By Brad Durick

A big rain upstream in the Red Lake River this past week has some water pushing through the Grand Forks area right now, but it won’t cause any interruptions in the currently good catfishing. The Red River should only come up a couple feet as a result and the rise will be short lived.

The catfish have moved into the middle of the river and have their post spawn feed bags on. They seem to be in the smaller holes rather than the big expansive ones. Faster water also seems to make a difference on finding aggressive fish.  I was downsizing from five-ounce sinkers but will go back to them for a few days with the influx of water. Sit times have remained fairly short at about 10 minutes for the first fish but I have still been staying for 20-25 minutes to make sure I am getting the most out of a spot.

Dead sucker is still my preferred bait but frogs are working well. I still have not used goldeye.

I have very limited dates available in August and many in September. All this late flow usually means the September fishing will be stellar. Call or text 701-739-5808 for information or to book.

The Catfish Capital Challenge in Drayton – with a $10,000 guaranteed first place payout – is Aug. 9 and 10. This is the last tournament of the season and few spots remain.

Brad Durick is a Dakota Edge Outdoors contributing writer and a licensed ND fishing guide specializing in trophy catfish on the Red River in and around the Grand Forks area. Find more from him at redrivercatfish.com.

Featured Photo: Post Spawn Splurge.  Catfish are feeding steadily as the spawn has wrapped and flows remain solid on the Red River of the North. DEO Photo by Brad Durick.