Anyone else chum Catfish holes?

I like to chum or bait Catfish holes on Lake Nimrod. Works best on a ledge near a creek channel. I build pallet beds for Crappie there, but bait cats in hot weather. Those cats will hang in the cover as long as you feed them there. We usually limit out everyday till we get worn out taking all our buddies. The last 16 trips have produced 48 limits (10 per person per day).

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Yesterday's trip our biggest 14 totaled 80 lbs. We caught way over 100 lbs altogether. Most trips our fish average 3 lbs multiply that by 480 fish that estimated weight so far this equals almost 1500 lbs.

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What do you bait your the holes with, and what type of rods are you using?

We use scrap feed with all kinds of ground feeds, pellets,whole corn. Used to only use sweet feed but costs too much. Those poles are 16.5 Black Widow fiberglass made by B-n-M. They have no reels , just use a line and a #2 hook. Sometimes we do use rod and reels instead.

Dang NIMROD you look plum tuckered out in that first picture. :D That just doesn't look like fun at all. ;)

What a fine looking bunch of fish there. The perfect size to fillet out and in my opinion better eating than crappie fillets.

I've watched folks grouped around and chumming here and what I've seen here couldn't compare with what you have been catching. This time of year I normally would be spending time around fish feeders trying to stock up on channel filets but I've been playing around with minnows on a fabled shallow summer slab pattern that some crappie comers here have introduced me to and I'm finding it rather enjoyable but will have to get back to working the channel cats in open water with my 12 foot b&m crappie pole which is an absolute hoot which I can see you are quite well aware of. :D

Thanks for the pictures.

Do you put the chum in the water in some kind of bag or just throw it in the water in loose form? How often do you have to chum before it becomes effective?

well the way we chum is save our guts and skin and stuff from the last trip and by that time its good and stinky and we blend it up and dump it or durin deer season we bring the guts and excess meat and use it lol its stinky but whatever works

I accidently chummed the catfish to my brush pile one time. A guy told me to sink a couple of cans of dog food on the brush to attract baitfish. Well I caught a boat load of catfish and no crappie. Oh well I did learn that cheap canned dog food will definitly bring in the cats.

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Originally Posted by Fishin Addiction

I accidently chummed the catfish to my brush pile one time. A guy told me to sink a couple of cans of dog food on the brush to attract baitfish. Well I caught a boat load of catfish and no crappie. Oh well I did learn that cheap canned dog food will definitly bring in the cats.

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Channel Catfish are'nt too picky ,they will eat just about any type of feed.

nice catch.

I use frozen guts and blood. Take a big plastic bowl and put a few rocks in there, then put in some guts and blood. You can add any blood, chicken blood, etc. Freeze it. Keep adding until the bowl is full. Take it out to your spot and drop it over. It should sink if you have enough weight and thaw fairly fast attracting cats. Also attracts turtles, but no system is perfect. Plus it gets rid of your waste in a useful way.

Looks like you have been having a great season of catfishing! Great post Nimrod!!

I use sour maze but it is getting hard to find burlap sacks. Unless you want to pay a buck a piece at Tractor supply.

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Originally Posted by WhitePerchJerker

I use sour maze but it is getting hard to find burlap sacks. Unless you want to pay a buck a piece at Tractor supply.

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As long as there is no cutrrent, why use a bag ? The Catfish love soured grain and really bunch up the longer you feed them.

In Kansas I Use Soy Beans Soaked In Water Till They Stink Usually About A Week. Just Dump Some Out Where You Are Fishing. We Use Them On A Aberdine Hook But You Have To Be Careful Putting Them On They Will Break Very Easy. Some People Use Sponge Bait Also.

I haven't chummed... yet! After reading this, I'm making plans as we speak!

I keep a sack of sinking fish food (get it at the local Co-op) for quick outings. Through some in and in a couple of hrs, it gets pretty good. If you know you are going tomorrow, put 3 gallons or so in a 5 gallon bucket and fill it up with water. Let it set out in the sun till the next day. It will sour and speed up the scent coverage in the water. If the feed has been soaked it will break into tiny particles when it hits the water. This holds the fish longer as they search for the source of the scent.