How do your strategies for locating channels change after it gets dark? Or morning vs. evening? What about fishing creeks and rivers vs. lakes at different times? I have heard that night time is the best time to catch catfish, but the only fish I've caught have been around twilight, but I've sat many hours after it gets dark and caught nothing. I'm just wondering if there are some general strategies I should be adopting after dark vs. fishing daytime.

what kind of bait are you using? Where are you fishing? Why are you fishing for just channels as opposed to blues or flatties? Best time to fish period is new moon, full moon, and when the barometric pressure is on the rise. Im sure there are some other things to think about as well, but those are the main things I look for. Also, if your not getting bites within half an hour at a spot your best bet is to change the angle of your cast or move. All of this information is assuming your bank fishing as opposed to boat fishing. But the best info I can give you is to go to bass pro shop, academy, cabella's or something like that and get a cast net. Go get you some FRESH bait. Get a ice chest with some ice in it and keep your fresh bait on ice so its good longer, unless your damned good at keeping shad alive.

Well right now bank fishing advice is gonna be the most useful information for me, I think. I'm not specifically targetting channels I guess, my main goal for the moment is getting as much edible meat in the freezer as possible when I go out, so I figured it's probably easier to catch channels which is why I say that.

Moon phase, barometric pressure advice is all real useful info -- I will need to start checking a good weather site I guess! When you're using your castnet, can you catch fresh shad most anywhere? What's the next best thing, live minnows from the bait shop? Or that preserved stuff?

If you are bank fishing, get you some range cubes, toss them out. If water where you toss them is too shallow, get you a sling shot and get you some range cubes out about as far as you plan to cast. The fish will come if they are in the area at all.
Might take 30 minutes or so with range cubes.

As said above, get a throw net, catch some bait from the water where you fish to catch bigger fish. Shine a "bright" light in the shallow water and sometimes bait fish come to it.

It is likely that this time of year you will catch more, maybe not larger, fish by using a good punch bait that stays on the hook when casting out to the area of the range cubes. I personally am doing well on CJ's punch bait. In fact the maker of CJ's punch bait fishes almost entirely from the bank himself.

Do those things you should get you some fish to eat.

Thanks for the advice, you know where I can buy range cubes? Is that a feed store thing?

Good advice noted above. Tractor Supply off of Loop 288 in Denton usually has plenty.

I've had pretty good luck lately at night using shrimp fishing on the bottom near some brush. try to find a spot with some grass or reeds in the water and cast near it.

Thanks y'all. Definitely gonna try the range cubes next time I go out. I'm gonna keep trying the shrimp until I can get a decent castnet, since those stay on the hook pretty well.



I have been trying Danny King's, but it doesn't seem to stay on the hook well. When I reel back in I've just got some fibers left. I'm using #4 treble hooks like it suggests. Maybe it's just the reeling in that washes it all out.

I had another question... if I'm wading out, how can I avoid scaring off the fish? Are they gonna smell me in the water and spook or should I just avoid splashing around and causing a racket?

When i use Dk Blood i use a #8 hook. I think I get a better hook up rate and it stays on better.

Night time bank fishing is my favorite.
I can 2nd everything that's been stated, and I'll add this.
You really do want fresh shad.
One good way to get fresh shad is to use the range cubes.
The 1st thing I always do is throw out some range cubes within cast net distance.
Then I spend a few minutes getting business in order.
After a few minutes, throw out the cast net where you threw the range cubes.
I can always catch some shad, sometimes gizzard shad this way. Evidently they like the range cubes.
Often I'll get some bluegill this way, and occasionally a carp or something.
When you hook the shad, first go through the eye, then work the hook through it's body, and the point should come out close to the tail.
Anyhow, good luck with whatever you do.

I have some good luck at night. For channels I will chum several areas pretty heavy about an hour before I plan on fishing them. I "shotgun" range cubes or soured milo. I will fish with Secret 7 right OUTSIDE of the area I've chummed and some punch bait right in the middle of the area I have chummed.
I also make a "dough" bait that works good on the buffalo that always school on the range cubes
Good luck

Well I went out tonight to try the ranch cubes and live shad strategy at Westlake Park. I picked up a 3.5 foot cast net at Wal-Mart and when I got out there I threw out some cubes first thing. After a few test throws with the net, I thought I wasn't gonna catch anything, but then I started getting 3-4 shad each time! Didn't take more than 15 minutes have a couple dozen on ice (I read on tiny's site this was okay.) I threw out some more cubes and started casting. Didn't catch anything after about an hour of casting out and making sure to freshen the bait every 10-15 minutes. So I went back to the spot I caught that 22 inch channel the other day, threw out more cubes and fished for another hour with no bites. I was using a sinker rig with a crappie float between two swivels (egg sinker on top, 8" leader & hook on bottom.)

I guess I was just having some bad luck. The wind was blowing quite a bit, could that have turned them off entirely? Probably should try some new coves next time I go out there.

i went out for about an hour this evening before dark and didnt get a bite

How long do you leave it in? Washing off isn't a completely bad thing; it means that some of the bait is acting as chum every time you cast in.