Well…..
The Flathead action on the Minnesota has been pretty slow to say the least for the last 3 weeks. The action seems to be pretty slow across the board, with reports of a few large cats caught, but the majority of catters that I’ve been talking to are coming up short or empty handed in search of the Flats. Some of the smaller ones less than 10lbs have been aggressive but the last nice fish to be boated was a 30lbs on the 4th of July. That one was showing some scuffs on it from probably getting prepped for spawning.
I think in the next week or two we will start seeing a little more action gradually building with the late summer action and the big fish getting back to feeding after finishing the business of breeding.
This is the time of year that I like to shift gears on my baits and techniques. The water levels are coming down nicely, (almost prime) and the flow is still dropping, you will have to start working the snags and holes or similar structure during the day and early evenings. Then try to move to a shallow flat as the night progresses. Try fishing close to shore, if you think your too shallow….leave it you might be surprised.
Always keep an eye out for bait fish along current seams and eddies. If it looks fishy, try it… but I wouldn’t recommend camping for any period. If your baits are lively give it a little time. If they are still, double check to make sure its fresh and alive, reposition, if no action still…. Its time to relocate.
My first choice of baits are heavy or medium suckers and chubs being the first choice, followed by bullhead or fresh cut bait.
How may of you are using floats going after your flats?
I just tried one out for the first time the other night. No fish on it, but I was able to cover some ground in a really snag filled area. I’m excited to get a fish on this rig and have made it my mission to work it till I land a flat with it.
Good luck out there. As a reminder the dead heads are popping up and some aren’t, we tagged one just under the water on Sat that did some damage to a prop.
Keep us posted on how your doing.
