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Catfish is a large and amazing fish that inhabits most bodies of water with running water. In addition, it can also be found in reservoirs, as well as in large ponds or lakes. Under certain conditions, catfish can grow up to 5 meters in length and weigh about 400 kg. Catching such a specimen is not so easy, especially since it is not so easy to pull it out of the water.
Basically, individuals come across, weighing no more than 15 kilograms. In some reservoirs, catching a catfish weighing 50 kg is a common thing.
Catfish are caught on completely different baits. The main condition is that the bait must be of animal origin. It can be live or dead fish, individual pieces of fish or meat, poultry offal, frogs or snails, as well as roasted sparrow or pigeon. The list of baits can consist of many items. Among this set there is one, quite common and affordable bait, such as a worm or creep. Naturally, ordinary, average worms are not listed here, but the crawling worm, which has a huge size compared to the classic worm, is just what you need. Specimens weighing from 2 to 15 kilograms can be caught on crawling out, which is quite enough to get a lot of impressions. At the same time, you need to be prepared for the fact that a larger individual wants to try the bait.
Catfish responds with pleasure to such bait. In addition, catfish, weighing up to 2 kg, can go for crawling, which cannot be said about such baits as live bait or a frog. Moreover, other, no less interesting fish, such as carp, carp, large crucian, may be interested in the worm.
Tackle for catching catfish on a worm
As a rule, catfish are caught on a donk or on a feeder, as it is now called. The main requirement is strength and reliability. In this case, it is not worth saving on a rod, especially not expensive Chinese rods. A catfish weighing 5 kg or more provides decent resistance and is able to cut off weak tackle or break a Chinese-made telescopic rod.
A plug-in rod is used, consisting of two knees, 2,7-3,0 meters long.
A fishing line is attached to the rod, at least 0,5 mm thick. The fishing line is selected based on constantly coming across instances. It is better to play it safe and install a fishing line with a diameter of up to 1,0 mm. As for the braid, a diameter of 0,5 mm is enough.
In proportion to the power of the rod and line, an inertialess reel is selected that can accommodate up to 200 meters of line of the appropriate thickness (0,5 mm).
Hook size 10 or larger. The hook should be attached to a leash, the thickness of which may be greater than the diameter of the main fishing line.
When fishing from a boat, it is permissible to use the simplest bottom tackle. It consists of a reel with a special handle that simplifies the process of fishing. In this case, the main requirement is convenience. The selection of other elements of gear is carried out according to the same criteria. It does not require long casts, so fishing is greatly simplified.
Technique and tactics of catching catfish
To begin with, you should learn how to properly put the worm (creeping out) on the hook. The main task is to mask the hook as much as possible. For this purpose, a whole bunch of worms is planted on the hook. Moreover, such a bunch of moving worms will not disregard a hungry catfish. As a rule, from 2 to 4 huge worms (creeps), pierced from all sides with a hook, are mounted on a hook. At the same time, the hook must be securely covered under the thickness of the bait. Catfish, before swallowing a tasty bunch of worms, will want to try it. If absolutely by chance, he pricks on the tip of the hook, he will immediately refuse the bait.
If you throw a hook with one crawl out, then this is unlikely to interest the catfish, but it will be of interest to other representatives of the underwater world, such as carp, tench, crucian carp, roach and others. In any case, fishing will be useful.
Correct crawl nozzle – video
hair crawler attachment
Where to look for catfish
You can catch a catfish, or you can not catch it if you throw the tackle where your eyes look. In this case, you will have to wait a long time for a bite and leave fishing for nothing. The first task is to find a promising place for fishing. The bait should be served exactly in the place where the catfish is located. Catfish prefers to be in holes, and the deeper they are, the better for him. Therefore, you need to look for holes, pools and other deep water points. On a river, especially a winding one, catfish are easy to find in the region of cliffs, where there is always a deep-water place. If aquatic vegetation is observed near a deep place, then this is certainly a catfish place.
In the daytime, the catfish tries to hide from direct sunlight, therefore, it can choose a place in the thickets of reeds or reeds. He will gladly stop at a section of the water area, which is closed by trees hanging over the water. If he does not have such an opportunity, then he simply moves to the depth and stays there until dark.
Under the cover of night, the catfish leaves the pits and goes in search of food. At the same time, he does not like to go far from his favorite place. Catfish does not chase potential prey, but waits for it to swim to it. He prefers to be on his territory. With small sizes, several individuals can be in one shelter.
If you carefully examine the surface of the water, you can easily calculate the location of the catfish, especially during a thunderstorm. Since the catfish hunts at night, it is worth listening to find out where it is. By these signs, you can determine that the catfish is in its territory.
The best periods for catching catfish
Catfish is a nocturnal predator, so you will have to catch it at night. But the place of fishing is always worth preparing, and for this, it is advisable to arrive at the place of fishing much earlier. After all, it is necessary to prepare gear, set up a tent, set up a camp, and only after that should the gear be cast. The first bites are recorded even before sunset, but this, as a rule, is pecked by young animals. Larger specimens go hunting after sunset. You can catch catfish until the morning and up to 9 hours, after which the relevance of fishing is reduced to zero and you can reel in fishing rods.
The effectiveness of night fishing can be significantly increased by throwing several donks. Basically, 4-5 tackles are thrown, after which bites are expected. As a rule, it starts to peck on one of the fishing rods, and all the others are either idle, or a completely different fish is caught on them.
The big catfish takes the bait and tries to hide. At the same time, the bite alarm is activated. Under certain conditions, its resistance can puzzle even an experienced fisherman. It provides significant resistance. Sometimes it is simply impossible for one fisherman to cope with his resistance, and fishing turns into a duel between the catfish and the fisherman.
Night fishing for catfish is a fascinating type of fishing, which implies one of the types of outdoor recreation. As a rule, fishermen combine the useful with the pleasant and do not forget to taste barbecue in nature. In between bites, there is an opportunity to simply lie down or chat on any topic.
Catching catfish is not only an interesting event, but also quite dangerous. This is especially true if fishing is carried out from a boat. If you catch a catfish from a boat, then it is almost impossible to cope with a large specimen alone. Moreover, catfish can easily turn over the boat, and with it the fisherman. Given the fact that fishing is carried out at night, it is very difficult to navigate in such conditions. Therefore, the result can be very deplorable.
How to catch a creep and put it on a hook – video
Catching crawl for fishing / How to catch crawl
Catching catfish on the crawl out – video
Catching catfish on crawl part 2