Alright guys i want to get out and do some cat fishing!
first i would like to know what type of set up to use. Ive got a spinnign rod and real that i want to use. its a 7 ft that is real stiff but has a tip that will give some action.
Being that i dont have a boat puts me at a real disadvatage im sure but what are some techniques and rigs i can use to shore fish for cats?
I don’t know where to fish in your area, but hopefully someone here has some suggestions for streams to fish in the Rochester area. You really don’t need a boat to fish small rivers anyway. 90 percent of the time I use the most simple catfish rig, because it works in most situations. I would use around 17 to 20lb test for channel catfish. You can start with a normal slip rig for still fishing. Use a large sinker that will slip on the main line and hold your bait in place. They can vary from 1 ounce, all they way up to 4 ounces depending on current speed and bait size. To tie a slip rig, first slide you sinker onto the main line. Then tie on a swivel to stop the sinker from sliding all the way up to the hook. Next, tie on the leader anywhere from 8 to 24 inches followed by a 2/0 hook. Cut pieces of sucker work well for channel cats most of the time, but there are many choices. Night crawlers are always a good choice too, but you may end up catching other fish besides catfish. Find a spot where shallow water flows into deeper water. The best catfish holes usually have the deepest water on a stretch of river along with wood cover (snags).Work the shallow area near the hole, then work your bait into the hole. Stay mobile and move about every 15 minutes until you can locate active fish. You might find a good rod holder that you can stick into the ground helpful but make sure you keep your line tight enough to detect strikes. Good luck! 
Hey Matt,
The Zumbro river running through town has some channel cats in it. There used to be a couple old feller that would come in to the bait shop to get all our dead minnows to use for cat fish on the river north of town.
If you want bigger cats, Lake Zumbro is going to be your best bet. Sticking to shore is obviously going to limit your options, but the pier at Fishermans Inn is usually good for a few.
I fish a lot down in dresbach and wionna/wabasha kellog area
HookNfinger? You have to check back more often than once every 10 months! 
I’m thinking the advice has changed since you posted your question…although with this weather…it might not have changed much.
How did you do this last summer?
If fishing for cats from shore, and you like Dresbach, Around the I-90 bridge can be good at times. Out in front of the (Rest Area) there is a wing damn and some nice holes. Just a heads up
The guys who come to this Catfish Forum really know their stuff so this is a very good place to learn more about catfishing.
Thanks, Bill
In Winona try the area where the barges dock just below the hockey rink. The barges unload grain there and at times the catfishing is just great. However, if your only getting sheepshead move on; if the cats are there they will start biting almost immediately — ditto for where the barges unload at Prairie Island.
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I’m thinking the advice has changed since you posted your question…although with this weather…it might not have changed much.
How did you do this last summer?
Heh its kinda hard to find things on this board from the old format, I did alright last summer, lots of small cats, nothing over 10 pounds i want to get the big ones!
Ive got my cabelas king cat rod rigged up with some 80 pound test ready for this years adventures.
I did lay into a 60 inch paddle fish that i thought i snagged a log! one cool fish!
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Heh its kinda hard to find things on this board from the old format
Yup! We are kinda buried down here with our cats!
I finally made a favorite/bookmark and placed it in my personal/favorite folder along with some others. See above.
Much faster than going through the levels to get to the best forum! 
Must have got the Paddle by Evert’s? Any photo’s????
With circle hooks, with your reel engaged wait until your rod bends and then just reel in. Setting the hook or jerking is counter productive.
Yup, what I’ve been doing with circles is the following:
I’m usually fishing with a bait runner reel, so I cast out, let it hit the bottom, reel up any slack, and trip the bait runner lever. Then, I’ll stick it the a rod holder and wait.
When a cat comes along, they’ll either take off with it or sit there and chomp on it. Either way, I pick up my rod, and if it is running, I’ll just reel in enough to flip the reel from bait-runner mode to the fighting drag and let the rod bend over before I start reeling.
If the fish is just sitting there, I’ll keep the tip up and reel in. You can usually feel what they’re doing, and I wait until I can feel it in their mouth pretty solidly, then I keep the tip high and just start reeling.
After I can feel the hook is in the fish, I like to give the rod a few good pumps just to make sure it’s in there solidly.
Well, that’s what I do. It worked pretty well for me last year. Some days were better than others, but I would assume it’s that way with any type of hook. The main thing to remember is to not pick up your rod and give it a good hook set because like you mentioned, you’ll just pull it right out of their mouth.
Hey Ralph and Hookinfinger,
I just assumed that we were talking about channel cat fishing. Never use circles for flats…although there are some who do and I have caught some while channel fishing.
My prefered hook for flatties is a size 10/0 Gamakatzu Octupus hook. Fairly inexpensive and seldom fall out of a bullhead or sucker. I’ve heard they don’t stay in sunnies too well…but in MN..I can’t say I’ve ever had that problem. 
