Intercepting Spring Transition
Flatheads
With any form of flathead fishing,
success depends on piecing together parts of the puzzle that is a successful
pattern. Considering all of the
variables that play into fish location and movement, it can seem like a
daunting task. This is accentuated even
more in large reservoirs, where fish can travel through a wide open expanse of
water from one destination to the next.
Flathead fishing success in reservoirs relies in large part on
defining exactly what pieces of the puzzle are important when, and how to put
the most pieces together at any given time to give yourself a shot at
success. In this post I’d like to take a
look at the transition period from late winter to spring, and go over some of
the variables or “puzzle pieces” that have proven successful in large
reservoirs across the U.S.
It is widely known that flathead
catfish become relatively dormant when water temperatures fall below a certain
level. In the Midwest, most anglers
experience greatly diminished success when surface temperatures drop below 45 degrees. Up until this point, the more
successful anglers have been locating feeding fish en-route to water in which
they can spend the winter. Once in a
wintering area, flatheads seem to feed (with increasingly sluggish behavior) in
that area until a point when they finally turn it off for the winter. Winter
flathead fishing is possible, and in some circumstances (under the right
conditions) I believe flatheads will take a bait. More popular this time of year, though, is a
controversial method of jigging large soft baits on heavy lead directly over
suspected wintering holes. In order to avoid an ethical debate here, we will
fast forward to early spring.
So, what’s the earliest you’ve
landed a flathead during the spring? Better yet, what’s the earliest you’ve had
success while actually targeting the species?
The general consensus across the board is that most flathead anglers in
the Midwest begin to dust off their gear in late April and begin experiencing
consistent success into May (subtract a month further into the south, give or
take). But we’ve all seen it. Every year several flathead pictures make their
way around the internet of large fish caught long before anyone’s thinking
about fishing for them, by someone fishing for another species. This is certainly no coincidence.
Piece #1: Timing
The reservoir flathead has to be
considered differently than flatheads in rivers. They are normally not governed by current,
and relate much more to certain solitary “home” areas than do river fish. This also means that if a large flathead doesn't like something about a particular day (whether its temperature,
barometric pressure, water influx, etc.) he can sit still on his happy butt and
wait to move until conditions are more to his liking. This brings us to the first spring time
puzzle piece: Timing. Over the years
we’ve noticed that a flathead really can show up at any time, but good days
(the days producing more than one fish) seem to be good days across the board. With several large lakes in my home state
exhibiting fishable flathead populations, we can compare reports across the
state and take note of trends. What
we’ve come to realize is that a good portion of the time, if we have a good
multiple fish trip, it’s not the only one in the area and normally one of
several. But what triggered this
onslaught of feeding behavior? Let’s
think. Early in the season, most anglers
flock to their favorite lake or reservoir on the warmest, sunny days. Spring warm up begins to lift water
temperatures, and fish like saugeye, crappie, and largemouth bass begin to
leave deep water in search of warmer habitat.
It comes as no surprise then that most early season, accidental flathead
catches seem to occur on warm, sunny days.
Usually at the peak of the warmest part of the day, too. Early in the season, this warm sunny weather
is a flathead's alarm clock. Just like in the fall, they will feed sluggishly
and probably not go far. But you better believe they’re hungry. A mistake many anglers make is the belief
that flathead are solely nocturnal predators.
During most of the season, this is the case. We have outlined, however, that flathead
catfish activity is largely governed by water temperature. Anglers itching to target flathead in early
spring would be wise to note warming trends, and to pick warm days that come
after a string of other warm sunny days.
Fish in unfavorable conditions this early in the season and 9 times out
of 10 you will find you’re just out for a boat ride.
Piece #2: Bait
Coming off
of a fall bite where no piece of bait seemed too big for a hungry flathead to
eat, many anglers make the mistake of offering these same baits to fish early
in the year. When it comes down to it, flatheads are opportunistic and may take
any bait like this presented in the right place. What one must also keep in mind, though, is
that flatheads are top predators and will weigh the energy cost of catching and
consuming a bait against the nutritional gain they take from eating it. When flathead are slow and sluggish, fighting
a metabolism that’s been at a creeping pace all winter, they may be more likely
to pass up a big, lively bait that could present a challenge to catch and
kill. Instead, try offering smaller live
baits and even pieces of cut bait in areas where flatheads will likely be
trying to shake off the dust and find an easy meal. Cut shad can be deadly then, as winter kill
settles to the bottom before it begins to bloat and float with the wind to
shallow bays (the channel cat café).
Don’t be afraid to mix one or two large baits into your set, as it could
pay off big time. Just keep in mind that on average, smaller baits or fresh cut
bait are easier to catch and kill to a flathead moving in slow motion. Remember the guy holding a 40lb bruiser with
a saugeye jig stuck in its mouth, or the crappie fisherman who got spooled
using minnows.
Piece #3: Location
So you’ve
had several warm days in a row, and the forecast is calling for sunny skies and
an afternoon temperature in the low 60’s.
Seems like as good a chance as any for an early spring fish. Location is the next piece of the puzzle to
put in place. Flatheads will start to
“wake up” with a string of warm weather and favorable pressure like this, but may
not begin to migrate to traditional late spring water until this weather becomes
more of a normal thing. In the mean
time, they’ll shake off the cobwebs and begin milling around near winter
water. The key here is to find
transition points that offer a good chance at contacting fish waking up from
their slumber. In early spring, bays at
the northern ends of large reservoirs typically warm first. So run to the warmest bay you can find and
give it hell? Not yet. Fish like
largemouth bass and crappie that have maintained an active metabolism all
winter will begin to chase the warmest water very early on. Flatheads seem to take their time. Take a look at a good topographical map and
locate what looks like a likely wintering area for flathead catfish in that
lake. Then, look for shallow water
within reasonable distance to this wintering water that is likely to warm up
first. Typically bays or fingers of the
lake that receive windblown water from the south and have creeks flowing into
them will thaw and warm the fastest. Now, take a look at the path from point A
(your winter area) to point B (your warm spring bay). What is the most likely path of travel
between these areas that a flathead may take as the water begins to warm? In many cases, this may be a drop-off edge or
creek channel. Now look more
closely. What details of this structural
feature make good areas for flatheads to lazily browse for food as their
metabolism starts to ramp back up? A channel bend holding wood or other
habitat? The confluence of another channel coming out of a bay to the main
channel? Stick close to likely winter
water very early in the year, but begin to follow the path from point A to
point B as the warming trend continues.
If you’re contacting fish then suddenly lose contact with them for
several straight trips, move on down the line to the next interesting feature
in their path. Find active fish on the right days and follow them as they begin
to branch out further and further from winter water, and I bet they eventually lead you to
prime time, late spring water. You’ll follow them to these areas right about
the same time of year that everyone else is just dusting off their gear and
thinking about giving it a shot.
During the
wait for spring, now is a good time to clean and repair gear, sharpen hooks,
stock up on the necessities, and get to studying those maps. Or in my case (or
nutcase, if you will), wade around hip deep in the frozen steelhead rivers of
the Great Lakes and look jealously at pictures of enormous cold water blue
cats.
Until next
time, tight lines guys.
