The contradictory but truthful expression “so ugly that they’re beautiful” comes to mind when closely inspecting a big flathead catfish.It’s commonly known that flatheads are less numerous state-wide than their cousins, the blue, and channel cats.Physically, flatheads contrast with the other catfishes in coloring and also in the shape of their head and lower jaw.
We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. His biggest flathead weighed 73 pounds and came from the Guntersville Dam tailrace.Mike Holley, the District II Fisheries Supervisor, points out the good fishing all along the Coosa.
That conception is true, but the application is not always realistic. Almost all include some type of current break, mainly wood but also rocks, rock piles, ledges, and mud banks.Ideal locations include those types of structures near the bank that allow him to tie up if the angle allows.
Follow these tips on how to catch flathead catfish and give them a chance, but be prepared for a fight of a lifetime when the big one bites. Cory Catfish.
Pounders stressed the need to focus on the angle of a tree and avoid pulling a hooked fish through heavy structure.Gaston’s strategies differ in that he anchors most of the time, moving upstream of good structure and attempting to work baits back to the prime locations. Some attempts were made in the early years to shock and remove all flatheads, a process that did little to stop their spread.“They’re here to stay,” Weathers said.
Anything under 15 pounds might bite just about anything. He uses seven-foot, medium heavy rods “with a little play in my tip” and Abu Garcia bait-casters with clickers.“There are times when these flatheads can be very finicky,” Gaston said. Pounders relies on 10-foot models by B’n’M, which provide the leverage to “finesse” the whole package in the right direction. His reel of choice is a Daiwa 7000C spinning reel.“A lot of people don’t understand how to catch flathead catfish, but if you sling that bait out there, it’s half dead before it hits the water and the hook is halfway jerked out of it,” Pounders said. Most casual fishermen never encounter a flathead, know little about how to catch flathead catfish, and more than a few catches are mistakes, the byproduct of fishing for another species.
This article was co-authored by our trained team of editors and researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness.
“There’s nothing really mysterious or rare about them on the Alabama River,” Gaston said.
A couple of throws with the net, however, can produce dozens of quality shad. And the Tennessee River has its share of bigger flatheads with the biggest usually topping out in the 60s.River systems with consistently flowing water produce the state’s best big flathead catfish fishing. With the right approach, either of these options could yield you an impressive catch of this delicious fish.