Sunfish and Bluegill Fishing

Sunfish and bluegill are fun to catch.  This is especially true if you're fishing with kids.  Find a school of these panfish, use the right bait, and your kids won't be able to keep their hooks or lures in the water.

So let's start with step one - where to find them.  Bluegill and sunfish frequently hug the shoreline, especially when there's cover like grass or rocks.  Check this out.

That rock pile screams fish, including bluegill and sunfish.  Take a closer look.

Lots of cover, and deeper water in front of the rock pile.

Now the bait.  I'd say the big three are worms, corn, and the Rebel Crickhopper.  Today we just had corn and the Crickhopper.  As you can see, we caught some large sunfish.  The kids had a blast.

If you use corn or a worm, I recommend one split shot weight and a size six baitholder hook, which is a small hook.  To rig the Crickhopper for these fish, you need only tie the lure to the end of the line.  No weight needed.  You want to fish it on or close to the top.

All fish were returned to the water unharmed.  Use extreme caution when fishing on or around structure.

Tight lines!

Catching Catfish with Bluegill

Worms are fun stuff.  They're great for catching lots of bullhead catfish, which tend to stay in the 1- 3 lbs range.  They can also catch some big carp.  The same can be said of corn.

Here lately, though, I've had the urge to catch bigger catfish.  After much research, the general consensus is that it probably won't happen on worms.

Smaller catfish can get the nutrition they need with worms, but the bigger ones require a heartier meal.  Remember how you could eat cereal nearly every meal when you were a kid?  Now that you're all grown up, you like to have a burger or a steak for your meal, right?

A larger catfish's version of a steak or burger is another fish.  Shad are ever-popular.  Most fish in the minnow family are oily, and that attracts larger catfish.

There is one other option that's sometimes overlooked.  That option is bluegill.  They're easily caught near the bank with a portion of your worm on a size 6 baitholder hook.

Unless you suspect monster catfish in the pond, I would cut the bluegill into reasonable pieces.  Then use a size two baitholder hook.

The results were undeniable.

With a couple of exceptions, the bullnose catfish that bit were significantly larger.  I also caught s decent sized channel cat, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

If you try this, don't be wasteful with the bluegill.  One or two cut up should be plenty for a couple of hours of fishing.  Also, check your state's rules and regs.

In Texas, gamefish cannot be used as bait.  Bluegill are not considered gamefish.  Tight lines!!