By Steve Douglas

This is a technique I developed as a result of my experiences during my bass fishing days in late 80’s and 90’s. When I was fishing Taylorsville lake in Spencer county Ky, I would often catch catfish as was flippin a jig or a worm near cover such as lay downs or other wood structure searching for bass, I would always catch a good sized catfish. So this got me thinking on how I could combine my bass fishing knowledge with my catfishing knowledge and come up with a way to target the more aggressive catfish that roam the banks.

As a kid growing up in Nelson co Ky. I always loved to set bank poles out for the catfish along the Beach Fork and Rolling Fork River banks and the key word here is ;( the bank). Catfish will roam the banks or shallows in search of there next meal. So I mixed a little bass knowledge with some old school cattin and targeted these catfish using the bass method of flippin, but changed up the presentation with a more suitable bait choice that the cats would prefer such as crawdads, night crawlers and cut bait.

The technique is simple, fast paced and a fun way to catch big active and aggressive channel cats at night time and the action can be deadly. While using a black light or fluorescent light to illuminate the bank and your float the idea is to flip your bait to the mostly likely pieces of wood structure along the banks using your trolling motor to ease yourself along not staying in one place to long. The best banks will be close to deeper water and have several structure targets to fish and sometimes will be as long as a ½ mile.

I personally like the small 12v florescent lamps instead of the black lights; it seems to give me more illumination to my target areas for a better presentation not to mention making my bobber glow bright.

I have mounted my fluorescent light on a 10 ft. aluminum pole that I insert into my front seat pedestal and it acts like a street light illuminating the boats deck area so I’m not tripping all over the place and it lights about a 50 foot view span of the bank making it easier to maneuver the cover. This light will not spook the fish however a noisy angler will, making racket because he can’t see what he’s doing.


These fluorescent lights can be found online or at most sporting good stores and even Wal-Mart. But you will have to get creative on how you want to mount it to fit your needs; most will come standard with suction cups to stick to the side of your boat.

I use a medium action seven foot spin casting combo spooled with 30 lb FINS extra smooth Situational Braid. But the bait casting combos are just as effective.
The rigging is pretty much the same as rigging a crappie bobber, Just a simple slip float rig that consist of a bobber stop, a bobber, a ¼ oz split shot sinker and a gold crappie hook. Caution: stationary bobbers will not be as effective in this method of cattin.’

Thread your bobber stop up on the line a foot or so and separate the black tube from the bobber stop thread and slide the tube off your main line and disregard the tube, leaving the yellow thread on your line. Grab the two tag ends of the bobber stop and pull tightly and snip off the tag ends. Next thread your bobber onto your line and tie your hook to the end of your line and add the split shot sinker about 4 inches above your hook. Now adjust the bobber stop by grasping your main line and pull the stop up or down to adjust the desired depth. I will generally target 4-5 foot of water so my bobber stop will be set at 2-3 foot.

Once you have your tackle rigged and your bank picked out, it’s time to start flippin, this action is achieved simply by pointing the tip of your rod at the target spot with your right hand and holding the cork or bobber rig in your left hand, then in a fluid motion begin to lift the rod tip up while letting go of the rig, swinging the bait into the right spot..
As I start to approach the wood structure I start flippin to the edges of the structure first, never leaving my bait in one spot more than 30 seconds, hitting all the open areas, as I get on top of the structure I will flip the center of the structure, again not leaving my bait sit more than 30 seconds before flippin again to a different part of the structure, using my trolling motor to ease around the target area.

With this method we are looking for aggressive and active catfish and most of the time, the catfish will take the bait within the first 30 seconds. If you don’t get bit in one piece of structure, ease yourself along the bank with the trolling motor to the next likely target. Even though you may not see visible structure You can still flip the bank in between targets as active catfish will move along the bank looking for food, just put your trolling motor speed on low and continuously flip to the bank as your boat catches up, reel in and flip ahead again, you can continue this process until you hit your next lay down or wood structure.

