Catfish are one of the most popular sport fish in the US.  This popularity can be attributed to the habitat range of catfish.  Catfish can be found across the entire state of North Carolina.  From the smallest creeks, to the largest lakes, you can be certain that catfish can be found.  Another reason that makes the catfish such a popular sport fish is the fact that anglers can pursue them in a boat, on foot, or in a canoe.

The first step to catching more catfish is to understand the diet and habits at different stages of life and seasons.  In the early stages of a catfish’s life it will feed on larvae, insects, mollusks, worms, and aquatic plants.   Whether it is a channel, blue, or a flathead all basically have the same diet.  The young catfish are very opportunistic and feed on any easy meal that presents itself.  As the fish grows stronger and faster its meals begin to grow larger.  Their diets are now supplemented with young crappie, bream, and crayfish.  Notice that stinky dough baits are not mentioned.

The next step is selecting the tackle and gear for the fishing trip.  Heavy bass fishing equipment or a surf
fishing rod armed with 20lb test line should be enough to haul one of these bruisers.  Selecting the terminal tackle varies widely depending on the body of water and style of presentation needed.  For lakes and ponds anglers will tend to use a Carolina rig and three-way swivel rig for bottom fishing.  These same rigs can also be used in larger rivers with deep holes.  There are several choices of lead that can be used to weigh down your bottom fishing rigs.  Bullet and egg sinkers work well for bottom fishing situations where current and wind are minimal.  If you are fishing a deep river with some current you may want to try a weight like Lindy No-Snagg Sinkers.  This new innovative style may perform better by not hanging on rocks while slowly being pushed downstream by the current.  In shallower rivers with current I prefer to fish with a bobber.  Fishing with a bobber provides much better versatility.  You are able to fish instead of spending all your time getting hung on logs and breaking your line.  All of the rigs will be armed with 2/0 octopus or kahle hooks.  2/0 hooks are big and tough enough for most fish while still being small enough to hook the 1 pounders.

Now that your rods are rigged up it is time to gather the rest of the gear.  The list of gear is not long and includes a bait bucket (live well), pliers, gloves, cane pole, and night crawlers.  The night crawlers and cane pole will be used for catching our bait.  As we covered early, catfish eat fish.  The bait bucket will be used to keep our bait fresh.  When it is time to use the bait, you can decide for yourself if you want it to be cut bait or live bait.  Fishermen are all optimist, so the pliers and gloves will be used to unhook the big slimy fish.  Catfish have very rough mouths and strong jaws, the gloves make it much easier to handle them.

Spring through late summer is the best and most popular time to target catfish.  Catfish can be caught in the morning and midday, but the big ones seem to roam free from late evening and into the night.  It is practice among catfishermen to fish with more than one rod.  All you need to do is match the situation and the water with the terminal tackle and choose your bait.  Live bait or fresh cut bait should always be your first choice.  We have already covered the diet of catfish and determined that they are a predatory fish and prefer natural, fresh bait.  Night crawlers and dough will catch fish, but the results normally yield the younger smaller fish.  Switching to fresh baits that are natural to the water you are fishing will yield a definite increase in the number of fish and size of fish that are caught.