So, Txelen - what's your thoughts on the TM experiment? My next two ponds are going to be dedicated to trophy catfish and the other a TM or Musky pond. I too am trying to figure out what would be the best forage - for both experiments.
Shoot, I have no experience with northern ponds. I've done a lot of fishing in MN/WI and have caught a handful of Musky and a bunch of Pike, but never from a lake smaller than about 50 acres. My knowledge is from this forum.
I like the idea of a couple of TM in a large LMB/BG pond. I would be concerned about catching the TM while bass fishing, resulting in losing expensive lures or having to play the TM to exhaustion on medium tackle.
One thing to consider: What are you doing with this trophy catfish pond? If it's more than a few acres, would it be possible to make it a dual catfish/TM fishery? Bullhead, GSH, FHM, and GS could be stocked, apparently bullhead are a favored prey of large catfish, and the TM may prey mainly on GS and GSH. Angling techniques for the two types of fish are different enough that you're unlikely to catch one while fishing for the other, and should it happen, you're probably using heavy enough tackle to haul either in.
