Tips for Catching Popsicle Pond Cats Despite popular misconceptions, channel cats feed
actively throughout winter and even put up a fight when the water is
frozen over
Tips for Catching Popsicle Pond Cats
Many catfish fans confine their fishing
activity to warm months, but it's easy to load a stringer with
good-eating channel cats when fishing farm ponds on cold winter days.
(Keith Sutton photo)
Do catfish contain antifreeze? That question crossed my mind as I lifted my tenth big channel catfish over the transom. It was a polar afternoon during Christmas break. The high temperature
that day soared to near 30 degrees. My friend Alex Hinson and I were
catfishing in a small farm pond owned by one of Alex’s neighbors. To say the fish were cooperative is an understatement. We’d cast a
bait into deep water by the pond’s dam, and before it hit bottom, a
sassy channel cat would have it. Alex caught a 5-pounder, then its twin.
I caught several 2- to 4-pounders. We caught a total of 23 before our
fishing trip ended. What surprised me most was how icy-cold the fish were. Each fought
like the dickens, and we took great care that we didn’t get soaked with
freezing water when one splashed alongside the boat. Yet when you
touched one of the catfish fresh out of the water, it felt like a
Popsicle. How, I wondered, can a cold-blooded creature put up such a
fight when its body temperature is barely above freezing? Antifreeze,
perhaps? Despite what many anglers think, channel cats feed actively
throughout winter, as the experience outlined above shows. Alex and I
make several winter fishing forays each year, and we’ve never failed to
catch plenty of cats for a fish fry back home. Even more amazing is the fact that channel cats are now common
targets for ice-fishermen in northern states. Despite popular
misconceptions, they don’t lie in the mud and sulk when it’s cold. They
actively hunt for food and bite readily even when all the water is
frozen over. Many rivers and lakes serve up excellent cold-weather catfishing, but
almost invariably I head for the nearest farm pond when fishing in
December, January and February. Most ponds are stocked with channel
cats, and I can fish from the bank or a small boat without freezing
during a long boat ride on open water. Start by obtaining permission to fish and asking the pond owner to
point out the deepest hole in the pond. During cold weather, that’s
where most cats will be. Fish from a boat if you can, lowering your bait
straight down into the hole. When it reaches the bottom, turn your reel
handle a few cranks so the bait is a foot or so above the substrate
where cats can better detect it. When bank fishing, adding a small
bobber on the line between your hook and sinker accomplishes the same
thing. Fresh chicken liver is my favorite winter bait. Cats quickly zero in
on the scent and taste of poultry blood dissolving from the tissue. I
weave my hook through each piece of liver several times, then put my
reel in freespool and let the bait sink straight to the bottom. When
bank fishing, a gentle lob keeps the liver from flying off on most
casts. Don’t sit in one spot too long. You’ll have a bite before 15 minutes
passes if a hungry channel cat is nearby. If you don’t, move a short
distance and try again. If luck is with you and the catfish are biting, the action may end
abruptly after you’ve caught a few fish. Once again, it’s time to move
and try another location. Of course, when you’re fishing for cats in winter, it pays to keep
moving anyway, just so you can keep warm. This is not a sport for
anglers who detest the cold. You’ll get chilly out there, even when
you’re wearing the proper clothing. Your teeth will chatter, and your
hands and feet will feel like Popsicles. Nice thing is, when the cats start biting, that frigid feeling
disappears. Nothing in the world warms you quicker than battling a
rod-bending catfish. Try it yourself and see
