down let me know if you want company,they are good fighters and allot of fun. I know of a couple places I have wanted to fish for them but would take a boat and I am boat less.

Enjoy! Paul



http://www.brotherhood-of-catfishermen.com/

http://fishing.about.com/library/weekly/aa051997.htm

[GoFish]

Well, this would take me full circle. Started with night fishing for catfish about 50 years ago. Lip smacking gooood.

[Tacklebuster]

Thanks for all the helpful replies :cool:

Eight years ago when I moved to Oregon, I wandered into a tackle shop on third street in Mac and talked to a guy named Michael Teague (SailCat) about channel cats. He told me I would need to drive to the Snake River to catch them in good numbers. A month later I walked back into the shop with two pictures of channel cat that I caught around the Newberg area. One was 25 pounds and the other 22 pounds. I know we have big fish in our local rivers and it took me a month to prove it.

I went on to fish for them for another year until I stumbled across sturgeon fishing and have been tied up ever since. Ever since last Saturday that is. I only fished around the Newberg area and in the year that I chased them, I did pretty well. I caught 5 over twenty pounds and 12 in the 12 to 16 pound range.

It makes since why more channel cats are not caught by accident when sturgeon fishing. The cats can not compete for food in the same area as a billion sturgeon. They are spread out and I think are a lot more shallower than one would think. Catfish do not have to have the bait on the bottom to bite either. We used to fish stink baits that would float above a barrel weight much like a "power bait" set up when fishing for trout. A favorite method of mine that accounted for just about all my channel cats in Oregon and most in Alabama was drifting a piece of cut bait under a float near fallen timber and log jams in 10 to 18 feet of water.

The problem with pitching a bait out into deep water on the Columbia is that it probably will never see a catfish due to the amount of sturgeon in the area. Floating bait down along the shallows however is another story. I do believe we have a sleeper of a fishery here folks. The biggest channel cats that I have caught down South has been in the middle of the winter doing this.

I am going to study some river charts and will plan a trip while the water temp is still in the 50's. Anyone else that wants to pioneer some uncharted fishing is more than welcome. I will be rigging my boat with 6 spot mounted spot lights and all the other equipment needed for a safe, comfortable night on the river. Will probably do the Multomah Channel for the virgin run. I hooked two by accident this spring while exploring new water for sturgeon.

Send me some mail if your interested....

[FishaholicAZ]

Man they sure are good... My first ever fish was a bullhead catfish and I have been hooked ever since. I remember we used to go out and fish the mouth and first mile or so of the Walla Walla River and do pretty good on some big Cats. Saw a few over 20 but the biggest we ever got was right around 5 lbs... However, here in AZ, we do have not only channel cats but also flatheads. Man are they ugly. The biggest one we got so far was a 32lbr we caught on live shad. Here in AZ... I have seen people get some over 40 though. What beasts and good eats. Have fun...

[Sturgeon 42]

Tacklebuster keep me informed on your virgin trip as I am only minutes from the cathedral boat ramp.... :grin: :grin: :grin:

[live to fish]

Me and a friend have targeted channel cat several times in Multomah Channel but never have caught any.Every time we try for cats we end up catching sturgen no matter what we use for bait. :shrug:

[Rocky]

I have a friend who fishes for them somewhere by the mouth of the Lewis and Lake River where they meet or maybe even in Lake River but he swears by them and says he never comes home catfishless.

[Nanook]

Anyone have any venture capital to build and open a huge "pay" channel cat lake? Keep it stocked with nice ones from the farms they stock them with from back yonder'. What a blast that was as a kid. Crappie all night on one rod, second rod lose drag on the bottom with secret Kentucky Wheaties bait, waiting for the channel to start taking off with it. :grin:

Reminder, my idea. I only want 5 percent of the recurring revenue. :cool: Clean, fresh, white flakey channel cat is better than steak. Almost as good as Lingcod. :wink:

Huntington is too far, dern it. :depressed:

[TonTo]

I caught a dandy in the 5lb. class bellow Jim Crow in the lower columbia this spring while fishing sturgeon,took my smelt I was offering,I believe it was a channel it had the spots and a forked tail,but it was kinda yellow in color.Also pulled a 54" sturgeon that day and had a combo platter that night.

[Longhunter]

FishaholicAZ, I worked in Phoenix area about three years ago and fished below Horse Shoe and on the Salt, the first time I fished at Horse Shoe a Black fellow came down and put a 14 inch Carp on and casted out I ask man are you for real and he said yes he had caught 50 LB out of their! Well I said ok what ever you say.

To make a long story short he landed a 62 LB Flathead I didn't know their were fish that big their it sure got me more interested in fishing the area.

