Pachuckles
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Panfish fishing before ice up ??
From now till the lakes ice up, will there be any good fishing for Bluegills or Crappies? You need to wear life jackets/preservers from Nov. till April for fishing in a boat. I've still got some crawlers that I picked up this spring. Save them for icefishing? I suppose ice jigs and grubs would be the thing to use. Right? Just wondering....any thoughts??
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Pork
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/10/30 16:42:46
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Only need to wear the pfd on boats less than 16' in length, and all canoes & kayaks. Hog gills hit good last Thursday. Was a beaut of a day too! :) Suspended right along the weed edge on the drop-offs... Gulp mini, on a chart. ant, set 10' below a slip float did it for me. Same body of water we talked about this past spring, just a bit deeper.;)
"If you ever get hit with a bucket of fish, be sure to close your eyes." ><)))*>
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mr.crappie
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/10/30 17:29:51
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We have been doing very well on bullgills up to & over 11",also doing well on Crappie,tho not the # of slabs that we usualy get this time of year. As a bonus doing o.k. on perch, although I am fishing a little high for them.Water temps are great for most everything now so it's hard to pick.Very seldom do I mess with bait when plastic works so well most of the time.When the water gets colder try fishing closer to the top. Esp. keep an eye out for bugs rising ion the early afternoon. Then about 4pm things normaly pick up,just like on the ice. btw was surprised to hook a bluegill about 1/2" also a small bass about 4". sam
post edited by mr.crappie - 2012/10/30 18:32:40
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rippinlip
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/10/30 17:37:06
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I hardly ever bother with bait anymore either.This has been an off year for me for the bigger Crappies. I hope it picks up.
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shrodreel
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/21 14:22:42
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Hey Mr. Crappie - Any chance of a foto or two of one of those 11"+ bluegills your getting ? I got one just over 9" this past summer and I thought that was a big gill....
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mr.crappie
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/21 17:15:13
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SHRODREEL, Sorry,although I also like to look at picts,I almost never carry a camera & don't have a cell phone that can take picts. Wouldn't do me any good if I did as I always leave the phone in the truck.BTW in case you are intrested,while jigging for trout we are still catching gills & perch right before dark. sam
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Big Tuna
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/22 13:04:52
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I'm 60 years old and fish some of the best public and private lakes in Pa. and only get a handful of Gills over 10 inches every year,!00's from 9 to 9.5 but not many 10's not to mention 11 plus.
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XtopwaterkingX
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/22 19:47:26
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I got one gill at 11 inch so far this year. Throwin a bigger in line spinner for trout haha
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shrodreel
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/22 20:51:23
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I'm 68 yrs old ....I still ain't never seen an 11" + bluegill caught in Pa...I haven't even seen a 10" gill..I know you guys don't want to disclose your hot spots...so maybe you could just lay one of them 10"-11" bluegills on a ruler and take a picture of it for me...That's the only way I guess I'll ever see one...
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chauncy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/23 08:16:11
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shrodreel I'm 68 yrs old ....I still ain't never seen an 11" + bluegill caught in Pa...I haven't even seen a 10" gill..I know you guys don't want to disclose your hot spots...so maybe you could just lay one of them 10"-11" bluegills on a ruler and take a picture of it for me...That's the only way I guess I'll ever see one...
Have to agree with you on this one. Seen a few 10's but never an 11. How many years would it take for it to grow that size up north? I've caught some down at Ky lake years ago but never up this way.
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Bogeyjoker
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/23 10:50:19
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I've stocked Georgia giants hybrid bluegills in my pond that grow over 3#s...The largest I've ever seen was one a hair over 10" and a hair under 2#. Not saying it's not possible, just that I'd like to see an 11"+ gill in PA.
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shrodreel
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/23 15:24:20
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Not accusing anyone ...but me thinks some of these guys have "elastic" measuring tapes...you can kind of make that fish "grow" a cupple inches simply by pulling the ends of the tape...if you get my drift...I say a 9" gill is a BIG gill for Pa...and I don't think they get much bigger...
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XtopwaterkingX
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/23 17:34:08
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I was fishing a local sportsmans club pond that gets stocked with trout. Got a few gills at 8-9 inch while targeting them. But the 11 inch was on a larger in line spinner i was throwing for trout. Seems i catch fish like that while not targeting them with "traditional" baits. The biggest crappie i ever got in PA was at Keystone Lake and i took the kids bass fishing with shiners, 16.25 inch.
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XtopwaterkingX
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/23 17:39:55
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Every year the top 5 largest turned in for angler awards are 10-12 inches. Who knows about the ones the arent turned in.
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spoonchucker
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/23 17:51:22
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".but me thinks some of these guys have "elastic" measuring tapes...you can kind of make that fish "grow" a cupple inches simply by pulling the ends of the tape...if you get my drift..." That would actually make the fish measure SMALLER. Think about it.
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slabdaddy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/25 18:09:44
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spoonchucker
".but me thinks some of these guys have "elastic" measuring tapes...you can kind of make that fish "grow" a cupple inches simply by pulling the ends of the tape...if you get my drift..."
That would actually make the fish measure SMALLER. Think about it.
HHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHA! This is why I read EVERYTHING you write!
