Fishy Start to Spring

Spring officially got underway last week, and I'm delighted to have gotten to start the season with four days of fishing (and catching!) I spent the first three days of the season on Arkansas' Lake Ouachita, fishing mostly a bass and a bit for crappie to take photos for work. I then strayed farther west, to a small lake in the Oklahoma portion of the Ouachita National Forest, to do a bit of bass fishing from my kayak for videos.

It was definitely a spring bite on Ouachita. The largemouths were shallow and in a pre-spawn mode, and spinnerbaits produced the best action. We mostly caught males, so the bigger females were most likely staged nearby. We also got some good spotted bass atop rocky points and sunken islands that were close to deeper water by dragging Carolina rigs and by swimming a Flash Mob Jr..

The best crappie action occurred in less than 3 feet and around buckbrush. We caught them by suspending curly tail grubs a couple of feet beneath Thill floats, casting close to the buckbrush and twitching rod tip just enough to rock the float and make the jig dance. They were hitting the jigs hard, more like what I'd expect from a bass, ripping the float out of sight in an instant. Big fun!

I only managed a few bass at the little lake, which was pretty busy on the first Friday of spring and with beautiful weather leading into the weekend. However, two of three were way up the lake's most significant creek arm, on a very shallow flat, and hit a Rebel Bluegill, which is a shallow crankbait that looks like you would expect it to based on the name.

Bread Balls & Bluegills

Crickets, wigglers and waxworms all have a place in the bluegill fishing world, as do popping bugs, nymphs and various micro-sized lures -- and I favor each of those offerings at certain times. However, when I just want to connect a child with a few quick bluegills, it's tough to top putting a little bitty ball of bread on the tip of a No. 8 or 10 hook and dangling it beneath a pencil-style float.

There's always at least one loaf of bread or package of buns at home, so there's no need to dig for worms or visit a bait shop. Plus, baiting a hook and fishing this rig are simple, so youngsters can do everything themselves and enjoy the rewards. Most importantly, bluegills can't resist bread.

My son Eli turned 9 last weekend, and around our house, birthdays and fishing often go together. I wasn't sure if the bluegills would still be shallow by the boardwalk at Tallulah Gorge State Park in November, but it's an easy access sort of place, and it's pretty close to home, and he wanted to do a bit of birthday fishing.

The bluegills weren't plentiful like they are from mid-spring through the end of summer.  However, a few were home, and the bread/bobber combination did its job. Eli also did his job, and he ended up catching a couple of very nice 'gills.