The Spring Bull Bluegill Formula

If you're looking for a powerful fishing technique here is the spring bull bluegill formula by Matt Johnson As anglers we find ourselves looking for a reason behind the decisions we make. We want to justify that the decisions we make will have a positive outcome on our day of fishing. Let’s face it; we don’t want to make decisions that result in a poor day of fishing. So we analyze the situation and make the best decision based on the given conditions. We start to build a pattern and then execute that pattern. Right or wrong, we tell ourselves—through our gut instincts—that these specific moves will help us catch more spring bull bluegill. Sometimes we turn towards our network of fishing buddies to help guide us, other times we just wing-it and hope for the best, but regardless of path we still try to use our best judgment to gain the desired outcome. With spring bull bluegill, we often over-analyze the situation and make the decisions tougher than they need to be. With panfish there are simple formulas for success, especially during the spring. Let temperature be your guide. If I had to pick one season where temperature plays the most ...

May Means Crankbaits On The Tennessee River Chain

May Means Crankbaits On The Tennessee River Chain By Abe Smith Basketball fans have their “March Madness,” but there’s madness in May, too, on the storied reservoirs of the Tennessee River. It’s time for Crankbait Madness. “By mid-May, bass are done spawning and they come out from the shallows and gang up on offshore structure to recuperate,” notes Jimmy Mason, Bassmaster pro who also guides throughout the Tennessee River system. “And a crankbait is a dynamite tool to locate and catch them. Get a school fired up, and you can catch them cast after cast!” Timmy Horton used crankbaits on the Tennessee River waters of Guntersville, Wheeler, Wilson, Chickamauga and Pickwick as springboards to his Bassmaster Elite Series career. “In May bass start schooling in the creeks,” echoes Horton. “I like to find them with a crankbait as they start coming out toward the main lake.” Though largemouth bass predominate on the river system, the Tennessee River impoundments along the Mississippi, Tennessee and Alabama borders also produce some of the largest smallmouth bass found anywhere. Pickwick is the most well known and Horton cut his teeth there. He said that at times both species can be caught using crankbaits on the Tennessee River from the ...

After Bite – Post-spawn Crappies

Forget the fallacies… Anybody can find and catch post-spawn crappies with the right electronics and gear By Mitch Eeagan Early in the spring season, before the urge to procreate was great, post-spawn crappies gathered together in massive schools and were fairly easy to locate and catch. When spawning is in full swing, those same fish move back into the shallows, where antagonistic strikes from aggressive adults guarding eggs are simple to conjure up – so much so it might be prudent to leave well enough alone and let life happen without interruption. But soon the post-spawn crappies period will be upon us and catching these most desired fish will be tough. Or at least that’s what the majority of anglers think. The truth is, it’s not that the fish are unwilling to eat, but rather they have spread out and, although are feeding veraciously to make up for energy lost during the spawn, aren’t willing to move much to wolf down morsels as they once were. What’s the key to catching success after procreation takes place? Locating post-spawn crappies with pinpoint accuracy is number one. And that isn’t as hard nowadays when a boat’s rigged with the right electronics. And then ...

Ice-out panfish for the shore bound angler – By Wayne Ek

In my region it happens somewhere around late March or early April; the ice starts to pull away from main lake shorelines. When it happens streams, creeks and culverts start to run hard with melting snow or rain. Finally, it’s time to chase ice-out panfish. At this time of year you don’t even need a boat; in fact fishing from shore may be more productive. Now is the time to be mobile and willing to jump from lake to lake, culvert to culvert or backwater to backwater. You need a full tank of gas and a willingness to check as many fishing locations as possible. You also need to keep it simple, no live bait, no stringers, no arsenal of rods or multiple boxes of lures. The simpler and less cluttered you can make this, the more successful you’re going to be. What to look for: The main criteria for this type of fishing is to have a number of fishing spots that are close to roads or other access points. None of the spots that I fish are more than a 50-yard walk from my truck. And make sure that the lakes you’re going to scout or try are good panfish ...

Winter Strategies for Spring Success

by Garett Svir The ice season is coming to an end but don’t throw out the larva or put away the ice fishing jigs quite yet. You might find success using winter strategies for spring success. After ice out, crappies will start to make their way from the deep water haunts of winter to shallow black bottom bays. It’s not spawning time. These fish are searching for the buffet line. Black bottom bays soak up the heat of the sun like a sponge and hold bug hatches necessary to start the food chain. Crappies sneak in on warm days for a quick meal long before the spawn begins. While minnows are a great producer once water temperatures have warmed, ice out slabs require finesse presentations. I think the experiment stemmed from my unpreparedness for the coming season. Winter jig boxes and larva somehow made their way into the boat one spring morning. Now I never leave them behind and don’t think you will want to either. Predictable locations make searching for crappies at ice out fairly basic. Bays located on the northern end of lakes warm up first and see the first signs of life. Feeder creeks can also hold insect ...

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