Finding the Unfindable: Pinpointing Pelagic Reservoir Blue Cats

How do you find a fish that seemingly never sits still? The straightforward answer to this dilemma is that you need to keep moving too. In the words of tournament angler Eric Horton, “They’re everywhere and nowhere, simultaneously.” Blue cats in any body of water can be impressively frustrating to catch with any consistency, and lakes are no different. However, with a few guiding principles, you can set yourself up for success. 

But where do you start? Horton starts by breaking the reservoir into thirds. The upper third is where the inlet or river dumps in. The lower third is down by the dam. The middle third is, well, in the middle. Seasonal fish movements determine where to start, but generally in the spring they’re heading to the upper third first, and then they fish their way down the lake. The fall and winter, they start in the lower third by the dam and work their way up. 

Day to day weather patterns, or even the weather leading up to your day on the water, makes a big difference on where cats can be once you finally make it to the lake. Cold fronts generally move catfish into deeper water than they would have been before. Cold fronts also can lead to the fish holding tighter to, or directly on, a structure. A period of warm weather often results in cats cruising shallower and shallower waters. As a general rule of thumb, if it's cold, go deeper. If it’s warm, fish shallower.

Another consideration is wind. Wind can be your best friend or your worst enemy. Nasty cold fronts often bring strong, blustery north winds. What this type of weather can do is not only make it harder to control your boat, but also condense bait and push concentrations of fish closer to a structure. This is why fishing structures can be more productive during rougher weather. When the weather has been unseasonably warm with consistent wind direction, especially in the spring or fall, enormous percentages of the entire catfish population will concentrate on windblown shorelines, taking advantage of the schools of bait that have been pushed there. 

When starting the catfish hunt, Horton advises, “Start where you think they’ll be. You can check the area using electronics, but actually putting bait in the water is the only way to know for sure where they’re at.” Often catfish are so tight to the bottom, they’re tough to see on your fish finder. On the opposite extreme, even if you see cats by the dozen on the screen, that doesn’t necessarily mean they’ll bite. If you have baits in the water, you will know in short order if there are active fish there.

As long as the water is over 50 degrees, Horton can typically be found trolling or drifting. This isn’t a hard line though - he has caught fish while trolling even a few short days after the ice melts off the lake in the spring. Experimenting with trolling speed can be crucial, especially at lower water temperatures. While anchoring is always an option, covering water and putting your bait in front of more fish is generally the preferred method of targeting big blue cats, as they are often scattered around the lake. That being said, while trolling will typically bring a higher number of big fish to the boat, your biggest fish will often come from anchoring on a spot. 

Horton is a fan of big baits, especially when water temps are above 50 degrees. He prefaces this by stating that he doesn’t mind not catching anything when using those big baits. If your goal is to simply put fish in the boat, he recommends using a variety of sizes, as well as different types of cuts, from the bait fish. 

For tackle, a light tipped rod with backbone in the lower half is preferred. The soft tip allows a catfish to take the bait efficiently, but the power in the bottom of the rod helps you fight a large fish. Both braided line or mono catch fish, but Horton has noticed mono really shines for large fish and in rough water conditions. He’s not sure why, but after experimenting with braided mainline on one side of the boat, and mono on the other, the mono seems to outperform when it comes to big fish (I tried to do my own research to find out why the bigger fish prefer mono, but all the catfish I questioned were pretty tight lipped). 

Horton’s rigging is similar to that of many lake catfishermen. He uses an 80 lb leader with a 3 inch peg float in the middle, ending with an 8/0 circle hook. His leader length varies significantly and is something he stressed you should always be experimenting with. If the fish are suspended, using a longer leader, sometimes up to five feet, as well as putting your bobber close to your hook, can lead to more fish. On the other hand, if you notice fish are close to the bottom, or don’t mark very many because they are directly on the bottom, a shorter leader or moving your float away from your hook might be what’s needed to get a bite. As far as dragging weights go, use the lightest possible weight to maintain contact with the bottom. He typically uses a 1.75 oz drifting stick. 

Another interesting technique Horton uses is to make it a point to fish patterns and not spots. Fishing new bodies of water can help you grow as a fisherman and be better at locating fish in different circumstances. Experimenting with all of these different variables is a must to get on the best bite possible. At a recent tournament he competed in, one in which he placed 2nd out of a field of 77 teams, he didn’t get a single bite until he cut all of his leaders down to 18”. This is just one example that demonstrates how manipulating different variables can make a significant difference between catching a few and having an amazing day on the water. 

Blue catfish are an odd bunch with peculiar habits, and this makes them tough to catch consistently, especially the big ones. These tips, and even more importantly, this mindset, will help get you moving in the right direction. Just about the time you have them figured out, something changes, and you get to start the experiment all over again.