anyone been going to baldwin lake for the catfishing? Right now is the time to go. It would be nice if it were a little colder. From what i here the catfish are really biting in there. I went bass fishing yesterday out there but it was just to windy out there to really place your casts. One of these days ill go out there and cath some.

Well i hear they are pounding the cats out a baldwin lake.


Not doing to bad on the stripers or largemouths either.

I was getting desparate to go fishing so I went to Carlyle this weekend. I took my son to the spillway to try for walleye. The river is way up. I ended up getting one walleye and losing a bunch of lures on the rocks. I haven't been down to Baldwin yet this year. I think I will give the cats a try there pretty soon. It gets really cold and windy on that lake so I might have to wait for a little warm up before I go there.

James

anyone have any good cat fish bait that hey recommend? i usually use chicken livers then end with reasonable results, sometimes a hot dog or bologna works too.

Shrimp... it stays on the hook well... You can ask at the store if they have any older stuff, but you have to tell them you plan on using it for bait.

Mostly though I just use a cast net, and get enough shad for fishing in a few throws.

i usually like using fresh cut bluegill or shad works goods, also night crawlers but not store bought they fall apart too easy. if u want the good stuff your gonna have to dig them up yourself but its worth it

i usually like using fresh cut bluegill or shad works goods, also night crawlers but not store bought they fall apart too easy. if u want the good stuff your gonna have to dig them up yourself but its worth it

i thought using bluegill as bait was illegal since its a state fish? the shrimp seems like a good idea but wouldnt it be expensive, hell id be eating the shrimp raather than use it fore bait lol

i know on Crab you can user the bluegill if you catch it in the water you use it for bait in (or i hope you can). Bluegill for Flatheads, Cut shad for Cats!!

i thought using bluegill as bait was illegal since its a state fish? the shrimp seems like a good idea but wouldnt it be expensive, hell id be eating the shrimp raather than use it fore bait lol

This is from the 2007 illinois Fishing Digest

BLUEGILL AS BAIT
There is nothing in the Illinois Fish Code which
prohibits the use of legally taken bluegill or sunfish
as bait for another species of fish. The
bluegill/sunfish must have been taken by a
properly licensed sport fisherman using legal
sportfishing devices. You must also observe all
size and creel limits both where the
bluegill/sunfish were taken and where they are
being used as bait. Also, it is illegal to cut up
or dress or be in possession of cut up or
dressed fish on any body of water where there
is a size limit for that particular species of fish

Il has to strict of rules if they would just let people use little fish there wouldnt be an over population of fish

I typically don't endorse one bait over another as being "the best", but I will have to say bait shrimp has outdone every other catfish bait I have tried by a long shot. Bait shrimp is not very expensive and if your bait shop does not provide it, you can use RAW (not precooked) shrimp from the grocery store. If it's pink, it's already been cooked. Try to find some with the shell still on and NOT deveined. I mainly catfish Kinkaid lake because I keep my pontoon docked there. Kinkaid is way underrated for Channel Cats IMO. I can't think of a better way to spend a summer evening/night than on my pontoon with a couple catfish poles in the water. Firing up the grill as I watch all the ski boats head back to the marina leaving me with my cooler and my catfish in peace and quiet. :cool:

I was just at Baldwin back on Weds and seen couple guys catchin some cats. The wind picked up really good by noon and the bass bite was fairly slow but I had to fish from the levy. Does anyone know if you can pick up Mackeral around here? Back in California we use alot of Mackeral and tear up on some nice cats. Also the Tiger Shrimp or Jumbo shrimp you buy at the market work good.

Does anyone know if you can pick up Mackeral around here? Back in California we use alot of Mackeral and tear up on some nice cats.

Mackeral??? You know we're about as far from any ocean as you can get in the US?;) Heck it is hard enough to get decent seafood to eat here, I think saltwater bait is pretty much out of the question...

You can get herring from the river or there is gizzard shad in Baldwin. I think they also have threadfin shad in there too. I know a lot of guys use cut bluegill. I am sure you would do well on flatheads with a small channel cat. I am not sure if it is legal to use channels as bait. Bullheads are used a lot for the flatheads. They stay alive longer than sunfish and are more active when hooked.

