About this time of the year, I’m reminded of last year’s discussions with Jami Ritter who wanted to come down to 7 hoping to find some Walleyes for an upcoming FLW tourney. I recall his persistence with the wingdam bite and his desire to try and pull a few Walleyes using livebait. I explained to Jami under no certain circumstances, did he want to do that with anything other than willowcats. Why? Because the Bluegill population on pool 7 is at an all time high. Pitching to wingdams with leeches and crawlers will only drive a Walleye angler into fits of rage from those professional bait stealers.
Having ushered the wife and kids out of town for a mini-vacation, I hooked the War Eagle up to the back of my Ram and headed out for some pool 7 fun and relaxation. My destination? One of the 100+ wingdams nestled within the 11 miles of pool 7.
Off I went, heading north to one of my favorite Bluegill wingdams, only to find it overrun with pleasure boaters and jet skis. Not one to be deterred, I slipped the boat into position and lowered the anchor. About 15 minutes into my adventure, I realized I was too far out on the dam as most of my bites came on the farthest out reaches of my cast. Quickly I retrieved my anchor and made a quick adjustment. Soon thereafter the fruits of my meager labor paid off. For the next hour or so I boated Bluegill after Bluegill, with none of them slipping below the 7" mark on my MSRD board. I wasn’t able to capitalize on any Bluegills over the 8" mark, but I had more than a few that were close.
After having enough fun and enjoyment, while trying not to give a great spot away, I once again pulled the anchor and turned the boat south. From there I made my way to another of my favorite wingdams. Once again, I was rewarded with more nice sized Bluegills pushing the 8" mark. After putting enough fish in the cooler for a nice Saturday night fish fry(and a few for the parent’s freezer) I headed home anxiously awaiting the next day.
Sunday morning we were greeted to a thick blanket of fog covering the pool 7 region. Not really wanting to take any chances in the long run north, my Dad and I ate a filling breakfast and waited for the fog to lift just enough to make travel safe.
We reached our first destination, and proceeded to put another nice batch of fish in the cooler. After the bite slowed a little we made an adjustment to a smaller wingdam just upstream. This move paid off in spades as we were greeted with hungry Bluegills waiting for our baits to be placed in front of their faces.
The one great thing about fishing wingdams for Bluegills, is you’re usually graced with the presence of other gamefish and hard fighting rough fish. This day was to be no different. From the moment I felt the bite, I made the comment that the fish on the opposite end of my line "was no Bluegill." After a sweeping hookset, my premonition proved to be accurate. This beautiful Smallie burst from the surface of the water putting on a wonderful acrobatic display. With only 6lb flouro I fought this fish as carefully as possible, letting her take as much time and line as needed. With 3 heart-stopping leaps under her belt, I was able to get her eased into the net, measured and photographed for a quick release. My Dad carefully tended to her at the boatside for a minute before she purposely headed back to the deep. She measured out at a perfect 20" and we guessed her weight in the 4lb+ range. She was thick and healthy. I was happy to do battle with her and win the first round. I look forward to the next time for sure.
My basic presentation comes straight out of the pages of Bassmaster magazine. When fishing windams, I prefer to use a drop shot technique. This style of fishing keeps the bait out of the rocks and minimizes any snags that may come from hooking rocks. This weekend I was setting two #4 splitshot about a foot below my hook. There are times I have to make an adjustment to my weights to accommodate the fish’s needs. If your not getting the bites you should, be sure to adjust your distance between the hook and weights. Sometimes, those pesky Bluegills are hugging the rocks tightly and won’t move up for anything.
The best knot for dropshotting is a palomar knot, but be sure that the hook is always facing up. You can find an illustration for tying a dropshot here.
My picture shows just how the hook should face when tied properly.
Now’s the time to get out and have some fun with a fish that’s great table fare and puts on a well rounded fight. Best of luck to you!
Good luck fishing!
-td
Here’s a couple more pictures from this weekend’s adventure.
What time should I be over for dinner?
Looks like fun Blue!
Awesome job on the gills Blue, you gotta love it when they hang on them wing dams
Way cool to hear a pool 7 report buddy
Cool report Tom
Great way to relax while loading up for a great dinner 
Nice smallie too!
nice report Blue, those gills can sure put on a fight with light tackle. Another thing to try, that drop shot, looks interesting. thanks–John
Blue, what size hook do you recommend for the drop shot?
I’m using either #4 or #6 hooks.
This week I “plan” to try some Custom Jigs baits using the same methods. I’m thinking a Shrimpo would work very well on a dropshot. With some luck the Bluegill will be thinking along the same lines.
I love the action I get from the weight being below the hook. Typically the weight above the hook deadens the action some. With the weight below the hook, a slight 2-3″ shake of the rod tip really gets that worm shaking.
Good luck.
-td
Nice report pimp daddy, glad to see a brown fish in the mix
Beautiful gills Blue
Looks like a great time with your Dad.
Nice fish! Beautiful colors on them!
Joel
Sounds like a blast Tom.
Might try some wingys this weekend myself. 
Great to see you out of the cave. Great report. Have to give that drop shot idea a toss. Even better I can just see that shrimpos’ tail tease the crap out of those gills.
I used a pink shrimpo with white tail and wax worm today under a bobber. They were fighting to get hooked. I usually use an all gold jig late summer and into November. I think I have a new go to gill lure. Drop shot try out will have to wait till next week. Largest this pm was 8″ plus. Will post a pic tomorrow if proof is a factor here. lol Thanks Blue. I wish I would have thought of it first.