Looking over a body of water the size of lake winnebago can seem overwhelming if your looking to find bluegills.Don't let the size of the lake scare you into thinking its a needle in the haystack approach to finding fish. Weeds...weeds...weeds..... The much cursed zebra muscle has cleared the water on lake Winnebago. The result was sun penetration which gave our lake some beautiful weed beds . I'm looking for weed beds in front of feeder creeks,man made channels and bays. I fish directly outside any place the typically holds fish in early spring. After the bluegill spawn and are done feeding they move out to the weeded flats directly adjacent to theses creeks and channels. Now of course not all weeds are created equally. . You will find floating weed masses and if you can motor to the middle of these often you will find pockets . I anchor in these pockets and fish a small ice jig under a float.Typically it takes a while for a area to settle down after you approach it with a motor. Big gills area very spooky in these weed flats so a stealth approach is needed.Give a spot at least 15 minutes and move on. On calm days I will just use a trolling motor and 14 foot cane pole and flip weed pockets or weed edges in 3 to 5 feet of water . Staying mobile is also advantageous on days . It seems you'll catch a few big ones and the school breaks up a bit and moves. Other days the fish will hold tight and the same spot will produce all day. When the bite dies don't just assume the fish quit feeding ,move until you find some additional active fish.
