Photo by Ron Sinfelt

There’s no time like summer to experience some awesome catfishing. As the air temperature skyrockets and water temperature follows suit, many species of fish such as bass and crappies become increasingly more difficult to catch. That’s not the case with catfish, though. Whiskerfish willingly bite right now and are prime targets of late-summer anglers.

Indiana has numerous good locations throughout the state to find some excellent catfishing. Central Indiana is no exception. Here’s a look at three great spots that are centrally located and very accessible.

EAGLE CREEK RESERVOIR
The catfish fishery at Eagle Creek Reservoir seems to be quite underutilized, which can mean great things for catfish anglers. The last creel survey done on the lake was in 1998 and at that time, catfish ranked fourth in number of fish being harvested. Only 5 percent of the anglers surveyed were targeting catfish, which is a very small percentage compared with the number of catfish present in this lake.

Both in that earlier survey and in another Department of Natural Resources (DNR) 2003 survey, the average size of the channel cats at the lake was 14 inches. Fish were recorded up to 28 1/2 inches long with some 62 percent being greater than 12 inches and 19 percent measuring 18 inches or more. Biologist Rhett Wisener said there is good size distribution and recruitment appears to be steady as well.

Eagle Creek Reservoir is 10 miles northwest of downtown Indianapolis and just off Interstate 465. It was impounded as a water-supply lake and covers approximately 1,350 acres. It has an average depth of 18 feet with a maximum depth of 45 feet.

Because of the thermocline, late-summer anglers probably won’t find catfish much deeper than about 15 to 20 feet. There is still a fairly well-defined creek channel throughout the lake and the catfish will often be found hanging close to the edges of this channel. Most fish will hold close to deeper water and off the steep banks, especially during the daytime.

The catfish may come shallower late in the evenings to feed throughout the night. There are some fairly extensive flats along the creek channel, which are favorite hangouts for feeding catfish. Baitfish and other forage are abundant in the shallow-water areas, so the catfish are sure to follow.

Channel catfish are dependent on structure, so look for them around any available bottom structure. Woody structure is a favorite and there is an ample amount of it in the upper end of the lake. There are also many riprap banks and other structure, which create a variety of habitats. Different areas seem to be more attractive at certain times of the summer.

Fishing can be good from either a boat or the bank. Wisener believes that locating the catfish is not really difficult on the lake. “Eagle Creek is one of those lakes where you can just go out there and randomly pick a spot and probably catch catfish.”

MORSE RESERVOIR
Morse Reservoir is also a water- supply reservoir for the Indianapolis Water Company (IWC). It covers some 1,350 acres and reaches a depth of around 45 feet in some areas. It does get fairly narrow in spots, though.