# Sandusky Bay Catfish Massacre



## Girthline

Hooked up with 3 fellow Ogf members Saturday to take them out on my boat for some channel Catfish Action! We met up at around 5:30am and after chit chatting and getting gear loaded aboard, we were hooked up with our first fish by 7:00am!

It was non stop action till about 1:00pm when the wind shifted and storm clouds started to roll in! We hooked into over 48 channels and probably just as many Sheephead during the day! It was great meeting/ fishing with three shore fisherman and fellow ogf members after a great day Catting! 

Video of 31 minutes of action is available in full HD on my YouTube channel


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## Girthline




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## FISHIN 2

Great video, were you up on the flat or in the channel ? We fished the flat a couple yrs ago and couldn't keep 2 poles active it was so fun. Good job, Mike


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## Flathead76

Took my daughter to that exact spot when she was 8 years old. She lasted for only four fish. On the last one she said "Dad I quit! I can't feel my arms!" Lol


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## Ripley

Holy Catfish GIrthline! What a day we had! It was like four little kids catchin bluegill! We had such a great time and we are still smilin big! It was very nice to meet you. We have to do it again sometime. Thank you for being such a gracious host/captain. I hope your boat is still floatin and alive after what we put it through...lol 

Thanks again
JIm


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## katzman

Girthline said:


> Hooked up with 3 fellow Ogf members Saturday to take them out on my boat for some channel Catfish Action! We met up at around 5:30am and after chit chatting and getting gear loaded aboard, we were hooked up with our first fish by 7:00am!
> 
> It was non stop action till about 1:00pm when the wind shifted and storm clouds started to roll in! We hooked into over 48 channels and probably just as many Sheephead during the day! It was great meeting/ fishing with three shore fisherman and fellow ogf members after a great day Catting!
> 
> Video of 31 minutes of action is available in full HD on my YouTube channel


Couldn't ask for a better day. Girthline put us right in the hot zone. Looking forward to the next time. Blessed to have a new fishing buddy and friend. WOW .....I mean WOW!!!!!!!!!


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## chris1162

Great videos and post girthline! You been killin the cats!


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## Girthline

Thanks everyone!


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## Raylaser

Girth, you da cat man!! What a great day and what a big heart to be the sportsman that we all claim to be on these threads. You sir truly proved your sportsmanship by getting fellow fisherman on top of some phenomenal cat fish action. As always really enjoy the vids!! Fish On Bro!!


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## FSZ

Girthline,

What type of rig do you use and what type of bait? From what I can see, the rig looks like a type of perch rig with the weight above the hook. 

Thanks


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## Girthline

FSZ said:


> Girthline,
> 
> What type of rig do you use and what type of bait? From what I can see, the rig looks like a type of perch rig with the weight above the hook.
> 
> Thanks


Just get out there and put in the man hours experimenting! There is no magic rig!


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## Raylaser

Ain't that the truth brother!! What works one day may not work the next. Heck what works one hour may not work the next hour, LOL!!!


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## Hoosier77

Is there a public ramp on the west side of state road 2? We launched out of Dempsys Sunday morning and couldnt get past the RR tracks. The wind was to strong to fish on the east side and the bridges are to low to get the boat under.


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## Bono Joe

Hoosier77 said:


> Is there a public ramp on the west side of state road 2? We launched out of Dempsys Sunday morning and couldnt get past the RR tracks. The wind was to strong to fish on the east side and the bridges are to low to get the boat under.


There are 2 ramps on the East side of Rt. 2 but West of the rail road bridges One on the South side and one on the North side..I don't know what Cleamons charges on the South side but the one on the North side charges $5..


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## BFG

FSZ said:


> What type of rig do you use and what type of bait? From what I can see, the rig looks like a type of perch rig with the weight above the hook.


The shrimp laying on the bow is a clue!  

More than one way to catch a cat, but the best way I've found is to put a bell sinker above a barrel swivel, and then add about a 3-4' leader to a circle hook. The fish hit the bait and when they turn, they hook themselves in the corner of the mouth. No need to set the hook...just start reeling. If you noticed Girth's rod is really soft...which is absolutely perfect for circle-hook fishing. I often use my steelhead noodle rod for this exact reason.

When the gobies get to be a problem, I put the bell sinker on the bottom, then tie a barrel swivel about 2' up the line, and then tie a 2" or so drop to swivel, adding the circle hook with the chunk of shrimp. It doesn't completely solve the goby problem, but it does help if you can keep your rig up off the bottom. 

