might be a dumb ass question but

[Ira R (Rick) Jones]

here goes,  cleaning large panfish, filet? or dcale and gut and whack head off, or do you whack head off or tail off or cut fins out??

never caught bluegill big enough to filet

[Ira R (Rick) Jones]

rendezvous??  May might be tough, i compete in high power and am a member of the North Carolina Rifle Team

big match at Camp Butner in May dates not set yet, but there is a great reservoir called Holt Reservoir at Butner

in fact part of Camp Butner borders on the lake,  pretty good size, not fished a lot, and there are sheer drop offs that go down to 30-40'  right next to cliff,  i see all kinds of fish in fish finder there

but rendezvous need to hear more, i have good camping set up and i can camp comfortably in back of pick up

i have leer camper top and built a bed with mattress on one side with lockers underneath, and have full camping set up besides that

[carl hendrix]

on Lord of the Fly Rods post is about the rendevou;; hoping you can make it.  i think its the first week end of May. Keith Ritter ( bbg member) is also going to camp out there. David ( tooty) Eitutis is also a retired Marine;; also does precision shooting with 22 cal. rifles will be there.  fishing in Kentucky Lake!!  lord of the fly rods will be doing the cooking;; Keith  Ritter is scouting out the area; with some locals there to help find us some good fishing spots;; camping area at Nathan Bedford Park;; but better to ask Keith;; where exactly he willl be at

[Ira R (Rick) Jones]

Kentucky Lake,  the very last time i fished with my Dad,  it was KY Lake.  I was taught the skill of bamboo pole jig fishing next to drop offs, cold rainy spring time but caught fish, not sure if I can make it though  i hold some records and have to defend them

[Andy is OptiMystic]

Holt sounds kind of interesting:

http://www.butnernc.org/departments/parks-recreation/lake-holt/

Especially this part:

In 2012, the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission revised the regulations for Black Bass in Lake Holt. Anglers fishing for largemouth bass can now keep up to 10 fish per day with no minimum size limit. Only 2 bass may be greater than 14 inches.

That sounds like it is (was? been in force 3 years) overpopulated with stunted bass, which could be a good sign for large panfish. Never any guaranties, of course. Google says I could be there in under an hour; might be worth checking out one day.

[Ira R (Rick) Jones]

the launch ramp is dismal,  sort of a dock, and the web page indicated rebuilt in 2015, well it was supposed to be rebuilt in 2014 also.  but town finds other places for money, usually pet projects for members..

beautiful lake,  lot of fish,  and next door to where i shoot, and they have a nice grill and make a pretty good philly cheese steak and they sell including minnows

[Andy is OptiMystic]

I found my way there from a Granville County recreation page which has a picture of a kayaker on a lake at the top and listed a few lakes around and highlighted kayaking and fishing in almost all. Sounds like they are looking for me. :) Anyway, kayakers are pretty easy to place when it comes to launches...

[Ira R (Rick) Jones]

if you are a kayak fisherman butner is a paradise  close to the damn itself and the steep drop offs also close to launch

[Marty Lemons]

2  and 1/2 hour drive to Butner NC for me.

[Andy is OptiMystic]

The Google maps hour estimate was from my house; from my office it is only a little over a half hour (at the right time, of course). I may have to "dawn patrol" that in the summer when I don't have to drop kids off. I could leave before 5, get there as they open, fish 4 hours or so and work 11-7. Hmmm...

[Ira R (Rick) Jones]

i know what the web page says about open/close, but it is open now and is open daily

been that way for past ten years i have been shooting at butner.   nice place to eat lunch

too bad not a campsite there

[Andy is OptiMystic]

It wouldn't be until after March anyway. I am more concerned about the "dawn to dusk" meaning truly at sun rise since that is likely when I would try to be there.

[Slip Sinker]

excellent law and strategy... i would definitely fish for the bass to put on the table. texas has been doing that on a lot of their lakes to increase proportion of trophy sized fish. alot of these regulations by state have been in place since the fifties or earlier. time for each state to size up the need for the fisheries maybe down to the county or individual lake level.