Help On The Bluegills

[Bill Babler]

I was responding to a PM this morning and it just vanished from my screen.

Mo-Bowhunter Jeff PMed me about Blue Gill fiIshing on the Rock. My best information is the flat coves most anywhere on the lake.

We have been also catching them in near 30 ft. while crawler fishing for K's. Best baits have been crickets using a cricket long shank hook and a split shot.

I would say start out at 15 ft. and keep moving out to find the desired size of Bluegill. Have had reports of gills up to 11 inch. Have caught lots in the 9 inch class.

Any help we can get on the Bluegill fishing is appreciated

[loo10]

I've got to go try this.

I love catching bluegills and have never fished for them on the Rock.

I am also needing to go after some crawdads.

[Dutch]

When he gets back Stacey should be able to help you. After all isn't that all he eats.

[SKMO]

I was responding to a PM this morning and it just vanished from my screen.

Any help we can get on the Bluegill fishing is appreciated

Well my son and I have been on a bluegill venture at least part of the day every time we have been out the last couple weeks. This because we like to eat fish and those in my family think B'gills are about as good as it gets. Talk about an under-utilized resource on TR this has to be it, gills-a-plenty. Not the big knot-heads you can get in more "fertile" lowland water but for a clear water reservoir TR has some decent gills.

We have caught some really nice ones, although honestly no 11"ers, ever. I have caught a lot of gills on TR but I am not sure I have ever broke the 10" mark. Lots of 9's and some a bit over but mostly 9's. We can usually bag a couple dozen in a couple hours. I would like to see a pic of an 11" gill from TR. Call me a skeptic and prove me wrong, but if they do exist I think they are rare. Actually show me a couple of 10"ers and I would be impressed. Nothing to be ashamed about on the 9's as they have some serious shoulders on them and are well worthy of the fry-pan. But seriously I have never seen many over 9 but admittedly there is a lot of the lake I do not ever get to.

It is not shooting fish in a barrel easy like when they are on the beds, but they are down there and fun to go after. Actually it is pretty challenging, but when you get on your game the fish will keep you interested.

I fish for them in exactly the same places I dropshot for KY's. Right now 32-45' of water on open gravel, on a breakline. They will often suspend about 20' deep, but most often the biggies are on the bottom, just like a KY. I have tried for them on bluffs and in poletimber coves and my experience has been in these locations, they are smallish. I have always thought the big boys rubbed shoulders with the KY's on the shad flats.

We always wash the crawlers and use a half or third piece, about 3" long, on a regular dropshot rig, hook I like is a Gammi #1 dropshot hook. I am pretty sure crickets might outfish crawlers but cricks are a pain in the butt to use. They are hard to deal with and the first peck you get you might as well figure they are off the hook. Plus you are not likely to catch a white or KY or walleye on anything else on a crick. My thinking is a half chunk of crawler oozing guts is pretty darn attractive to most everything that swims in this lake.

Anyway one of the great offshoots of this whole presentation is you will catch about everything down there. Even trying to target gills you will be "pestered" by a lot of KY's, white bass (yes white bass eat crawlers and they will be large), and last Sat I caught a 23" walleye, maybe I can get the pic attached from the phone cam. This guy was caught on 4# mainline on a 5.5 foot ultralight crappie rod, much fun. Though not often said in my boat it was "get the net".

That said please keep in mind catch and release, and selective harvest. Once you get comfortable with it, it is pretty easy to scare up a fish fry worth of bluegill most any time.

Do this on a 5.5 or 6 foot med/light rod and you can have some serious fun with whoever wants to come out to play. Remember it's all about the tug on the line!

[mo_bowhunter]

Bill - thank you. I was just reading down the forum topic list and saw the new Bluegill topic - and I thought to myself what perfect timing. Then I read your first post, laughing. Thanks for your help! I appreciate it!

[mo_bowhunter]

SKMO, thank you very much! I am tking the kids down to the Rock and Taney in a couple weeks. When we hit the Rock I thought Gills would be fun to go after - but I have never fished for them like Bill and you mentioned. Most of my experience has been off the dock - but the kids love being in the boat so we will give it a try. We are going to be staying up near Kimberling City.

[Jason Essary]

Skmo. Great info. Havent tried this yet but will shortly. sounds like a great family time with stuff for the grease at the end. Will be giving this a try down my way in Little north Indian soon. Will post reports.

[SKMO]

Skmo. Great info. Havent tried this yet but will shortly. sounds like a great family time with stuff for the grease at the end. Will be giving this a try down my way in Little north Indian soon. Will post reports.

Next time I am out I will post a pic of our "best" gills. Again, not really humongous in my opinion, but put it this way... get a good scaler on the spoon (son) and a good knife guy to knock the shoulders off (me) and it's pretty easy to come up with a fish fry. Bluegill are very good to eat. Flathead is tops on my list, next gills. Walleye and crappie are also very fine but it's hard to discount a fish that tastes like fish and for this reason we also really like white bass. Love to eat them them all and am not ashamed to say we have a couple 4 or 5 big fish fries every year.

Again this bluegill fishing(in my opinion)is not shooting fish in a barrel, the big guys are out a little deeper than you would expect, and probably a harder target than you would imagine. Start at 30' and go deeper with a chunk of crawler would be my advice. You will catch some nice ones but it is not hand-over-fist action, you will have to do some begging.

I am by no means a TR bluegill expert and hope some others will input their expertise and experiences, I for sure have a lot to learn.

[techo]

There have been a few times we were out fishing and the bluegill kept eating our double tailed grubs. We have a blast catching and releasing them. When I take the neighbor kid, Mason, fishing, we take crawlers. If you are fishing in the KC area the very back of Schooners, and Mill Creek have been good for bluegill in the past. We haven't fished either area for bluegill in the last few weeks, so please take with a grain of salt!

[Jeremy Rasnick]

Went this evening and my wife and I targeted gills. Fishing was great. 15'-20' range. They were full of color. Fished the same spots phil had mentioned a couple of weeks ago. They are still there. Gravel pockets, the key was to sit in about 25' and throw down the middle of the "Gut" We could have caught a ton but i got tired of rigging crickets, and my wife wanted to get back to her book. Ended the eveing catching 3 really nice smallies on a football jig, wife got to reel those in as well. Ended up cleaning 21 gills, all were loaded with Japanese beetles, i'm glad something is eating these beetles.