I’m in the habit of hooking through the back of the bh/sucker diagonally. This prevents the hook from becomeing buried in the bait as happens occasionally when hooking the bait straight through. Hopefully when I set the hook, I set it hard enough that the hook rips through the bait..to expose the whole hook and then catch on something in the mouth.
IMO, when I set the hook on a flat and I miss the hook set, one of two things happened.
1) the bait wasn’t all the way in her mouth…and the hook was on the outside.
2) the hook wasn’t big enough to catch on something on the way out. I think the only way this could happen is if the fish was facing me and had her mouth open when I set the hook.
Hook,
Send me a pm. I have a boat and would like to get into a little more catfishing as well. Maybe we can get out and do some learning together 
I hit pool 4 a bit, but would be open to trying new areas if your interested.
You’re up quite early today, Mr. Brian!
I’ve used circle hooks for almost exclusively in my first year of cattin’, for both flatties and channels. I can’t say I caught more than one flat on them, but then again, I can only think of 2 runs that I had that I missed that I am assuming were flats. I might experiment this year a bit with non-circle hooks to see what I like (and hopefully catch a 30+ fish).
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Hey Ralph and Hookinfinger,
I just assumed that we were talking about channel cat fishing. Never use circles for flats…although there are some who do and I have caught some while channel fishing.
Can i ask why you dont use them for flats??
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Hook,
Send me a pm. I have a boat and would like to get into a little more catfishing as well. Maybe we can get out and do some learning together
I hit pool 4 a bit, but would be open to trying new areas if your interested.
I am always open to fish pretty much anywere, I fish dresbach a lot on the fishing float there. A lot of shore fishing around there as well.
Let me know when you want to go sometime i think it would be fun to get out there and chase em with a boat. I really wish i could bring the boat down here from winnibigosh 
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Must have got the Paddle by Evert’s? Any photo’s????
Nah i didnt take any pictures I didnt want to touch it b/c i know how long it takes for those things to grow that big, i grabbed the hook, took it out and let it go. It was pretty scary looking at 3 am. It hit on a willow cat on a egg sinker rig on the bottom
It’s funny, considering that paddlefish are plankton eaters, how many reports there are over the years of them taking bait.
They must get hungry for “meat” once in a while.
Truely and awesome fish! 
To answer your question about why I don’t use circles for flats.
There are folks that do…
I don’t because of the bullhead or whatever LIVE bait I’m using fills the gap on a circle. When the fish bites, then swims away, the point needs to be clear to catch the corner of the flaties mouth. With the live bait, the odds are higher that the bait will get in the way of the hookup and the hook just doesn’t catch on anything on the way out of the mouth. Flats have a much larger mouth (than channels) and this increases the odds against a hook up too.
Using my favorite 10/0 Gamagatzu, when I haul back to make the hookset, the hook is ripped from the bait to expose the whole hook. IMO much better chance of connecting.
Speaking of hooksets…how did you get your handle? 
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Speaking of hooksets…how did you get your handle?
Im extremly lucky, i do a lot of night fishing, almost do most of my fishing at night, had a 5 pound walleye inhale a rapala, got one side out half of a #7 shad rap out of its mouth, all of a sudden, head lamp died, let go of one hand on the fish, the fish shook and all three trebble hooks into my thumb. yanked on them for about 30 minutes and couldnt get them out, fished for the rest of the night and had to go into the ER to have em take them out two of the three where in and then bent down
Two weeks later, casting HJ for northerns had my bait almost to the boat, bout 20 feet away, a HUGE northen, had to be 40-45 inches came up and came almost all the way out of the water, i set the hook riped it out the his mouth the rapala came straight for my face and i put my hand up to stop the rapala and it got all the hooks on the plug into 4 of my 5 fingers, anthor visit to the ER
All in all My dad has given me a needle w/ novacaine so i can just numb my hand and take my hooks out myself from now on b/c its just getting to expensive to be going there every other weekend
Recently i put a chubby darter though the gap between your thumb and pointer finger
Although I shouldn’t laugh…I bet your Dad’s having fun with that! Do you have your own room at the ER? 
Sorry…not funny!
haha yeah its funny cept when i get the bill back from the ER. ive pulled many hooks out before but i always seem to get them in so deep or in a odd way that you cant use the fishing line technique to pull em out
Remind me if we ever go fishing together to bring a helmet!
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I was thinking close to the same thing.. but catfishing with 4oz weights and bullheads flying around too?
Hockey goalie equipment might be in order.
Start pinchin’ those barbs down.
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I was thinking close to the same thing.. but catfishing with 4oz weights and bullheads flying around too?
Hockey goalie equipment might be in order.
haha what can i say i love to fish, get a little over excited i guess, i guess if it ever got to the point where it wasnt that much fun i would find a different hobby 
I got anthor question for you guys, What do u use for “cut bait” and how do you cut it and hook it??
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