Several nearby lakes to fish. But, how do you find the keepable fish?
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Several nearby lakes to fish. But, how do you find the keepable fish?
Seat time on the water, fishing reports on line, Facebook groups, bait shops. Heard they ran out of crickets here last week at a local bait shop, I do not think they were selling them for the fishermen to eat :dono. Oh, and good electronics will speed up the learning curve.
Follow Ledhed around, he could show you how. Give ya a lesson or two.
All kidding aside, what Stan said is true. Time on the water teaches best. You already have an idea of how to find them, just try something different til you get confident in a presentation. After that it’s just eliminating inactive water. I started crappie fishing, I started with one jig,then got a lighter one just like it. I’m a plastics guy so I’m not much help for using crickets and worms, but I know they work well most everywhere. I also fish alone a lot and notice different things that slip by when I’m talking or whatever when I have a guest. Keep after them, it’s not that hard. I figured em out. Some.
All depends on the body of water you are on.......some lakes are great for big bluegill while many are not. I am not familiar with the waters in KY but in TN big bluegill...meaning 9 inches or better.....are becoming very hard to come by. As others have said time on the water...an si sonar is a huge help. Big bluegill...outside of the spawning time......can be tougher to pattern than bass. One tip I can give for finding big bluegill in the summer is to be on the water about 1.5 hours before sunset. For years and years when I would fish from sunup until sundown I would find them on the banks at that time with the feed bag on. I have been telling myself for years I need to be on the water at those times again but due to the distance I travel, and getting older, I have not forced myself to do it. Another tip I use for summer bluegill is to fish the bluffs on a lake about 30 feet deep. A good tip for winter bluegill is to fish a tailrace. Below many of the TVA dams they stack up there in the winter.
Regards
Ha ha! skeetbum is right! I have had the good fortune to have fished with LedHed several times since 2009, and I have learned a thing or two about catching large Bluegill from him. The one thing he says about where to find decent Bluegill is to FISH WHERE THE BASS ARE. Big Bluegill will be in the same structure that the bass are in. We have seen bass fishermen fish in an area for a while, then leave. When we trolled into that spot we would get hooked up, then stop there and catch more casting and working jigs.
i used to ketch summertime big bluegill in similar fashion to what was mentioned earlier . steep rocky bluff ,deep water and slow fall a tiny jighead with a earthworm on it to DEEP water down the rocks , just hopping it slightly .
same technique on timber in deep water as well .often times the bluegill on timber are right above crappie depth wise .
deep water boat docks also produce nice bluegill in the summer months .
some spots they stay rather deep in the middle of the day around brush and rocks as well .
my 2 cents
Homework - everything Stan says + google map (switch to satellite and toggle back and forth from 2D to 3D). Like Tim mentioned - you have to find a lure/bait that you have confidence in and work it. You have to fish the right water as Randy stated. The fertility & management of the lake will determine the quality of fish. We use to catch bigger fish in the evening bite - haven't been able to do that for awhile. Lake Perris doesn't open until 6 now so we miss the pre dawn bite. I agree with everything Ketchn said - solid advice - actually all the posts (IMO) are relevant to finding better fish.
This applies for SoCal and my style of fishing;
I focus on the food chain (all year). Watch for bug hatches and birds (for baitfish activity). At LP if the Grebes are active they are chasing down Shad or Shiners and if the Swallows or Gnat Catchers are up - there's a bug hatch going on. The majority of the bigger fish that I find come from 17 to 28 FOW (except for winter) in these staging areas. Troll the deeper water (pre & post spawn), outside of the beds, for big hens (please release). I'm also looking for a mud bottom close to a solid bottom in that depth range.
We have to pay attention to water level and surface temp and in my case the wind. More than 3mph - have to sit at home and surf the internet......
I use 2lb test copolymer line (because of flooded timber and brush piles) with 1/48th to 1/24th jigs.
thanks for asking the question. I learned a lot from the answers ! I don't have all the experience on the blue gills as the others but I am making progress on my catching of some gills. I started by spending some time on my water ( Lake Monroe, Fl ) . It is a shallow lake ( 6-12 ft deep ) I look to see where the others are fishing and see if I can find out what they are fishing for and why that area. ( some times I'll boat to the area and just ask the other fishermen, lots are happy to share info) From there I keep trying different things to see what I like best. For bluegills I use worms on a small hook and a split shot slowly dragged over the bottom. I look for a bottom with lots of shell mixed in with the mud in 4 - 6 ft of water. I have been doing pretty good with that. Last week I was invited out with skeetbum and learned a whole new way to fish the river. ( need to work on that some more )
My advise , spend time on the water and don't be afraid to talk to the other fishermen. on the water or at the ramp. Don't ask about their "spot" , just general info , Nobody wants to give up their spot !
