Crack down on lake murrays shellcrackers carolina sportsman. Last phase of bedding comming this week, big shell crackers and lots of them being caught at lake panasoffkee, fl. Shell crackers last phase of bedding comming this week, big shell crackers and lots of them being caught at lake panasoffkee, fl. More than the stiffer action for fighting the shellcracker, once hooked. Other wildlife seen was 2 black fox squirrels, alot of white ibis, some ducks and the usual herons. Hook the worm a couple of times or three just enough to leave about 2 of worm hanging of the hook so it can squirm around and just drive a cracker to suckem up. These big mean pan fish do tend to spawn slightly deeper than the regular blue gills. I can tell you this, for about two weeks of the year i turn into a big kid, and i just love it. Hey guys, i know many of you think that fishing for bluegill is for kids. They tolerate brackish water better than other sunfish. Our mission was to verify the existence of one pound shell crackers that i have read so much about.
To book a day of bream fishing with bob latendresse, call 731 2200582. Other redear found in rivers prefer, quiet waters and have a tendency to congregate around stumps, roots and logs. They are common in lower, more slowly flowing reaches of rivers. Shellcracker fishing catching huge monster slabs youtube. Shellcracker fishing tips sheelcracker fishing florida. Hector brito caught this worldrecord redear sunfish at lake havasu in 2014. Speaking of shell crackers, this can be some of the greatest fishing there is. If an area has had alot of fishing pressure, a cork hitting the water surface can turn active fish off. Shell cracker bream fishing trip florida fishing north. Redear spend a great deal of time offshore in open water, particularly in the winter. Apr 26, 2012 to book a day of bream fishing with bob latendresse, call 731 2200582. The hook will not affect bites and will allow you to release more as you choose. Here, the shell crackers are found close to the edges, in shallow water generaly less than 4, during the bedding time, which here, runs from the full moon in march, thru june. You may be supervised to learn that the full moon plays a major role.
By the end of march, depending on water temperatures and water levels, redears shellcracker start migrating to the shallows in preparation for the spawn. Never found a need for a cork, as mentioned keep close attention to your line if it moves or twicthes set hook. Fishing for the shellcrackers in the mid west the bluegill offers a lot of attitude for their size, fighting better than any other freshwater species of panfish. Moving around and trying different spots, we eventually added four or five more to the count, but at the end of the day we released them. Bluegills or rock bass, warmouths or shell crackersall of these species and more than a dozen others fall into the category of bream. All guide boats are also equipped with cellular phones u. Numerous big fish have came from the clear waters of this lake.
I am going to big shell with a group of frinds in may for the first time any help on where to fish and camp. Fishing the bottom of the canal with worms catches most big fall fish. The most common of these are bluegill, redear sunfish shellcracker, redbreast sunfish, spotted sunfish stumpknocker and warmouth. Were i live ive seen some big shellcrackers before, but goodnight. Pound for pound, there is not another fish that out pulls these little bullies. We both wanted to go after them with our fly rods aka buggy whoppers as acey wall, deceased use to call my fly rod. Jul 30, 2018 shellcracker, or redear sunfish, are the biggest of the beam, with the world record a 4 pound ounce monster caught in florida in 1986. They wanted to target shell crackers and copperhead bream on this trip out. I like to catch plenty of fish that fight hard, test my tackle and my angling skill s and taste delicious when i eat them. For a long time i think kentucky lake was overlooked for panfish, but the word is getting out and more people are fishing for them. Most spawn in the backs of coves in 1 to 5 feet of water, usually under floating vegetation, tight to cut banks or around cypress knees.
Determined to learn whatever it takes to catch shellcrackers, which are bigger than bluegills, prettier and better. It is not unusual to see eight boats working the same bed. Fishing crickets about a foot below a bobber, we caught over 100 one morning. Big shellcracker redear sunfish fishing with 1 lb line and. Although we caught only a few fish on that trip since it was too early, it did bring back memories of how much fun bream fishing can be. Shellcracker fishing during the midsummer months after the first shellcracker. Our average shellcrackers are 8 to 10inches long, but some anglers catch crackers up to 12inches long. Mar 11, 2019 i have designed these packages for the pond owner that wants their body of water to produce big bass for sport fishing, big pan fish blue gill and hybrid blue gill for the table and fly fishing, perch for the taste of lake erie, shell cracker for parasite control in the water and fish, white amur for vegetation control, minnows for that. Shellcracker, or redear sunfish, are the biggest of the beam, with the world record a 4 pound ounce monster caught in florida in 1986. Mar 26, 2020 this is also the time of year for the big shell crackers to begin to bed. Have fun cause a big ole bed of crackers can make some mighty fine eating.
