the flathead morning bite

  • audemp
    Wi
    Posts: 721
    #1219900

    Has anyone concentrated on the morning flathead bite lately?

    Please provide the time and days you have been out recently, Also tell us how many and size of the fish caught.

    Just a thought as it has been a little slow for the past few weeks.

    Brian Klawitter
    Keymaster
    Minnesota/Wisconsin Mississippi River
    Posts: 59944
    #463665

    I’ve only been out once in the morning this year…an all nighter…because I wanted to get a young lady a big fish…but to no avail. I could have gone to bed at 1 am…and been as fruitful.

    larry_haugh
    MN
    Posts: 1767
    #463702

    I’ve done a couple early morning stints. didnt get anything to speake of not even bites. I’m sure that they do bite in the AM but not the same spots as in the evening.

    Brian Klawitter
    Keymaster
    Minnesota/Wisconsin Mississippi River
    Posts: 59944
    #463714

    Here’s a blast from the past!

    With some very good info…along with the Vokoun papers.

    If I recall correctly, according to the studies the largest percentage of flats move at sunset…then tapered off at sunrise. There is always a small percentage that is moving around through out the day.

    I’ve printed Jasons work out (make sure you have lots of paper if you try this! 200 pages if I recall.) then highlighted important facts.

    >The Vokoun Thread<

    Check out the pages around 122 for the 24 hour tracking results.

    I want to thank Jason again as IDA was one of the first to be allowed to share Jason’s work with our membership.

    mplspug
    Palmetto, Florida
    Posts: 25025
    #463734

    Perfect timing, the boss is gone and I can print it in relative safety!!

    Ralph Wiggum
    Maple Grove, MN
    Posts: 11704
    #463739

    Quote:


    I’ve only been out once in the morning this year…an all nighter…because I wanted to get a young lady a big fish…but to no avail.


    Hey, hey, hey. Who are you calling a young lady???

    mplspug
    Palmetto, Florida
    Posts: 25025
    #463765

    Quote:


    Hey, hey, hey. Who are you calling a young lady???



    I was thinking the same. You’re not young at all! That was a lame ribbing, eh? Call me ObviousJokePug.

    So driving to work in my rabid, constant, manic obsession with cats, I got to thinking, I think it’s a good bet morning is the worst possible time to fish for them. They are active at night because that’s when they feed, for the most part. So the evening migration as they move to feeding mode they are going to be catchable. After feeding all night, they are looking to settle in for the day.

    I wish I had that mode of thinking before I had the bright idea on the 5th to go morning catting! I wouldn’t have put myself out of commision.

    But like everyone says, “Anytime is a good time to go flathead fishing”. We know fish vary their bahavior enough due to their environment and weather that you never know, you might catch them in a morning when the feed bag is on.

    emover
    Malcom, IA
    Posts: 1939
    #463778

    Quote:


    Perfect timing, the boss is gone and I can print it in relative safety!!



    Grab a new ream of paper, hit the laser printer and in a couple of minutes you’re good for an afternoon of in-depth research I like it Pug

    dave

    mplspug
    Palmetto, Florida
    Posts: 25025
    #463792

    Actually he’s gone and all the other managers as well to a conference in San Fran. So I can do it whenever.

    david_scott
    Twin Cities
    Posts: 2946
    #463825

    Quote:


    I think it’s a good bet morning is the worst possible time to fish for them.


    Very wrong. Channel cats peak activity time is early in the morning. Every night I have stuck it out until early morning hours(fishing flatheads) that I was successful that night.. I was successful in the morning hours until around 9 a.m.(have to sleep sometime), and some of the nights I was not successful, I was in the morning. The sunrise period and a couple hurs beyond, my success rate has been as good as it usually is around sunset… Now if I can get my lazy bones out of bed I will try it some morning.

