minguscoues Report post Posted March 19, 2009 lookin to do a little catfishin this weekend. new to phoenix (west part of city) and would like to stay somewhat close(except for a urban lake). dont have a boat so will be fishing on shore. any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KGAINES Report post Posted March 19, 2009 Somewhat close could be Lake Pleasant it is ok, Bartlett or the river between Horshoe and Bartlett hold some large Cats, channel and flatheads, I hear they are catching a lot at Alamo, but that is a little further out. If I had to go and I was targeting Catfish without a boat it would be the river between Horshoe and Bartlett, and if you don't have a four wheel drive I would try the spillway where you could park and walk down without risk of getting stuck. With a four wheel drive there are a lot of places with roads leading to them. They are really letting the water out of Horshoe right now, but they usually slow it down on the weekends, if it is high like it is right now it is tuogh fishing and near impossible to cross to get to some spots. Look for flows under 300 for the best fishing in my opinion at that spot on the verde. Good Luck Salt river project Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
COOSEFAN Report post Posted March 19, 2009 Keith pretty much summed it up! It is a few hours away but Alamo would be my favorite lake to fish for cats...especially if stuck on the bank, you can catch the numbers there. For the bigguns we would haul our expensive bass boats and dump em' into the spillway right below the Horseshoe dam...got a lot of strange looks from the guys in rafts and canoes, kinda embarrasing I guess but we were die-hards and that was all we had that would float! We would use cast nets (you can do this from the bank) and catch bluegills. Run a big hook just under the dorsal fin and from the bank cast out as far as possible. Some giants lurk in those waters. If you can borrow a raft or canoe it's best, just park out in the middle, drop the bluegill to the bottom, leave the bail open and wait. It's a rush when you see the line start runnin' out not knowing what exactly is down there and is about to get slammed with your hook, and after you set the hook you feel the tremendous weight of an unseen creature! I FREAKIN' LOVE IT! Best of luck and be sure to take pics! Here are a few from the spillway..... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
minguscoues Report post Posted March 19, 2009 man thanks for the info guys. not sure where im gonna go just yet. used to catfish on the verde back home and catch some lunkers. wanna get my wife out, she loves fishing and has yet to catch a big catfish. thanks again. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mattobertin Report post Posted March 20, 2009 Horseshoe dam is pretty good catfishing and would also be my first choice but don't overlook bartlett lake you can drive right down to the water (If you get there early enough!) I have caught quite a few cats mostly flathead out of there on waterdogs and another good bait is minnows and a big fat worm on the same hook. Good luck. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
