Homemade Bait for Channel Catfish
Today's fisherman will discover a myriad of recipes for catfish bait, from made-in-the-kitchen varieties to manufactured concoctions. Channel catfish tend to be like other species of catfish---suckers for something that smells bad. Generally speaking, the worse the smell, the better the bait will attract catfish, and this has proved true for all kinds of "cats." All things considered, here's a bait you can create easily at home.
Things You'll Need
- Kitchen blender
- 1/2 pound of chicken livers
- Garlic salt
- Corn flakes, any brand
- 2 tablespoons of flour
- Large-sized mixing bowl
- 3 ounces Pepper Jack cheese
Instructions
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Whipping up something a "Channel" can't resist.
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Line up the ingredients on your kitchen counter, making sure that your blender is clean and handy. Roughly chop the chicken liver. Sprinkle about 1/3 teaspoon of garlic salt on the liver, then place them in the blender. Cut off about a quarter of an eight-ounce block of Pepper Jack cheese and toss it in the blender as well, then add a small handful of Corn Flakes to add firmness to your bait.
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Turn on the blender and mix the ingredients until it all looks a little firmer than a milkshake. Pour the concoction into your bowl, then massage in the flour with your hands. Keep a fishhook, number four size or greater, nearby, so that you can pinch off an ounce or so, and place it on the hook as a trial. Add flour to increase the firmness until you feel the substance will stay on your hook through repeated casts.
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Make it even more effective by increasing its odor. This is simple enough to do. Place all of your bait on a piece of foil or on paper plate and set it outside in the sun for several hours. Remember, the more it smells, the greater the attraction. After you're satisfied with the stink factor of your creation, store it in a locking plastic sandwich or freezer bag. Refrigerate the bag if you don't plan to use it on a fishing trip in the near future.
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"Cats" may put up a good fight. Sink your bait to the bottom when fishing. That's where these species spend their time looking for food. The ability of a Catfish to smell something from far away is well-documented. Some fishermen have found Channel Catfish roaming the open waters during Summer months.To catch fish near the water's surface, suspend your bait using a bobber.
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Tips & Warnings
If you're not getting the success you want using this recipe, try cut-up chunks of Shad, or even whole Shad. Keep the entire bait intact only if it seems less than three inches long. Dead Shad can be detected easily by the Catfish's keen sense of smell. Hence, they remain popular among today's savvy anglers.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit fishing image by Zbigniew Nowak from Fotolia.com catfish image by tomcat2170 from Fotolia.com
