By Capt. Darryl Smith
Springtime on the Santee Cooper Lakes is a magical time of the year for catfish. I’m living proof with 23 confirmed World Records and 69 TV shows to my name. In April, with the waters warming, the catfish move up to shallow waters (less than 12 feet). They do this to spawn and feed on pan fish that also go shallow to spawn. This is an easy pattern to fish. Anyone can do it and be extremely successful on big catfish. We’ve landed catfish over 100 pounds using this method.
To be successful, all you need to do is to move into 2-to-12 feet of water around cypress trees, grass lines, or shoreline. This is where the warmest water in the Lakes will be. The reason why is that the sun penetrates the water hitting the bottom causing photosynthesis which raises oxygen and temperature levels. The hotter the water, the better! When these catfish first move from deep water to shallow waters, they are real spooky, so try to be as quiet as possible getting into position. Shhh! This is what I’ve found works if you want to be extremely successful. When I move into the shallow water, I generally tie the boat off to a tree. That way I’m not dropping an anchor on top of the fish I’m trying to catch. I NEVER drive over the water I’m going to fish!
I use seven rods, Carolina Rig Style with 40-lb test line, no more than 2 ounces of weight, 5/0- 8/0 circle hooks depending on what size baits are used. I prefer some kind of fresh fish for bait, cut into pieces. Shad, herring, or panfish are preferred. Sometimes I’ll use live bait as well. Cast the rods in a 180-degree pattern around the boat so you can cover a lot of bottom. If you haven’t caught fish within 20 minutes, move to another place. You do not have to move a quarter mile away. A lot of times only a 100-yard move will do. Keep moving!
If you follow this pattern during April, I promise you’re going to catch catfish and even maybe a monster.
Capt. Darryl Smith
Give Captain Darryl’s Guide Service a call at 803-367-6275