Most people have some favorite fishing memories from their childhood.
And when I hear old anglers recounting yarns, I tread gingerly, lest I disturb the cadence of their tunes.
I drift into the past, recalling my Uncle Bill and his uncanny ability to fashion a fish hook out of a safety pin, whittle a willow branch into a whip-like rod, tie a knot in a catgut line that wouldn’t slip.
I can remember schools of fish, all minnow-size and feeding in a frenzy on crumbs like piranhas.
It was fun.
It was an adventure.
After a spring rain, any old creek bank could be transformed into a magical place.
In my mind’s eye, I still can smell the slimy earthworms, hear the lazy warble of a songbird, or feel the confused murmur of a rippling stream.
I can remember lazy afternoons, watching a red-and-white plastic bobber, motionless, while a dozen small sunfish paused to study a writhing mealworm.
Once, an old gentleman offered me 10 cents for each of the 10 petite bluegills on my tow string. I politely accepted his offer.
I can remember fishing for my own supper a time or two. Running home with a string of bluegills was a way of proving oneself to one’s family. In time, though, like the majority of anglers, I developed a preference for a specific kind of game fish: trout, bass, walleye, and musky.
These glamour species would come and go.
But the bluegills provided more angling enjoyment and contributed to more childhood fish fries than all the other filets put together.
Catching bluegills from a rural stream is how I learned to hone my angling skills.
Without the bluegill experience, I could not have grown to appreciate the other kinds of fishing pleasures.
Hundreds of thousands of bluegills are caught each year in West Virginia.
They are found throughout the state in ponds, lakes, and slow-moving streams.
They feed primarily on insects, crustaceans, and small fish.
Bluegills are easy to catch and their widespread distribution makes them seem available to practically everyone.
Catch rates for large bluegills are highest in May and June, when water temperatures approach 65 degrees.
Almost any fishing outfit can be used to catch bluegills, but ultra-light spinning tackle is the best choice for most occasions.
Fly rods are preferred by many anglers.
A light line is less visible, casts and sinks faster, and produces the highest catch rates.
Bluegills will readily take natural baits such as red-worms, night-crawlers, mealworms, catalpa worms, grasshoppers, and crickets.
Small, fine-wire hooks work best when fishing for bluegills with natural baits.
I’ve heard it said that bluegill fishing is best during the spawning season when these fish are heavily concentrated in shallow water.
One Mountain State angler once reported catching a bluegill that measured 13 3/4 inches long. The bluegill was taken from a Fayette County farm in 1964.
Anglers catching bluegills of one pound or more are eligible for a trophy fish citation. Plum Orchard Lake in Fayette County is highly touted for its trophy-size bluegills.
Other lakes popular for their sunfish include R.D. Bailey Lake, Summersville Dam, Stone Coal Lake, Bluestone Dam and Stephens Lake.
Most of us know of someone who has never caught a fish.
I wouldn’t take anything for those bluegill memories.
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Top o’ the morning!