Several years ago Greenwood’s Captain Chris Simpson had an aquarium in which he kept multiple small catfish as well as one larger, 9 inch fish. When he would put shrimp pellets into the aquarium the larger catfish would often pick one particular shrimp pellet that he liked the look of and decide that he was going to eat that one. He would sit and guard it for an hour or more, fending off the smaller catfish which would also show an interest in that pellet. Eventually the large fish would eat the pellet, but only after he finally decided it was time. From this experience Chris learned the value of patience in catfishing; when bait is readily available catfish will often not eat until they are good and ready.
Captain Chris Simpson guides for catfish on Lakes Greenwood, Murray and Monticello. On Lake Greenwood he targets channel and flathead catfish and on Lake Murray he goes after the lake’s healthy population of teenage sized blue catfish. While Greenwood is closer to his home particularly in the summer and the fall, when the big fish bite is frequently on, Captain Chris will more often be found on Lake Monticello. Monticello is his go-to lake for trophy sized blue catfish, and his personal best is a 58 pound fish. Fish grow much bigger and he has lost bigger, though, and it is not unreasonable to think that a Monticello catfish could be 100 plus pounds and approach the current world record of 124 pounds.
Lake Monticello is Located in Fairfield County near Winnsboro, is approximately 6 miles long and encompasses 6800 acres of water. It was artificially created in 1979 to cool SCE&G’s nuclear reactor which is beside the lake. There are a few minor creeks that feed it, and there was a small creek that ran through the middle of the valley which is now the lake, but a river that runs parallel to the lake is the main water source. Water is pumped from the Broad River into Lake Monticello and then back out frequently if not regularly, and the lake levels can fluctuate by several feet in only an hour or two. The deepest water Captain Chris has found in the lake is about 160 feet.
A bald eagle in flight over Monticello
And after it landed
A second reactor is being built beside Lake Monticello and it will be interesting to see what effect it has on the fishing. Because of a greater need for cooling the lake levels may rise and fall more drastically, and the lake water may end up a few degrees warmer.
The existing reactor
A closer view
Water level fluctuations can already be dramatic - this drop occurred over a couple of hours
While there are channel catfish in Lake Monticello the population of blue catfish is so dominant that the channels can only reach 2 or 3 pounds, unlike on Lake Greenwood (which has no blues) where Chris has caught them over 15 pounds. There are probably some bullhead catfish in the lake, too. In addition to catfish Monticello is known as a trophy black bass fishery with both largemouth and smallmouth bass, and the lake also has a strong crappie fishery and a healthy population of bream. Striped bass are conspicuously absent; DNR does not stock them in part because biologists say nutrient levels would not be favorable for striper since Monticello is not fed upstream by a river.
Lake Monticello blue catfish thrive because the forage base is excellent, perhaps because trees topped when the lake was impounded provide lots of places for bait to hide. In addition to the game and non-game species already listed and all of which blue catfish will eat the lake also has large populations of white perch, gizzard shad, and threadfin shad. There may also be herring deep in the lake but Chris has never actually seen them – cast netting was not allowed until this year and he generally catches his bait on Greenwood which is just seconds from his house. Another important food source on Monticello is mussels, and it is common to catch catfish with their stomachs bloated with digesting mussel shells.
While Captain Chris generally prefers to target Lake Monticello’s population of trophy blue catfish the lake has an excellent population of blue catfish of all sizes. An interesting phenomenon on Lake Monticello is that in addition to catching small and medium catfish on the bottom anglers frequently catch them throughout the water column, including only a few feet below the surface. One of the most popular fishing techniques on Monticello is free line drifting in which anglers drift their baits with little or no weight, or below a shallow float. At times there are some large catfish suspended and available to free-liners but this mainly a small- and medium-fish bite.
While it is unclear exactly why Monticello blue catfish are scattered throughout the water column more than their kin on other lakes it may be related to the absence of striped bass. Nature abhors a vacuum, and without striper to feed on suspended bait catfish may step in to fill that void. (Note: While a lake without striped bass may therefore have a greater population of small catfish there is good evidence that the presence of both blue catfish and striped bass does not negatively affect the overall fishery for either species. The Cumberland River in Tennessee is well known for having some of the best blue catfish and striped bass fishing anywhere.)
Since Captain Chris prefers to try and put his clients on trophy catfish his tactics are geared towards giving them the best chance of hooking up with big fish.
Seasonal Patterns
After winter thaws in late February or early March Captain Chris fishes Monticello mainly by anchoring in shallow areas (anchor technique is discussed below). Instead of looking for concentrations of baitfish from March through the “prespawn” period he prefers to mark good sized catfish on points, humps, and ledges and then anchor nearby. During spring the lake level frequently goes up and down and current can play a significant role in the bite.
Early May until early June usually encompasses the prespawn period for blue catfish on Lake Monticello, and like other species such as bass blue cats engage in heavy prespawn feeding. During this period Captain Chris catches a lot of fish that are full of eggs and some of them squirt in the boat when they are landed. On days when current is rolling anchoring on main lake humps can be productive. Another good area to anchor is up the “creeks” on Monticello, which are usually basically just coves.