I hate the gobies...they are a menace. Any other ideas about how to deal with them are appreciated. 

Nice video again Girthline....the kid and I will be getting out there soon (only 25 more baseball games to go).


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## catfish1605

Clemon's charges $10.00 to use their ramps. The railroad has a drawbridge on it that they'll raise if you call them. The phone number is on a big sign by the drawbridge.


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## Hoosier77

Thank you catfish 1605 and Bono Joe


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## Girthline

I keep getting emails and messages from members asking a million questions about everything from the following 

1) What lb tests?
2) What color hook?
3) What type of reel?
4) Did I wear boxers or Tighty whites? 
5) Did I use Stinkbait
6) What depth?
7) What time of day? 
8) What was the barometric Pressure
9) What gas: oil ratio did I use to get to the cats
10) What was the moon like? 
11) Was rain in the forecast? 


It's very annoying when people won't put in their own work researching and actually putting in work fishing but instead just sit online wanting gps coordinates and waiting for the " Almanac " to say it's time! 

This is why most fisherman on forums stop talking when the crappie and Whitebass start hitting in spring because they know how thirsty people are for info just to have 100 people in your spots leaving trash and cleaning Every fish out your favorite spots! Just put the work in and stop asking for a playbook to success! 

And for the record it's only Catfishing, shouldn't be rocket science! Jeesh. Have a nice day ✅✅✅


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## Flathead76

Did you answer question # 4 because it's an important one. I only can slay the cats when I'm wearing boxers. Tightly Whites just don't allow the boys to breathe. Lol. Seriously how difficult is it to fish a Carolina rig in Sandusky Bay of all places and catch channel cats? Bait up with worm, shrimp, or cut shad. First you have to get away from the computer and actually fish. If you don't catch a fish in 15 minutes you need to fish somewhere else. The bay is loaded with catfish. You just have to get off your ass and fish them.


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## BFG

And there my friends....is the answer that needed to by typed. 

Catching catfish is like fishing for perch on the lake. If you don't get bit in 10 minutes...move.


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## Raylaser

Girthline said:


> I keep getting emails and messages from members asking a million questions about everything from the following
> 
> 1) What lb tests?
> 2) What color hook?
> 3) What type of reel?
> 4) Did I wear boxers or Tighty whites?
> 5) Did I use Stinkbait
> 6) What depth?
> 7) What time of day?
> 8) What was the barometric Pressure
> 9) What gas: oil ratio did I use to get to the cats
> 10) What was the moon like?
> 11) Was rain in the forecast?
> 
> 
> It's very annoying when people won't put in their own work researching and actually putting in work fishing but instead just sit online wanting gps coordinates and waiting for the " Almanac " to say it's time!
> 
> This is why most fisherman on forums stop talking when the crappie and Whitebass start hitting in spring because they know how thirsty people are for info just to have 100 people in your spots leaving trash and cleaning Every fish out your favorite spots! Just put the work in and stop asking for a playbook to success!
> 
> And for the record it's only Catfishing, shouldn't be rocket science! Jeesh. Have a nice day ✅✅✅


LOL!!!! Love that reply Girth!!! You said it like most of us feel it brother!!! Fish On Bro!


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## Hoosier77

Yeah, they are just catfish, anyone can catch them.


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## Bono Joe

BFG said:


> And there my friends....is the answer that needed to by typed.
> 
> Catching catfish is like fishing for perch on the lake. If you don't get bit in 10 minutes...move.


What kind of watch do you use? Pocket or wrist watch. Wind up or battery style? LOL


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## Flathead76

Bono Joe said:


> What kind of watch do you use? Pocket or wrist watch. Wind up or battery style? LOL


That don't matter as long as you wear boxers.


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## BFG

Bono Joe said:


> What kind of watch do you use? Pocket or wrist watch. Wind up or battery style? LOL


Wrist watch with a battery. LOL


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## Ripley

shhhhhhhh!!! don't tell them that we had to bite the head off the shrimp first.


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## Girthline

Hoosier77 said:


> Yeah, they are just catfish, anyone can catch them.


Wrong again- Only about 50% of the people can catch catfish because 50% never leave away from their computer screen to actually wet a line!