Fresh cut shad via a throw net seems to work the best for me while drift fishing for channel cats on Rend Lake. Plus aside from the intial purchase of the net the bait is free.

There was an article in the Southern Illinoisan last year that talked up using raw shrimp marinated in garlic salt (not garlic powder). Going to try this a little bit this year.

This is from the 2007 illinois Fishing Digest

BLUEGILL AS BAIT
There is nothing in the Illinois Fish Code which
prohibits the use of legally taken bluegill or sunfish
as bait for another species of fish. The
bluegill/sunfish must have been taken by a
properly licensed sport fisherman using legal
sportfishing devices. You must also observe all
size and creel limits both where the
bluegill/sunfish were taken and where they are
being used as bait. Also, it is illegal to cut up
or dress or be in possession of cut up or
dressed fish on any body of water where there
is a size limit for that particular species of fish

How does this work out with fish cleaning stations near that body of water that you are fishing on?

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How does this work out with fish cleaning stations near that body of water that you are fishing on?

That means while setting in your boat or on the bank still fishing(altho I guess it could be looked at diff too) and cleaning your catch while still fishing, also wrong to throw the remains in the lake, which is dumb, but thats another story here in Il.

The BIG Blue are hitting hard on 4-5" gills or shad at Bald, drifting along the channel edges....

the shrimp seems like a good idea but wouldnt it be expensive, hell id be eating the shrimp raather than use it fore bait lol

Even if you have to buy it fresh at the seafood counter, its about 8 bucks a pound, 60-70 /pound, 2 on a hook gets you 30 baits at .27/bait. How much for a dozen nightcrawlers...if you have to buy them? I havnt bought any around here, but had to pay 3.50 the last time I did buy them. about the same as shrimp if you only use one worm, I always figured if the fish wernt biting I could munch the shrimp, but would have to be some knd of hungry to eat the crawlers! I have caught alot of catfish with shrimp, esp shrimp marinated in garlic overnight!

Do you use whole shrimp, heads and all, or just the tails?

I used small fresh water shrimp for bass fishing in Japan and they were tearing them up. I'm not surprised to hear of cats liking shrimp too.

I get the bags of frozen shrimp at Aldi's..they are pretty cheap there, and certainly way cheaper than night crawlers LOL... the cats loved them and they were solid/sturdy enough that one would often last through several cats...

And don't forget guys.. if I have catalpa worms this coming year.. you are all welcome to come over and snatch em up...I am surrounded by catalpa trees...Heck I'll even send a sapling home with you too so you can start your own catalpa worm farm...LOL

Top of the Hill bait shop in Murphysboro usually keeps baitshrimp in stock during the warmer months. It's only around 3 bucks if I remember right. The package contains roughly 30-50 whole shrimp.

Top of the Hill bait shop in Murphysboro usually keeps baitshrimp in stock during the warmer months. It's only around 3 bucks if I remember right. The package contains roughly 30-50 whole shrimp.

Now if it were a bit closer to us or to where we usually go, maybe we could get there. We usually fish Rend or Carlyle (not as far to drag the boat).

i know on Crab you can user the bluegill if you catch it in the water you use it for bait in (or i hope you can). Bluegill for Flatheads, Cut shad for Cats!!

I had a DNR officer yell at me for that, until I should him in the fishing guide that I can. He wrote me a ticket then for a missing whistle (which I later found at the bottom of the container that holds at that good stuff).

Anyways, I catch most of my Rend Lake channels on shrimp (drifting by Dam Road), I also use crayfish at Crab in the morning (I buy the seasoned ones from Mad Pricer - special order), then use fresh shad, preferably live ones, throughout the day. Crab has produced some very large channel cats that way (27# biggest channel to date, buddy caught a 40# flat that way too). I will usually drift them in secondary channel systems where they meet the primary one. But that is a spring thing only, when summer hits, I give up and bow fish.