Around the middle of June usually brings the spawn, although catfish spawning behavior is something of a mystery. Biologists say that the spawn occurs in water 75-85 degrees, and 80-81 degrees is the optimal temperature for spawning. Captain Chris believes that just because catfish do one thing in rearing ponds (in hatcheries where most studies have been done on catfish) they don’t necessarily behave the same way in the wild, and the surest way to know that the spawn is on is when noodlers are pulling catfish out of spawning cavities! Of course noodlers prefer not to target big blue catfish, which are well known for doing a “death roll,” and so spawning in the deep waters of Monticello remains in part a mystery. Popular spawning locations probably include trees, root wads, and holes on the bottom. Catfish seek out dark, protected areas for the spawn.
While on many lakes catfish spawn relatively shallow, the frequent water level fluctuations on Monticello make this impossible. With water levels commonly changing by 2-4 feet catfish have to spawn deep enough to be assured that their nests won’t end up dry. It appears that catfish will spawn at most any depth on Monticello and one day Captain Chris caught 31 and 37 pound females shooting eggs in 71 feet!
During the spawn females come in and lay their eggs and then the males protect the nests, perhaps after running off the females. The males during this period are extremely aggressive, and between fighting for territory, over females and to protect their nests they sustain extensive injuries. Captain Chris frequently catches fish that have huge bite marks on their back, and the following video link shows a 20 pound male blue cat that a very, very large fish must have gotten his jaws on. … It is also very common for males to literally lock jaws during this period, and on August 1 two males came to the surface near Chris’ boat with their jaws locked from fighting over a nest.
It is unclear to what extent catfish will feed during the spawn because you can’t watch catfish on the beds like you can bass. However, even if they are not actively feeding during this period the males guarding the nests can be so aggressive that, like bass, they will grab a bait if it passes too close to the nest. Still it is a slower than average fishing period, even though not all fish spawn at once.
The spawn continues until late July and winds down in August when it is common for Captain Chris to catch heavily scarred males who have been guarding the nests. After the spawn is over the catfish need to store back up on food and frequently go on a feeding binge. Lake Monticello does not develop a thermocline because of the pump and pump-back operation and so there is sufficient oxygen for catfish to be at a variety of depths. Late summer fishing mainly consists of anchoring over a variety of underwater structure that holds bait and feeding fish (some specific spots are discussed later).
As fall approaches the bait schools migrate towards deep water and the catfish also spread out – this is probably the best time of the year for catching big fish. While during much of the year Captain Chris targets big fish by anchoring, in the fall season of September, October and much of November his boat will start out drifting in 40-120 feet of water. One reason drifting is the primary fall tactic is that it can cover a greater range of depths; it is difficult (and back-breaking) to anchor in more than 70 feet of water. However, if drifting is not producing after 2 or 3 hours he will often anchor.
By mid to late November and continuing through February is the winter period, and Captain Chris will spend much of his time anchoring again. During the winter he is looking for deep water with plenty of bait and fish underneath them before dropping anchor. It could be near a ledge, a point, or a deep flat – the key is finding bait and feeding fish. Late January and February can be the toughest time of the year because catfish are often sated after gorging all fall and early winter.
Drift fishing
Captain Chris used to drift year-round on Lake Monticello, but he realized that he was only catching good fish with this technique a few months of the year. While he anchors from mid-November through to mid-September in the fall he does a lot of drift fishing. This method will be discussed in an upcoming article on fall drifting on Lake Monticello.
Anchor Fishing
Captain Chris learned from his aquarium that catfish can sometimes ponder a piece of bait for a long, long time before deciding to feed, and accordingly his style of fishing involves great patience. At each spot where he anchors he plans to stay between and hour and a half and two hours. On one memorable occasion he anchored on a promising spot and got no bites for the first hour and forty-five minutes. Then, in rapid succession, he hooked and landed 45, 21 and 27 pound fish, and lost another big catfish.
It is important to note, however, that in certain situations waiting a very long period is wasteful. For example, if Chris is fishing in 2 or 3 foot deep flats on Santee he is not going to wait more than 20 or 30 minutes to get bit because fish are there to feed, not bide their time until they are ready to eat.
Because Captain Chris will spend so long waiting on a single spot to produce he is very careful to pick a promising spot before dropping anchor. It is not uncommon for him to spend 20 or more minutes studying his graph before settling on a spot. In addition to looking for good concentrations of catfish and/or bait (depending on the time of year) he also prefers to see predator-sized fish that are colored yellow instead of darker on his depth finder. It is unclear why, and is perhaps related to their swim bladders, but these fish seem to be more active and feeding.
Clearly visible are the lighter "yellow" fish - also visible is the school of bait
And another example
The late summer day that I went out with Captain Chris the first spot where we anchored was on a flat proximate to a steep ledge. Catfish feel safe at a ledge because they can move up onto the shelf to feed and then quickly come back to deep water, and they are also protected on one side. Later we also anchored on a point, and after that on a point proximate to a flat. The final spot where we anchored was on a flat with a series of 2-3 foot gullies. At every spot finding heavy concentrations of bait and catfish was the key.
