IceShanty.com's Ice Fishing Community
Montana => Ice Fishing Montana => Topic started by: lingslayer on Feb 03, 2008, 03:37 PM
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has anyone everever caught any bluegills through the ice?and if so where is a good place to try and what are some good baits or jigs to try.any info is greatly appreciated. :) :) :)
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catch lots of gills every year! just a jig and a wax worm thats it ;D
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Might try the bluegill section of this web site if you havn't yet. Lots of info there.
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There are very few gills in MT, so I don't know where you'd got to target um ??? Tongue river res? I think that res near Pablo has some and also I know a pond near coalstrip has some in it. Other than that I'm not sure where else has um? I'm sure there are a few more spots, but not many.
Gills are great through the ice. Fish small genz worms and ice jigs with waxies. Use spring bobbers as often times they bite very soft, especially the big bull gills! An 8" gill puts up a heck of a fight, pound for pound they are one of the hardest fighting fish. People say smallies fight like hell, and they do, but I think gills put up an even bigger fight for their size. Also lots of meat on an 8" gill, much more than on an 8" perch.
If you can find a good population of nice gills you'll have a ball. Look for them associated with some structure, (weedbeds, fish cribs, ect).
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I have only got into the gills once in Montana. That was at Seeley Lake. I was fishing from shore at the canoe launch at the ranger station. They were really nice gills. I would imagine that you could catch them through the ice there too. I was just using a worm on a plain hook.
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Gills bit best right at dark in the winter.Small tear drop wax worm 2 to 4 pound line.You can find them from the bottom to a foot below the ice.
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Frenchtown pond near missoula has a lot of gills but they are mostly really small.
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I have tried Frenchtown in the past and it really isn't worth your time. I had fun cause I just bought a new camera, but if you're looking for good sized sunnies, that is not the spot. I would love to tell you where there are some, but I have been chasing rumors for two years myself trying to find some. I haven't tried Seeley before, but will probably now. I am from the midwest though and big gills are everywhere around--spoiled I guess.
If I make it to Seeley, I will be sure and post the results.
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I remember snorkeling Seeley when I was a kid and seeing lots of blue gills. They are there. Have fun finding them. I also heard there is a pond in Bozeman that has them. There is a pond in Helena that has pumkin seeds in it but they are pretty small.
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I've been told there are pumpkinseeds in Beavertail Pond, but haven't iced any, yet!
Pyro
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there used to be some in beavertail pond but havent saw any there in years.so who knows.
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I remember snorkeling Seeley when I was a kid and seeing lots of blue gills. They are there. Have fun finding them. I also heard there is a pond in Bozeman that has them. There is a pond in Helena that has pumkin seeds in it but they are pretty small.
The mall pond in Bozeman has them, but they aren't that big, good place to go with kids, plus FWP dumps monster rainbows in there for the kids derby they have and I have caught some around 5 lbs while wasting a day where I couldn't make it to Canyon Ferry and back.
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i have caught a few on placid.
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I've caught a few out of Blanchard near Whitefish.
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Those out of Blanchard............ were they bluegills or red eared sunfish??? There are some crappies in Blanchard as well, but all I've seen out of there are sunny's.
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I've been told there are pumpkinseeds in Beavertail Pond, but haven't iced any, yet!
Pyro
I caught some there this summer, along with some tiny perch. they're in there, but very few and very small, but where there are small ones, there are big ones too.
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EXCELLENT NEWS!!! I'll spend somemore time looking for them this winter. There are good perch as well and some nice pike if you can get them to take a dead fish. The crappies are growing. If I can find the 'gills, I'll post it.
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Actually the sunfish you guys are catching out of Frenchtown pond, seeley, placid and other lakes in the Missoula area are not Bluegills but rather pumpkinseeds. Frenchtown is chocked full and stunted. Placid has some good sized ones but far less numerous. But Pumkinseeds don't get nearly as big as bluegill, but you can still find some good ones in some lakes.
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Hopefully this will clear up some confusion. It seems like most fishermen I've met in Montana don't know the difference between these fish. Here is a little chart that makes it a bit easier to ID these tasty little buggers!
These are jigs, but the fish look legit.
(http://i417.photobucket.com/albums/pp256/purozuki/Fishin/MattluresUltimateBluegillSereisColorChart.jpg)
Pyro
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I've caught a few out of Blanchard near Whitefish.
are you sure?????????????????????????????????????????
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are you sure?????????????????????????????????????????
Yes. Not a common occurence but get a few once in awhile. They are the pumpkinseeds I guess and not technically bluegills but there are a few in there.
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Ya, there are pumpkinseeds in Blanchard. Black crappie as well.
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There are a lot of pumpkin seeds in MT, (seeley, ronan, lots of ponds, pretty common really), but they don't get nearly as big as bluegill, at least I've never seen them get very big anywhere. There are some bluegills in MT, but not very widespread. Not really in any 'common' lakes that I know of, but I would bet there are probably some in Fort Peck somewhere along with every other fish species in the Northwest. I know of some stock reservoirs in Eastern MT that have them and caught them last summer. But I can't get to those spots this winter due to the large amount of snow we have this year.