Includes articles, videos, news, and forums for beginning to advanced anglers. Sometimes, depending on fishing pressure and weather patterns, a cork can spook fish that are spawning. Larry bell spends a few days each spring devoted to catching redears. Fishing floridas largest bluegill, the shellcracker. We went back the next week to the same spot and they were gone. A few years ago, fishing buddy bob sherborne and i found some shellcracker beds in leatherwood cove on kentucky lake.
Biologists and fisheries scientists have a job, which is to study waterways and bodies and make wellinformed decisions. My good friend, the late larry besant, described me in a newsletter as a multifish angler. The redear sunfish, also known as the shellcracker, is arguably one of the best fighting, best tasting and hardest to find and catch throughout the season than any panfish you pursue. Catching bluegill and shellcracker on kentuckhy lake. Its shellcracker time on the santee cooper lakes, and anglers show this panfish species a lot of love in april. These brawny bream returns the favor by filling up empty space in large coolers. Most fullgrown shellcrackers run eight to 11 inches and weigh 3. Another popular method for fishing for shellcrackers is a plain jig. Fulmer said when fishing for staging shellcrackers, most of the time they will catch several from a spot, then move to another area and repeat the process. Big shellcrackers leave the shallows after the spawn and move to hardbottom. I had the pleasure of fishing with tobin and his son trey traveling from georgia to fish on the st. Shell cracker bream fishing trip florida fishing north florida. This is also the time of year for the big shell crackers to begin to bed.
These characteristics describe the shellcracker redear sunfish with its nicknames of. I do most of my fishing on lake okeechobee in south florida. Its shellcracker fishing time on the santee cooper lakes. Most all of those fish were caught during the spawn, so the females were fat and full of eggs, but the males were larger overall. Although black bass are technically in the sunfish family, they are not considered to be bream. When learning how to fish, kids usually catch bream first. As their name tells, they eat snails and muscles, crushing the shell with a tough muscle in their gullet. Early fishing for shellcrackers during the spawn in florida seems to be a key to success. Fishing for shellcrackers in florida large bluegills. May, 2011 not a great day for bottom fishing but cant complain with a flathead and a striper caught, and the joy of the day was seeing my son have fun with those big ole bull bream. More than the stiffer action for fighting the shellcracker, once. Fishing for shellcrackers panfish rambling angler outdoors.
Catching shellcrackers is hit or miss hartsville vidette. Nov 01, 2008 i do most of my fishing on lake okeechobee in south florida. Shell crackers start bedding in april and usually bed around the full moon in the summer months. I went fishing for shellcracker at clarks hill the week after easter last year. You can access steves previous fishing reports in our fishing report archives. If you want to catch a really huge shellcracker, one exceeding 3 pounds, 19,300 acre lake havasu on the border between arizona and california could be the. We probably should have called game and fish to see if he had the state record. Something about ocean currents meeting that wash up millions. Bluegill and shellcracker fishing with my favorite style of jig. Fishing for bluegill and shellcracker in the peak of the spawn is one of them.
Your bluegill or crappie fishing trip will be done in the comfort and safety of our fully rigged bass boat. These crackers will generally top out at 11inches in southern indiana but even the 9 inch class fish produce good fillets. Big shellcracker redear sunfish fishing with 1 lb line and worms duration. Theres no better time to catch panfish on kentucky lake than now. You can follow any responses to this entry through the rss 2. It could just be the bodies of water im fishing and the timing of the spawn, which has more males on the nest at the time. Take your experience to the next level with our half day bass fishing guide trips. Anglers know long waiting lines to launch a boat even at remote access areas signals shellcracker action is smoking hot.
The big bluegill are starting to get on the beds, mccadams says. Most of the time, they bed near or in the vegitation, but can also be found in open water. May 09, 2020 if you are up for an adventure, drive 25 mi. A member of the national fresh water fishing hall of fame and legends of the outdoors, steve mccadams is a professional guide and outdoor writer from paris, tenn. The past couple years ive found the male crackers to be bigger in length than the females. Two nice redear sunfish caught on barkley lake both over 2 pounds. It is always interesting to experience a shell cracker bream fishing trip that keeps you on your toes with something new. Even when hooked theyre strong enough to ruin your day by popping the line or breaking the hook. The fish where in 6 8 feet and several yards from the rock. Even more important, when fishing for big shellcrackers, is the hook setting power. Robert put on a dropper sinking trailing lure in a black pattern and it wasnt long before he was catching shellcrackers and bream on the trailing hook. We failed in our mission but i hope it was due to the bad weather. Florida has more than 7,700 named lakes and ponds and over 10,000 miles of streams and rivers, all brimming with bream.