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## Rob Fitch

Was up there a couple weeks ago and nailed them also
Are they still biting good???
Was thinking about trying this weekend again


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## Shaun69007

We were going to go up the end of the month and give it a try. We never have been up there but we hear good things. I think we are going to stay at the Cold Creek campground (any reviews?) I generally fish Buckeye Lake but it has been drawn down for the last couple years for dam repair so its not really boatable.


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## catfish1605

Shaun69007 said:


> We were going to go up the end of the month and give it a try. We never have been up there but we hear good things. I think we are going to stay at the Cold Creek campground (any reviews?) I generally fish Buckeye Lake but it has been drawn down for the last couple years for dam repair so its not really boatable.



PM sent


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## Hoosier77

Fished in front of the railroad bridge last Saturday. Lots of fish. Find the hole and you can catch ad many as you want.


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## Buckhunter1206

Besides Shelby street what is a good ramp to use close to bay view area?


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## Hoosier77

Dempsey state ramp


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## furtrapper

Buckhunter1206 said:


> Besides Shelby street what is a good ramp to use close to bay view area?


hanks on the bay $5.00 to launch


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## Buckhunter1206

Appreciate it furtrapper will look into hanks. Exactly what we are looking for. Gonna give it a shot later this evening.


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## furtrapper

Buckhunter1206 said:


> Appreciate it furtrapper will look into hanks. Exactly what we are looking for. Gonna give it a shot later this evening.


not a problem here ie a picture of some fish from last Saturday


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## Buckhunter1206

Nice! We got a couple of nice ones a couple weeks back. It was our first time there by boat.


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## Shortdrift

Flathead76 said:


> Seriously how difficult is it to fish a Carolina rig in Sandusky Bay of all places and catch channel cats? Bait up with worm, shrimp, or cut shad. First you have to get away from the computer and actually fish.


Well said "76".


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## NCbassattack

Nice job on the cats. Carolina rig works for catfish, but we use shad on those rare times I'm not bass fishing.


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## Shaun69007

2 more days and we are heading up. I have all the bait ready, leaders tied, and food figured out. I cant wait. Supposed to rain but whatever as long as the thunder don't hit I will be fishing.


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## redthirty

Did well last Friday night. Lot's of bugs so be ready to fish with very little light.


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## Girthline

Took the kids out yesterday July 26th and they had a blast! The boy on the right holding the fish grip had never fished a day in his life and I'm certain he had one of the best first time experiences possible! He told his mother how much fun he had and now she says he can go with us every time if I don't mind! My son in the middle won the big fish challenge! And my nephew with the big orange and gray vest did well also! ✅✅✅


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## Skippy

The picture said's it all. 3 young men and a boat full of fish. Times like that will never be forgotten.


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## Misdirection

Get three 8 1/2 x 11 copies of that photo made and frame them. Give each kid in that photo one for Xmas and let them relive that day again telling stories.


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## polebender

Great job Girthline! Especially for getting other kids involved in fishing! I'm sure he'll be hooked forever! Congrats for taking the time and on a great day with the kids!


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## Girthline

Thanks a lot


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## chris1162

What an awesome picture of those kids! Great job man!


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## Shaun69007

Nice fish. I am hoping we get into them this weekend like that... Those are the size we are after for some eatin fish


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## BFG

Rain is a good thing...run off makes them cats go on the prowl....


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## fishywilton

Nice video.


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## Shaun69007

we fished Friday and struggled a bit but managed about 50 in 5 hours or so, biggest going in the 6 pound range. Saturday I felt more optimistic and I was right. Landed 30+ from one spot all going above 2 and 8-2 being the biggest. We kept 17 fish in the 3-5 pound range for a fish fry but all in all we caught around 100 fish in 5 hours on Saturday. We luckily got off the water and tents packed up before all the torrential rain came down.


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## Girthline

Very nice buddy!