Thanks for asking the question. I do a lot of reading on here and have learned a lot. I take what I have read and try to apply it where I am fishing. Some of it works and some of it doesn’t, for me. Like everyone has mentioned, time on the water with a lot of trial and error. There is a heap ton of knowledge right here in this forum.
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Keepable fish are where you find them which includes the sizes of the general population in a water and size-by-location. Like crappie, sunfish group by size. Find an area that holds stunted gills and that's pretty much what you'll catch.Quote:
Originally Posted by Quailtail
Like Skeetbum I'm also a plastics angler but just discovered the success of using marabou jigs. All fish strike them like it was their last meal! Jighead sizes for plastics and feather jigs IMO should be in the range of 1/32 - 1/16 oz. You'll still get a casting range to cover more water, but more importantly be able to retrieve the lure very slow with pauses. I'm not a curl tail grub user and prefer straight tail or no action tail designs.
Stick with 4-6# test fluorocarbon leaders for best lure action and braid for the best strike (bump) sensitivity and long distance hook sets.
Disregard anything above regarding lures and tackle if you have preferences.
Location
Sometimes location patterns are discovered. In one part of the lake fish may be near pads but also near shorelines lined with docks. On I lake I fished yesterday, I found gills on the flats but only in certain areas: near rocks that dropped 2'; near weed edges close to open water drops and; near steep banks that dropped into 4'. Try to find areas that are different and cast to them. As was mentioned, sunfish many times hang out near bass, but also with crappie. Find a concentration of crappie in an area and sunnies may be present.
Time of day, a chop on the water and cloud cover can be crucial as far as activity level. Yesterday I waited for the clouds to move in at midday and caught 25 fish - mostly sunfish. Time of day with most potential can vary based on weather changes moving in. Hot, still days aren't my best fish catching days where I fish.
Sonar helps find baitfish in water over 4' and baitfish are where the fish that prey on are potentially close to. What was also cool yesterday was waiting for my rowboat to drift past the fish I saw on the screen in 5', cast to the location and catch fish. Fish aren't usually spooked by a drifting boat even in shallow water.
KNOW THY WATER LIKE THE BACK OF YOUR HAND and remember where fish were caught for the future as well as the bottom type and depth.
Summer time bream . #1=Think deep, #2 = Stay away from clear water . (really clear see rule #1)#3= go light (line and baits )#4 Fish main lake points and dam (especially rip rap if present ).Creek channels and intersection almost always have good fish . JMO .
I have been down this road. Where I live I have come to realize a good bluegill is 7.5-8” I rarely catch any larger. I had to travel hours to a lake to catch some that was 9”. It was easy. Because they was there. It’s no your gear or your bait/ presentation. It just that they may not be there at all. I beat myself up hunting 9” gills and never found any even close locally. Actually most are in the 6-7” range for the most part. If you want to catch ones like that. You have to do homework and research and travel.
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Deep. Mentioned numerous times in the responses to my post. And let me say I appreciate and thank you for responding. Lakes here have 30 to 100 feet depths. Some deeper. Generally speaking what are you considering deep?
Most bream lakes rarely exceed 40 ft. with most giving up fish in the 10-15 ft. range . If you fish main lake points normally they will be in the depth before 20.Quote:
Originally Posted by Quailtail
Quote:
Originally Posted by LedHed
LH
How do you troll with these light jigs ? Are you running some weight on your line also ? Are you running the bait near the bottom in this 17-28 foot depths ?
thanks, Chris
Qt - LP is ~110'" at the deepest pt. During the winter, back in the day with my mentor Big Jim, we use to fish the inlet, 65'. We nose hooked nightcrawlers on jigalos and caught big CNBGs off the bottom and on the drop. Killed way too many fish. Now - I fish mostly for suspended fish no deeper than 35 FOW.
Chris - don't think my 1/48th or 1/32nd jigs get deeper than 12' @.8mph and the 1/24th jigs might be getting to 15' at that speed using 2lb test line. I'm using 2 lines - one has a slightly larger diameter. I watch the depth finder for baitfish & bugs. If a hatch is starting - go real slow, as they rise you start speeding up and fish the higher column.
"How do you troll with these light jigs" - troll speed is between .6mph and 1mph, mostly .8mph
"Are you running some weight on your line also" - No, but a friend of mine does and it's been discussed.
"Are you running the bait near the bottom in this 17-28 foot depths" - Depends on what's going on with the food chain.
When the fish are in open water regardless of depth, I MUST start trolling using your suggestions! Better to hook fish than spend all day casting to dead water.
What I need to do a better job of meeting the requirements of using light, trolled lures is: .8 mph boat speed, 2# not 6# test f/c line and making sure the lure is traveling at the right depth fish are seen on sonor. I always assumed suspended fish in warm water are uncatchable do to a zero activity level. Guess I won't know unless they see my lure long enough.
I catch a lot of suspended fish in warm water: very slow trolling from my float tube.Quote:
Originally Posted by Spoonminnow