20141025_133839 BFOTD 9 IN CLASS GILL

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Comment by Jim Gronaw on October 26, 2014 at 7:45pm

Ken...you are spot on!

The hunt and capture of any particular gamefish, be it bass, trout, muskies or bluegills, is a comprehensive effort of study, work and then execution of a game plan that puts high-end fish in your hand, or in the boat.

I have kept accurate records throughout the majority of my life to be able to key in on my favorite fish species. I have always remained open to the teachings of others, no matter how far off-base it may seem. Yes, some folks will just sling some braggy stuff at us just to try and come off as knowledgable, but I track down every lead, every rumor that might lead me to exceptional fish.

Bluegill fishing is just like anything else...the more effort you put into it, the better results you are likely to have.

Keep up the good work!

Comment by Slip Sinker on October 26, 2014 at 7:19am

thank you Jim ... very excellent read and study... everyone should read ... it puts a great perspective on trophy hunting as well as importance of catch and release or fishing a sensible slot limit would or might have on bodies of water.
http://bigbluegill.com/profiles/blogs/stats-on-public-vs-private-bl...

when I moved up here in October 2010 I carried with me an interest in fishing… mainly bass. I was surprised with the quantity and quality of smallmouth bass everywhere in almost all the BOW here. I was in heaven. I had no boat at the time and fishing was restricted to public access and shorelines around bridges etc. fishing wixom lake at the public access for a season allowed me to see what the anglers were hauling in and most everyone shared their secrets and locations. Very friendly people up here. I learned a lot. One afternoon a woman came up to me as I was unloading my car for fishing on the dock and asked me if I wanted a bluegill to keep because she didn’t want to clean it and was almost dead in a five gallon bucket. I said I wasnt interested but thanked her as I glanced in the bucket. I was astounded at the size of the gill. It was the largest ive ever seen. I took it out and measured it against my eagle claw rod with the scale on the rod blank. It was over 10” long! She walked away and I saw her load it in her car.
Later on that season I was able to purchase a used rowboat and trailer and concentrated on catching a gill that size. First outing I caught many gill over 8” and a hybrid over 9. Took a few home for dinner and went online and found bigbluegill.com. (life changing event) my interest in pan fishing just took off. Now its master angling for panfish or fish … an exciting new facet to the sport for me. Keeps the blood flowing… lol
What I do now is check the dnr master angler lists for species targets. Wixom lake was listed for many species and many iterations of those species. How lucky was I to live so close. Ive caught master angler sized rock bass, white bass and my 9.4 inch pumpkinseed. What a great lake. I also check on line for dnr surveys of lakes as well.

Comment by Jim Gronaw on October 25, 2014 at 8:11pm

Ken...indeed, those 10 plus inch fish are rare. I did a study on my personal records and found that only 28% of 112 different waters I have fished over the years had produced gill 10 inches or better. You can check it out in detail on my page and the blog listed 'Personal Stats on Public vs. Private Waters for Bluegills'

Sadly, the lake you are trying so hard to catch that 10 incher may only be capable of maxing out fish at the 9 inch range...but let's hope that 10 is there for you!

Comment by Slip Sinker on October 25, 2014 at 7:50pm

thanks guys!

10" gill is proving tougher than i imagined and 2015 is closing in

Comment by carl hendrix on October 25, 2014 at 5:46pm

close to your p. b.!!    its still out there Ken!!

Comment by Adam Rink on October 25, 2014 at 3:51pm

Nice fish.

Comment by dick tabbert on October 25, 2014 at 3:16pm

Nice one Ken.