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## baitguy

Girthline said:


> I keep getting emails and messages from members asking a million questions about everything from the following
> 
> 1) What lb tests? 1# test
> 2) What color hook? green hooks size 12 short shank
> 3) What type of reel? handline
> 4) Did I wear boxers or Tighty whites? Tighty whiteys for sure ... don't leave home w/o em'
> 5) Did I use Stinkbait used bread
> 6) What depth? 2' under a red and white bobber
> 7) What time of day? 4AM
> 8) What was the barometric Pressure 30
> 9) What gas: oil ratio did I use to get to the cats 150-1
> 10) What was the moon like? shining
> 11) Was rain in the forecast? yes
> 
> 
> It's very annoying when people won't put in their own work researching and actually putting in work fishing but instead just sit online wanting gps coordinates and waiting for the " Almanac " to say it's time!
> 
> This is why most fisherman on forums stop talking when the crappie and Whitebass start hitting in spring because they know how thirsty people are for info just to have 100 people in your spots leaving trash and cleaning Every fish out your favorite spots! Just put the work in and stop asking for a playbook to success!
> 
> And for the record it's only Catfishing, shouldn't be rocket science! Jeesh. Have a nice day ✅✅✅



couldn't have said it better myself girth, but thought about some answers that would keep them off balance ... like you said, if you do any more work for them you might as well do the fishing too ... looks like you had a real nice day out there ... and I never leave the dock without my tighty whiteys


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## Girthline

Lol


baitguy said:


> couldn't have said it better myself girth, but thought about some answers that would keep them off balance ... like you said, if you do any more work for them you might as well do the fishing too ... looks like you had a real nice day out there ... and I never leave the dock without my tighty whiteys


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## Shaun69007

Blue boxer briefs for me that day


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## 9Left

Girthline, if I were you, I'd put up a few bucks and start a guide service! lol! Nice post and pics man, and great job on getting the kids out fishing!


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## tribefan0225

Fished from shore this morning and surprisingly got more white bass than catfish. Was fishing with shrimp. First time I've had trouble with white bass hitting shrimp. Did manage this one decent catfish, but all other bites/catches were small white bass. Anyone else have white bass hit their shrimp before?


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## Girthline

tribefan0225 said:


> Fished from shore this morning and surprisingly got more white bass than catfish. Was fishing with shrimp. First time I've had trouble with white bass hitting shrimp. Did manage this one decent catfish, but all other bites/catches were small white bass. Anyone else have white bass hit their shrimp before?
> View attachment 216311


I get white perch but usually just get them stealing my bait! Any pics of the bass?


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## tribefan0225

Caught 2 small ones like this and one bigger one. The rest were all just nibbles but no hookups. I originally thought they were white bass but now that you mention it maybe they were white perch.


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## laynhardwood

Looks like white perch to me


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## Shaun69007

We grabbed a couple white bass under the main bridge on shrimp last week


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## BASSunlimited

Is there a lot of snakes on those rocks? Was planning to bring the wife and kids, and don't want them hiding in the car waiting for me all day.


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## Girthline

Shaun69007 said:


> We grabbed a couple white bass under the main bridge on shrimp last week



Any size on the white bass. The lifting bridge or route 2 bridge?


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## tribefan0225

BASSunlimited said:


> Is there a lot of snakes on those rocks? Was planning to bring the wife and kids, and don't want them hiding in the car waiting for me all day.


There's several water snakes but they typically stay in the water. I've only had once or twice that they actually come up on the rocks. And you can fish from the higher main roadbed where there aren't any snakes.


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## Shaun69007

tribefan0225 said:


> There's several water snakes but they typically stay in the water. I've only had once or twice that they actually come up on the rocks. And you can fish from the higher main roadbed where there aren't any snakes.


The white bass were pretty small and it was the Route 2 Bridge. I wouldn't like fishing the RR tracks those trains move through there fast and frequent. if you are taking the kids and wife I would fish there on the old road bed between the tracks and the route 2 bridge.


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## BASSunlimited

Thanks for the info. If I make it out this weekend I'll report back. Haven't been there ever since I was a kid. Tight lines


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## BFG

The little pecking you were getting could have been from gobies as well. White bass don't mess around...they hit it and GO. White perch are nibblers though....just like gobies.


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## caseyroo

When does the catfishing in the bay slow down? I've heard of unreal numbers, when do the go on the decline?
Thx


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## Girthline

50 degree water


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## Shaun69007

Thinking about getting a Sunday trip going if I can get the fellas lined up. Hope the kitty's will be biting..


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## redthirty

Big girls liked the wind today. Not huge numbers but the size of the fish made up for it. Caught and released about 25 nice fish.


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## Captain Marcus

Yes


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## billbob

BFG said:


> And there my friends....is the answer that needed to by typed.
> 
> Catching catfish is like fishing for perch on the lake. If you don't get bit in 10 minutes...move.


just wondering what the bait of choice was.


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## Rob Fitch

billbob said:


> just wondering what the bait of choice was.


