11" Bluegill Pursuit??

[fishlessyooper]

I have a few lakes in my area that contain 11" bluegill in them; they are all 200 acres or less in size. Lakes are all 50' or less in depth.  I use a standard 20 degree transducer flasher (not the fancy one mile radius side & down scan models), have a old handheld gps & hand colorized paper lake maps.  I have a basic idea of where the weed beds are in the lakes & also look at the topography surrounding the lakes.  I usually fish the 10'-30' depths; so with the 20 degree transducer I'm only looking at 4'-11' radius of the bottom.  If you had side scan would the radius be 30'-90'?  How many holes would you drill & how far apart would you space them looking for bluegills of this size?  Would you concentrate on one lake at a time until you found the fish?  I realize that fish of this size are nomads by nature; also I catch & release these fish.  I'm in my 60's & usually fish alone (nobody around here likes to sit outside & hole hop); don't own a snowmobile or atv.  I realize that maybe I've become archaic in my ice fishing methods (still love to do jigsaw puzzles) in this new technology based methodology for ice fishing.  I've always loved to ice fish & thought it was supposed to be fun & relaxing.  Any ideas/input anyone has would be appreciated.  Be safe on the ice this season.  Jeff
(P.S. I have a rotary dial 3-way party-line cell phone & take polaroids of fish released)

[taxi1]

A fishfinder will find suspended bluegills for you and save you a lot of time. Also allow you to watch your bait and any fish around it.

[rivereddy]

Yeah Buddy... The airplane mode icon on my flipper is a biplane..... Good luck on your search for 11" 'gills.
they do exist in our neck of the woods but are true trophies indeed.

fish on,

rivereddy

[PoleJerker]

11" gills Rooting for ya Good luck

[Ice_Fly_Guy]

11" gills are a rarity indeed, and should be treated no differently than a 30" walleye, IMO.  I guess my only input would be to try shallow to mid-depth areas during early ice.  If you find them there, you may be able to slowly move out to deeper water with them as the winter goes on and oxygen levels in the shallows wane.  However, I fish a 10 acre pond with the majority of it being 10-12 feet deep, and I find the big gills in 7-8 foot quite often all year around.  I've also found that sometimes the biggest fish require the smallest offerings I have to get bit. 

[RyanW]

When I’m in search mode, I usually space out my holes by about ten paces. I’ll drill in the pattern of the “5” side of a die. Doesn’t matter how big or deep the lake is. Having said that, depending on how shallow the water is, I’ll usually drill more holes at one time as to not spook any fish in the area every 5 minutes drilling holes. Over 15’+ I’ll drill a “5” at a time, use my sonar and fish those holes for 5-10 minutes, if nothing, I’ll swing the transducer in the hole to try to “side scan” the area and then make an educated decision on which direction to go in to drill another “5”.

It really helps to know the body of water you’re on so you’ve got a leg up on that. Next is making sure you’re on top of them. If you know they are in there, you’ll find them. Might take some work but you got it! When chasing big bull gills, don’t sit on unproductive holes. Find those hogs! But you also have to make sure to fish the entire column in each hole. Sometimes the monsters are hugging real tight to the bottom and your flasher will just register it as bottom since they are so tight against it. A hole might look empty until you drop a jig to the bottom.

Having said all of that, I’ve had a hole 3’ away make all the difference in the world. Knowing that, it’s always been a little tough to judge how far away my next hole should be. 10 paces is far enough away to be a “new” location but still close enough that if the bite turns on, you can bridge that gap between a few holes to keep the school tighter and in location for longer.

[Unclegillhunter]

According to the research I have done it do look like side scan will do you any good. You need to be moving for it to work. Now if you are talking about the Garmin that is a different animal. Have fun in your search! Let’s us know when you are successful!
Keep it safe! JDL

[hardwater diehard]

Big movements find fish ..small movements catch fish ..spot on the spot approach ..fish higher in the water column too ..I find the bigger gills are usually mixed in with the crappies ..so the earlier morning/evening approach can land some bigger gills ...bigger baits can keep the smaller ones at bay  ..but BIG fish eat little presentations too. Fish the ice season in progress ..shallow at first ice and move out ..this season may have to adjust it some ..not based on calendar but on weather conditions in your area.

[river_scum]

I shoot threw the ice with vex, if I can, to search. take a soda bottle full of water with ya.

good luck on the 11.  they are out there in the rite lakes.

[marmooskapaul]

Natural or man made lakes? Feeder creeks/river? I’d find the biggest feed into the lake and find the grass in that area then check how deep grass goes. Look for big gills moving in and out of grass morning/evening.

[Spider1]

wow! an 11" gill!!!! good luck on your hunt, my best gill so far was almost 9 1/2"... I can't even picture an 11" gill!

[bigfoot86]

I love fishing for big gills, one of my favorite things to try and snatch thru the ice.  Don't mind landing a nice slab crappie, jumbo perch or big bass on the ice but to me I have a special place in my heart for a monster gill.  I've been fortunate to break the hit or break the 10" mark in my lifetime a couple times with my biggest being almost 10 1/2" but not quite (prob about 10 7/16" to be exact).  That gill looked like a freak thing, all I could do was sit there and laugh but that fish made my day and I'll never forget that.  And most of my fish go back to see another day, especially the bigger fish.

I wish you the best of luck on your quest for the elusive 11" gill.  They are around in some lakes or maybe even in a pond but like others have said it starts at a lake where you have a healthy population of good size gills to begin with. 

