Caught on the Drop.  Water levels and temperatures are falling on the Red River, but big catfish are still on the bite.  Try using frog and sucker for baits and give them more time as the days get shorter. DEO Photo by Brad Durick.

By Brad Durick

When it comes to angling for big catfish on the Red River this time of year, one can really tell the days are getting shorter now. Cool mornings and longer nights have the water temperature making its annual descent. So far it has been a slow process, but it is becoming more evident every day that the bite is starting up later in the morning than it had been the previous day. 

Not much has changed as far as patterning, however, other than the catfish are holding on the softer current sides of holes a little more than they were just a week ago. Sit times are increasing again which is normal for mid-September. Twenty-minute base sit times are a minimum, but 30-40 minutes seems to be a nice amount of time to find the good bites.

The best catfish bait selections remain frog and sucker. Which one they want on any given day has to be figured out with each outing.

Be forewarned that some sections of the Red River are getting into the low-to-dangerous category when it comes to navigation, so be careful in boats if you are in these sections.

Brad Durick is a Dakota Edge Outdoors contributing writer and licensed ND fishing guide specializing in trophy catfish on the Red River in and around Grand Forks.