I use raw shrimp


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## caseyroo

Went out on Friday for 4 hours. We caught about 80 fish between three of us. The action was non-stop, and the fish ranged in size from a couple of pounds up to about 14lbs. All of the fish were caught on shrimp.


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## Captain Marcus

That's Captain Scotts Catfish Charter pontoon boat? Good job.


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## caseyroo

It is. Had a great time with him. He was very accomadting to the young one, and the fishing was unreal. Don't understand why more people don't take advantage of this fishery.


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## Rob Fitch

Flathead76 said:


> Did you answer question # 4 because it's an important one. I only can slay the cats when I'm wearing boxers. Tightly Whites just don't allow the boys to breathe. Lol. Seriously how difficult is it to fish a Carolina rig in Sandusky Bay of all places and catch channel cats? Bait up with worm, shrimp, or cut shad. First you have to get away from the computer and actually fish. If you don't catch a fish in 15 minutes you need to fish somewhere else. The bay is loaded with catfish. You just have to get off your ass and fish them.


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## Rob Fitch

Got to go comando lol


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## Z R Beljin

Hoosier77 said:


> Is there a public ramp on the west side of state road 2? We launched out of Dempsys Sunday morning and couldnt get past the RR tracks. The wind was to strong to fish on the east side and the bridges are to low to get the boat under.


Call to have the bridge open and they will do it for you marine radio or they do have a phone its got a sign right there on the bridge


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## Z R Beljin

yes


BASSunlimited said:


> Is there a lot of snakes on those rocks? Was planning to bring the wife and kids, and don't want them hiding in the car waiting for me all day.


 yes but they are ok


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## Captain Marcus

Z R Beljin said:


> yes
> 
> yes but they are ok


They taste like steak


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## BASSunlimited

It's been over 20 yrs, but I finally got a chance to fish the old bay bridge with my dad this past Saturday. I was hoping to get my dad and myself into some catfish because of the hype there. Water clarity was normal there. A lot of snakes everywhere, but they don't bother no one. We fished from 5am until 1pm and only caught a small 14" catfish between the both of us. It came off on night crawlers. We was using Carolina rig and drop shot rigs style. Our bait we used was raw shrimp, cut blue gills, shads, night crawlers, corn and bunch of different brands of catfish dough baits. I'm not sure what we did wrong. Oh well, maybe next time. I'm not sure if it's worth going back anytime soon thi since it's almost a 2 hour drive


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## Ddog0587

BASSunlimited said:


> It's been over 20 yrs, but I finally got a chance to fish the old bay bridge with my dad this past Saturday. I was hoping to get my dad and myself into some catfish because of the hype there. Water clarity was normal there. A lot of snakes everywhere, but they don't bother no one. We fished from 5am until 1pm and only caught a small 14" catfish between the both of us. It came off on night crawlers. We was using Carolina rig and drop shot rigs style. Our bait we used was raw shrimp, cut blue gills, shads, night crawlers, corn and bunch of different brands of catfish dough baits. I'm not sure what we did wrong. Oh well, maybe next time. I'm not sure if it's worth going back anytime soon thi since it's almost a 2 hour drive












We went up Friday night and the fishing was really good up until the storm hit. Pulled out 3 over 10 including a 15 an 17lber. 2 hour drive for me too but it was def worth it. All went back to fight again.


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## beermemarge

Ddog0587 said:


> We went up Friday night and the fishing was really good up until the storm hit. Pulled out 3 over 10 including a 15 an 17lber. 2 hour drive for me too but it was def worth it. All went back to fight again.


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## beermemarge

That is a GREAT picture, nice job!


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## B Ron 11

BASSunlimited said:


> It's been over 20 yrs, but I finally got a chance to fish the old bay bridge with my dad this past Saturday. I was hoping to get my dad and myself into some catfish because of the hype there. Water clarity was normal there. A lot of snakes everywhere, but they don't bother no one. We fished from 5am until 1pm and only caught a small 14" catfish between the both of us. It came off on night crawlers. We was using Carolina rig and drop shot rigs style. Our bait we used was raw shrimp, cut blue gills, shads, night crawlers, corn and bunch of different brands of catfish dough baits. I'm not sure what we did wrong. Oh well, maybe next time. I'm not sure if it's worth going back anytime soon thi since it's almost a 2 hour drive


You may have been fishing the wrong spot. I try to get close to the opening where there is current.


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