# First two flathead night at a lake!



## ztmdodge (May 10, 2013)

So this is my second season fishing for flatheads. I just finally got my boat ready in july before then I'd been fishing from shore. I had been able to get some smaller ones at the rivers with the biggest being 17lbs and up until the other night I had only ever caught one flathead at a lake (27lbs last summer Tappan) and after countless nights at tappan,piedmont,clendening, and salt fork it looks like i found a decent spot at tappan. I had a good feeling and I texted my brother and told him I'd be disappointed if I didn't get one. I got all my lines out around 7pm and then it didn't look good at 5am with still no runs then at 5:30 the first reel started screaming and I was able to land a 20lb flathead. Before I could get that rod out again I landed and 8lb channel. And then not 5 minutes after I cast the two lines back out I hooked and landed a 23lb flattie. Definitely not a Robby-esque night but in comparison to getting skunked 3 times a week it felt like it haha. My two goals for this season were to get a multiple flathead night (which I've done twice so far this season) and get a 40lb plus flathead. So I am still searching for the big ones....


----------



## M.Magis (Apr 5, 2004)

Congrats! Multi-fish nights don't come by often enough.


----------



## ducky152000 (Jul 20, 2005)

Nice job! I see you are dedicated to this sport over the years. Nice to see that. The first couple years are the hardest then you start putting the puzzle pieces together.


----------



## ztmdodge (May 10, 2013)

Yeah I'm definitely dedicated for the last two years I've really fished for nothing other than flatheads. It can be frustrating especially since I live an hour to two hours away from any good flathead lakes so everytime I go out it's easily over 100bucks for gas, bait, food etc. so getting skunked two or 3 times a week cows a lot of money and a lot of drives home especially the first year you really feel like it's a waste. But every time you hear that clicker screaming and set the hook and feel a fish on it's totally worth all the time and money it's the best feeling in the world. Nobody just jumps into something and is the best at it everyhing takes a lot of hard work and dedication. And I'm going to keep putting in that hardworking and always keep shooting for new goals. Last year I caught two fish all year and so far this season I've got 7. Not a lot at all but it's an improvement


----------



## katfish (Apr 7, 2004)

Trophies and success rate should be viewed with the difficulty of the catch.

Flathead are rarely easy or cooperative. Veteran flathead fishermen expect low catch rates and long stretches without big flathead.

For years I drove 3 hours to reach lakes with trophy fish. It was expensive and time consuming and very frustrating when all the effort produced no fish.

Many flathead wannabes drop out of this game once they realize how much effort it takes to catch trophy fish. Even when you do everything right, flathead will not be feeding. Tracking (telemetry) studies show that flathead are immobile 95% of the time. No other fish are capable of not feeding for prolonged periods and therefore they are caught more often.

Most waters do not have 40+ lb flathead or have very few. This makes trophy fish even more of a trophy. Flathead fishing is a rubics cube of variables like water temp, forage availability, flathead density, time of year, and many others. Rarely do all these factors line up to present the 5% of time the flathead actively feed.

Only experience and experimentation allow you to home in on tactics and baits that will work on each body of water. You have to recall what worked with the set of conditions you encounter on each trip and hope to replicate that scenario.

I believe that only catmen with a real desire to catch big flathead can be successful (on a consistent basis). You must learn to deal with frustration and be willing to work hard and remain alert. Remain prepared to hook and land a trophy fish and constantly remove any mistakes you have made in the past.

Ducky is an example of someone who has mastered other forms of fishing and is resolved to catch trophy flathead. Nothing beats the satisfaction of catching trophy flathead.


----------



## ztmdodge (May 10, 2013)

Well I definitely appreciate all the advice and encouragement I have received from the veteran flathead guys on here. There are not many people that have the patience and determination to hunt flatheads. That's why I am always fishing by myself because no one else wants to go drive all that way to sit there for 12+ hours and not catch anything haha. But that doesn't stop me from going. Plus I have room on the floor of my boat for a sleeping bag and pillow so that makes it a little better.But I'm definitely hooked on flathead fishing for life now. Robby you're right all the time,money, hard work, and dedication it takes to catch flathead makes it so much more satisfying when you actually catch one. You can go out and catch a million bass or crappie or chanels but you don't get any sense of accomplishment from that. You forget about how long you have been sitting there in silence as soon as you hear that clicker screaming and get to slam a hookset on a flathead. I do believe it was Robby that said it best in another post when he said "If flathead fishing was easy there wouldn't be bass fisherman" haha


----------



## MIGHTY (Sep 21, 2013)

Nice catch bud! I'm by no means an expert and I gave up bass fishing about 5 years ago to only target flatheads. I targeted a small creek where I did all my bass fishing and at the time I had no clue if there were even any in there. I spent the first 2 or 3 summers going out atleast twice a week by myself trying different spots and baits and came home empty handed. The first flathead I ever caught out of that creek was somewhere around 20 pounds but I felt like I had just won the lottery. I've got 2 or 3 buddies that saw the pictures I took and immediately wanted to go with me. Of course, I always had to drive (diesel fuel is expensive) and go out alone after 12 hour work days and catch bait for us to use, let them use my equipment that I paid for, find new spots and get permission from land owners, then listen to them complain about how far of a walk it was to a spot and going out 5 times in a row with nothing to show for it. I just like to be out fishing and trying new things whether I catch any or not. I'm hooked now. All my bass poles and tackel haven't left the basement in years. I don't like going out alone at night, but I usually choose to do so rather than have to listen to someone complain the whole time I'm out. In the past 2 or 3 years I've only caught maybe a dozen fish that I consider big (nothing like what some of these guys catch, biggest one ever was around 30 give or take a few pounds) but I'm hooked for good. Keep it up man and good luck in the future!


----------



## catfishcc (Oct 28, 2013)

Way to go. Nice fish!


Sent from my iPhone using Ohub Campfire


----------



## winguy7 (Mar 12, 2014)

Nice fish! I feel like from every thing you just said you must be my doppelganger. I just got my first this summer after two seasons, and yeah its hard. By the time I got my first(a N.C. Lake Tillery Fish) it'd worn out a set of tires and almost my patience. It was worth everything though. Then not two weeks After the first I got a double in the first hour of fishing. Needless to say the addiction grew. All my buddies wonder why I wont tell them where I got em too! lol. Only downside to this sport is it may make me an even more stubborn bast*rd


----------



## fish420 (Feb 25, 2012)

There's some big flatheads at mosquito if that's not far from you. I heard at a tournament last month the winning big fish was 50#. I fished it last year and the winner was 40# 40" they're definitely in there its just catching them like everyone said is tricky. 

Sent using Ohub Campfire mobile app


----------



## ztmdodge (May 10, 2013)

Yeah unfortunately I live in North Canton so I'm pretty much directly in the middle between mosquito and all the mwcd lakes. So mosquito is about an hour and 45 minutes away north and all mwcd lakes are all at least an hour south.


----------

