Veteran fishing guide Steve Johnson has competed widely in catfish tournaments, and chased cats with clients in plenty of waters. But he believes the channel catfishing on 48,000-acre Clear Lake in west-central California is the premier place in the U.S. for catching good numbers of big channel catfish.
And right now it’s offering exceptional fishing for heavyweight whisker fish.
“Everyone knows that Clear Lake is a great spot for giant bass, with the lake record largemouth weighing over 17-pounds,” the 66-year-old full time guide tells Wired2fish. “I do 200 guide trips per year, and half of them are with kids on board my boat for cats on Clear Lake.
“You put a youngster on a 15-to-20-pound catfish that’s as big as their family dog, and they just go wild.”
Johnson says channel catfish are an apex predator on Clear Lake. They feed not just on bottom, but mid-depths, too. They ravage baitfish schools and strike about any bait or lure offered to them.
“There’s no one who fishes for bass on Clear Lake who doesn’t also catch channel catfish,” he says. “They are ravenous predators, and they’ll hit spoons, spinnerbaits, jigs, plugs, you name it. And, of course, just about any natural bait you want to feed ‘em.
“I’ve had five recent consecutive parent-child trips that have been epic, with big cats over 20 pounds caught on each trip.”
On one of Johnson’s most recent Clear Lake catfish outings on August 30th he had a father named Humberto and his two sons Luis and Vicente, plus a young friend.
“We began with a double-header on catfish with an 18 and a 23 pounder,” said Johnson, who lives on Clear Lake. “A few minutes later they caught a 21-pounder. They followed those with a bunch of fish weighing 14 to 17 pounds, and we ended the day at noon with another 20-pound channel cat – and all fish were released.”
Over his last 10 guide trips on Clear Lake, Johnson says his anglers have caught at least one, and usually more, channels weighing from 22 to 26 pounds. And he thinks the best fishing of the year on the lake is on tap now.
“The fish are coming off their spring through summer spawn and are feeding up headily,” says Johnson, who has 37 years experience guiding.
Johnson says he employs a big fish technique for Clear Lake cats. He slow-trolls cut mackerel baits on Santee rigs in 15 to 20 feet of water at the southwest end of the lake.
“My baits are coming along about 3-feet off bottom, and catfish clobber them like a salmon or striped bass does,” he explains. “My bait size is small, about the size of a silver dollar. It’s all about presentation. I use a 60-inch mono leader and instead of a cork float to keep the bait off bottom, I use a painted cigar shaped float that looks like a Zara Spook. I want my size 8 to 12 circle hook close to the float.”
He uses revolving spool tackle, 80-pound test braided line, and 80-pound monofilament leaders.
“I’ve fished everywhere for catfish, and the channel cat population on Clear Lake is fantastic. It has so many big fish it’s unreal, and it’s way, way overlooked by most anglers because it’s greatly overshadowed by its famed largemouth bass fishing.”