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slabdaddy
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mr.crappie
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/25 20:55:56
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Slabdaddy, Great picts.,bet you & your son had a lot of laughs with those gills. This has been the best year for gills that I can remember,even took my mind off of Crappie for a while. Thanks for sharing. sam
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slabdaddy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/26 09:27:24
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Sam, my son and I had a blast! With all of the stuff he's dealing with, fishing really seems to calm him down. He's caught plenty of 11" gills. I'm really suprised that so many people on here have never seen a gill bigger than 10". Here's a tip: If you are into the gills and using little bait, you will catch little gills. Try fishing a medium fathead on a 1/32oz jighead for gills. Also try a 1" Gulp Alive minnow. Bigger baits will get you bigger gills. A smaller bait will get nailed by all of the dinks before a bigger fish has a chance to grab it. I agree that this has been a great year for gills. I can't wait to try them out under the ice. This time of year they are a lot deeper than they are throughout the year. I'll look in 12-15 FOW right now if I'm targeting big gills. There are still plenty of them out there.
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bcain
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/26 22:47:09
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I have a question. i recently got back into fishing after a long hiatus. I used to only fish for trout. I really enjoy fishing for panfish. What are some techniques for fishing all throughout the winter. I fish from shore only. I am only talking about if the lakes don't freeze over like last year since I don't ice fish.
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slabdaddy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/27 09:34:08
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The best advice I can give you is to fish your bait on a small jig head below a slip bobber. Try different depths until you find them. Fish off-shore brushpiles and structure if you can find it. Try minnows, Gulp Alive Minnows, maggots, mealworms, redworms, and waxworms.
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TheBlueLagoon
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/27 09:55:04
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1/32 jig head, spring bobber or slip your chooosing, find any down trees, brush piles ect...I've found the Berkley gulp minnows fish just as well as live bait "black shad" working the best. As Slab said the key is altering your depth until you're where the fish are. Pan fishing can be a lot of fun. Use a ultra light and 4lb test and you'll have some fun.
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TheBlueLagoon
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/27 10:08:24
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btw completely missed the pics before I posted last, but that's a bad as$ group of gills you got there! NICE CATCH and always good to see the kids having a blast.
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Bull Lifter
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/27 18:46:38
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Those are some nice gills slab daddy. but i'd rather see a tape measurement then a cope can. just saying.
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slabdaddy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/27 18:59:57
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Bull Lifter
Those are some nice gills slab daddy. but i'd rather see a tape measurement then a cope can. just saying.
LOL! I gotcha. It's just that I don't always have a tape, but I ALWAYS got my Cope! I know where there are a few more that size and bigger. I'm hoping to hit them through the ice with my boys. I've been promising them an ice fishing trip for two years now. Hopefully we get some ice this year and I can get them all the way in to my secret spot. I'm not walking 2 miles down a lake to get there. If I can't find an overland route, those gills will wait til the spring. When I get more, I'm gonna make sure that I get pics with a ruler. I know a very public lake that has lots of 10" gills. IDK why nobody targets them. I guess everyone is too busy chasing perch and slabs. I bet there's more meat on a 10" gill than there is on a 12" crappie.
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bcain
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/27 22:19:04
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Thanks for the tips. Sounds pretty much like the way I fish for them in the Spring and Summer.
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Big Tuna
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/28 08:28:30
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That Gill that you think is 12" and 2 lbs is not, maybe a 10 and weigh 12-14 oz. I caught plenty 9.5 -10.25 and never had one weigh ove 1.25 lbs. I don't post pics but my son does,I'll post pics with the tape next to them,and show you a ten. I fish deep water weed line throught the ice 12-15 fow and caught hundereds of bulls through the ice every year but there 9.5 -10 every year and not many 10's like manybe 3 or 4 a season,and maybe big bait is good for you but not for me.I fish gin clear water and Gill Pill in size 14 work well on wise bulls,also fish a lot of plastics fished clean on 100oz jig heads,and seldon fish mono over 1 or 2 lb test. Go to ICESHANTY.COM our pics are under Captain 54 or Bull Lifter.
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slabdaddy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/28 10:00:18
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That pic does not do that gill justice, but think what you want. It wasn't 2#, but it was over 1.5# and it is bigger than what you think. I almost never get to fish gin clear water. Most of lakes I fish are actually reservoirs and as such are cloudy. Perhaps that's why the bigger baits work better for me. IDK. I never said that I was catching them through the ice either. All of those gills were caught in open water. I still have a lot to learn about ice fishing. Big Tuna, I'll make you a deal. I'll take you to one of my secret spots where there are huge gills if you teach me some secrets about ice fishing for big gills. I don't have any trouble catching them in open water, but when the ice hits, I can't seem to find them with any regularity. A little guidance would sure be helpful.
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crappiefisher
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/29 01:01:34
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Pachuckles
From now till the lakes ice up, will there be any good fishing for Bluegills or Crappies? You need to wear life jackets/preservers from Nov. till April for fishing in a boat. I've still got some crawlers that I picked up this spring. Save them for icefishing? I suppose ice jigs and grubs would be the thing to use. Right? Just wondering....any thoughts?? From the last week in Oct. 'til the 2nd week ov Nov. caught well over 800 slabs, 150 Perch, many L/M over 17" some Pike a few Gills & some Cats in the 28 - 32" range. Didn't get out much after that but the bite was still purdy good when made the time to get out. crappy
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slabdaddy
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Re:Panfish fishing before ice up ??
2012/11/29 09:26:03
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Wow man. Sounds like you've had an amazing fall season. Good for you.
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