Bluegill fishing is great for kids

JEROME - As far as I'm concerned the greatest fish for a kid is a bluegill. Bluegills aren't very big, nor are they great fighters and as far as fish go they aren't that good looking, but they are very hook friendly and taste pretty darn good. Growing up along the eastern border of the state, bluegill fishing was unknown to me. Very few of the round, waffle-thin fish called this part of Idaho home. From my home there were none within horse or bicycling range. My first taste of catching the little warm-water fish was when we were living near Kalispell, Mont. Hot summer temperatures slowed the trout fishing down and a friend told me I should try catching some bluegill. After explaining the technique to catching the strange little fish, my wife and I decided to try catching a few the next evening. As he had said, they were hook friendly and after my wife and I had caught nearly 50 of them in the first hour I figured we had enough. My wife didn't agree and was having way too much fun. Every time I tried to paddle away, she would catch another fish. I would unhook it, throw it in the bucket or back into the pond and she would quickly cast in again. After 10 more fish and 20 minutes of trying to get back to shore, I finally had to break the hook from her line to keep her from fishing. After moving back to Idaho I gave up bluegill fishing. Fly-fishing for trout has always been my favorite pastime for the summer months. Hot summer days just drove me higher into the mountains after trout, until we had children. Like most young parents wanting to introduce their children to fishing, we first took after trout. Nearly every trip out the kids were catching a few of the native fish, but between unhooking, baiting and recasting their poles I was getting very little fishing in myself. As the summer wore on, the trout fishing slowed down and heading off to a river with the kids was out of the question. Fishing with little kids on a lake is one thing, but moving them to fast moving water was somewhere I didn't want to be. It was a fulltime job keeping their lines straight and their hooks from snags in flat water. A friend once again recommended bluegill, "You can fly-fish, while the kids bait fish with a bobber." That sounded like a plan to me. The first fishing trip with my son was much the same as fishing with my wife. He was catching so many of the little guys I didn't have time to fish for myself. By the time I had the fish off, had thrown it back into the water and baited his hook, he had another one on. I have pretty much given up fishing for myself or at least fishing with the kids, but watching them pull fish in one after another has become more rewarding. The gear is very simple for bluegill bait fishing. Take a lightweight pole, about 4-pound line, micro jigs, bobbers, small split shot and night crawlers. Place the bobber about two feet from the hook, two small split shot about a foot below that and a micro jig for the hook. Place a small piece of night crawler on the hook, about a quarter inch in length and toss it out just off the shore near the willows. Generally you can see the bluegills in small schools close to the shore along the willows. They aren't an aggressive fish and take the bait with really light pecks. There is no limit on the little fish, but I recommend not keeping all you catch. A bucket full of three-inch bluegill is not nearly as fun to fillet as they were to catch. Five to six inch fish is were I draw the line. Bluegills have very spinney backs and will puncture small hands. Take time to show a child how to unhook their catch before cutting them loose on the lake. Some of the best places in the Magic Valley Region for bluegill, include: Dierkes Lake, Anderson Ponds and Oster Pond #2 at the Hagerman Wildlife Management Area, Carey Lake and Conner Pond. Good luck fishing.