Anglers who try this method using monofilament will probably get discouraged and will be constantly retying do to the hang ups, that’s why my two key ingredients to this rig is the 30 lb FINS braided line and a big gold crappie hook, one that will bend out of a snag, just pull slowly with the strength of the 30 lb braid and the hook comes free and then you just bend it back in place with your thumb and fore finger and continue fishing. This type of hook works well on the channel cats as I’m not targeting monster catfish that require the stronger hooks. The channel cats you will be targeting with this method are the 15lb or less fish. The idea with this light gauge hook is to fish more and snag less and not to have to retie several times throughout the trip.
When;
This technique will also work well in the day time in April and May, however as the water warms in the summer months, the night time action is best.
Bait choices;
In the spring time I prefer night crawlers over cut bait, but after the spawn in July and August, the night crawlers tend to attract the bait stealing pan fish more. The best baits for the summer months are cut bait, chub minnows and crawdads but the cut bait seems to dominate more.

Flatheads;
Although this technique works well on the channel cats because they tend to gather around the structure to feed, the technique can also be used to catch flatheads in the day or night. The flathead will use the structure as a home so to say, flatheads will hold tight to the cover during the day and come out to feed at night. But if you put a live sunfish in their face while they’re home in the day time, they will not pass up an easy meal.
Equipment required for the flatheads is similar in rigging, only beefed up considerably.
Using a medium heavy rod and reel combo spooled with 80 lb FINS braid and a larger float to accommodate the live bluegill along with a #7 j hook, be sure your rod has plenty of back bone to pull the large flatheads from the log jams quickly so they don’t get tangled up. I always like to cut my live bait to keep it from swimming around a lot and getting tangled. Cutting it also to make it bleed a little, and seems to get their attention quicker.

This method of catfishing is not limited to Taylorville lake, it will also work anywhere where cover is found in shallow water such as small river like the beech fork, salt river and other lakes and streams throughout Ky. and the U.S.
If you would like more information on how to catch catfish you can visit my websites;
www.americanprocatters.com or you can visit my YouTube channel for how to videos. www.youtube.com/user/akwalung

Fishing the tail water of the dams in the spring time can be spectacular for anglers however there are certain dangers that I think all should be aware of if you’re attempting to fish the dams for the first time and even the seasoned anglers should revisit and stay aware of the dangers associated with dam fishing, never get to comfortable and neglect the dangers.

Strong currents and under tows: be sure to wear a life jacket at all times.

Obey all warning signs: most dams are made up of a structure that controls the flow of water along with a structure for river traffic to navigate from pool to pool called the locks. There are some dangers associated with fishing both the turbulent water coming from the gates of the dams or close to the discharge water coming from the lock wall.

Signs are posted clearly as to where these lock discharge are at and the dams also have a red zone so you don’t get to close to the danger zone, a red line is painted on the lock wall and a red flashing light will go off if you get to close to the turbulent waters in front of the dam gates so as long as you obey the signs you will be safe to fish the dam area.
Only fish in areas of moderate current flow and never take a risk, the fish are not worth an angler’s life.

However I do not want to discourage anyone from trying their luck at the dams because of the dangers, as long as you identify the dangers, use good judgment and obey the signs, all is good, it’s just like fishing anywhere else on the rivers.

There’s no dought about it, the oxygen rich water coming from the tail waters of the dam is a fish magnet for most all species of fish in the spring of the year. Some species come to feed and others come to spawn, and others do both this includes the bait fish. The catfish will come to feed on the abundant bait fish; some will stay and spawn in the rocky crevices throughout the dam’s structure.
For catfisherman, the spring runs means great trophy cattin and the abundance of bait!

The hardest part of trophy cattin is bait collection, big trophy catfish require big baits, using an easy to get, tub of night crawlers just won’t cut it if you’re looking for the big boys.

How to catch skip jack The best bait for the trophy cats is skip jack herring and at times, you’ll spend more time catchin your bait as you do actually catfishing because you have to catch skip jack with a rod and reel. This is why this spring time run is an important time for catfisherman.

In the spring from april to june the skip jack will start migration to the tail waters to initially feed and stay to spawn and in this time frame there are thick by the thousands and the easiest time for a catfisherman to collect some bait. When they’re running good it’s not uncommon to catch 1 or 2 every cast.

