Photo by Tom Evans

I've decided recently that there's no reason for me to feel I have to chase bass at Lake Fork in Texas, or hunt for mallards at Stuttgart, Ark. Yes, the opportunities are excellent at these spots -- but sometimes, going where everyone else seems to be going doesn't always work out. I like the out-of-the-way places.

I like pond hopping for ducks in the Dakotas, light-years away from the cypress sloughs of the South. And I'm not trekking to the Missouri River for my catfishing this year. All I want are a few places where catfish are not the primary draw, and where anglers often ignore the fishing opportunities that go begging for these bottom feeders.

And I think I've found them.

In southwestern Nebraska, a host of lakes can give me just what I want, Enders Reservoir serving as the first indicator of the catfishing possibilities in this corner of the state. This year, walleye anglers at Enders will accidentally hook several catfish in the 10- to 15-pound range. Since most of that lake's fishing pressure falls on walleyes, diehard catfish anglers will find themselves left in peace to pursue hefty whiskerfish on purpose.

Anglers ordinarily start drifting at the shallow upper end, and then move toward the dam as the summer draws on. With more than 30,000 channel catfish stocked in the last four years, Enders Reservoir is trying to establish itself as one of southwestern Nebraska's best catfishing destinations.

For the top-producing catfish lake as revealed in the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission's 2004 surveys, look no farther than Sutherland Reservoir. NGPC reports indicate that Sutherland had the highest number of catfish caught during the 2004 test period. More than 75 percent of those were in the 1- to 2-pound range, while more than 15 percent weighed over 2 pounds.

Don't expect lunker cat after lunker cat just to hop one after the other into your boat. This is a quantity-oriented lake in its part of the state, having surrendered only six reported Master Angler cats during the 2003 season. (One angler, North Platte's Monte McNeil, caught three of them.)

Despite that small number of Master Angler catfish, hopes for this summer's catch are still high. "Sutherland will have another good year," said NGPC fisheries biologist Steve Brezenski. "Since the harvest on these lakes isn't high for catfish, due to the limited amount of pressure they receive, there are always fish to be found. People are often too busy looking for wipers and white bass."

Our next stop is Jeffrey Reservoir. Boasting a healthy balance among all sizes of channel catfish, it had the highest catch-rate of fish over 16 inches in the southwest and the second-highest catch-rate for all sizes of fish during 2004!

When angling gets tough, begin traveling the lake in search of fish. Most anglers fish the upper ends of these reservoirs because of the steady movement of drifting shad left over from the winter ice. By July, when this part of the lake isn't working out, anglers also need to make sure that they focus on more-specific areas.

For example: Anglers can often search for shallow, weedy areas during the carp spawn, when those fish can be seen cruising the shallows; there, catfish can be found feeding on carp eggs. This approach is one of many that will work for summertime catfish anglers at Jeffrey, but you're probably going to have to get to these areas by boat, as public bank access along the lake is scant.

Another exciting lake in the southwest that offers boat anglers plenty of catfishing prospects is Medicine Creek, which had the highest catch-rate of white bass surveyed in the southwestern part of the Cornhusker State. That rate reveals an important tool to employ when you're prospecting for catfish.

Here's the secret: By looking out for these populous whites, catfishermen can more easily find the cats. Look for areas in which whites are chasing baitfish near the surface, and then back off these areas -- especially if they are near some sort of cover -- to fish beneath them.

A large amount of white bass activity often induces catfish to feed on wounded fry that will have drifted to the lake's bottom. Match the hatch in these areas with gizzard shad to improve your catches.