    There are a couple folks out there that launch very early in the morning and run and gun and do extremely well. Sunlight might be a bonus to us right now trying to catch the fish relating to snags(shade). Up here on lake Mississippi(pool 1 and upper 2), as soon as the sun settles behind the trees, there are baitfish and preditor fish crashing the surface as far as the eye can see.. shoreline, middle of the river, everywhere. There is no current and the fish are free to roam wherever they want. The traditional structures that hold fish in the normal current are obscelete(sp?).

    Daytime might be the ticket right now, and can be a very successful time to fish. Anything that will concentrate fish to structure sure isnt going to hurt right now.

    Brian Klawitter
    Keymaster
    Minnesota/Wisconsin Mississippi River
    Posts: 59944
    #463829

    Anyone around that can post some 12 noon channel cat pictures for me???

    dfresh
    Fridley, MN
    Posts: 3053
    #463831

    Quote:


    Actually he’s gone and all the other managers as well to a conference in San Fran. So I can do it whenever.


    McDonald’s managers have conferences in San Fran?

    gotcatfish
    Prior Lake,MN
    Posts: 550
    #463853

    All right-I’ll throw my 2 cents in. I agree with Dave, morning can be very good time to fish. Pug and Audemp, the mornign before we hooked up I was setting my first bully at 6am. Granted I did not pick up any fish from the first spot. I set up in the second spot, where I took you two, and it was on. It could not have been any later than 7am. I am a morning person, so I have spent many mornings fishing cats and some have been absolutely fantastic, others have been nothing but wasted sleeping time. In my experience it is more of a channel bite in the morning, than a flathead bite.

    Ok well I just got the look from “Bossman” so I should probably get off the computer now. I’ll finish this later tonight.

    larry_haugh
    MN
    Posts: 1767
    #463869

    A do agree about the channel bite in the AM through out the day. But flathead bite in the AM no dice yet.
    thanks
    Larry

    mplspug
    Palmetto, Florida
    Posts: 25025
    #463871

    So I am a little jaded when it comes to morning catting.

    Dave, you are saying you were successful catching flats in the morning right? Throwing channels activity in their kind of threw me.

    I know when the sun just breaks the horizon is my favorite fishing time, especially in the summer for all species. I think there’s a window of opportunity there where the prey has an advantage. Many lakes when I fish at that time there can be about a 15 – 30 minutes of crazy action, kind of like the before a storm bite. But I digress.

    The problem with the last time I went out in the morning besides the injury, is that I wasn’t set up until about 6am. And I decided to move to a better spot at 7pm. I also experimented with moving fairly often. I fished 5 or 6 areas in 3 hours.

    I am glad to know people have success in the morning because I would prefer morning fishing given a choice.

    ratherbfishn
    St Paul Park MN
    Posts: 220
    #463944

    Watch your moon tables and try to line the movements of the sun and moon. If you used today for example the moon was set to rise at 7am and drop just before 10pm. I dont think the moon is as important as the sun but it sure seems to have an effect. If you can get the moon a bit earlier (before sunrise) they sould be going pretty good till the sun shows itself. Like dave said the channels go pretty good later into the morning and even all day sometimes but the flats for me have tucked away by this time.
    It seem that they move alot heavier in that 4am-ish time peroid and usually pull that clicker faster as well. I usually have better luck setting up on a highway area between cover and food.It might olny be 100 feet away or 300 yds but they do move thru at one point. This could be as easy as a break line meeting the basin of the river bottom where there most likely to travel. This is where cut bait has caught us nice fish! but your chances are always better with some lively bait. Agian this is what I have experienced on p2 and 3 so it may be a different story elsewhere. But it is a whole lot different than heading out at 8pm!

    Brian, I will take you out next year and put you on a pile of channels that bite all day if you would like. 2 years in a row now we hit them but its a prespawn bite. Lots of fun in the sun

    Brian Klawitter
    Keymaster
    Minnesota/Wisconsin Mississippi River
    Posts: 59944
    #464090

    Sounds GREAT Joe! I have a spot close to Evert’s just like that too. Let’s just hook up and do it!

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