The AZ record is 71 LB it says Roosevelt Lake I understand they are caught up from the lake in the Salt River.

Best I ever did was 33 LB sure were fun to catch and great eating so much better than farm raised.

[Hogback]

I have but one thing to say about this post. Chicken livers.
Randy

[LuckySteelhead]

I caught one (channel catfish) 2 years ago this same time of year at Trogen Hole in about 85 feet of water. It weighed about 5 lbs. It was ugly we let it go. :smile:

[Kentucky Hog Hunter]

Chris,

Being a southerner and fishing for this species in Texas, Fla, and most of all Kentucky, you are definately on to something.

I know about reservoirs like Brownlee and rivers like the Snake & John Day and I am not surprised obout your discovery.

I would love to give this a go sometime and don't dismiss all that stink bait they use in the south. I am sure ole Jerry Klauer would be proud if a couple good ole southern boys inquired about some of his "Magic Bait." "Oh it'll fling a craven on em."

[greenbuttskunk]

I agree. If they are out there below bonniville, toss out some stinky old chicken liver and hold on. As far as taste, I'll take catfish over just about anything. Reminds me of eating fried catfish at some quaint little southern diner.
They must be in the river, and they should have some good numbers. The habitat is perfect for them to grow pretty large, unless it's an issue over competition for food with the sturgeon.
GBS

[Tacklebuster]

Chicken liver is a no go due to all the "Northern Pike Minnow" you have to weed through. I have tried it too many times in our local rivers only to get the same end result.

Drifting fresh cut bait under a float was the most consistant method that picked up channel cat fo me when I spent a year chasing them. I have the boat ready and will make the initial trip soon. I'll keep ya posted........

[ 11-06-2003, 09:18 AM: Message edited by: Tacklebuster ]

[TonTo]

Do channels spawn in the lower Columbia system or are they just left over plants?I have heard that conditions aren't faverable for channels but am no expert,or even close.In the last couple years I've heard of some big cats being caught here in lake Sacajawea,biggest one being 23lbs,but also heard it was a 15yr old plant since they were unable to breed for whatever reason.I know the bullheads breed but just curious about the channels.Are there realy enough of them out there to target,it sure would be nice.

[pearl]

Anyone want to jump overboard up at Bonniville and go noodling for cat fish.

Not sure what noodling is? Check out this site for an expanation.

http://www.johnsjottings.com/archives/2003/04/23/catfish_noodling.html

[TheRogue]

Hey TB, just sent you an e-mail......

TR

[Tacklebuster]

Conditions in the Multomah Channel and other back water stretches on the Columbia and Big Willy are prime spots for breeding. The catfish inhabit the shallow water because they can't compete with the sturgeon for food in the deeper holes. I have caught enough smaller cats that year to know that they were not planted by anybody.

If I was a betting man, I would put my money on a new fishery for the Tacklebuster this spring. If I can take a few this winter I will promise a bunch in the spring....

[TonTo]

TB are those bullhead or channel? I know there are plenty of bullhead cats out there,I'm not too worried about depleting the cats just wondering if there are enough to hit the CR expeting to catch a few channels.

[ 11-07-2003, 12:19 AM: Message edited by: TonTo ]

[Taildragger]

I dont think I would be eating any cats from the willamette or slough! graemlins/berry.gif graemlins/eek13.gif

[DF]

Caught one last spring with a bait wrapped quick fish, for a second I thought I had a small salmon, got it to the boat and went YUCK! toss it back! :shocked:

[STGRule]

Here is a little one we caught two weeks ago in McNary Reservoir.

http://www.ifish.net/uploads/245808310.jpg

[Tacklebuster]

The cats I am talking about are channel cat, not brown bullhead. You can catch brown bullhead all throughout the Columbia and big Willy just about anywhere there is a back eddy or spot where the current slows. Worms and liver will bring you a mixed bag of bullhead cat and *********.

Channel cat is very tasty and are good fighters and aggressive biters. More to come........

Nice pic STGRule :cheers:

[rustyl]

Tacklebuster,

Have you made any channel cat discovery trips yet? I am also very interested in the possibilities. I grew up fishing for channel cats in Texas, and would love to get into it again around here.

I would have begged for a seat, but haven't had much time for fishing lately.

[Tacklebuster]

Not exactly the results I had dreamed for but it's a start. Have not done the night trip but the initial scouting trip down the Multnomah Channel proved that they are in the water. We latched on two three that ran between 4 to 7 pounds. Not great but off to a good start. I will have this area kicking out nice channel cat before spring. Cut bait drifted under a float near fallen timber and log jams, 6 to 14 feet of water.