Bull Bluegill in NC

[Chris DiGiovanna]

Hi Folks,

I got bit by the fishing bug hard this past winter and am looking for some spots to catch some big bluegill in NC. The only place I've been able to find mentioned online is Richmond Mill Lake, but unfortunately, I can't justify the $600 per day price tag they're asking to fish there. Can anyone recommend some good places / techniques where I can take my kayak to in NC to chase some bull 'gills?

Thanks in advance.

Chris

[tracy willis]

there is a group on the site titled "north carolina fishing" that might help. im not familiar at all with NC although i was stationed at Bragg for a bit.

[Jeffrey D. Abney]

Hey Chris welcome to the site from another North Carolina member.............we have some great bluegill fishing in North Carolina...........I'm most familiar with the brackish coastal waters in the Albemarle and Pamlico Estuaries.........With the exception of extreme southeastern Virginia, we are at the northern end of the Coppernose (Florida) srtrain bluegill and they are abundant and fast growing..........Different folks have different "trophy" parameters for gills but I put a trophy at 10" or 1 pound and these are possible on many local rivers and creeks..............

Noticed you mentioned King Fisher Society and it is top shelf fishing but out of most people's budget range........NCWRC has a great website that you may already have found........it shows all the state public launches and a little about the waterway...........The lakes have gill populations but from all accounts that I have read over the years it doesn't compare to the coppernose fishery..........have you lived anywhere else or just Pittsboro?  Don't know how familiar you are with the state's waterways.......

[Chris DiGiovanna]

Hey Jeffrey, I've just lived in Pittsboro for the last 6 years, but really haven't made much of an attempt to do a lot of fishing in the area until this year. I've always been able to find bream / bluegill wherever I go pretty easily, but I'm just looking for some with size that are more consistent. My biggest so far was an 11" shellcracker I caught on a bed in the Haw River a few years back, but fish that size seem to be few and far between around here.... I don't mind traveling an hour or two if you think a particular fishery is worth it. Thanks.

Chris