A Prosperous 2014 Panfish Season To Date

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

 Not sure what all the contributing factors are but 2014 has been an amazing panfish season to date in Coastal North Carolina......Despite getting hit by a wave of tornadoes in late April and a brush by a CAT 2 hurricane on the 4th of July......this year has been productive since New Year's Day........I've already experienced quantity records for Black Crappie and the Summer bite continues to be incredible........I topped 3,000 Crappie earlier in July and sit at 3,151 as of 8/1/2014 with 617 of those fish at 13" or larger......Even July has been productive for Crappie with 417 crossing the decks........I'm also on a record pace for Bluegills but the remainder of 2014 will be very busy at work so the jury is still out........As of 8/1/2014, 3,619 gills have been caught this year on the Albemarle with 1,470 10" class fish or better......It has been a blast getting several new folks out with me to wet a line and of course our traditional Abney Family Vacation was special again this year......Here's a few pictures I put together to look back on this great season........Let's hope the rest of the year is just as good......

 All the rivers on the Albemarle have healthy populations of Black Crappie.....Anything of 13" or better is a River Slab in my opinion.....most fish are in the 10 to 12 inch class with fish up to 16" routinely caught in these waters,

99 percent of the speckled perch in these rivers are Black.......very few White Crappie in the rivers of the Albemarle......

A Solid Crappie Daily Double from Early May on the Albemarle......

Even in the heart of the Summer we find quality fish in the shallows on flooded cuypress....

May delivered as usual....

I love it when the Big Gills and Crappies are packed in together....usually occurs in early May...

Quality Coppernose dominate our brackish water rivers.....

A Classic Coppernose Daily Double....

Memorial Day weekend produced this nice pair.....

Caught in the same area a big bull shark was caught last summer....

Remember this region is only 10 miles from the Atlantic Ocean....

My nephew Dan caught his personal best gill back in June at 1 pound 12 ounces......a great fish that will probably go to Tim Overbaugh....

My Avatar picture comes from the most productive water I fish for large bluegills.......

I owe my success in this body of water to all the information I got from a man almost 90 years old....

This monarch gill comes from a location that I save every year for just 4 to 6 trips to minimize pressure and optimize the trophy gills that reside there......an amazing place to fish and I'm usually sleepless the night before......Going back there at least one more time this summer....

And finally earlier this week after work on Tuesday......I crossed paths with my best gill of 2014 and what a tribute to the waters I fish year round.....A great season and I still have five months......incredible fishing this year for sure........

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

My only goal for 2015 is to go HALF as often as you!
Great montage, Jeff.
Lotta work - thanks for sharing.

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

Thanks David.....we need to wet a line together in one of the Carolinas....lol......I'm fond of both the North and the South if you know what I mean!

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Agreed on all counts

[John Foro]

Awesome pics...wish I was there

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

Thanks John......look me up if you get down this way.......

[mike martinez]

If i could fish with Jeffrey just one time.......i know at the end of the day i'd be a better fisherman.

[DAVID L EITUTIS]

MIKE YA HIT IT RIGHT ON THE HEAD !!!!! WE WOULD ALL BE BETTER FISHERMAN TO BE IN THE RED CHARIOT JUST ONCE IN OUR LIFETIMES.... BEEN A GOAL OF MINE SINCE THE FIRST TIME I MET JEFFREY ON HERE , and maybe one day I'll be lucky enough to fish with "SIR JEFFREY"

  JEFFREY I HOPE that label I placed on ya last year is appreciated cause it's meant in all sincerity and saw some one on here the other day use it and it brought a smile to my face in TROY GROVE , buddy.......
   Congrats again and till we meet one day SIR JEFFREY .........

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

Thanks Tooty.........having spent most of my adult life as a career Submariner........Sir Jeffrey is one of the mildest nicknames I've been tagged with........Bubblehead or Bottom Gunner, maybe Tubes.......the list goes on and on..........we just got to get you down here!

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

Thanks Mike.....truth be told I could learn from everyone here as well.....that's the beauty of the angling community, everyone holds those little secrets until they are in the presence of other anglers where they feel they can communicate freely and enjoy FISHING.......that makes me tick and I thank my family every day for tolerating my "fishing life"..................

[Jim Gronaw]

Those numbers and quality are off the charts. But as I have said and will stand by my claim, this region is, in my opinion, the Bluegill Capitol of the World. More water, rivers, swamps, guts feeders and cypress...just a huge area that any panfisher would love to fish!

And I thought I was doing good with 2700 so far this season...sheeeesh!

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

Thanks Jim.....I'm truly glad I found this site several years ago so I can enjoy my favorite past time with folks that share that common interest.  Your testimony here serves to inspire both the experienced angler and the beginner. Not only do you have a lifetime of fishing knowledge you have the willingness to share especially with our youth and for that I'm truly thankful to consider you a friend....We've only fished together on one weekend when many would have given up from adverse conditions, but just as I had suspected, you hung in there and we put together an eventful weekend. I thank you for recognizing our North Carolina tidal waters as ou often do and I hope we are on the water again soon......

[dink dailey]

you should be thankful for the great fishing areas that you have. I miss those areas I had in Michigan,az is tough to find those kind of places for gills that are close buy my house.