Susquehanna River

[bull_head]

talk of your fish catching adventures here

[great pappy cat]

5 years ago a flathead was an unusual occurance in the susquehanna.Now the seem to be well established and I am catching them on a regular basis.I fishd at the mouth of chickies creek Fri. night.Cats were very active from 11:30 to about 4:30 AM.Landed 15 total 12 flatheads up to 12.3# and 3 small channels.I am a flathead maniac.They give me all new hope for catching a monster cat from my river.They say that the 43#9oz state record will fall soon and that it will probably come from the Monongaheila R. or the Alegheney R.I beg to differ the Susquehanna Has the water volume and the forage base to grow a state record.Im busting my ass to be on the receiving end of this honer.:cool2:

[catchinghogs]

Welcome to the Boc Pappy.The state record should fall soon as far as the water it will be caught all three rivers are possible.I think the record is going to change a couple times over the next few years Im gettin close with my biggest at 40 and another at 39. Good luck to ya.

[great pappy cat]

Hey thanks for the welcome man.You guys are my kind of people.I didnt mean to knock the other rivers.I know thats where the flathead is naitive and those rivers have had alot more time to grow a freak.40# is very impressive.Anything over 20# is a nice fish out east here.Ive set into a few that broke my 30# Silverthread Excalibur like it was 4# test.So I know there are some mosters.

[chugger]

Hey im from nanticoke, and still go back once in awhile , where should i go around there to fish the river

[TIM HAGAN]

any od you PA guys fish the Sus around the conawingo Dam up into river was told some nice flaty was there. We have a tournament there in sept and looking for any info you may have.

[Blacky]

Don't forget the Schuylkill river guys. The stae record will go down by next years pre-spawn.

Tim,
Conowingo Dam has flatheads!!!! But every one I've seen get caught down there gets destroyed.

[buddah]

There is talk of these flathead catfish up this wasy and are told not to put them back if we catch em'. I have yet to see, or heard of any "fish stories". So I have to assume they would mess up the eco system. What do you know about what they eat and what would you suspect they would harm? I'd kinda like a new variety of "big-boy" Cats to catch but dont wanna mess with Mother Nature. Can some one fill me in?

[TIM HAGAN]

Well all I know i that we are having the tournament there and all fish will be return alive back to the waters.. Also at this time Maryland DOES NOT list a flathead catfish for its state record so who ever would cat one. Its would be the state record and we can have DNR do there thing for that. And that would be the only fish that would not be returned at the site, But I would still do everything we can to even got him back alive.

[great pappy cat]

Down south where flatheads were introduced to non naitive waters.they were declared newsence fish because they all but wiped out populations of bullheads and red breasted bluegill.They had to be electroshocked and fished to extermination so that panfish populations would rebound.A flat head is capable of taking prey 2/3 its own body length.So a big flathead eats almost any thing it wants,bass,walleye,trout.No longer is the mighty muskellunge at the top of the food chain,now the flathead has come to town

[Blacky]

if i can figure out how to post a pic (everytime I do it, it says I have exceeded the limit), I would post pics of huge dead flatheads that are killed. People are scared teh wil decimate the bass, panfish, and shad population.

[catchinghogs]

See if i can get pic up how big was this fish?

[TIM HAGAN]

I would say around 30 lbs where was the pic from?

[Blacky]

After the guys gutted it (to make sure it was dead), I weighed it. It was 28 lbs gutted. The stomach contained a 12 inch sucker and a 6 to 8 inch striper.
she was full of eggs. Her egg sack was like 1 ft long!!!! This kind of stuff happends all the time. People catch them and kill them.

thanks for posting the pic for me.

[Davidsed505]

Hey all,
Does anyone know if the flatheads have worked their way up towards the Williamsport area? Goin up for the Little League world series, and got a campsite reserved on the Susquehanna. I read somewhere they have been catching them around Sunbury, south about 45 min from Williamsport.

[TIM HAGAN]

Hey guys sept the 9th we will hold a tournament on the susquehanna river at glen cove marina right above the conowingo dam i have a guy from Pa who needs a partner with a boat to fish this tournament . he will pay 1/2 of the cost if anybody has a boat and would like to join us let me know and i can get you two together hell you may even win or a best have a new fishing partner up your way.

