Suspended Cats

[oneshot 1]

Ok I have always fished for Catfish on the bottom but are there more Catfish suspended few feet off the bottom which would call for a slip Bobber?

oneshot

[Johnsfolly]

One of the lakes that I fished near Columbia, my buddy figured out how to drift baits in the deeper section of the lake.  We had to have been drifting our baits (livers or nightcrawlers) over suspended fish. We were using less than a 1/4 or 1/2 oz of weight and with our drift speed could not have been any closer than 5 to 10 feet from the bottom. We caught a bunch of channels and blues using that technique.

[Terrierman]

That's why jug fishing is so effective too.

[nomolites]

Blues and channels on LOZ will be where the shad are, often suspended over deep water.  I catch loads of blues, including pigs up to 50# on crankbaits while trolling for walleye and hybrids.

Mike

[Bushbeater]

Our place is on a silted in flat, so we almost always try to fish off the bottom. We typically rig like a Carolina rig but with a small float about 12" above the bait which will hold it a foot or so off the bottom. Works very well for the blues here on LOZ.

[Johnsfolly]

10 minutes ago, Bushbeater said:

We typically rig like a Carolina rig but with a small float about 12" above the bait which will hold it a foot or so off the bottom.

That works for skates and sharks off the beach as well. That was the set-up used to catch this clearnose skate in Delaware.

[moguy1973]

Drop shot with a long leader at the bottom

[oneshot 1]

I did well one time using Turkey Lungs. They would float.

Used them with Carolina Rig.

oneshot

[oneshot 1]

Did some checking on the Internet and most fish like me. One Guy uses a Float, watched bunch of his videos and like his ideas.

oneshot

[fishinwrench]

All of the guys I know that are consistently successful with big blues, either drifting or using jugs, target flats that are 25' or less, and they are fishing 10-15' deep.  So 5-10ft. off the bottom appears to be the best zone.  

Flatheads are bank cruisers. 

Channel cats are everywhere (top, bottom, and in between).