Crankbaits, lipless and otherwise, that mimic local forage regularly produce on blue cats. (Photo by Keith Sutton)
Walk through the fishing section of your local sporting goods store and you’ll find hundreds of artificial lures made to coax bites from your favorite freshwater fish. Black bass lures are especially plentiful, and depending on where you shop, you could also find lures for walleyes, crappies, trout, pike, salmon, bluegills, stripers and more.
What you won’t find are lures for catching catfish. Some manufacturers sell soft-plastic “catfish worms” or “bait pods” designed for fishing with soft stink baits, but these aren’t intended for repeated casting and retrieving. Instead, you slather them with dip bait or fill them with a squeezable tube...