[Pigcat71]

Wilkes barre-scranton area...Fishing has been good, been catching alot of 8-10lb fish off of livers and bluegills.....
Planning a big friday day/night trip...lots of bait and 5 guys seeing what we can hook into.....anyone caught a chanell in the Susky over 20lbs? Thats what we are aiming for..I know they are in there.....

[delawareriver]

flattheads could do some real damage to the rivers they get in. i know in the delaware river they are worried about major impacts on american shad, hickory shad, wild trout, walleye, and impacts on all species including channel cats, bullheads, smallmouth, largemouth, all panfish, muski, pike, suckers and stripers. if i catch a flatthead i will kill it, and eat it. no sense in wasting it but flattheads have there own place. i rather take a road trip and catch a flatthead then have them have a large impact on any species right down the road from me. i suggest everyone look some information up from places where flattheads have been introduced and make your own thoughts on the topic.

[bigfatcat]

im from virgina beach virginia and i came to pa for a reunuon i was gonna fish the saquanna river every night but i forgot my rods man do i feel stupid i am stayed about a block from the river:sad2:

[Catfish Killer]

I agree flatheads dont belong in the Susquehanna River but they are my passion and I could not bring my self to kill one. I used to have to travel 4 hours to catch these fish but know there in my back yard and I am loving it. Me and my buddy have caught several fish over 20 Lbs in the York Haven area including a 33 pounder my buddy caught during the flood. I am new here and after i figure out how to I will post a pic of it if I can. Has anyone here fished Holtwood or Long level dam I here there are some real big boys down there. I would assume there is considering that's where they showed up first. I truly believe the state record is coming out of the Susquehanna. These fish are at most 10-12 years old and we have caught a fish at 33 Lbs and 28 Lbs so I know there are fish out there 5-10 Lbs heavier. I would not think we caught the biggest fish out there. I have a feeling the big fish will be piling up in the Warm Waters this winter and remember there thay can forage and grow year around there. The record will go down in the next year to 18 months somewhere between York Haven and the Chesapeake.

[ibohunter]

Hi CATFISH KILLER, welcome to the BOC. were you fishing from shore or in a boat. great fish and pictures

[Catfish Killer]

I do both but I have to say fishing from land has been the most productive for me and I dont know y this is. I catch most of my fish on 2-4' flats useing big Sun Fish and Suckers.

[justme]

I live in allentown pa I dont know much about the Susquehanna river can you tell me how to get to a good spot or an address of a near by business so I can map it out .... Thanks for your Help .... Bill

[gcarlin]

have an uncle that lives in Exeter, PA. visited him and fished that river for smallies. What a blast I had those 3 days.

[buddah]

They just agreed on funding to clean up the susquehanna river and some of it's tributaries, up here in my neck of the woods, from all the old mines and the acid drainage. Also are going to put in fish ladders to re introduce the annual shad runs! I hope they don't drag their feet on this one cause more shad means more and bigger fish! Ol' Pine Creek used to have shad runs in the early part of the 19th century but with the rail road and all the dams they are no more and found few and far between. I am really jazzed about this too! Apparently they are already stocking shad into the river system but I've yet to see any. The ol' Susky is alot healthier now than it has ever been. I see a pair of Bald Eagles and Egrets, Blue Herons all over the place and never seen them growing up around here so things must be getting better. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

[great pappy cat]

Hey catfish killer you & i share the same passion & fish the same water.We should hook up ive been looking for a partner that knows what hes doing.3 weeks ago I fished lake clark at longlevel for 1st time.cats werent biting a few small channels is all.I thought the same as u thats where they originated so that must be where great grandpa flathead lives.even with sonar all that water is a bit over whelming.Also fished safe harbor tailrace at mouth of conastoga r.baby channels kept us busy all night but not 1 flathead.The only dam i havent fished on the river is holtwood.nice pic of a flathead from gut road thats where my largest came from.I dont hunt so my winters are spent below brunner island discharge.Im beginning to get frustrated.Ive been fishing big cat water @ big cat times w/big cat bait.i've come close but still havent broke 20#.i figure i have about a month or so of the regular season left.im getting frantic,time to turn it up a notch

[burrbear]

I recall reading the walleye wasn't a native to the susquehanna either...I believe the flatheads are here to stay. About a month ago, my father caught a small one about a foot long in Bald Eagle Creek (a tributary to the Susquehanna) near Lock Haven on cut bait...I'm hoping we catch it again in 15-20 years. :smile2: Fish On...

