I GOT CAT FEVER!

afternoon brothers! im a kayakin southern boy from kentucky. the navy brought me out to the northwest and i got the cat fever! anyone know any good spots around snohomish to catch some catfish? any help would be greatly appreciated. maybe we could get together and do some slayin!

If you really have "cat fever", the navy has plain done you wrong. ::

Now, if you can contract "dog fever", either dogfish (sharks) or dog (chum) salmon, you'll soon be in heaven. 

There's not a lot of catfish action, especially of any size, west of the Cascades. There are some brown bullheads in some of the lakes, but a 1lber is big. For big cats head over to the lower Snake River, or the mouth of some of the tributaries of the Columbia, like the John Day or Deschutes Rivers.

Sturgeon have whiskers and they get plenty big.

Good luck.

Sturgeon have whiskers and they get plenty big.

If "cat fever" is all about the fishing, then a large sturgeon will more than satisfy it.  They have whiskers, they live on the bottom, and they pull really hard.  Did we mention they grow 10 times the size of the biggest blue catfish.

Now if "cat fever" is about the eating,  well, then I guess there's no accounting for taste.  Try some salmon, halibut, rockfish, lingcod, walleye, and yes sturgeon.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Thanks so much guys! I would love to fish for sturgeon. I work a lot at Boeing so finding the time to go is the hardest part. I used to do a whole lot of largemouth fishin back home as well so any good tips where to find some hogs would be awesome as well. I like this website good helpful community. Thanks again.

Large largemouth might also provide an problem for you.  They tend to grow really slow up here in the Pacific Northwest.  Lots of small ones to be found in some lakes.   Give smallmouth a shot, they tend to do better here.

Thanks bsteves, only way to catchem is to get your line wet.

Sturgeon have whiskers and they get plenty big.

Now if "cat fever" is about the eating,  well, then I guess there's no accounting for taste.  Try some salmon, halibut, rockfish, lingcod, walleye, and yes sturgeon.  I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

I'll take fried catfish on my plate over salmon every day of the week.  Nanner, you'll find that the other fish listed are fairly decent substitutes for catfish.  There are a few places west of the Cascades that contain actual catfish (non-bullhead), but they are primarily in Pierce County.  I'd love to go find some cats sometime.

When you go to the store looking for country ham and red eye gravy to pair up with your catfish... it isn't the same up here.  The salt content is so low that I don't think it qualifies.


The Navy did do you wrong because they put you on a skimmer, not because of the local fauna

I used to do a whole lot of largemouth fishin back home as well so any good tips where to find some hogs would be awesome as well. I like this website good helpful community. Thanks again.

Lake Washington has good small mouth fishing and I hear California has a bunch of hogs. Hunting up here is a hell of a lot more work and guys go years with out getting a deer, but the salmon fishing is pretty hot. 6 million pinks will be coming into Puget Sound this year!

Yarjammer your right they aint nothing like fried catfish, I get my mom to ship the country ham I can't live without it haha! I'm gonna just have to go from lake to lake till I find my honey hole. even if I don't catch a Damn thing I'm still fishin so I will be happy either way.

Yar..... there is nothing wrong with us surface sailors..... you bubbleheads think you own the world.... Not..

Nann.. welcome to the westcoast ... yar is right after 14 years in charleston SC there is no good Catfish over here.. and i miss the boiled peanuts.

Oh and i know how to make a great batch of southern sausage gravy and biscuits.

SG

S.G. .....missing the boat

Stumble..... that kind of looks like Yar tooo... hehehehe


i was one of the lucky deck apes..... ship didnt leave without me...


SG

Yar..... there is nothing wrong with us surface sailors..... you bubbleheads think you own the world.... Not..

Nann.. welcome to the westcoast ... yar is right after 14 years in charleston SC there is no good Catfish over here.. and i miss the boiled peanuts.

Oh and i know how to make a great batch of southern sausage gravy and biscuits.

SG

Well I will have to be the judge of that lol. But I don't doubt you.

When I was in we went to Carr inlet in the sound for some sound measurements. I was inside a hatch connecting some gear when a wave went over, 6 or more on top got doused like that too. No idea who is in that shot ,but dang it makes me laugh. 

As far as Catfish goes, McKay Resivoir near Pendleton is the only spot I ever went to catch them,sadly that was way back in the mid 80s.

Wish I had the link to the 30 some pd catfish caught in downtown Salem last winter!  Ya hear about schools of em on the Snake. 
How 'bout a carp?  I see a few of 'em in the sloughs around..  maybe a bow?