I need some tips about catfishing the Ohio

OK, I'm craving some Ohio River catfish action and I'm a river novice if you will. I've fished lakes and smaller ponds all of my life for panfish. Something about catching thirty or forty pound blues and flatheads intrigues the hell out of me.

I've got a decent little 16foot deep vhull boat and it handles the river fairly well with my little twenty horsepower motor. I live in Utica, right on the river pretty much so I've got options. Should I go to Charlestown and launch, fishing around either twelve or eighteen mile island or just go below the dam and look for bruisers?? Can big catfish be caught around twelve and eighteen? I need a cast net for baitfish too, I need some general tips..anybody got some pointers for me?? Thanks in advance, Troy.

Oh, how much anchor line do I need if fishing in deeper holes? I'm thinking one hundred feet of good nylon line should do it.

If the commercial fisherman keep raping the ohio river of cats youll be lucky to catch a good catfish of size in this life time. They sell them to paylakes that cant handle fish of that size for a long time.

[QUOTE=fishassasin;517898]If the commercial fisherman keep raping the ohio river of cats youll be lucky to catch a good catfish of size in this life time. They sell them to paylakes that cant handle fish of that size for a long time.[/QUOTE]

Amen to that. Size has really fallen off in the last 5 years. I would like to see Ky add regs similiar to West Virginia. The fishery needs some closer management.

As to anchor rope, I only use it below the dams to sit on/over a specific hole. Up around 12 and 18-mile Islands, I would free-drift the flats around the channel. A good way to cover a lot of water is to jug-fish instead of using rods. The sunken barges around 12-mile Island are a good flathead spot, but rig up heavy as they tend to run back into the barges when hooked.

Shoot me a pm sometime and I will give you some more specifics.

Have you caught that 2# redear yet? Still looking for mine!

Joe

Thanks for the input guys. I've come REALLY close to catching that two pound redear when we went down to Barkley Lake. We caught some monster redear down there with several about one or two ounces shy of the two pound mark. Had lots of good redear that weighed better than a pound and a half to a pound and three quarters...BIG fish that you need to see in person to appreciate IMO. I think there maybe a few two pound redear swimming around up here in Southern Indiana but far and few between. I'll catch that two pounder sooner than later down at LBL.

I'll figure something out on these catfish, it's definitely a steep learning curve compared to panfishing.

Mooneye,skipjack,shad,...the rest.....the fresher the better.The bigger the better. If you venture below the dam let someone know.If you need help....We are here.Hit me up with a PM.Chuck

Thanks Riverrat, you were the guy I was hoping would respond to this thread. If I go down below the dam, I was just going to put in below the interpretive center on the Ind. side. I was riding down there Monday and it was WAY to rough to attempt and the ramp was shut down.

I was thinking about drift fishing, motoring up close to the dam and then drifting back but I'd like to hear your opinion on this. With all of the fossil beds down there I guess it would be easy to tear your boat up if the water wasn't deep enough, do you have to watch for shallow spots or is there good enough water in there to not worry? I've got a depth/fish finder.

I've never taken a boat up behind the dam but from what I've heard and read on here if you aren't experienced doing it then you shouldn't try it until you gain some training from someone who knows the waters. Very dangerous.

[QUOTE=Jeffflem514;518034]I've never taken a boat up behind the dam but from what I've heard and read on here if you aren't experienced doing it then you shouldn't try it until you gain some training from someone who knows the waters. Very dangerous.[/QUOTE]

Point taken and I'm scared to take my boat in there as well. I thought you could only get so close to the dams, not sure if there's a buffer area that boats have to respect or not.

I've watched boats run up behind McAlpine from the shore. There is a very specific route you have to take to stay out of the shallow water. At one point the boats almost have to take a 90 degree turn and go all the way across the river. The way the water has been the past month or so I doubt many boats at all have even considered that voyage.

Redear there is a 150 ft marker on the dams that is strictly enforced. Usuall it is marked on the lock walls and usually with a red flashing signal light along with signs

[QUOTE=redearhoosier;517990]Thanks Riverrat, you were the guy I was hoping would respond to this thread. If I go down below the dam, I was just going to put in below the interpretive center on the Ind. side. I was riding down there Monday and it was WAY to rough to attempt and the ramp was shut down.

I was thinking about drift fishing, motoring up close to the dam and then drifting back but I'd like to hear your opinion on this. With all of the fossil beds down there I guess it would be easy to tear your boat up if the water wasn't deep enough, do you have to watch for shallow spots or is there good enough water in there to not worry? I've got a depth/fish finder.[/QUOTE]

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