Once he chooses his spot and lowers the bow anchor Captain Chris also puts down a heavy stern anchor to try and keep the boat in as close to the same spot as possible. From there he fans out ten rods around the boat, with four off the back and three out to each side. He makes 50 or 60 yard casts.
The bow anchor - Chris has found this anchor holds the best
And the stern anchor
Anchored with 10 rods out
Chris inspects the port-side rods
Many catfishermen who are anchor fishing use all identical rigs, but Captain Chris likes to give the fish some different choices. On about half of the rods he uses standard Carolina-style bottom rigs with a 2 or 3 ounce barrel sinker. Below a swivel is a length of 50 pound test leader line; his rigs had stout red line the day we fished. If Captain Chris is fishing around heavy cover he prefers a shorter leader not more than 18 inches long but in open areas he will use about three feet of leader line. At the end of the line is an 8/0 Gamakatsu circle hook.
The Carolina rigs
He also puts out above half of the rods rigged with conventional “Santee” drifting rigs, complete with slinky weights and floats to keep the bait slightly off the bottom. These have the same leader line and hook. For both the Carolina and Santee rigs his main line is 25-30 pound test fished on a medium action baitcasting rig.
The Santee rigs
For a time Captain Chris got very picky about trying different colors of hooks, fluorocarbon line and the like, but he eventually decided that focus was misguided and by focusing more on the fish and less on his tackle found he was catching more fish.
One detail Captain Chris does feel strongly about is the importance of fresh bait, and he always tries to catch bait the day before or morning of his trips. White perch makes an extremely durable cut bait, and after we landed several fish the bait was still intact on the hook. Other rods were baited with cut bream, again aiming to offer the fish some variety. Cut herring is also a good bait on Monticello but it is not durable and the immense population of small catfish will usually get to it before the big fish have a chance.
Cut bait chunks in the appropriate size
General Considerations
Captain Chris has caught fish on all wind directions and speeds on Lake Monticello. However, the areas of Monticello he fishes are generally very open and so even moderate winds can often make it difficult to anchor over certain spots and hold the boat steady and the lines tight. He has also caught fish on all stages of the moon but has found that for two or three days around the new or full moon the bite is often best.
Perhaps the most important factor in the big fish bite is stable weather, and fronts, winds or rain often change the bite. After two weeks of warm, stable weather and a consistent big fish bite, during the week that I went out with Captain Chris a late August/ early September cool front and wind blew through and the big fish bite slowed down, as Chris had warned (we decided not to reschedule since it was my only chance to go for several weeks). That week it was still possible to catch a cooler full of fish up to about 20 pounds but the biggest fish weren’t interested in feeding.
Captain Chris with a little blue cat
Me with a medium sized fish
Monticello – A Premiere Blue Catfish Lake
Lake Monticello deserves to be recognized alongside such well known catfish lakes as Lakes Marion and Moultrie, Lake Wateree and increasingly Lake Wylie. For trophy sized blue catfish it is hard to beat, and for numbers it may be unsurpassed. While Chris encourages his clients to put back the largest trophy-sized fish, because Lake Monticello doesn’t allow any non-gamefishing methods it is probably good for the fishery to take out as many small and medium catfish as possible.
From watching catfish in his aquarium Captain Chris Simpson learned the value of patience for catching trophy catfish, and years of pulling big blues out of Lake Monticello have confirmed this lesson. Monster blue cats are swimming around in Monticello but they will only eat when they are ready, and catching trophy catfish is akin to hunting. It combines the best of fishing and hunting, though, because unlike sitting alone in a deer stand fishing in Captain Chris’ boat you learn the subtleties of catching monster catfish and are thoroughly entertained. And while a tough day of bass fishing can feel like work relaxing in Chris’ boat and listening to Lake Monticello fishing stories could not be confused with work – at least for the client!
The old joke goes that a man dies and finds himself fishing in a beautiful trout stream, and his guide points out a beautiful 14 inch rainbow rising. He casts and catches it, and then repeats the process and catches several more fish the exact same size from the same spot. Finally growing tired of catching identical fish he remarks to the guide, “This doesn’t seem like heaven,” to which the guide replied, “Who said anything about this being heaven?” The joke strikes a chord because the chance to catch an exceptional fish, and the uncertainty of not knowing when it will come, are what get us up early to go fishing. For anglers who want the thrill of the hunt and the chance to catch monster blue catfish Lake Monticello is the place for you and the next three months are the peak season. Captain Chris Simpson is the guide to give you the chance.
A big Monticello blue catfish
Captain Chris Simpson guides for catfish on Lakes Greenwood, Murray and Monticello. Visit his websites, http://www.fightindablues.com and http://www.catfishtips.net, for more information. To contact him private message “chrisblue” on here, email to chriss12@embarqmail.com, or call 864-992-2352.
