Yes, I need the fish in order to make a mold to cast the replica. If you catch a worthy specimen handle it with care and freeze it in a sealed double plastic bag.

If it makes my list and is in good shape, it could be free.

Thanks for the welcome Jeff..  Yeah that fish right there got me hooked for life.  Also my personal best at 11".  A monster for up here in northern Minnesota.  I caught it slip bobber fishing last spring. Around some flooded timber in 9' ft of water on a very clear lake (20+ ft visibility) in late May.  Water temps were probably upper 50's.  I got it back in the water after the pic.  Can you tell if its a female or male?  I figured it was a big male guarding a bed.

Man that sounds like a trip I'd like to take with my Brother Greg!Thanks Jeffrey!

Hi Jeff, Great to be friends!  I retired from Norfolk Naval (NEPD)  in Jan. 2009. Maybe we can get together for a fishing trip someday.

any where near bushy park?  I've hauled some monster bream out of there.

thank for the welcome bud. my best friend spent some time in agusta recently. im sure he found the fish. i'll see what kind of info i can find on the area

ok Jeffrey, i got a little info on agusta yesterday from my friend. he spent all his spare time there on clarks hill lake chasing trophy shellcrackers. he said it was outstanding. he mainly fishes small rivers and farm ponds like me so for him to spend that much time on such a large body of water it must be fairly speacial. i did a little research myself and found out clarks hill is considered one of the top shellcracker fisheries in the state, possibly the country. i might hafta make the 2 hour drive to see for myself this spring!

ive seen some good stringers from the savanah river. i'm seriously considering a clarks hill trip in early may this year...ive heard stories of the most beds ever seen in one spot...that excites me! happy holidays to you and yours as well.

Thanks for the direction to the thread. I would love to catch a bluegill anywhere close to that size.

Man, I'm dying to go fishing. I may take my son out to Merchants and wet a hook just to see what happens.

Well, think I'll skip fishing today, with this wind there's no way! The bait would be more like a kite...

   My  prime bream fishing place is the northern part of Lake Verett water tributaries and bayous and a close 2nd is the spillway.   Blind river and its tributaries is closer for me but the bream are a little smaller (just the right size for frying whole) but the seenry more than make up for it.         About  20 years ago I had a sailboat ( J 28 ) at Marina Del Ray in Madisonville, LA.   Gave up sailing  ---- switched to bream fishing  and crabbing.  Other hobbies --- like woodworking and gardening.   

   Yeap know where all that's at.  Have a brother-in-law that lives in Covington.  Goggle-eye is my favorite bream ---- especially catching them with a flyrod.  I live in Lutcher about mid-way between Baton Rouge and New Orleans on the east bank of the Mississippi River.

Hey Jeff,

Yeah, I found it and it looks like a great site! I will be sure to check it often. I try to hit a boat ramp when I pass it to put business cards on trucks, yours is not safe either! They are starting to catch speckles at Indiantown Creek!!! Stop in any time!

      2 years ago I  went fishing out that way in Bayou Lacombe ----- caught a lot of big bream / goggle-eye and small bass on the fly rod.

   so far weather wise OK  ----- but can use some rain 

Yeah shocked the heck outta me, I was just wanderin down the bank with my Fly Rod and I looked down and noticed that there were beds down there! After that I started noticing that all the Bream I caught were in their spawning colors. We have had a really short winter down here, it's already climbing into the low 80's during the day! I'll try and get some pics for you.

la ke perris ca 2010 I'll get you a pic as soon as i can  looking foward to spring hae lots picks of monster gills I'll down load to pc as soon as possible nice to see so many gillers

YEP YOU ARE LUCKY and look forward to seeing some more of your pics to Jeffrey. Thanks for all your previous comments on my bugs. When you like what you do it's not work at all >

Thanks Jeff. I love North Carolina. You have some great photos from the sound and i'm not sure if the whtie perch are biting yet here in the Roanoke River but I wouls sure love to catch them where you are. I live in Scotland Neck and I thought big bream were just something only seen on tv until I caught one. I've since been on a personal mission to catch more. Hopefully you guys can help me.

Jeff, I have fished the chowan river a couple of times. It's been a while since I have been to the outerbanks but they are never out of question when it comes to fishing. The only hinderance I really have to my mobility, is my newborn. My wife works long hours and so that leaves me to child rearing. I fish whenever plausible/possible. I am from newport news, va so I was raised up on salt water fishing. I like to try new things from time to time. Epecilally when it comes to freshwater fishing.