Myself: ill take a couple days of nothing but bait collection, catching a few hundred a day and stocking my freezer with bait for the coming months when the skip jack get scarce in the hot months, 4 or 5 hundred skip jack packed in2 gal. zip lock bags will generally last me until the fall when the skip jack return to the tail waters in the fall to feed.
To catch skip jack you’ll need a med action rod with a spin casting reel spooled with some 14 lb mono.
Skip Jack Rig

Tie a barrel swivel to the 14 lb main line and tie a 3 foot piece of 20 lb mono leader to the other end of the barrel swivel. Now you will need to tie a marabou jig on the leader about a foot below your swivel leaving a 2 foot piece of leader exposed, now come down anther foot and tie another marabou jig below the last jig leaving 1 foot of leader exposed and once again tie one more jig at the end of your leader completing the skip jack rig.

Look for skipjack along the faster current seams running close to the bank along rocky shores or rip rap. Cast your rig out and retrieve in quickly and hang on.

When skipjack hit they leave little to the imagination, they are mean and the action is fast! Your line will go tight in a sudden rush and the fish will just keep on moving despite your best efforts to control them, often catching 2-3 at a time. They love to jump; most will go crazy and get big air.

The fight of a skipjack is characterized by strong, fast runs and sudden rushes to the surface displaying their flashy acrobatics. A lot of guys will use light tackle to catch these fish and have a ball doing it, the fight of the skip jack is way better than any bass out there. For me the first 30 or so is fun but after that it becomes work.

These fast action, hard fighting, acrobatic bait fish are an average weight of a pound and a half but it’s not uncommon to catch loads of 2-4 lbers in the spring.

The dams are a prime habitat for catfish especially the big blue cats. The tail waters have oxygen rich current that catfish thrive in and large amounts of bait fish for cats to feast on. The deep water and under water structure, current breaks below dams will attract the catfish in large numbers which always makes for a great day on the water.
To fish the tail waters for trophy blues, simply motor yourself as close to the dam as safety and regulations will allow and throw your anchor out of the front of your boat and let it hang. Its best if you can anchor on a current seam, this is where the cats seem to like to hold and wait for food. A current seam is where the faster water meets the slower water. A current seam can also be created by a current break, such as the big concrete pillars that separate the gates on a dam.

Safety note:
Anchoring is a necessity when fishing the dams, always throw your anchor above the bow of your boat and never anchor sideways in current!

Once you’re anchored there are two different methods you can employ.
One method is to dead head it. Which means just cast your bait out behind the boat and let the current take it down stream until it settles and hits the bottom, engage your reel and set in your monster rod holder and wait for the take down. This method is the most common way to pursue a trophy blue cat. For this method use a simple Carolina rig consisting of 80lb. FINS braided main line with a 4-8 oz no roll sinker, a barrel swivel and 50 lb mono leader with a 8/0 circle hook.

The second method is a search rig, it’s a little more aggressive and discouraging because you will lose some tackle and have to retie more often, but this method pays off big though for fast action.
My search rig will consist of a 80 lb. FINS braided main line tied to a barrel swivel which then is attached to a 3 ft. piece of 50 lb mono leader. A double overhand knot is tied 10 inches or so below the swivel and a 3-6 oz, bank sinker is tied to the tag end of the leader completing this search rig.

Cast way up above and off to either side of the boat using a 7.5 ft medium heavy bait casting combo. Once the rig hits bottom, reel up the slack and lift the rod slightly, the current will catch the rig and slip it downstream a bit, repeat the process by lifting the rod tip and feeling the rig bumping along the bottom in the current, continue this until the rig has went past your boat. A hungry blue cat just won’t stand for a piece of cut bait to flow past him; he will strike and hit it hard. You have to be ready or they will jerk the rod right out of your hands. I can recall two times I’ve stood on my boat with a dumb look on my face because a bluecat just took a 150.00 rig out of my hands because I wasn’t on my toes. The blues will often hit the bait and go upstream towards the dam. If this happens be sure to reel up the slack and catch up quickly to ensure a good hook set.

There are many dams the throughout the length of the Kentucky borders on the Ohio river so find one near your neck of the woods and give dam fishing a go this spring and early summer.

Good luck

Steve Douglas