Sunday, March 15, 2015

The Start of my 2015 Bluegill Quest


So good to be fly fishing again after being cooped inside most of the winter, my destination today was Walker County Lake. I like to hit this lake early in the year before the big crowds start showing up in April. I was surprised to find very few fishermen out today considering the 72-degree weather. Our forecast here next week is low 70’s most of the week, so with those warming temps coming, the activity should start to pick up at the water's edge.
  With the daylight hours being longer now I knew I had some extra time this afternoon to fish some areas on the lake I normally don’t fish. So I trolled the 10 ft Pelican towards the back of the lake to fish some of the shallow water in around the main creek that flows into the lake. After a half-hour of working the creek and the surrounding area with no takes, I moved back into the nooks. I know this may sound crazy but landing a fish this afternoon was kind of secondary; just being back on the water for another bluegill season is tremendous for me.
 

First bluegill of the afternoon, not a counter but loads of fun on the 3 weight.
My one and only counter on the 4 weight using the black grub
All the fish I landed today were in great shape and ready for the coming spawn. Even the Betts Popper got in on the action later in the afternoon.
So with my one bull bluegill counted I am now 49 away from my quest!!!

30 comments:

  1. We almost went to Walker County Lake today! We opted to fish from the bank at Lake Purdy instead, because we didn't want to drive too far and didn't feel like fooling with kayaks. Maybe we'll meet you out there sometime... and of course if you ever want any company on Smith, just say the word.

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  2. Hey Bill, it's good to see you back on the water. Nice fish.
    Good luck on your quest.

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  3. RM
    Long way to go to reach 50--gets tougher every year, but I am up for the challenge. Thanks for the comment

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  4. Hi Jay
    I will be in touch for an April trip on Smith---the next couple of weekends in month are out--grandchildren which is a good thing. If you fish Walker just know that weekends has big time traffic. Have you all fished Oak Mountain State Park. A friend of mine told me that the place has some huge bluegills??? Good to hear from you guys. Thanks for the comment

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  5. Alan
    My first plan was to fish the tailrace, but the generators were running so I opted for Walker, which proved to be productive. Those bluegill on the 3 and 4 weight pre spawn are a blast. Hope you get to land some up your way this year. Thanks for the comment

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  6. Pen
    Pre spawn bluegill is hard to beat on the fly in early spring. Thanks for the comment

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  7. I understand the feeling of the 1st trip. It's just about getting out and that's all!! But I'm glad to see you've started deducting from the quest. A bonus, to what looked like a fantastic outing. Beautiful weather finally. Good luck on the quest.

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  8. Great start. I have been slaying the gills lately! Hopefully we will be able to get into some together in the future!

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  9. I'm as excited as you are Bill! I've been looking forward to your yearly quest for a few years now and that was a great start.

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  10. Lester
    Super size bull bluegill are in the 1 lb. size---most of the big bull gills landed in the south are 9 to 10 oz. and some a little bigger, especially during the spawn, when they are in tip top shape--my rule is 9 oz. above. The one I counted was less width, and more thickness. Thanks for the comment

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  11. Drew
    Fantastic evening and a blast being on the water again, and landing one of my favorite fish on the fly. thanks for the comment

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  12. Mark
    I hope you are right---thanks for the comment

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  13. Kevin
    Yes it use to be 100, but now that my wife has retired, she has found more places to go and more things for me do. So 50 has been the mark for the last couple of years and now I'm having trouble reaching that mark. Hopefully I will make it this year. Thanks for the comment

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  14. Juan
    Glad you are landing numbers of gills early; I know it will get even better when the spawn starts. Thanks for the comment

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  15. Howard
    The "Quest" adds a little more excitement to my fishing, as if I needed it!!! Thanks for the comment

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  16. Best spring wishes, Bill, and have fun on your quest. It looks as though you're off to a fine start.

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  17. I love pan fishing and eating them, good job on the haul

    fishing tips online

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  18. Nice start, Bill! The bluegill bite hasn't seemed to pick up yet, here. Hard to figure them out this year. Most years, late February/early March and they're in full swing. Good luck on your quest, this year!

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  19. River
    Would be nice to land monster bulls like that every trip--thanks for the comment

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  20. Phillip
    I know you can relate to the fight of the big bulls as I do, hope you land a bunch this season. thanks for the comment

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  21. Curtis
    Baked or fried bluegill are hard to beat with all the side dishes. Thanks for the comment

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  22. Bill! The quest is on! Sounds like you had a great day on the water and I am glad you had the place to yourself! Nice Gil! Good luck and look forward to your adventures. I bet the 3wt makes for some fun times with the larger slabs you catch! Tightlines

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  23. Oh yea bluegill in a cast iron skillet. A good weather app at www.islikely.com It will allow you to set / input several parameters such as temperature or wind speed and then alerts you when that is in the forecast.

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  24. Noco
    Actually the 3 weight will get put aside as the season heats up--the 4 weight will handle the bigger gills a little better. Thanks for the comment

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  25. Dirk
    Thanks for the amp, I need all the help I can get. I will check it out tonight. Thanks for the comment

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  26. Bill, I just saw your question about Oak Mtn. If there are big Bluegills there I haven't ever caught one. I've fished in all of the lakes there, and I've caught lots of undersized Bluegills. The lakes are not well managed and are pretty well overfished. I've seen big bass that are old and wise, and I'm sure there are a few big old Bluegills around, but they are definitely not the norm and will not be the bulk of your catch. I'd be happy to go with you sometime. We live very close to the park.

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