Looks like the Bluegill/Sunfish year is fixing to kick on. Warmer weather is coming up and the fish will be starting to get very active. What is your "Go To Bait" while fishing for Bluegill/Sunfish!

Laker i think you know our answer!! JIGLYF jigs

I usually catch them for bait and use worms.

Been out Gill hunting every day this past week, fishing several community lakes and area Creeks. The Creeks are on fire with 6-9 inch males, catching over 10 per hour. The several community lakes I fished, not so much. Lucky to even catch one, on the same water bodies that were really paying off right before the big freeze and on day three after. Nothing but Ditch Pickles since. Bass are really on the move with several that I have seen sitting on their nest. Of course my go to bait is Walmart live Worms. But I think I'll go fly fishing in the neighbor hood creek this afternoon using my 2 Wt Glass rod just for fun.

What else is there. "The Bait of Champions. Worms" !



Side Note: The JIGLYF Jigs that both Leo and Yesenia are using might just be a very close second!

No substitute for the Gulp Alive 1" minnow...that's my answer & am sticking to it...

Actually,.......I've started using meal worms for the last few years. No doubt that good ole red worms are the preferred
meal,...but for me meal worms are harder to steal off the hook.

Do not target the Bluegill/Sunfish but I can honestly say I have caught most of my Bluegill/Sunfish on crank baits while fishing for bass.

Can't beat soft plastics rigged on light ball head jigs. 6 or 8# test braid does well unless I need a fluorocarbon leader.
Another set up is a float with either a light fur jig (my dog's hair) or soft plastic hanging down half way to the bottom.
Third is a spinning blade with soft plastic (Beetle Spin design).
4th is 2" tubes. (Funny how I did well with them under the ice for crappie a few years ago.)

For size- 1/8 Oz Strike King Bitsy Minnow, Gizzard Shad Color or 5/32 oz Matzuo Nanocrank in Shiner. (Caught my PB Bluegill on the Nanocrank and my PB Long Ear and Red Breast on the Bitsy Minnow.)

For numbers- Gulp Alive 1" Minnow (color doesn't seem to matter) on a 1/32d oz Trout Magnet Jig Head.

Same as always, 1/64th oz or smaller unpainted jig hook with a piece of crawler.

This is really a seasonal answer, but my go to is definitely the Mepps spinfly when I'm fishing less than 8' of water. If they miss the spinfly, I'll toss the JIGLYF jig behind them and clean up the short strikers. Works in the summer almost every time.

Red wigglers for me.

Side Note: Gulp Alive also has a very good Red Wiggler. Does not work as well as live worms but is a good back up when you run out of the live worms.

I’ve been spending most of my hook time with a Gulp Alive the past year or so. But I do regress sometimes and use live bait. I like to use live maggots best but also like to use red wrigglers. Gulp Alive and worms do have something in common though. They both will catch multi species very well.