Hey everybody, I think there's going to be a great opportunity here in the next couple of days for some great line stretching. With temps being as low as they've been there should be a pretty good shad kill happening. I'm going to do some scouting tomorrow on the south shore of my local lake to see what I can find. I love dragging big gizzards for big blues in deep water but if there's a good shad kill then I may be bank fishing in a few feet of water with small threadfins. Occasionally it's nice to get back to the basics with some rod holders and a comfy folding chair. You can get into some fat bellied cats when this happens!

That's just crazy talk!

I just walked the mutt and and I think I may have lost some body parts that froze off en route it's so freakin cold!

Hey Geno, when you say scouting, do you literally mean looking for any shad washed up on shore?

I bet your right Geno. Those threads that have been in the north end of lake in shallower water are definitely at risk. Water was 46 before the storm so I’m betting even some of the threads in mid depth are going to be in trouble. Get out right when this thing breaks and you’ll do good if your in the right place. Wait until next weekend like me and there is a good chance the cats are all stuffed and not eating.

It will be interesting to see what the water temp does. 46 on Lavon last Saturday. Hopefully not a big kill as I am hoping to fish next weekend. Need the fish to be hangry

Working this weekend so I can get out when the weather breaks. Gonna try Wednesday I think. If we get severe clear, I will try the shallows. Gonna start looking deep with really cold water first... Could be another chance to really score!

Sounds like I will have a bowl of popcorn sitting on my desk at work, watching this one shake out!

Those of you lucky enough to get a shot at them this week, keep the rest of us informed!

Stay safe!

Ken

I really hope that isn't the case. My regular catfish lakes haven't recovered from last year's shad kill. Lost a ton of mature shad in both of them. I won't have a boat again till after the 19th. Guess I'm gonna have to wait and see.

Plenty if other good baits to use David. We’ve been hammering the big fish on just about everything but Gizzards. Guys get ti stuck in Gizzard Shad in my opinion. We do better on other baits quite often this time of year. We always have big gizzards but they don’t always produce.

I like using bluegill, buffalo, and carp too, it's just this time of year I can make one toss of the cast net and get enough gizzards for a week. LOL

Yes, I've done pretty good this winter with carp and bluegill. Just curious if anyone knows but, what would the purpose be for TPWD not allowing the use of game fish parts? When we catch crappie or sand bass, we always throw the carcass away. Why not be able to use this instead of wasting it? I mean, I imagine a big ol' crappie head might be a pretty good bait. Not that I would know...

Also, as far as the shad kill goes, I think that, if there is one, it would turn up the heat on the shad bite temporarily. I've been fascinated by the ebb and flow of catfish eating habits this fall and winter. I noticed there was a definite change in the type of bait bluecats preferred somewhere in January. I was killing them on shad in late December but had a few trips in January that I didn't even get bit on shad. Definitely learned to offer them a smorgasbord of baits. I'm pretty sure that everyone here will agree that fresh is best but I'm curious if loading up on bluegill in the fall when they're easy to catch and freezing them would be worth a try. I don't even try that with shad anymore. I've learned that's just lowering your bite average with them.

Geno, glad I'm not the only one up!

I agree fresh is best. With that out of the way, I think freezing Bream is okay. They keep frozen better than shad. It is interesting to see how the blues appetite changes with the seasons, or really with the water temp. I will offer Bream in the warmer months but they just tear up the shad when their metabolism is high.

I have a theory about that. I think they need the shad when the weather is warm because they are easier to digest. They are not a boney fish, they are oily and soft and I'm sure they break down in the fishes digestive system faster than a bream would. In the colder weather, the other types of fish breakdown slower and therefor they last longer in terms of nutrition and the energy they need to expend to feed themselves.

if there is a fisheries guy or a biologist out there to call BS on this please do so, but my little brain sees this as making sense...

That makes alot of sense Tim but I believe they are keying in on these other bigger fish for a different reason. Big blues are lazy predators and this is amplified in cold water. Toads are keying in on other fish because these bigger meals become lethargic when the water gets into the 40s. Big Blues don’t want to chase baits so they begin to key in on these bigger fish more as they slow down and become easy prey. They eat the Shad when the weather is warm as other fish are predating them day and night and the Shad are injured and easy to get. They want the easy road and like the big juice cheeseburger from the fast food drive through window so to speak.

We don’t use frozen bait on our boat Geno. Never have and never will. I’m sure some of these guys will say it works but 100% of the high level anglers I know use fresh. Locating and acquiring the right baits is the first piece to the Bluecat puzzle. The better you get a locating and acquiring it, the better you get at tracking Big Blues. I do know ftozen works better in areas where there is ice like farther north but around here your selling yourself short big time if you don’t have fresh bait.

Well, I have to say that makes sense too Chris. I know they will take the easy path to a meal every time. I also know easy gets more important when they and the environment are cold. Funny how we try and use our intellect to get inside that little bluecat brain. We are always trying to figure them out.

Well, did a little scouting and couldn't find any evidence of a shad kill. Although, i did see a lot of really fat, satisfied looking gulls and ducks so who knows lol. I guess I'll find out more tomorrow when i get out on the boat. Thanks for the input guys.

Keep us updated bud, since I'm not going to able to get on the water myself for a couple weeks