BLUE BANK RESORT OFFERS HOLIDAY FUN

Bluegill Fishing On Reelfoot

EDITOR'S NOTE: This holiday season, take your family to Blue Bank Resort in Tiptonville, Tennessee, for an outdoor experience they won't forget. You and your family can fish, hunt and bird watch with some of the greatest guides in the Southeast. Jackie Wayne Van Cleave, of Samburg, Tennessee, guides for crappie, bluegill, bass, catfish and ducks at the resort on Reelfoot Lake.

QUESTION: Reelfoot is known as a great bluegill lake. Can you tell me about your bluegill and shellcracker fishing?
VAN CLEAVE: The shellcracker fishing in this lake isn't that good. But our bluegill fishing is fantastic. It will kick in in mid-April and run through May, June, July and mid-August. Then it will pan out.

QUESTION: How big are the bluegill that you catch?
VAN CLEAVE: I keep bluegills that weigh 1/2 pounds and up. If the anglers want to keep something a little smaller, I let them. But they can't keep anything under 8 ounces.

QUESTION: How big will the bluegills get?
VAN CLEAVE: They get up to 1-1/2 pounds or 2 pounds.

QUESTION: What is an average day's catch?
VAN CLEAVE: The catch depends on the size the anglers want to keep. Mainly they keep anywhere from 60 to 80 fish, depending on size.

QUESTION: What do you use for bait?
VAN CLEAVE: We use wax worms, crickets and jigs. That is about it for the bluegill.

QUESTION: What kind of places do you fish for them?
VAN CLEAVE: In April, you'll fish the scattered trees and shorelines. In May, the fish start heading for the beds. They'll go to the beds so we start pre-bed fishing. June is all bed fishing. If you love to bluegill fish, come in June. It is all good. You can catch your bigger bluegill in April and May, but a bunch of bluegill get caught in June.

If you want to spend the holidays at Blue Bank Resort on Reelfoot Lake, call (877) BLUEBANK, or check out the Web site www.bluebankresort.com.

TOMORROW: YO-YO FISHING FOR CATFISH