Channel cats on the fly

Fishing Panfish & Warm Water
1

I regularly fly fish the Manatee River and Lake Manatee near my home in Sarasota, Fla. For some reason, these bodies of water offer the best fly fishing for channel cats that I’ve ever experienced. I fly fish in fresh water all over the state, but the lake and river are the only two spots that I can actually target channel cats. The fish usually range from a pound to more than 10 pounds.

I catch them on my Myakka Minnow and nymphs under a strike indicator. I have taken as many as 18 channel cats in a day. Typical day is four or five.

These fish are great fighters on fly!

[](http://s10.photobucket.com/user/flherd1971/media/DSC00828_edited-1 - Copy_zpswrbq3ybg.jpg.html)

2

That sure looks like a lot of fun.

3

not fair to show off. It is snowing where I am. envy envy, envy!

4

Last fall I had one good day when I caught five small and one medium catfish on the fly. You’re right, they are a lot of fun!

5

What colors do you use in your Myakka Minnow pattern for channels? Thanks.

Bob
:smiley:

6

I have one small lake (30ish acres) I fish that also offers good fly fishing for channel cats. While I usually target bass, I can always tell when I’ve hooked a channel cat as they usually go deep right away and fight much harder and longer than bass. I also don’t mind keeping a few to eat every once in a while. Channel cats don’t do acrobatics, but they are lots of fun to catch on a fly rod.

Jim Smith

7

Agree. Catfish are a total BLAST to catch on flyfishing gear!
Those are some great “action shots”, Steve! :slight_smile:

8

Beautiful sight, bent fly rod in such a nice setting. Enjoy your reports and pictures.

9

Depends of the color of the water I’m fishing. In the tannin-stained waters of the river and lake, I prefer gold or copper.