I find that fish is fish. Alewives bought from the store are the same thing netted in the lake.
Catfish- At night, morning-midmorning, and at dusk will come into the shallows to feed. Catfishing is a monotonous job requiring patience and know-how. First, you need to have the right equipment.
>A Medium to heavy action rod
>An assortment of catfish hooks which includes but isn't limited to Treble hooks, Circle hooks, off-shank octopus hooks, etc.
>A good reel with good fishing line (At least 20lb test) from a reputable brand (Berkley, Trilene, Spiderwire, Cajun Line, etc). Add a barrel swivel which will prevent the line from twisting and snapping easier.
>A variety of sinkers (Dipsey swivel, bank sinkers and egg sinkers are most common).
Next is bait
>Chicken Livers
>Eagleclaw Catfish Nitro Biscuits
>>>CATALPA WORMS which are by far one of the best baits I have come across for big catfish.
(Bring along cheese-cloth, you can apply some around your bait so it doesn't slip off or get nibbled away by the fish).
Fish for catfish in the shallows at night, either at points, small-medium sized coves or during the day at sheer rocky drop-offs. For night fishing it is reasonable to have a glowing/light-up bobber or an alert bell on the tip of your rod.
Bass- the most popular freshwater sportfish in North America.
Smallmouth bass- a bronze colored bass which is a very very mean fighter. Will strike crawdads, minnows and bucktail spinnerbaits. Sometimes worms can tempt a bite. Fish for them in the early morning or late evening around coves, underwater humps, rocky areas with cover.* Drop-offs are very good smallie cover. Medium action rod with 10lb+ line is my preference.
Largemouth-Largemouth Bass are one of my favorite fish to catch. Fish in and around stick-ups, underwater humps, around vegetation and points. In low-light or murky water use a brighter bait or something with flash/ noise such as a nice spinnerbait (I prefer golden willow blade spinnerbaits myself).
In high-light conditions fish with a darker color or a bronze-rust colored bait even. A bombshell for bass is to fish with shiners (if allowed, check lake regulations). Tie on a Circlehook and hook the shiner in the lips. Throw it out and allow the fish to swim freely (use a loop knot for a more natural presentation). Fish plenty of cover. Medium-light/Medium action rod with 10lb+ line is my preference.
Carp are notorious bottom feeders and often times grass carp are illegal to harvest. The Common Carp and the Asian Carp (Kill the Asian Carp IMMEDIATELY, it is a nuisance species, but check regulations, PA might be different from KY). Best bet is to use doughballs.**
A Carolina rig with a barrel swivel and an egg sinker with a small long-shank hook is how I like to catch them.
Carp put up a MONSTER fight, you need a medium-heavy/Heavy action rod and I recommend at least 25lb+ line to tangle with these guys.
Fish Shallow, warm and weeded areas.
*-Cover refers to any place where fish can hide from predators, the sun or protect their eggs during the spawn. This includes vegetation, rocks, stumps, cattails, submerged logs, trees and bushes. Cover can also refer to a place where predators hide in wait to ambush baitfish.
**-
2 cups of flour
1 package of pudding mix
1/4 cup of corn meal
A few drops of red dye or enough to make it pink.
Enough water to be able to have a nice doughy consistencey (knead the dough for a while to get plenty of air in it and make it not so dissolvable).
OPTIONAL: add strawberry flavoring to the dough.
When time comes to fish, apply the dough to hook (you can use a treble for this, it is much better) check hook every 8 minutes or so when the bait has dissolved. Reapply when necessary.
There ya go, bud, enjoy!