Thanks Jeff. I think I will make that trip up your way sometime soon. My daughter has become a fishergal/hunter and enjoys that water as much as I do. I took her today and she caught a couple 10" crappies.

Hey thanks for the welcome Bill Allen

 LOL ! Like I said,just started fresh water fishing myself :-(  The name Stumper comes from my Boy Scout days as a Assistant Scout Master  :-) and its my "handle" on the Louis L'Amour forum. Been to Binder Lake, live about a mile from it , it just outside of Jeff City Mo. Just moved to Mo from SD Calli , that was all salt water...DAA...LOL people here find it hard to believe I never fresh watered fish in Southern Cal , heck ! there aint none !!! Oh , there is and played around abit but thats all...anyway , Thanks for the welcome and am sure I'll get some good advice here  :-)     Stumper

hey Jeff,not an old man hahaha, enjoy your site

Robert

Not yet....fingers crossed though. I can see it on the radar, Isaac has come north, now he just needs to make that right turn they talked about!

Supposed to rain all day tomorrow, and all day Sunday....no fishing this weekend.... BUT THAT'S OK, just as long as we get some rain.

jeff how do i put pic on this site

Thanks Jeff you the man!

Thank Jeffrey, maybe we can get together and open a keg of nails sometimes.  Or some other useful activity like chasing gills, I had to give up chasing girls, my wofe didn't like it.

Thanks, I love making them almost as much as fishing them.  Hope he gets a trophy!

In a word...scary. I just don't trust the look of it this year. I think I'm growing old sure enough, (everybody warned me I would!), and my nerve is not what it used to be. Twenty years ago I would've walked all the way out on it, swung an axe between my feet to chop the hole, and started fishing. Now, I want to look at it, drill test holes, inspect a sample for air pockets, measure the thickness twice, (with two different tape measures), smell it, taste it, and submit a sample to a laboratory for failure analysis.... All before I even think about getting out on it.

It doesn't help that it stays just cold enough to prevent it from disappearing entirely, yet warm  enough that it doesn't get any thicker....aggravating.

I appreciate it....we'll see what Mother Nature has in store for the rest of this winter.

Hey Jeff, Jordan here..i was looking at some 10ft poles and realized how light the action was, is the 10 ft still heavy enough to pull say a 2lb 'gill from thick cover??

Yeah i can see how line size is most important, what 10 footer do you use?? i was looking into the bnm breambuster  but every review says you need to tie around the pole and run it through the eye or the eye will break off easy on this pole. Also was lookin at a mr crappie bream shaker, bnm little jewel, and bnm skeeter pole. Dont really know what the best one is just curious about which one you have?? Thanks Jeff

Okay thanks a bunch Jeff, i think i just need to quit worrying about which one to get and just get one lol but it will definitely be a BnM

was great to meet you last weekend....am greatly interested in coming down in may, or sooner, if you suggest, and try to fish for three days, or half days, with you, or if you have to work, by my self...also, could you recommend any members that fish deep creek lake, in md....thanks

Yesterday we hit the upper 70s down here.

I caught all those on tiny pieces of shrimp,all on the bottom in about 6 to 7ft of water.

hey jeff... hope to be down in a couple weeks with dennis...willl stay in williamston....hopefully get a bag of oysters and have a roast....maybe you and one of your buddies could come over and help get rid of them....also, tentativly firmed up date for to come down first week in may...with fishing buddy from up here....fish 3rd, 4th, 5th, and head home on mon 6th....actually, am ready to come down this afternoon....chomping at the bit...cant wait..

you  thank ed us for invite, but did not say if you could make it..,,bring a couple of friends.,,,,will let you know in advance about date and time,,,,,dennis and i are going out today and wed.,,temps in high 50's today, and near 70 wed,,,,,hopefully we can break that 1000 mark,,,,since dec start,,,

    You got it,anyone who enjoys fishing for gill as much as i do is automatically cool with me:)Plus i plan on trying artificials this yr for the 1st time and you seem to have it all down when it comes to that.

Im going to head out to the creek on saturday and see what i can pull out using both artificial and live.Ill post pics if i do any good.Hopefully i dont bring a skunk home:)

Thanks jeffrey