Fishing Equipment to Use for Freshwater by eHowHealth

Largemouth Bass

Another common fish in the United States and my personal favorite to catch is the the Largemouth Bass. They are found in many ponds and lakes in the Northeast, but are even more plentiful down in the South. Some of the many great largemouth bass fishing states are Florida, Alabama and Texas. These states also have some of the biggest largemouth bass due to the climate. Largemouth bass are olive-green in color and have a series of dark blotches that form a stripe down the flank, on each side of the fish. They also have a very large mouth, which many people would assume because of its name. Largemouth bass normally live around the places in a pond or lake that have a lot of weeds, sticks, brush, lily pads or fallen trees. They enjoy staying around the shores of a pond or lake rather than out in the open, in most circumstances.

Largemouth bass go after a variety of jigs, lures, and other baits. These include, topwater frog lures, crankbaits, swimbaits, lizard lures, crawfish lures, and live bait. I prefer lizard and topwater frog lures, however all of the others work great too. I have just started to use crankbaits because I heard they are also great for bass fishing. What types of lures do you use for largemouth bass fishing?

There are many reasons that fisherman love to go after largermouth bass. The most exciting for me is that they frequently jump out of the water after they become hooked on your line. When this occurs, a fisherman's adrenaline begins pumping even harder because they then see the size of the fish they are reeling in. Largemouth bass also put up a good fight, which adds to the fun of catching one. The best experience I have had catching a largemouth bass was last summer at one of my favorite fishing spots, Farm Pond. My friend and I went out in my canoe all the way around the shore. We had not had a particularly good day of fishing from that point on, I had only caught one small perch. We parked the canoe on a fallen log and began to cast into a small cove in between the shore and some small bushes. I immediately got a hit and set the hook, the bass jumped into the air and I could see that it was big. But an unexpected event occurred. The bass went straight into the bushes and got itself stuck. I proceeded to get out of the boat and get the fish out of the bushes. It was 16 inches, two and a half pounds. This is my biggest largemouth bass that I have caught. These fish are great for catching and I reccomend doing that to any beginner fisherman wanting to take a step up in their fishing skills.

Bluegill

The most common fish in most ponds, rivers and lakes east of the Rocky Mountains is the bluegill. This is a species of freswhwater fish that is a member of the sunfish family Centrarchidae. There are many names for the bluegill, such as bream, brim, sunfish, and sunperch. Bluegill are identified by three major physical characteristics. The first is the black or dark blue dot on the outer part of its gill flap. The next are the spikes on each tip of its dorsal fin. Lastly, bluegills usually have a orange or yellow underbelly. Bluegill are small fish, ranging from four to 12 inches in length. However, they counter this size by swimming in schools of 10 or 20. They live in mostly all bodies of water. To be more specific, they live near weedbeds and fallen logs.

Bluegills are considered a beginner fish. When I first started out fishing, these were the fish that I went after. I did this because they are plentiful and easy to catch. The technique for catching bluegill is also easy. Put any type of food or worms on your hook and put a bobber on your line, about six inches (or more depending on the depth of the body of water you are fishing in) above your hook. Bluegill do not give up much of a fight either. For me, I hardly go after bluegill anymore. I use lures, jigs, and other baits more often now because of my desire to catch bigger fish. However, whenever I have had a poor day of fishing I may take out my old bobbers and catch some bluegill to cheer me up. So if you are a beginner fisherman or want to begin fishing, bluegill are the fish you would want to target.

First Post: An Introduction

Hello and welcome to my blog. Fishing with Billy is a blog that will explore the methods to fishing and the different types of fish that live in the many lakes, rivers and oceans in and aroun the United States. I will delve into this topic by combining personal knowledge and experiences with that of other fishermen throughout the country. Do you go fishing too? If so, I may add in any of your own experiences to my posts. Each species of fish will be discussed and rated for different attributes such as ease of catch, magnitude of fight, etc.

I have recently become more interested in fishing in the past three or four years. One could definitely say this is my favorite pastime and hobby and that is why I have chosen to blog about it. I venture out to a pond or river at least once a week and test my luck with one of my many lures in my tackle box. The fish that I catch most frequently are largemouth bass, chain pickerel and bluegill. But the list of fish that I go after or have caught a couple times extends much farther than the one above.