By Brad Durick

The big cold front that rolled through the Red River Valley last weekend has set things back when it comes to this spring’s catfishing. The water temperatures on the Red River dropped from 60 degrees down to 56 as a result and the sustained cooler temperatures have put big fish near neutral. Falling water levels have not helped either to pull fish in.

The numbers of channel cats remain pretty good but with lots and lots of small fish in the mix. The big fish just have not moved into high gear. If you put in the time, there are big fish to be caught, just not in the numbers we like for this time of year. Hits come fairly quickly when you land on fish, so long sits are not a huge deal. I have been sitting 20 to 45 minutes per spot, mostly due to the unrelenting wind making moving around on the river difficult.  Try some different baits to see what the fish want.

Heat is finally in the forecast for next week, so I expect the next report to not be as depressing as this one. It’s May in the north, this is how the fishing plays out sometimes. With that said and a good outlook approaching, I am currently taking bookings beginning May 28and on through the summer.

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

Featured Photo: Waiting on Warm.  Larger channel cats have been a bit sluggish, but there are a few that will take a well placed bait with the proper sit times on the Red River of the North. DEO Photo by Brad Durick.