# Any recommendations...



## deerfly (Mar 10, 2007)

ok, I don't know about anyone else, but I think you got me on this one. :-? 

about all I can think of is tie a fly with bloody and gutty feathers from a fresh road killed bird. Might be stretching the spirit of the sport a bit, but at least its natural material.  Don't forget dumbbell eyes and work it real slow along the bottom, say one 1/4" strip every minute or so. 

Kinda too bad fly fishing isn't popular enough for Berkely to make Gulp flies. They would surely work and you can run around saying you caught the fish on an artificial.


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## captharry (Jun 2, 2008)

Funny, my bud FatTire just got some cats sight casting. Make a chum bag of chicken livers and put it up by the bank shallow. Then he was sight casting to them with a Black bunny leech. All the pics he had, were hooked in the corner of the mouth. I had never seen a cat fish taken on fly before that, other than @$$ hooked. Good luck, and let us know how ya do.
Later, Harry


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

Thanks for the advice, guys. I found an article where a guy claims to have used floating catfish pellets as chum, then ran a hook through a similar sized/colored piece of cork. Seems like a reasonable approach...

I was also thinking about chopping up some fishbites strip bait and tossing it out, then dropping a little freshwater shrimp pattern in there.

I'll just have to experiment a bit. It seems like the trick will be to get them feeding first, and then go for the "accidental" take.  ;D


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## deerfly (Mar 10, 2007)

well I was mostly kidding around with my post, but if you're determined enough and the idea of chumming them up to throw flies at them doesn't bother you (it doesn't for me, but my idea of chumming up a fish for upping the odds on a fly strike would be mackeral, tuna, dolphin, etc., mostly offshore schooling fish that aren't easily pursued other ways) then you could certainly go for it. 

I haven't done much in the way of targeting freshwater catfish since I was 5 or 6 and my grandfather used to take me along to fish with cane poles and dough balls. But my brother inlaw and his kids get after those big flat heads out in Nebraska:










They use whole fish for bait and trot lines (kind of the other end of the spectrum from fly fishing ), so I would think enticing a big catfish to eat is going to require something that smells good (at least to the fish ) vs something that looks good. Since catfish don't need to see very well I guess the size of the fly probably isn't such a big thing as long as it smells like something edible. 

Not sure if the fish you're seeing would respond to fish food chum or not. If so then I'd say you have a shot at intermingling a fly that may roughly resemble the chum. I know the guys in S. Fl where I grew up are having success on tilaipia with small puffy flys that look like blooms that have fallen off the trees that they like to eat. A few guys around here are having success on fresh water mullet with a algae looking sort of fly too. So I would think if you could get these catfish to rise to a fish pellet or something you'd have a good chance of hooking one. 

Just think though, if you pull it off you have an opportunity to name your own fly and forever be a part of fly fishing history! You could name the fly something like "hamm3r's catfish hammer".


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

> So I would think if you could get these catfish to rise to a fish pellet or something you'd have a good chance of hooking one.


Alright, I've decided that my next attempt is going to be with a bread fly. I've got the materials, and a loaf of bread will make easy floating chum. Plus, I used to catch plenty of them with bread as a kid.

As for the cats rising, the pond isn't deep enough for them to get much depth, except for the very center. I can stand on the hill and just watch their big brown silhouettes moving around rippling the surface. Besides being able to sightfish them, the pond is cresent shaped, and I'd guess that 80% of it is within casting distance from shore. 



> Just think though, if you pull it off you have an opportunity to name your own fly and forever be a part of fly fishing history! You could name the fly something like "hamm3r's catfish hammer".


Probably less chance of that happening than me catching a catfish on a bread fly.  ;D


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

Ok, after experimenting with the pattern a bit, I am now ready to give those cats another try. First, a stop at Publix for a loaf of Wonder brand chum. If I can get them to start eating the floating breadcrumbs, I'll toss this into the mix. It should do a decent job mimicking those awful corner crust pieces that kids hate.









Hopefully I'll have time to try tomorrow. With any luck, I won't catch a duck.  : ;D


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## deerfly (Mar 10, 2007)

ducks are better eating IMO anyway.  

Fly looks cool, but then again I was one of those kids that liked bread crust.


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## flytieguy (Jan 12, 2007)

LOL!! AWESOME TIE!!! Im trying this pattern in a pond by Conroy Rd and Turkey lake called Shadow Bay Park.
Great fly fishing for cats there.

The "recipe" that i have for cats... its almost embarrasing.... go to your local craft shop... grab a small bag of pink pom pom balls 1/2 or smaller ... 1/2 works very well. and believe it or not just grab a straight short shank #6 hook and "thread" the pink cotton ball through the hook... and thats it... just "toss/cast" it to where you believe there are ... let it sink and hold on... chumming with dog pellets... not to many does help.
I caught a 42" channel cat with my 9wt there ... LOL... saw the backing 2 times priopr to reel him in.


For some reason THEY LOVE PINK! LOL!!!


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## HaMm3r (Dec 11, 2006)

Hey flytieguy! Thanks for the tip on catfish color.  I've tried twice to get this bread fly in front of those catfish, but I was foiled by a turtle assault on my chum the first time, and I just couldn't get the cats to eat the second attempt.

I think I'm going to take it over to a spot where I know there are plenty of carp on Monday. I'm thinking the floating bread chum might work on those guys.


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