catfish

[alpine8fisherman]

I will be taking a friend and kids out fishing for catfish in a boat. We will be going to either Piru or Castaic. Can anyone offer suggestion on location and bait? I am a trout guy and I fish mostly the Sierra. Will trout setup work? I have mostly light 6' rods with 4 lb test spinning reels. Thanks!

[team760]

alpine...first of all find out what types of cats are in those lakes..that will help you determine line size and bait..with channels you want to use 8-12 pound test/ with blues and flatheads a lot heavier line..channels will bite on stinkbait,cutbait,night crawlers etc./ blues and flatties usually on cut bait or live bait.depending on regulations you can only use live bait in certain areas.you can use your 4 pound test,just play them a lot longer so they dont snap your line.the best set up would probably be carolina rig or fly lining it ( just hook and bait).have your line a little loose or your drag set loosely..that way they wont feel much resistance when they bite/run with it. a lot of times if they feel resistance they will spit the hook.sometimes they will play with it for a while before they decide to take it for good..just set the hook on the run.I do mostly cat fishing and this has worked best for me....have fun and good luck...T.