Bluegills eat mainly aquatic insects, which are slow-moving creatures. They rarely chase food items; it’s important to fish very slowly.
Most anglers use small bobbers with small hooks or jigs suspended in the water, baited with, but they can also be fished on the bottom with success. Lowering your bait over the side of the boat or making short casts with a slow retrieve are also tried and proven techniques.
Spring and early summer is the best time to catch bluegills because they gather in the shallows to spawn, become very aggressive, and are easy to catch. Wade or boat within easy casting distance of the nests with a small lure or bait below a small bobber, depending on depth of the nests. Cast a piece of worm, jig, or other bait beyond the bed and slowly retrieve it through the nesting area. Depth of the nests determines how deep to set the float, typically 2-4 feet. Fish close to the bottom, keep both lure and float as small as possible, and set the hook quickly.
To catch mid-summer bluegill in lakes, reservoirs and ponds, try live bait or small lures near the edges of weed beds, brush/rock piles, submerged extensions of shoreline points, humps or flats that drop into creek channels. Fish often suspend over deep water where you can catch them by drift fishing. Try tying two lures on the same line 2-4 feet apart to fish different depths at the same time. Drift your boat with the wind letting the bait or lure to be suspended at 6 to 12 feet. Repeat drifts over areas that are productive. If there is not enough wind to drift, use an electric trolling motor to slowly troll the boat. To catch mid-summer bluegill on the Mississippi River, try the 10-feet water along undercut banks or near aquatic plants that crowd backwaters and near sunken trees. Working undercuts during summer is best done from downstream. Cast upstream and allow the current to move your bait or lure through the target habitat. Let the bait move naturally. It’s best to use natural bait, even when fishing jigs.
