For Roughfisher or anyone else

[DTro]

roughfisher, I admire your love for the native and overlooked species. Who cares how big they are. I think it's great to catch something out of the ordinary.
So what is your best tactic(s) in targeting these fish?

[Roughfisher]

DTRO -

I think that for the chance at getting the most species, the bottom-rigged nightcrawler is the way to go. This won't work for all species, but for the biggest number of species, that is the ticket. I use snagless sinkers (slinky rigs) with a swivel and a small circle hook, with a one to two inch nightcrawler piece.

But each fish has its own habitat; northern hog suckers live in very heavy current while quillbacks like still waters. Blue suckers like the Thalweg (the deepest part of the river channel). But the drift-rigged crawler will get most of them.

Corey

[DTro]

Hey thanks, so what exactly is a slinky rig? I've heard people talk about it before.

[Roughfisher]

A slinky rig is a piece of hollow rope (like parachute cord or hockey laces). You cut a small piece of this stuff, hold one end in a pliers and melt it shut with a lighter. Then stuff the hollow rope with as much weight as you want (small split shot, shotgun pellets, gravel, sand, whatever). Then melt the other end shut to seal it. Clip a snap-swivel onto one end of the weight. Slip the other end onto your line, with a bead and swivel tied in-line above the hook. Bingo, snagless slinky rig! They work great.

[hogsucker]

Don't forget that while fishing "rough" in a good river with a diverse fish population your average fish will be quite large. A lot of anglers targeting panfish or walleyes are lucky to catch a few fish topping two pounds in an outing. Redhorse, carp and buffalo, not to mention sturgeon and catfish, all often top 10 pounds, sometimes more. And yes, you'll usually land your fair share of small walleyes once you learn the ropes of location. ~hogsucker