The Right Catfish Fishing Hook

Catfish fishing can be one of the most fun and exciting fishing you can do. Choosing the right catfish fishing hook will depend on what type and size catfish you are trying to catch. Choose a hook too small and you will never catch the really big ones. Choose a hook to large and if you don’t catch the big one you may not catch anything at all.

When catfish fishing you should always have a variety of sizes in your tackle box so that you can adapt to the catfish that you catching. I generally keep sizes 1/0 to 6/0 bait holder hooks. I almost always begin with a 1/0 bait holder hook. I have caught catfish over 20 lbs with this hook. They are great for channel catfish of all sizes and will certainly allow you to provide plenty of good tasting fish for your dinner table.

When fishing for the big catfish, flatheads and blues, I usually start with a 4/0 bait holder hook. You may miss a few little ones with this hook but by using it we are saying we don’t want the little ones anyway. Remember that generally speaking bigger bait catches bigger catfish.

When it comes to winter catfish fishing, you really can get better results using smaller hooks. Even when you are trying to catch big fish. Especially in the winter, when the water is cold and calm, the catfish tend to be finicky, and you have to try to get them to take the bait without spooking them.

In the springtime, when the catfish are more aggressive, you can move up to some bigger hooks like a 6/0 bait holder hook. These are particularly good when there are flood water conditions present. During flood conditions, the fish tend to get very aggressive, and they really grab on to basically whatever is out there. You will miss some fish you could catch if you use the smaller hooks in flood conditions.