My go-to baits for catching blue catfish big and small are: alewife, menhaden (bunker), and stinky chicken. The recipe for stinky chicken is below. I love to use cut eel when I can get it. Cut bluegill also works. And while I am mentioning baits, yes, you can catch blue catfish on chicken livers, bologna, and hot dogs(!)
Blue Catfish
Fighting a blue catfish that is deep in the current!
Oooof! I have pulled some big catfish out of the water over the past decade. The job is made tougher when the fish are deep in strong current, as this fish was.
I was in the middle of the Potomac just north of Fletcher’s Cove and just south of Chain Bridge. This fellow hit the alewife (bought at Fletcher’s Tackle Shop) I put on my rig, and it took some time to get him up and out of the current. He felt like he was more than twice the size he actually was, due to the swift water pressing him downstream against my reeling him upstream.
Which should seve as a reminder: if you fish swift waters, use a strong rod, heavy braid (40 pounds is my standard), and tough monofilament leaders (50 pound is my go-to.)
And if you would be so kind—please follow my YouTube channel. Tight lines!
Fighting a 23-pound catfish at Fletcher’s Cove
Well, that was fun. This was far from the largest catfish I had caught.
But it was very fun due to the fact that the fish was deep in stiff current north of Fletcher’s Cove. Those factors made this fish feel REALLY heavy.
The GX-2 Ugly Stik per usual stood up to the challenge. My bait was alewife, which the tackle shop at Fletcher’s sells. I had an 8-0 circle hook on it, rigged as a basic three-way rig (float added right above the hook) and weighted with a home-made no-snag sinker.
Boom!
How to make snag-less sinkers for catfishing
I love fishing the Potomac River and the Anacostia River. They are THICK with catfish, including channel catfish, bullheads, monsterous blue catfish.
But one challenge of these rivers is that they are very snaggy. I have lost so many sinkers or entire rigs to snags, which is a bummer and also upsetting to me because I think it is important to not leave stuff —sinkers, line, hooks, etc.— in the river. No matter the sinker shape, pyramid, circle, round, etc., I still got snags.
The other week, I was thinking about a solution. And I got an idea from an anchoring solution I came across. (Stick with me as I explain.)
The snaggy river got hold of my kayak’s anchor this spring, and to remedy that situation I created a drag anchor—basically a very heavy chain sheather in either a plastic sleeve or pipe insulation.
Continue readingWhen you are reeling in one catfish and another catfish steals your second rod
It was a cool day at Fletcher’s Cove on october 31, 2020. My youngest kid and I had just hooked a decent catfish. The fishing had been a little slow, so we were happy to have a feisty blue catfish coming in. The beast was a bit too much for my young mate to reel in, so I did the work of heaving it up from the depths.
And while doing that I veered from following cardinal rule of catfishing—always keep a pair of eyes on a rod if it is not tied down. Watch the video and you’ll see that right when the fish ran around the boat and my back was turned—BOOM—a catfish pulled the other rod into the Potomac River. My Whisker Seeker GFX rod! And a favorite reel of mine and my hand-made Santee rig!
The good news is that I got the rod back. I took the fish off the Ugly Stick GX2 (medium-heavy one-piece), removed the rig, tied on a heavy sinker and a big hook to the end of the line, and cast it out and began dragging the hook across the bottom. After maybe 20 minutes, I hooked it. The rod and reel were none the worse, but the rig was long gone. The fish had snapped 40-pound braid!
Chasing catfish at Fletcher’s Cove, March 2021
Spring does not arrive until March 20, but the Potomac River is awakening. Herring, shad, and perch are beginning their run, and the predators (striped bass and catfish) are in hot pursuit. Fletcher’s Cove in Washington, DC is a go-to spot for catching all these fish, and more species.
Right before this catfish I hooked a monster—it bent my Whiskey Seeker rod over severely, and when I tried to reel it in in the fish basically said, “No, man.” I struggled to move him, and then he pulled line off my reel. About 20 seconds into the fight, he broke my 40-pound braid. Whoa.
I grabbed my other rod and chucked in the same area and within a minute my Ugly Stick GX2 was bent. I left the drag a little loose for fear of having my line snapped again. This proved a good move, as the video shows, because this fish fought hard. It took 3 minutes to get him to the boat. He was at least 25 pounds. I got my photo with him and then pitched him back in so he can grow bigger and more beastly.
It’s autumn and the big catfish are prowling
It happens each autumn—the big catfish of the Potomac and Anacostia rivers start prowling more during daylight hours.
Here’s my theory: young catfish hunt for food most hours of the day for the sake of survival. The more they eat, the bigger they get, and the less likely they will be devoured by predators. But once catfsh get to a certain size —15 pounds? bigger?— they feel less of an imperative to hunt for so many horus of the day. The bigger they get, the more they will be likely to do thier hunting at night.
Why night? Beats me, but those who hunt the monsters tend to advocate going after them during the dark hours. My own biggest catfish (40 pounds), I landed at around 1 am.
Continue readingKosar Fishing in the Washington Post
Source: Washington Post.
Any reader of this blog knows that I and the kids often fish at Diamond Teague Park, which is behind the Washington Nationals’ stadium.
It’s beautiful down there, and catfish usually can be found. I’ve landed some whoppers there. Folks often come up and ask with astonishment, “Are there fish in there?” Chalk it up to the Anacostia River’s notorious reputation. Which, I am happy to report, is improving. The river is thick with fish and yes you can eat some of them—in moderation.
Anyhoo, a Washington Post photographer was in the area recently and happened upon us doing our thing. As the photo shows, I cast ’em long. A big chunk of bait plus a 2-ounce sinker and an 8-foot pole that can really catapult. The 40-pound braid I put on can handle the duress of these chucks—any the hard yanks from the catfish big and small.
Kosar's Fishing Notes 