Crappie fishing, bluegill, shellcracker and crappie fishing. Big shellcrackers stage in these areas, and the fishing is not quite as fastpaced as bed fishing, but limits of quality fish are still available. If you show up with the bait and tackle, these fish. May 01, 2015 it was a rare opportunity that i couldnt waste. Steves reports cover kentucky lake from paris landing to new johnsonville. You will find them by looking for a tight circle of boats. I fish western branch resivoir for shell crackers mostly. Not a great day for bottom fishing but cant complain with a flathead and a striper caught, and the joy of the day was seeing my son have fun with those big ole bull bream. As with any other fish, the redear sunfish needs good habitat, an abundance of food and very little fishing mortality to grow to the olderage classes and larger sizes. In the south, shellcracker fishing is common among pan fisherman. Chuck and i fished a cove on old hickory where a week before he had caught a dozen big crackers. They are also second to none in the frying pan, so i thought i would take a trip to tavares florida and try my hand at some of the largest bluegills in the states, the shellcracker.
Especially when targeting trophy shellcrackers that can weigh 1 to 2 pounds. My friend gene durden caught some nice crappie fishing in a brush pile fishing with crickets. Shellcracker and bream fishing robert webster of hamlet, nc who has a camper at the lake tillery family campground, adjacent highway 2427, has been keeping a watch on the fishing conditions for shellcrackers and bream. I spend a lot of my lunch breaks fishing a small storm drain adjacent to a wooden dock behind my house, but the usual bass and bluegill targets took a backseat to the unexpected appearance of bedding shellcracker. They also eat other food like insects, worms, and crawfish, but feed on the bottom.
These sporty little fish are actually voracious predators and will attack any tiny living creature that comes. Jul 05, 2012 hey guys, i live about 35 miles from western branch res. All the species of sunfish seem to benefit from that. Theres another two or three weeks of prime spawning time too so grab a friend and head on out. The fishing bass, in particular has been good here of late, and the water clarity has been excellent generally close to six feet, as has the water temperature mid60s. Shellcracker lakes that seem to be hot right now bluegill. At the time, i wasnt sure it was a compliment since the readers were hardcore. Crappie fishing, bluegill, shellcracker and crappie.
All boats have an ice cooler for food and soft drinks, live wells and plenty of storage which will make your day enjoyment. We usually start fishing for them the first week or two of may. Shell crackers cyberangler online fishing magazine. Apr, 2016 fishing floridas largest bluegill, the shellcracker. Also, sustenance fishing and bag limits and legal takes are a thing. While a lot of people catch a lot of shellcrackers fishing from the bank, taylor. Now is the time to strike a trot to the lake and wet a hook for these babies. Bream is a local term throughout the southeast that includes a variety of deepbodied panfish belonging to the sunfish family. See what triggers this bully bluegill to bite and what bait to use. And while the fish can be caught during all daylight hours, early morning seems to produce the best action. Behemoth bream chris ginn contents, freshwater fishing if youre looking for bream big enough to fillet, head to caney lake this month to get in on some early spawning action. I have designed these packages for the pond owner that wants their body of water to produce big bass for sport fishing, big pan fish blue gill and hybrid blue gill for the table and fly fishing, perch for the taste of lake erie, shell cracker for parasite control in the water and fish, white amur for vegetation control, minnows for that. Maybe the rest of us should have used them rather than worms. Too shallow and no bites, too deep no bites, no structure, no bites.
In spring, look for crackers in shallow water close to, but not in, the canal on either end. North florida offers a variety of opportunity to catch different species of freshwater fish. Redear sunfish to biologists, or chinquapin to louisiana anglers, these feisty fish typically favor deeper haunts, but when a dozen plump females moved into a sunny spot with clear water, i thought it would be a lightsout deal. We did catch shellcracker, bluegill, white perch, and catfish. Jerry sloan september 8, 2011 lake panasoffkee freshwater fishing report. Sandy bottom is needed, for me anyways, crackers eat the clams that live in the sand. Mar 25, 2012 by whatever name, they grow big, fight hard and taste great when fried. The best shell cracker fishing i can remember was along the rip rap at water front. The medium light rod or even a medium action rod has a little more power for quickly landing a big shellcracker.
The world record is five pounds, seven ounces, and while our recent outing on lake kissimmee, florida, didnt produce any fish close to the world record, many fish over a pound were taken. Those fat bluegill are as tasty as anything that swims and, on the right tackle, can provide lots of fun. Shellcrackers are big, fighters, tasty photo by phil junker. We have a lot of submerged vegetation and quite a few shell beds in 6 to 8feet deep water, which is ideal habitat for shellcrackers. Redear sunfish to biologists, or chinquapin to louisiana anglers, these feisty fish typically favor deeper haunts, but when a.