canal fishing

Question
My brother and I have been trying to fish the local canals in central Nebraska and haven't had any luck really.  Is there a trick to it?  What would be the right time of day and what bait would you use?  I know that there are catfish in there, but not sure what other fish might be swimming through the canal.  Can you help a feller out?  

Answer
Mark; I have never tried fishing for anything in Nebraska. I was only in the state once about 60 years ago.  However I think I can help anyway.

First if you know there are catfish in there you should be able to catch some.  It would make some difference what kind of catfish they are but not absolutely necessary.  Most catfish are nocturnal feeders, that is they mostly feed at night but they are also opportunistic feeders, meaning they will eat most anytime if something they  like is available.  My first guess is that most of the fish in canals would be either bullheads or possibly channel cats if the water is moving any.  Both are very opportunistic feeders and will eat most anything. I would try worms especially night crawlers if you can get them but plain old earthworms will do fine.  Chicken livers also make a good  catfish bait.  Small crawdads or the tails of larger ones work fine (except that I would rather eat the big crawfish rather than use them as bait. I bet you never tried fried crawdad tails, nether had I when I lived in the north but down here in the south they are considered a delicacy and they are good too.) Frozen shrimp works too.  I don't know if you can still buy bait shrimp or not.  We used to get it and it was marked "bait shrimp" not for human consumption. Peel both large crawdad and shrimp tails before hooking.  Grasshoppers, small minnows, cut up small fish, smelly cheese (you can buy cheese bait at the tackle store.) I have used bar soap cut into small cubes. An old partially used bar works best.
For such things as cheese and soap special hooks, small treble hooks with a spring like bait holder on the shank. Press the cheese or soap onto the hook forming a small ball just covering the hook points.

I will talk about tackle in a moment but first lets see about other fish in the canals.  If these are canals that run for fairly long distances across more than one farm or ranch then they are probably under state control as far as fish are concerned.  If they are small on limited land they are likely private.   If they are under the state you can find a lot about them by going to The Nebraska fish and wildlife department or whatever it is called.  I am sure they have a site on the net.  Or you can look them up in the phone book of most larger cities and write them.  I think the web is the most likely choice.  They can tell you what kind of fish are in the canals and a good deal of information on catching them.

I started out nearly 70 years ago with a willow pole, a piece of string, a hook and a small nut of the nut and bolt kind.  I would dig me a can of worms from our garden, then walk a little over a mile to Farmer Wright's place to fish in the creek that went across his pasture and woods.
Years later I married his granddaughter so he became Grandpa Wright.  Anyway his creek had bullheads and sunfish in it.  It wasn't very deep in most places and we could wade across it.  A couple of holes were perhaps 8 feet deep, one was our swimming hole but it also had some good sized bullheads.  I eventually graduated to a cane pole that I bought at the hardware store that also sold fishing tackle, hooks sinkers line etc. I even got a painted cork bobber.  I had used bottle corks before.  We were exactly rich people but we did not know the difference. This was in the years just before and through the Second World War.
The name of the game was to get the worm or whatever bait we might have out into the creek and on the bottom. There were not many branches or such cover in this creek so it was just toss out the bait and wait for ol' whiskers to find the bait.

Now in your canals you may have some brush or other cover  to fish around.  Catfish like to have something like a log or tree top to hide in.  They also make holes in the steep mud banks of a deep hole where they hang out most of the day and come out at night to feed, but if something smells really enticing nearby they will come out in the daytime.
Of course being bottom feeders catfish want the bait right on the bottom. Of course back then we had only a few kinds of hooks, none of the special bait holders I mentioned before.
On one fishing trip I found an old steel casting rod lying on the bank of a creek.  It had no reel but dad had an old one that he gave me so now I had a rod and reel.  It would not cast far but man was I in hog heaven with a rod and reel.  

If there are channel cats in the canals try using a live minnow a couple inches long fished on bottom or nearly so.
You can do this by placing your sinker about 6-8 inches above the hook.  Us a #1 or 1/0 hook. I always liked sproat hooks because they were always sharp.  Live crawdads hooked in the tail also make good channel cat bait but don't forget worms and the other baits I mentioned.

Using a casting outfit or a spinning outfit really doesn't do much except extend your reach when fishing for catfish.
Don't go over 10lb line on a spinning outfit or about 15 on a casting outfit unless there is a good chance that there are some really big fish in the canals.

I mentioned a  bobber before but seldom use one for catfish unless fishing from a boat that is moving. I then use the bobber to keep the sinker bumping bottom so I don't get hung up so much.  Otherwise I simply fish on bottom and watch my rod tip.

If you find that there are bass, crappie or other fish in  the canals give me a follow up and describe things like depth, width, color of the water (clear, stained, muddy,etc.) amount of cover and I will see what I can do about telling you how to attack that situation.

Two more quick things.  Night fishing for catfish is almost always better than daytime.  When I was catfishing a lot several boys would get together and camp out on the creek.  We set bank lines.  Short poles stuck in the bank with just a line,hook and bait, put our poles on "y" shaped sticks jammed in the bank and sat around a fire and either lied about our big fish, or other things, or ate popcorn and drank "pop" while waiting for the fish to bite.
When I was a little older I got a Coleman gasoline lantern which was just the nuts for seeing our rod tips in the dark.  We usually caught fish too.

Finally in late spring and early summer there is often a big thunderstorm that blows up in the afternoon and rains like thunder for an hour or two.  The creeks are all filled to overflowing their banks.  Now is the time to go fishing for bullheads.  Find a place near the creek bank where there is a big tree that has built up a hill around it.  This will often be an island late that afternoon after the rain.  KNOW THE AREA VERY WELL because wading to the island could be risky if you aren't sure where the ditches etc are and that water is moving fast and could wash someone away before you could help him.  
Now, make camp on the island and start fishing by casting across the stream letting your bait wash downstream.  Often this will be some of the fastest catfishing you will ever see.  Those opportunistic catfish know that all that water  is going to wash goodies into the water and they come out in droves.  I don't know if something like this ever happens on your canal or not but if it does don't miss it. I always found worms best for this.

Well Mark that is about all I can think of right now.  I hope this has been of some help to you.  How about a follow up letting me know if you begin catching catfish in the canals.  Thanks for calling on me to try to help you and don't hesitate to ask any other question you might come up with about fishing.


I am sorry I am a bit late getting this to you.  I haven't felt well and got behind on my e-mail.

I am
Jack L. Gaither  (JackfromSeminole)