[burrbear]

Buddah,
sorry, I don't have enough posts to reply to your private message, but Yeah, I was stunned, too. It's only a matter of time before they're up to the spillway at Sayers dam with a little high water to get over the old hammermill dam. I've been fishing the Bald Eagle a lot this summer for walleye and have pulled in a few nice channels on Rapalas and jigs. The night we were out for cats we went just above the 220 bridge near FQP Tissues. We caught 7 channels from 18-29" and the first flathead I've seen in the area. In recent years I've fished a lot down around McElhattan and Lock Haven for cats. I've been hearing a lot of cats have come out of the dam right in Lock Haven this summer. I'm willing to bet there might be a few flatheads in there, too. Good Luck...

[setup1]

great pappy cat when you were at safe harbor you should have been fishing the buoy line in front of the dam. We have been pulling nice flat heads directly down from the bridge. I fish from the bridge straight down and usually catch several flat heads each time out. Some really big ones have been hooked but could not be brought in from shore. The mouth of the creek is good for walley and small channels but I havent heard of any flatheads being taken there.

[Catfish Killer]

I have to say It has been very slow for me all over the river for Flats big or small. I was expecting a good bite In September seeing down south October is a hot month for big flatheads. I have always read the Fall time cooling waters trigger flatheads to feed heavy, but that dose not seam to be the case around here or maybe the water has not cooled enough yet. I know there spring to mid summer patterns very well but late summer and fall are still a mystery to me. Of my 8 years of cat fishing This spring and summer where the best mainly due to that what seamed to be a sudden arrival of bigger flatheads. Until this year I never saw or caught a flathead over 5 pounds. or caught more than three in a night. This year produced 8 Flats over 20 pounds one of them a whopping 33 pounder caught on a day during the big floods in July. That same day we caught 20 small flatheads a 25 pounder and the big 33 all behind a currant break in a side channel. 6 of the 8 fish over 19 pounds came in July.

[Catfish Killer]

Sorry Great Pappy Cat I cannot send Private messages yet but that sounds cool, Lets fish ! I will be soon starting on focusing on the warm waters my self. Fell free to E-mail me at mgc466@yahoo.com (atmgc466@yahoo.com).

[Blacky]

I agree flatheads dont belong in the Susquehanna River but they are my passion and I could not bring my self to kill one. I used to have to travel 4 hours to catch these fish but know there in my back yard and I am loving it. Me and my buddy have caught several fish over 20 Lbs in the York Haven area including a 33 pounder my buddy caught during the flood. I am new here and after i figure out how to I will post a pic of it if I can. Has anyone here fished Holtwood or Long level dam I here there are some real big boys down there. I would assume there is considering that's where they showed up first. I truly believe the state record is coming out of the Susquehanna. These fish are at most 10-12 years old and we have caught a fish at 33 Lbs and 28 Lbs so I know there are fish out there 5-10 Lbs heavier. I would not think we caught the biggest fish out there. I have a feeling the big fish will be piling up in the Warm Waters this winter and remember there thay can forage and grow year around there. The record will go down in the next year to 18 months somewhere between York Haven and the Chesapeake.

Bill, You da Man!!!

I, like you, used to have to go back to Indiana all the way from Philly to catch flatheads. Now, all I have to do is literally drive 10 MINUTES!!!!!!! Like you, these fish are my passion and I can tell you I've released well over 100 flatheads back into the river where they belong. I really don't care if they eat up every fish in that river, just as long they get 100lbs. Bill, keep it up. Soon others in our waters will learn to respect the flathead catfish and consider them gamefish. I knew there were others out there like me!!!!

