Getting Primed For The Bluegill Spawn

 When it comes to fishing, the thrill of landing quality bluegill on a lightweight fly rod is unmatched. The fly rod I'm talking about is either the 2 wt. or 3 wt. If you're looking for the ultimate enjoyment of landing bluegill, these are the rods to use. I personally find the 7 1/2 ft. length perfect for small bodies of water, and an 8 1/2 ft. to 9 ft. length ideal for lakes. When I'm fishing at my home waters of Smith Lake, I rely on my 9 ft. 3 wt. for the best experience. 

During the Easter weekend, I used Jason's lightweight 7 1/2 ft. Redington 2 wt. fly rod. The small 15-area lake, nestled at his house in Greystone Farms Hoover, offers a tranquil fishing experience. You can reach the water's edge in less than a minute from his back porch, making it a convenient spot for anyone who enjoys fishing, whether with traditional gear or a fly rod. 

The lake has four walk-way bridges across four of its nooks, and the bluegill spawns on the upper or lower side of the bridges during the prime spawn season. I've only seen a few individuals fly fish in the lake, so the fishing pressure is very limited. Cathey and I like to walk the mile-long walking trail when we are here. The Game and Fish Department manages the lake, which does a great job of checking water quality and fertilizing.  

My fly fishing season will begin on Smith Lake in a couple of weeks, so today's trip was a warm-up to start landing the super-sized bulls on the rock walls on Smith: I can't wait!!!

Fish--an Excellent Meat Choice

 One would assume that most all meats are a good source of protein. Beef, Pork, Chicken, Fish, and Turkey are the most common. Fish, Turkey, and Chicken are the three types of meat Cathey and I eat. I no longer eat red meat since being diagnosed with a blockage in my left descending artery some 12 years ago. 2010 was the year the blockage was discovered. The Doctors told me 40 to 50 percent blockage didn't warrant a stent. They recommended a yearly checkup and lots of exercise in the form of walking and a diet filled with fruit and vegetables. Cathey and I thought we were eating healthy at the time walking fairly regularly before this diagnosis but apparently not. As was the case with most all of us when we were younger meals were fast foods and eat-outs loaded with fats. In other words, the bad foods over the years showed up in that arteriogram done in 2010. 

My Cardiologist told me on my last visit that test studies prove now with diet and exercise blockage can be decreased if it is not severe. By the way, I am not part of that study, but I gladly accept the findings. I've come to realize as we all get older we need to be much more active. That is the key to keeping all of us on the water even into our 80s!!-----

These bluegills were landed last week using the light 2/3 weight fly rods. All were taken early in the morning on top. Excellent meat source just as the title of this blog post states. Thursday will be my first visit to the Sipsey since last year because of generation. I hope the water is at the level I can wade---wish me luck ! 

The Bluegill, Start to Finish

The bluegill is probably the most common warm water fish caught throughout the United States. A lot of us started fishing as youngsters fishing for the bluegill. These fish will hit almost anything that moves in the water. I remember catching this fish as a boy fishing from the bank in our pond near our house. The first fish my grandchildren landed when they started fishing was the bluegill. Any size bluegill will produce a bend in the light fishing rod. The excitement on the face of a small child landing bluegill is priceless. I know I have witnessed that excitement. 

Bluegill and Crappie are the only fish I keep to dress for table fare. Both these fish are excellent to eat if they are dressed and prepared right. I'm not a fan of the so-called tried and true method of cleaning these fish. Scraping the scales off their sides and cutting their heads off is how we prepared them for the skillet years ago. My family and I thought they were delicious to eat at the time. 

It took years for me to discover that a filleted fish has a much better taste than a fish fried whole with the skin and bones. You eliminate the fishy taste when the skin and bones are removed from the fish. I filleted my first bluegill 45 years ago one afternoon on the back porch of my school Principals house, dressing bluegill we had landed that afternoon. The first fish I filleted on my own wasn't perfect but over time I mastered the process. 

This little Rapala 8" fillet knife is all one needs to fillet bluegill and crappie. The knife needs to be razor-sharp. A dull knife will not get the job done properly!

Both these beauties were taken off the rock walls on Smith Lake using the Boogle Bug poppers this past Thursday. A meal for two can be prepared from the meat taken from 5 or 6 bluegills this size.  

I created this video some time ago explaining exactly how to fillet quality-size bluegill. The same technique can be used on the crappie as well. 

The Receipt for delicious bluegill and crappie

Take all fillets and place in a pan with water and add 3 to 4 tablespoons of salt and stir until all the salt is dissolved into the fillets---let sit overnight in the frig--the salt removes all the blood from the fillets

Remove the fillets the next day and wash all the salt off the fillets

Spray a cookie sheet with pam and coat all the fillets with cornmeal mixed with lemon pepper, salt, and black pepper

Bake all the fillets on 450 in the oven and turn the fillets over in about ten minutes and continue to bake until done. The process of baking the fillets takes about 20 minutes or less. You want the fillets to be tender and not overly baked which will make them tuff.

For those of you who like the fillets fried use a fry daddy adding Crisco, or Coconut oil to fry the fillets until they are golden brown--remove the fillets and let set on a paper towel to drain the oil 

French fries, coleslaw, and hushpuppies are all sides dishes that are delicious to eat with the fillets. Don't forget the tartar sauce and catsup---almost forgot a cold beer to top the meal off!!

Enjoy the meal!

Working Through Some Frustration

 

I'm glad summer with its humidity, rain, and heat is coming to an end. I got a feel of some early fall weather Friday morning as I launch my boat at the dam on Smith Lake. A light jacket felt good to be wearing as I motored to one of the many rock walls in Ryan Creek. Fall is some of the best times to fish the lake using a fly rod and popper. 

