Mattawoman 4/1/12

[chex]

ronaultmtd and I started floating around 12:30 and fished till about 5. It was a beautiful day. Not too windy and the tide was very high.

We tried all sorts of lures... frogs, buzzbaits, rattletraps, curlytails, flukes, rapala minnows... didn't catch anything for the first few hours. The fish were not eating.

Determined not to get skunked, i found a hole upstream and dropped 3 lines with nightcrawlers and bloodworms. I caught 5 small blue cats and a WP. Not bad...

Meanwhile, Rom caught a nice LMB.

[ictalurus]

Sorry to hear about the slow day. How far did you go upstream? I've been wanting to poke around a bit more upstream of the barge or up the feeder stream across from the barge.

[chex]

Not too far up. Right around the bend from the barge. I could still see the barge from my anchor spot. It gets to about 15' deep there (maybe 12-13 at low tide).

Next time I go, I'm going straight there and catching tons of catfish. I will also dangle a worm about halfway deep to catch some perch for bait. The worms caught small cats. Half a perch will catch a big cat. A whole small perch, slightly alive, will catch you a huge cat.

The tide was so high that the feeder creek opposite the barge was more like a lake than a creek. The only thing separating it from the main waterway were occasional grasses sticking out. If you had never seen the place at low tide, you might not even know there was a creek there. We went a little way up, with no luck. The osprey were killing them though.

[kevinfry]

i was using live minnow when we fished Marshall hall in Jan. ...on circle hooks which I, evidently, am too dumb to use properly. I had several good bite on the minnows that I failed to hook. I threaded 2 on the hook pierced through the body. It made a nice large bait.

[On the fly]

Where do you launch at Mattawoman Creek. Possibly at the end of Mattingly ave? Never been there want to fish it though.

[chex]

Yes, there's a boat ramp there and ample parking.

[On the fly]

Thanks

[moc]

Glad you guys found some pullage. It is a fun creek to fish. I am surpised at all the variety of fish that lurks there.

[chex]

Yeah, I like it too. And from what the Swamp Wacka was saying, there are big gar in those waters too! Go figure...

[ronaultmtd]

Mike- I have caught catfish just about every where from the hole below the ramp to another hole just above the first little creek between it and the dock where the guys fish from the shore several hundred yards up from Slavins- the place you were fishing is exactly where I caught my cats back in February. Big bait, big fish

Here is a picture I was able to take with a bass flopping around

[CB kayak 02]

Will catfish eat cut up catfish?

When I was there 2 weekends ago I cut up a small cat and put it on the hook. Didn't catch anything and it snagged eventually.

[ronaultmtd]

Will catfish eat cut up catfish?

When I was there 2 weekends ago I cut up a small cat and put it on the hook. Didn't catch anything and it snagged eventually.

Never tried catfish- they are mild and don't have much oil, so I doubt if they put out much odor to attract fish- menhaden (bunker) is the absolute best dead bait to use but I have had really good luck on big river minnows as live bait-figure a live white perch would be even better bait for a really big Blue-

[CB kayak 02]

I'm thinking next time I fish there I'm going to catch some Bluegill at my lake and keep them alive to use as live bait for big cats!!!

[ictalurus]

Will catfish eat cut up catfish?

When I was there 2 weekends ago I cut up a small cat and put it on the hook. Didn't catch anything and it snagged eventually.

I've never tried it. Catfish don't show up very often in the guts of other catfish, at least based on my experience and what I've read. Catfish, carp, minnows, and other Ostariophysian fishes release a chemical called "schrekstoff" when injured or frightened. Maybe the cats can smell/taste that from the cut catfish pieces.

[ronaultmtd]

Don't think it is legal to use bluegill for bait, Matt