Ginormous Bluegills & Bonus Bass

TJ Stallings calls them "ginormous" and I can't think of a better word to describe the coppernose bluegills that inhabit the black waters of the King Fisher Society's Richmond Mill Lake. These gills have shoulders, to say the least, and they are every bit as brutish on the line as you might expect.

I spent a ginormously fun day at the King Fisher Society with a group of friends last week. The crew included Bob Lusk of Pond Boss, whose expertise is behind this amazing fishery, TJ Stallings of Road Runner, Chuck Smock of Cabela's, and longtime fishing buddies and fellow outdoor writers Keith "Catfish" Sutton and Vic Attardo.

So impressive are King Fisher's bluegills that the lake's tremendous population of 3- to 6-pound largemouths hardly gets noticed. In fact, Catfish Sutton yelled at his first 5-pounder, which he caught off the dock before we ever launched boats on the lake. "Get off of there. I'm looking for a 2-pound bream!" The truth is, though, that bass are amazingly fit, power packed and seriously fun to catch. Making a good thing even better, it's a young population, and the bass are getting bigger every year!

We caught the bulk of our bream on Road Runner's new Natural Science Series Trout & Panfish baits. Most bass fell to the same Road Runners (thrown with bluegills in mind) or to various soft plastics. Prior obligations forced me to hit the road earlier than the rest of the crew, missing a late-afternoon photo session, dinner at the lodge and a final morning of fishing. However, my friends were kind enough to send me a camera phone photo of them enjoying their ribeyes together while I was drove into the darkness with a dollar burger in hand.

A Few Inches Deeper

"I'm not hitting any cover," Nathaniel said, having been thinking about my comment from a few minutes earlier that most strikes were coming after I felt my crankbait bump off a stump.

I'd caught four bass and lost another in pretty short order since Doug Markham had figured out that the bass were using a shallow, stump-covered flat and that they were tuned into crankbaits. Nathaniel was throwing an XCalibur Square Lip Xcs2, just like I was, and was making the same presentations over the same stumps, but so far he'd not had a strike.

Then it hit me. His baitcaster was spooled with 17-pound-test. The one I was fishing was spooled with 10. The lighter line was allowing my bait to go just a tiny bit deeper, and in that specific setting, that gave me just enough depth to hit the tops of the stumps and trigger strikes. Nathaniel didn't want to trade rods with me, and it was too late in the day for a total overhaul. He did pick up a rod that was spooled with 14-pound-test, though, and even that difference allowed him to hit a little bit of cover. Just a few minutes later he was in the game with a bass of his own.

Little things can make a big difference some days, and yesterday was one such day.

YUM F2 Slam

Photos by James Overstreet; courtesy of B.A.S.S.

One of my favorite things about the time I spent working for YUM Bait Company was the opportunity to work closely with top fishing pros. Time spent together at writer events and photo shoots and behind the scenes at tournaments resulted in great friendships and an ongoing personal interest in these pros' professional success. Therefore, I couldn't help but notice that three of YUM's tournament superstars -- Edwin Evers, Terry "Big Show" Scroggins and Alton Jones -- finished 1st, 2nd and 3rd, respectively, in the B.A.S.S. Citrus Slam on the St. Johns river.

Jones, the 2008 Bassmaster Classic Chamption, also took over the top spot in the B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year standings, with Evers and Scroggins close behind in the second and fourth positions.

Evers, who fished exclusivley for spawning fish thoughout the event, stated that YUM's new F2 attractant formula was absolutely critical to his success, helping fish find his bait in somewhat stained waters. His comments about the importance of the F2 attractant echoed those of Alton Jones, who sight-fished most of the tournament using a 6-inch F2 Yum Dinger and led the event for the first three days. Scroggins combined sight-fishing (undoubtedly with YUM F2 baits, although I've not heard specifics yet) with a strategy of running and gunning ledges with Bomber crankbaits.

Congratulations Edwin, Terry and Alton.

Ice Games

Having just returned from my third ice-fishing outing of 2011, I'm more intrigued than ever by the game of pulling fish through holes in the ice. It's partly a novelty thing, I suppose. Living in Georgia, where hard freezes and snowfalls are major events, I'm amazed by the fixed white landscapes and by the idea of driving out onto the lake on a snowmobile, a pick-up truck or one of the WWII-looking track vehicles used on Lake of the Woods. My interest goes far beyond novelty, though. I enjoy the many games of ice-fishing.

First there's the cat-and-mouse game. Say I'm jigging a Northland Macho Minnow and watching my bait's every movement on a MarCum Showdown. When another mark suddenly appears beneath my bait and starts moving up, that is a fish that is showing interest. At that point I have to figure out how to prompt that fish to strike. Some ice veterans choose to keep the bait moving slowly away from the fish to cause the fish to chase. Others opt to jiggle the bait more in hopes of prompting a reaction strike. Still others resist any movement at that point in the game. All continue to watch the fish and adjust their presentations based on what they fish show them.

Of course, the way fish's response is an aspect of another game. If it shows interest but never quite commits, I'm forced to consider whether my presentation spooked the fish or whether I'm using the wrong size, color or style of lure. Often it takes a few players to begin to figure out what the fish are wanting that day.

Then there's the "stay or go" question. Some anglers believe in holding tight if they think an area is good - remaining patient trusting fish to move through. Others prefer to do more searching, moving from hole to hole, watching with the electronics and paying close attention to which holes produce the most action.

Of course the most important game is that of choosing the location. Being an ice-fishing novice and having done all my trips with tournament pros and guides who have years of experience, I've stayed out of those decisions. I've asked plenty of questions, though, and it's interesting to hear the thought processes. The fact is that fish relate to the same types of rockpiles, points, weedbeds and such under the ice as they do in the open water, and most holes in the ice that look like they are in the middle of nowhere are where they are for a specific reason.

The list of games could continue, but for me more ice play will have to wait until next winter. For now, the bass and bream are moving up in the ponds near home, and the trout are waiting to be caught.

Photo Help

Folks who have been on trips with me and my 12-year-old son Nathaniel know that Nathaniel often is responsible for catching the photo fish needed to get the job done well. That's not the only way he helps me with photos, though. Nathaniel has gotten very good with a camera and often takes shots of me on the water. Switching things around, he also holds a lot of fish for photos, and it is very nice for me to have a young angler in many of my shots. Nathaniel also enjoys working the reflector and putting reflected sunlight onto a photo fish and/or the face of the angler holding the fish.


Nathaniel is interested in doing more with outdoor writing in the long haul, so experiencing my job with me in the field provides great training. He also maintains his own outdoors blog, which chronicles some of our travels together, his days on a local pond and other outdoorsy sorts of stuff. His most recent blog is about our big, goofy lab/pointer mix, Melody.

Planes, Trains & Automobiles

It took a ride in my truck, an airport shuttle and tram, two plane flights, a rental car drive and a snowmobile ride to get to the fishing hole, but the results were great fishing and photo opportunities. And everything about Zippel Bay Resort, from the fine folks to fresh walleye on the table after a day on the ice, makes it well worth the long journey from Georgia.