Catching Bream in the Cold Weather and the Hot Summer
Day 2: Rigging for Deep Water Bluegill Bream in Cold Weather and the Summer
Editor’s Note: Few people fish for bluegills in the coldest winter and the hottest summer months in the South – except for the late Steve Pope of Centre, Alabama, who was a fishing guide at Guntersville and Weiss lakes in north Alabama.
  To rig for deep-water bluegills, Pope first would put a 1/32-ounce glitter jig on his line and slide it up his line about 25 inches. Then he tied a loop in the line with the jig swinging freely on the end of the loop. Next, Pope hooked a waxworm on the glitter jig. On the bottom end of the line, he tied a 1-ounce bell sinker, before lowering the jig/waxworm combination to the bottom. Once the sinker hit the bottom, he began to slowly raise the sinker off the bottom and very gently moved his rod tip up and down until a bluegill attacked. "During the winter, bluegills generally will attack the jig before the bell sinker even reaches the bottom," Pope explained. "If you watch your line as your sinker falls, you'll often see a twitch on the line indicating a strike before the sinker hits bottom."
  Although Pope preferred to use 6-pound-test line, because that was the line he always kept on his reel, he admitted that he could catch more bluegills fishing with 4-pound-test line. Pope also mentioned that he'd learned that fishing in water that deep meant he might catch bass, crappie and catfish while fishing for big bluegills. So, he liked to use that heavier line to take those bigger fish.
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About the Author
John Phillips, winner of the 2012 Homer Circle Fishing Award for outstanding fishing writer by the American Sportfishing Association (AMA) and the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA), the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors. Click here for more information and a list of all the books available from John E. Phillips.
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