I have a standard metric wholeheckuvalot of small rivers & creeks in my area, most of which are full of suckers. I’ve been fishing said waters for 30 years and caught a grand total of 4 suckers on hook & line. I know it’s not that I’m a bad angler (61 species caught, and citations for brown trout, common carp, spotted bass, rock bass, and bluegill), but clearly something I’m doing ain’t working.
HELP!
We can’t help if you don’t start by telling us what you are doing.
I’m not falling for this like our resident “sucker” pug did!!
Try this… works for me 
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We can’t help if you don’t start by telling us what you are doing.
Usually I’m drifting nightcrawlers & mealworms through the head of a pool, where I know there are hogsuckers, redhorse, and white suckers (and in some streams torrent suckers, rustyside suckers, and creek chubsuckers). I’ll use a little weight, but not so much that it won’t look natural, and usually 8-pound line because of the bruiser trout and bass in these areas.
A chunk of crawler with a slip sinker 18″ above it works for me. I know some guys like to drift them, but I prefer mine pegged to the bottom. Current seams and pools are usually good.
It ain’t rocket science. If you aren’t catching fish, move and repeat.
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We can’t help if you don’t start by telling us what you are doing.
Usually I’m drifting nightcrawlers & mealworms through the head of a pool, where I know there are hogsuckers, redhorse, and white suckers (and in some streams torrent suckers, rustyside suckers, and creek chubsuckers). I’ll use a little weight, but not so much that it won’t look natural, and usually 8-pound line because of the bruiser trout and bass in these areas.
Hmm, that’s pretty much all I do, although I am no expert. You actually might try putting enough weight to keep the bait stationary. I am not a sucker, contrary to Cougereye’s opinion, but I doubt they chase food much. They root around a lot on the bottom rooting up insects and other food.
And Cougareye is right. I guarantee you I am the most gullible person on these boards.
Look for natural choke points like big pools at the base of culverts, or slower moving water among the fast stuff. Last year we caught all kinds of suckers and chubs in a MAYBE 3 foot wide slack area next to some raging spring floods.
Go get ’em! Post pics of those exotic East Coast suckers for us!
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Go get ’em! Post pics of those exotic East Coast suckers for us!
I’m hoping to be able to do that… Mastery of suckers would make it much easier to catch 200 species…
I use a no. 6 baitholder and a small egg sinker about 2′ up. I also use just enough nightcrawler to cover the hook but don’t know if that matters much. One thing the white suckers do here is bite very lightly not making the pole bounce, even a little. I watch the line and you’ll see it move a little or slack being taken out also just a little. I set the hook right then. I also fish the slower current next to the faster water. During the spring runs here its one after another and you can catch a full garbadge can with two guys in a day.
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During the spring runs here its one after another and you can catch a full garbadge can with two guys in a day.
What do you do with that much fish? I know they are good smoked, can you pickle them?
Down here they get made into crabcakes minus the crab. They’re quite good!
We fished them at Elkader Iowa in the Turkey river during thier spring run and for the two of us fishing it was one about every 2 to 5 minutes. The white suckers aren’t that big and I’m pretty sure the biggest one caught at the fishing contest was just over 3 pounds. Most are around a pound and a half. I know if we would have stayed there all day and fished we could have filled a garbadge can. 8:00 in the morning to 5 or 6:00 at night and I know it could be done. There were young guys there around 14 and they were catching them like that too.They had a fishing tournament that day because of the sucker run and everybody was catching them like that.
Some people here pickle them and the jar I was eating from was on Ritz crackers, the guy had to take the jar from me because I was going to eat it all, I thought it was ok to do that but he still put it back in the fridge. I asked for the recepie and he said one tablespoon of both katsup and mustard, a small amount of caning salt and one teaspoon of pickeling spices. He said pressure cook it for about 45 minutes and its good to go, it (was) pretty darned good.
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Down here they get made into crabcakes minus the crab. They’re quite good!
I’ve done something similar. They are good. Their flesh is quite sweet. Lots of bones to deal with, though.
I grew up in a predominantly black neighborhood in a very rural part of Virginia. Most of my neighbors (of all colors) kept every fish they caught because they were poor. Carp and suckers were prized because of the lack of size and creel limits.
Now I have a family, so I like having the ability to provide fish for the table (my wife is Brasilian, and they’re obsessive fish eaters) when we feel the need… I also fish with a chef from Mexico who loves to work with rough fish…
I’ve never had smoked sucker that I can remember but Id bet thier good too, Do you have sheephead out that way, Sheephead deepfriend is also pretty good. We used to make a drive to N.E. Iowa at Harpers ferry to Moens fish market and buy it for $1.00 a pound and 10 pounds at a time caught out of the Mississippi. Those fillets with homemade tartar sauce on them and those were pretty darn good too, especially with some home made deepfried frenchfries, my kids never complained and ate what was infront of them. Some of the rough fish are tasty and just because they aren’t as pretty as some of the game fish doesn’t mean thier not good to eat. I got a friend, hillbilly Dave, and hes told me about black suckers, he said thier the best of the sucker family.
Personally I think there is a reason some fish evolved as gamefish, while others as roughfish. I don’t mean evolution in literal terms, but in terms of what sportsman found as worth pursuing for as table fare.
Personally, I’ll try anything.
My one experience with carp was not a good one. Asian friends ground it up and put it in a dish. I literally got sick off it. I suppose it was psychological, since no one else did. But it did not help that I watched them deep fry the thing, scales and all. Then they ground up the meat.
I do want to try some silver carp. I’ve seen videos on how to prepare them properly. Like most underutilized fish, there are only certain parts that are quality, the rest is not as palatable.
I’d try sucker too, since they are mostly carnivores. Personally, carp aren’t as appealing to me since they are omnivores.
I haven’t eaten carp but Tóño swears by it. I trust the man from the state whose name is a Náhuatl word meaning “possessor of lotsa fish”. He’s from the state of Michoacán. I’ve eaten several other fish he’s prepared and it’s always good. He single-handedly made me a fish-eater.
We do have freshwater drum out here, but only in a couple of rivers. I’ve never caught one, but I am hopeful that this is the year!
I eat carp out of “clean” waters like trout streams. I also eat suckers. To each their own! Tonight my wife and I are enjoying Lota Lota.
Were they caught at the Pout-O-Rama?
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Personally, I’ll try anything. x2
My one experience with carp was not a good one. Asian friends ground it up and put it in a dish. I literally got sick off it. I suppose it was psychological, since no one else did. But it did not help that I watched them deep fry the thing, scales and all. Then they ground up the meat.
pug the fish head is the tastiest part of the fish 
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pug the fish head is the tastiest part of the fish
I should clarify, they deep fried it sans head and guts. At least I think they cut off the head. This is over 10 years ago. And they just ground up the meat after frying.
I also had some baked white bass from them. Now that was delicious. Nothing wrong with some baked fish, baked with some fish stock.
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pug the fish head is the tastiest part of the fish
My wife and her Mom used to fight over the eyes and brains 
No woopie that night
I got my first white sucker this morning! 
Sometimes I wish we didn’t have freshwater drum… They are good for boredom though, when I’m catfishing during the day with a slow bite, I’ll put a crawler on my 5′ ultralight with 4 lb test just to hear my drag going out 
Tuesday, I got 3 redhorse. I’m starting to figure them out.
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Tuesday, I got 3 redhorse. I’m starting to figure them out.
Congrats!!!
PICS man… PICS or it didn’t happen! 
When my leg heals from the injury I’m dealing with, then I’ll try to get more…
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