[Blacky]

great pappy cat,

During the winter below the warm water discharge at Brunner's Island, I know of carpfisherman catching flatheads on doughballs and smallie fisherman catching flatheads on rattle traps. Are they down there like that in the wintertime??? My friends fish there every weekend during the winter. I want to try winter flatheading there with the shad that is everywhere. Any tips??? I'll be willing to hook up during the winter if theres are chance I can catch a wintertime flathead!!!

[great pappy cat]

great pappy cat,

During the winter below the warm water discharge at Brunner's Island, I know of carpfisherman catching flatheads on doughballs and smallie fisherman catching flatheads on rattle traps. Are they down there like that in the wintertime??? My friends fish there every weekend during the winter. I want to try winter flatheading there with the shad that is everywhere. Any tips??? I'll be willing to hook up during the winter if theres are chance I can catch a wintertime flathead!!!
hey blacky,I think catching a flathead on a dough ball is like catching a largemouth on bubble gum,Ive seen it happen but, it doesent happen much.i saw the picture on the fish commisions web site of the 30#er caught on a rattle trap.The gizzard shad are are the primary forage base for big flatheads.I see schools of 100's of 7-10"ers every where.2 problems 1 catching them without a cast net (you can pay the commision for a permit)2 keeping them alive.(ive often snaged them with plugs and they croak as soon as theyre in captivity)As far as winter flatheading,its to darn cold to fish at night.I look for days that are 40 deg. or over with no wind. I buy 4 doz. large shiner(wich is against my religion if i can catch them i will)I like to wade with bass takle and drift minnys.The beauty of the warm water is the variety of speicie.You never know what your going to catch next,musky,tiger musky,smallmouth,largemouth,rock bass,walleye,sauger,saugeye,striper,wiper,channelc at,flathead,yellow perch and,bowfin.The smallmouthbass will always be my favorite fish.The bronzeback fishery down ther is world class.Bad news though,there wont be a warm water soon:sad2: .theyer being forced to turn it off due to environmentalists concernend with fish kills b/c of too mutch heat

[Catfish Killer]

What's up Blacky how is it going? That's a nice cat in you avatar is that a local cat?
I started fishing the Warm Waters this weekend. I started off using live bait with not much success except two Channels and something that hit like a Mac truck and snapped my 80 LB Spider Wire super braid like it was a piece of thread. There is no fish in this river that can do that. I probably had a fray in the line, but I still have never felt a hit like this. I saw my rod twitch a few times so I picked up my rod out the holder and the fish seamed to leave. I was just about to put my rod back in the holder and then it hit. I just about got my rod yanked out my hand. Because I use 80 LB test I keep my drag set very tight, this fish was running out drag so quick I thought my real was gonna catch on fire. I gave my rod a good jerk to turn the fish away from my other line I had out then snap fish gone. Although the fight only lasted probably 5 seconds I have never felt anything like this fish. I have never been so pissed in my life, I know it was an absolute monster. If anyone catches a monster fish with a 9 OT hook and a 90 LB leader with a 3 oz bank sinker kiss it for me then hit the sun of bitch over the head with something before you mount it. That sad last night I started using a piece of cut sucker with a live bait and drifting it about a foot of the bottom, that was very productive for me. I have not landed anything big there yet but I have only fished it two days now. I missed two nice ones and one I know was a monster. Its just a matter of time. If you or Pappy Cat ever want to go fishing with me E-mail me at mgc466@yahoo.com (mgc466@yahoo.com).

[Blacky]

Yeah, that fish was local. It was the biggest of the year 32lbs. I fished all July and August, almost every night (I'm a school teacher and have the summer off). I caught 6 fish over 25lbs and numerous fish in the teens. The river is full of them and the fishing is only gonna get better. If any of you guys are ever in Philly next summer, I'll show you around.


Maybe we can get together this winter and attempt a wintertime flatty????

[saros2500]

Just caught a great 20# flat near Brunner. Gettin back out for more tomorrow! I'm hooked on these brutes.

[Blacky]

That's a nice fish.

Welcome to the BOC!

[waynesburgjay]

Welcome to the club