The closer you get the popper to the wall the better chance you have to get the hit. The heavy rains didn't affect the clarity of the water, making it easy for the bluegill and spotted bass to target the popper. 

The bass was not hitting anything on top and this one was the only one that hit the little popper. I am not complaining because anytime I can land quality bluegill using the 3 wt. I'm pleased!

The winner today in the popper category was the size 8 Orvis Bluegill Bug. I have mentioned how effective this little popper is before in a previous post, but today it outperformed anything I was casting. What makes this popper so special is its ability to go subsurface when moving it. Most all the hits today occurred when the tiny popper was submerged. I always select this popper when the fish are not responding to surface poppers and today was one of those mornings. 

What a great way to spend a cool early fall morning fishing some of my favorite rock walls on beautiful Smith Lake. All these beauties were taken using the little subsurface Bluegill Popper. 

32 fillets ready for the freezer to be enjoyed during the winter months. 

A little frustration, no a lot of frustration trying to maneuver a trout fishing trip on the Sipsey these days. I do have the option to fish on the weekend, but I'm not a fan of casting thirty feet from someone else above and below me. The weekends are the only time the generators are not running. I am grateful I have Smith Lake to fish during the drawdown. Today's trip help me work through my frustration----Hopefully, the drawdown will be complete by October.  

Confinement,How 's it Working for You?

Fishing has been light for me this year mainly because of the virus and the restrictions that go along with it. It has affected everyone's lives in one way or another. I have managed to make a few trips to Walker lake close to home and land a few gills to keep in practice. 

This trip was back in March on a sunny afternoon trying to dodge all the other fishermen who were fishing the lake. Confinement can take a toll on individuals if they're cooped up in the house for long periods of time. It seems everyone here that never fished are fishing now or at least out and giving it a try. All the lakes are covered with people and most are ignoring the distance thing, not a good idea. 
Cathey and I live in a small retirement community where no one walks but us in the morning hours, so no mask needed. Alabama started a total lockdown Saturday at 5PM. No one should go out unless it is for essential items. We will abide by the rules, which is what most individuals in this country are doing. The more individuals who don't follow the rules and regulations will cause the nightmare to continue for who knows how long. The bottom line, this crisis will not end until there is a vaccine available sometime next year.    

In the meantime, Cathey and I will continue to keep ourselves occupied with projects around the house and hopefully, some fishing trips worked in the schedule. 

One of my projects has been building log cabin bluebird houses for us and the Grandchildren. A couple of bluebirds already occupy this house. 

Delivered both these bookcases to these little guys a couple of weeks ago before the lockdown occurred. Notice I said bookcases, they're using them for everything but a bookcase.

There's been talk of closing the public lakes and big reservoirs if the public here doesn't follow the guidelines better. I hope this doesn't happen because it would put a dent the rest of the fishing season for me and many others. Guys stay safe and know we will get through this!!  

Cathey's Largert Bass and Bluegill Fishing Ryan Creek

I've been fishing a lot since March and most of it was alone on Walker Lake and the rest of the time was on Smith Lake with some of my buddies. A few trips to the tailrace were worked in when the generators were not running. Hopefully, most of the rains are gone and the tailrace will start to fish well in the coming months. 
One of my fishing buddies couldn't make the fishing trip we had planned for this past Tuesday so I started looking for a replacement. To my surprise my wife said she wanted to go, so we headed to Smith Lake for four or five hours of fishing. It turned out to be a special trip for both of us because it had been 25 years since she had been in the boat with me. She wanted to fish for the bluegill using live bait in the form of crickets. The only rule I had to follow was; she wasn't going to bait her hook, touch the fish or touch a crappie nibblet. In other words, I was her guide which was fine with. I was just glad to have her on board!

This largemouth put up quite a fight. I was really proud of how well Cathey handled this fish. She finally landed the fish using a 7 1/2 ft. Microlight with 4 lb. test line. We released the fish to fight another day. 

Hopefully, I can get her into fly fishing in the coming months. She has agreed to give fly fishing a try---really a special day for both of us, one that I will remember!! 

Who Started You Fishing

I have often said that I've never been bored one minute since I retired. I am so thankful my Dad taught me and my brothers how to fish and hunt at an early age. Most individuals who fish or hunt all started as youngsters. I often wonder why some of my friends, neighbors or other retirees don't fish. The answer could be the parents weren't interested in fishing so the children never developed an interest. Most children become involved in what the parents is interested in when growing up. That could be hunting, fishing, sports, or any other activity. I know my two grandsons are interested in motorcycles because of their Dad's interest in riding motorcycles. They are also interested in fly fishing because their Dad and Pops fly fish, so you see the comparison.
I have taught numerous individuals how to fish using casting gear or ultralight gear in my lifetime. Those individuals were all adults. I even taught a few how to fly fish in the short 12 years I've been casting the fly rod. All these individuals had never fished before and are still fishing today. One doesn't have to spend a great deal of money on fishing equipment to catch fish. Live bait paired with a spin-cast or spinning reel will get results on almost all water in the U.S. Live bait such as crickets, grasshoppers, and redworms started many of us on our fishing journey. Hopefully, that journey will continue for all of us for many years to come.
Most of you know that I like woodworking not as much as fishing but a close second. The love of woodworking steered me towards becoming an Industrial Teacher. I spent 35 years in the teaching profession before I retired in 2008. I really enjoyed teaching Industrial Arts because I came in contact with some great students who were interested in building small pieces of furniture to larger pieces such as gun cabinets, tables, and desks. I seldom encountered problem students in those 35 years of teaching, because they enjoyed the class as much as I did teaching them.