Fishin’ With Capt. Gus! Flathead Cat Fishing 7-10-11

Paula Monk of Mooresville, NC holding a trophy flathead catfish caught on latest Lake Norman fishing trip.

Fishin’ With Capt. Gus!
Flathead Cat Fishing
seven-10-eleven

There was a time when folks went catfishing, and have been pleased to catch any kind of fish. But, just like almost everything else in this entire world nowadays, catfishing has grow to be specialized. Now, there are individuals who fish for channel cats, other folks who target Arkansas blues, and a increasing amount of anglers enjoy catching flatheads.

Flatheads are predators that adhere to bait and fish colleges when they are hungry. If there are not significant amounts of bait or feeder fish about, they conceal inside of logs and other types of cover to ambush the up coming small bass or sunfish that swims their way. Flatheads have a big mouth and gullet capable of swallowing a fairly huge fish. It’s not only their aggressiveness that makes them a preferred with fishermen it’s also their size. They increase to excellent dimensions and set up a quite a battle when hooked. If that’s not ample, they are arguably the best tasting of all cat fish species.

Flatheads have been in Lake Norman for years, but were seldom targeted right up until the recent influx of white perch and spotted bass. That’s when anglers realized that large flatheads, followed schools of perch and spots to feast on the bits and pieces that settle to the bottom during feeding frenzies. The flathead is perfect for Lake Norman considering that its brown shade blends well with the clay lake bottom, and helps make it almost invisible to fish feeding over.

Realizing this, anglers who target flatheads now search for white perch colleges on the depth finder, and as an alternative of fishing for them, they drop dwell baits and/or jigging spoons to the bottom. Each are fantastic baits. A flathead are not able to resist the fluttering action of a spoon or the vibrations of a reside bait tethered to a hook and line.

Lake Norman has created dozens of flatheads that tipped the scales at over fifty pounds. Broad spool bait casting reels, loaded with thirty or fifty pound check line and medium to hefty action seven foot rods, are used for these large fish.

Flathead Cat Fishing Tips:
* Flatheads have a thick jaw bone, consequently a extensive gapped 5/ to ten/ hook is finest when fishing with dwell or reduce bait.
* When jigging, a 1 and a half ounce (or larger) spoon with further power treble hooks is chosen.
* Flatheads will take line when hooked, so be certain the drag is set to less than 50 percent the breaking strength of the line.
*A significant hooped web is required to land trophy flatheads. Don’t leave home without having a web.

The North Carolina State file flathead catfish is 78 lbs and was taken from the Cape Concern River on a reside eel by Brain Newberger in 2005.

Upcoming Occasions:
No cost Secure Boating Class – “How to Navigate Lake Norman Day or Night” will be held at North Stage Watersports, Exit 36, Mooresville, NC on Wednesday, July 13, 2011 from six:thirty p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Topics for discussion will include “Understanding LKN’s Channel Marker and Buoy System”, “Identifying and Understanding How to Avoid the 10 Most Harmful Spots”, and “Interpreting Lake Maps”. For much more info, phone me: 704-617-6812 or electronic mail Gus@LakeNoman.com.

No cost Fishing Seminar: “Bank and Dock Fishing for Sunfish, White Perch, Catfish and Bass” will be talked about at Gander Mountain, Exit 36 on Wednesday, July twenty, 2011 from 6:thirty p.m. – eight:00 p.m. Carry the total household to this free of charge event. I will cover every little thing from fishing with cane poles, hooks and bobbers, to making use of dwell and cut baits. Suggestions will be provided about the finest locations to fish from shore and exactly where the white perch are biting. Get in touch with 704-658-0822 for extra information.

Tips from Capt. Gus: It is not too late to watch the nesting blue heron’s on the smaller of the two islands in between creek channel markers D4 and D6. Blue Heron Island is complete of hungry chicks all set to leave the nest.

Scorching Spots of the Week: White perch seem to be almost everywhere, but most are becoming caught in deep drinking water (20 to fifty feet) along the edges of river and creek channels and in coves and bays with related depths of drinking water. Flathead catfish and good dimensions bass are adhering to schools of white perch. Some of the bass are more than five kilos. Schooling bass are hitting top rated drinking water baits on creek and river points. Fishing for Arkansas blue catfish s is great to very very good when drifting fresh lower baits.

The surface area h2o temperature differs by spot, but is mainly in the large eighties in open waters not affected by power era. The water level is about 2.six ‘ below total pond on Lake Norman and two.8’ below on Mountain Island Lake.

Capt. Gus Gustafson of Lake Norman Ventures, Inc. is an Outside Columnist and a complete time Specialist Fishing Information on Lake Norman, NC. Visit his world wide web web site, www.Fishingwithgus.com or call 704-617-6812.