[Old Goat]

I've caught some 11 inch gills but not one through the ice good luck

[rivereddy]

Here in the midwest, an 11 inch bluegill is a true trophy fish. 
Redear sunfish are another story. 11" is still a trophy, but the
odds are more in your favor.

It's ironic, given the bad rap on coal mining these days, that the
best shot at a huge Hoosier gill comes from fishing old stip mine pits.
In the 70's and 80's reclaimation protocals allowed for the creation
of long slender ponds/pits.  These were stocked with the usual 
midwestern fare of crappies, LMB, channel cats, gills and redear.
These bodies of water produced explosive growth rates and truly
imppressive panfish.  When fishing peaked in the 90's, 9-10 inch
sunfish were relatively common and a shot at a bigger speciman
was always a possibility.  The natural aging process of these pits,
(weed proliferation etc), makes it more of a challenge these days,
but they still give up some mighty nice fish.

That said, if one hits Kentucky Lake at the right time,  there are some
pie plate sized redears to be had.

fish on,  still searching for that "47 pound" bluegill, fish off

rivereddy

[marmooskapaul]

The most 10" gills I've ever experienced came from a relative smaller lake +/- 200 acres after it was killed off and restocked. That first generation of gills was unbelievable. If you know of a lake recently restocked keep your eye on it.

[marknpanfish]

After twenty five years of trying for a ten inch plus we found a good lake. I caught an eleven. That day we released about fifteen over ten. I did mount the eleven. Now l have mixed feelings about killing it.

[Seamonkey84]

I’m still going for a true bluegill that is over 9”, I did get a hybrid that was .67lb but didn’t measure length (scale but no tape that day  ). Sad part was, there was a fish a few inches bigger right next to him but couldn’t relocate him.

[DR.SPECKLER]

Get a few 10”s every year but never caught a 11” on any public water.i would think at that big they would not be in schools of smaller fish but loners and smart.ive got all kinds of 11 and bigger hybrid gills in my pond but have never seen a 11” true gill in my life.

[marmooskapaul]

After twenty five years of trying for a ten inch plus we found a good lake. I caught an eleven. That day we released about fifteen over ten. I did mount the eleven. Now l have mixed feelings about killing it.

Great gill! I wouldn’t worry too much about keeping it, probably going to die of old age soon??

[Ice_Fly_Guy]

Seems like the consensus is 10"+ is attainable, but 11" is a fish of a lifetime.

[taxi1]

Here is the largest bluegill I have ever taken in during the 36 years I've been in the taxidermy business. Believe it or not it's 12 1/2 inches in length. Was caught last fall in a Michigan lake (Sorry angler did not volunteer what lake).




Here is it is in mounting process:



That said I have only mounted probably 4 or 5 pure strain (not hybrid) bluegills in my 36 years 11 inches or over. Clear Lake in Steuben County of Michigan has produced two or three. For some reason the UP of Michigan has produced some 11 or over too.

[wlatrout]

I started fishing a lake in No. Wisc.about 50 yrs. ago. Back then we caught pounders regularly. Don't remember exactly how long they were but I do remember that we caught a lot of fish over 10 ". Fast forward to 2019 we get 9 and 9 1/2  occasionally and once in a while a 10" fish.  These fish are much thicker and deeper then our fish here in No. Ind.

[Seamonkey84]

When you get below the ice belt (people who don’t frequent this site  ) there are some monster gills, like ones over 2lb in Florida.

[river_scum]

IN. has plenty of 11" gills don't be fooled.  most gill fishermen still fish shallow in Indiana though.  the ones that do fish deep find those 10-11" fish fairly regular.  a lot more lakes hold 10"+ fish, from what I have found, than people think. i could name at least a dozen lakes that produce monsters in northern IN.  personally I would rather have a sack of 7-9"ers for the plate.  those monsters knocking at deaths door tend to be mealy. imo

imo, bed raping idiots do the most damage to the monsters in IN.

this isn't an "Indiana topic" though. different areas of the country have drastically different fisheries.  an 11" gill mite be unheard of in some places, for whatever reasons. they live where you find them.

[Old Goat]

No need to go below the ice belt for a 2.5 lb. gill. A kid here in town caught one here a long time ago that made the paper with pic. I've tried to find it but have not yet. If I do I'll post a pic of it with the article. I new the guy he was someone who fished almost every day. He was young and has since passed away but you could put him in a parking lot and he'd find fish.

[Ice_Fly_Guy]

imo, bed raping idiots do the most damage to the monsters in IN.

This is largely why we rarely see bluegills in my part of Iowa over 10".  There is one lake near me in which you have a pretty good shot at a 10+.  That is only the case because it has mostly very steep banks, so the shore access is really limited.  It's also pretty deep and clear, so it can be a mystery to figure out, on ice or in a boat.  It gets little pressure, so those big boys are allowed to get bigger undisturbed.

[marknpanfish]

I won't name lakes, but the shallow in Nebraska sandhill lakes can produce some big bluegill. But you have to put your time in. Just remember anything over 10 inch is a special fish.

[SHaRPS]

Wow, I caught a ton of 11" plus bluegills here in RI, one after another. They were mixed in with 13-14" crappie.

[river_scum]

seen some absolute monsters from Arizona on the net also.

[taxi1]

Wow, I caught a ton of 11" plus bluegills here in RI, one after another. They were mixed in with 13-14" crappie.

If it's anything like Massachusetts most anglers there would rather catch a 10 inch stocked trout, so there isn't the pressure on them there is in other states.

Here's a close to 3 pound Mass bluegill. Not a hybrid.