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I'm looking for advise on a guide to hire at Kentucky Lake. I have taken my Father on some guided crappie trips the last 5 years, but would like to mix it up this year. I have heard from Illinois crappie guides Kentucky Lake offers awesome Bluegill/Redear fishing. Can anyone offer any suggestions?
For $35 less than what a well-known Kentucky Lake crappie guide charges per day, you can fish world-class private ponds with me. I guide on several phosphate pits that were mined by TVA in the 1930's and '40's and that I now manage intensively for trophy bluegill; in the three years I've been offering trips on these ponds, every party that has fished with me has caught at least one bluegill 10" or better, and every party but one has caught at least one bluegill 11" or better. And the party that didn't catch an 11" caught this:
Attachment 182272
Here are a few more examples of what you would catch in a day's fishing:
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I forgot to mention I'm only seventy miles from Kentucky Lake. My best pond now has several bluegill over two pounds in it, and I saw one in September - got a very good look at it at the surface - that would've gone three pounds if it weighed an ounce.
^^^^^^THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
TNpondmanager I'm interested in learning more. We have a guy in Illinois that manages ponds, and does fishing trips as well. I believe his name in Nate Herman. Do you have a website?
I am familiar with Nate - he has grown some big bluegill up that way for sure. I'm sure if he lived where I do he would have put someone on a three-pound bluegill by now. One major advantage I have in this area is being able to stock coppernose bluegill, which are a subspecies of bluegill native to Florida; they're basically the bluegill equivalent of Florida-strain largemouth, i.e. a substrain native to Florida that grows much larger on average than northern-strain bluegill. They don't do well in cold climates, but do fantastically here. Two of the four biggest ones I posted photos of above are coppernose. And, there's a high probability that the giant I saw in September was a coppernose. I do have a website, ***************. I'm having a new website built that if I understand my web designer correctly, will be up within days; but the present one has info on my guide service as well (it just doesn't have a lot of the big fish photos that the new one will). Feel free to send me an e-mail here or directly through my website, or you can call me via the number listed on the site.
the coppernose get larger than the red ear ?
Are you looking for catch and release or looking to take a mess home ? I have a buddy that guides on Ky lake that will fill a cooler with 8 and 9" gills and redears, clean and pack them up for the trip home too. His name is Brad Weakly. You can find his website on the Ky lakes guide listing on Kentucky Vacations at Kentucky Lake & Lake BarkleyQuote:
Originally Posted by newbe2
Eagle, the redear get pretty big - I saw a fish back in June that, unlike the bluegill I saw in September, I didn't get a good look at; I just saw it spook away from the boat as I was spraying for duckweed...So I don't know whether it was a bluegill, redear, largemouth, or tiger muskie (the fourth species present in that one-acre pond - there are two of them, stocked December 2009 at 12"). But what I saw of that fish looked like it was twelve inches from its back to its stomach...I fully understand if people don't believe that. But assuming my eyes were not playing tricks on me, it was a very big fish, whatever species it was. It seems unlikely that it was a largemouth just because they tend to be much more streamlined than bluegill, and even a ten-pounder would not have that kind of distance from its back to its stomach; and muskie of course are even more streamlined than largemouth. From what I saw of the fish's side, I didn't see a lateral stripe, which makes it less likely it was a bass. The biggest bluegill I posted a photo of above, the northern-strain that's a little over 11" without its tail pinched, was caught when I went back to the pond about a week later to try to get that fish on the hook. Obviously I didn't catch it. I'm hoping a client hooks it at some point this year.
If someone just wants a big mess of decent-sized bluegill, Kentucky Lake is great for that. I personally would not spend $250 just for a mess of fish, but then I have caught large messes of bluegill on my own. Most people have never seen a two-pound bluegill, or for that matter an eleven-incher; so when someone fishes with me, they generally catch a fish that they otherwise would not catch in a lifetime of fishing. Catching a hundred one-pound largemouth in a day is not a once-in-a-lifetime event; catching a twelve-pound largemouth is. Same basic principle.
I heard Kirk Weber was very good.
Ky Afield went with Jim Doom of Between the Rivers Guide Service, but fished on Barkley Lake.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzgk8tmkF9g
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=--_qtmMOZcA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-UtaG2wvg4
... cp :kewl
Quote:
Originally Posted by CrappiePappy
What he said X2.
Those are 3 of my all-time favorite videos of gill fishin. Thanks for bringing them back up. Only 6 more months til the gill spawning season. :biggrin
Thanks for the input gentlemen. The videos are pretty cool too! I think I'm more interested in hiring a guide to fish one of the lakes at this point. We may bring a boat down with us, so we can try our luck by ourselves the next day. That wouldn't work fishing the ponds.
I used to live near this place in Laurel Hill, NC. It's called the kingfisher society. There is a website for it also. It is expensive but the fishing is outstanding, so I've seen. I can't afford to fish it, but check it out. The King Fisher Society in North Carolina
Looks like a good time fishingman! $600 did seem high until I saw it was the rate for four people. Guides are running around $300, and I think it usually costs another $100 per guy, so not to far out of Line I guess. Probably a little too fancy for me, with the personal chef, and jazz music though=)
$600 is the rate per person when you bring a party of four or more, or in other words, four people would cost $2400. With fewer than four people in the group it costs $1,000 per person per day. I charge $300 for one or two people, or $500 for three or four people. Kingfisher is also entirely catch-and-release.
ouch...
I originally started putting my own money into ponds I don't own in 2009 for the purpose of developing a guide service for trophy bluegill, because I thought I could compete with Kingfisher if I was able to develop some ponds where the bluegill were of comparable size but I charged more reasonable rates. I don't have the volume of water they do, but my best pond this year may finally catch up with or pass their lake in terms of average bluegill size.
A fishing trip to Kentucky Lake should turn out to be a neat experience . I was there a lot of years back and we fished it without a guide. We had grand time and a guide for at least a day or 1/2 day would give you an idea of the type of fishing that is working best while you are there. No matter where the guide takes you, the similar conditions are repeated over and over along the lakes . Shoot, I am just plain envious!! lol. please bring back a few pictures for us to enjoy.
You could try Jim Doom and see what dates he has available : www.kybeaver1.comQuote:
Originally Posted by newbe2
... cp :kewl
Definitely a guide and I've heard good things about Doom. You very well may catch a 2 lb. or better shellcracker and should catch a bunch of good ones as well as nice bluegill.
I enjoy seeing pictures of how big bluegill can get but prefer catching nice ones I can take home for a meal.
Nothing like a mess of deep fried bluegillsQuote:
Originally Posted by Bronson
I really appreciate all the input guys! I think if the weather stays decent I'll take Dad down to the fishing show near Saint Louis in a couple weekends. I keep an eye out for Kentucky Lake guides that have been mentioned here while we are there. I'd none are there, I'll have to give one of these guys a call when we get home. Dad had a heart attack six years ago right before Christmas. I haven't let a year pass since then that I take him fishing with a guide. I'm thankful to still have him in my life, and try to spoil him when I can. Thanks again guys.
Quote:
Originally Posted by newbe2
Cherish every trip! I would give anything for 1 more trip with my dad.
Money went well spent. You can be sure he appreciates the time he spends with you. Hope the fish will be biting to make it even better.Quote:
Originally Posted by newbe2
Great post! Hope you've planted a few seeds with people.
Jim Doom is a very good guide and a really nice guy also. You would have a great time with him
Not to take anything away from guides, but find good eating size bluegill in quantity more then you want to clean is not that hard at KY Lake. Not the 2lb size is another story.