Bluegill and Crappie

[Salmon King]

This being my 1st full season of lake fishing in this state I’m looking for information on where to find Slab-sided Bluegill and Crappie. Something bigger than my hand is what I’m looking for.
Something preferably on the West side of the mountains.
Anyone know of such a lake? Not willing to share it on the forum? PLEASE...SEND ME A PM!!
I truly love fishing for panfish. I’m not much for trout.

Thanks all...

[juggalo]

Your best bet on that side of the state is to find some yellow perch. Lake Washington has some good size ones.

[TMBob]

Are you eating them?

[juggalo]

Yes yellow perch are delicious. The trick is finding a school of 10+ inchers

[TMBob]

Question was for the OP...Bluegill and Crappie

[countryboy87]

Campbell is right up the highway from ya and has bout every specie you could throw a rod at including catfish trout bass perch crappie bluegill. thats more than enough to keep ya busy for a season..

[Salmon King]

Countryboy...

I’ve fished Campbell lake for 30 years. I don’t care what the WDFW book says is in the lake.
I’ve never seen nor met anyone that has caught a Crappie, Blugill, or a Catfish out of that lake.
Haven’t even seen any in old pictures of catches from there either (Harold’s Market just down the road has quite the picture wall of catches from the lake).
But thanks for the thought....

[countryboy87]

My dad living on lk Erie when i was a kid i spent tons of weekends on Campbell. We used to catch lots of bass trout and panfish.. Lk Erie store had lots of pictures of catfish from Campbell even some bigger ones..

[KarpKilla]

Lake Cassidy, east of Marysville, has some pretty big perch and crappie. I've also caught some nice pumpkinseed at Blackman's Lake. My dad caught a pumpkinseed as big as his hand once at Blackman's, when he was reeling it in he thought it was a baby carp or something.

[Salmon King]

Thanks! That’s great info for me.
I’ll be out of fishing until mid Jun (just had hand surgery).
I’m already chopping at the bit to get back on the water!!

[Kdxfish]

Just last night caught 11 bluegill from Bonney lake. Most only about 6 inches but they seem to readily hit tiny spinners when trolling.

[IMACRAPPIEFISHERMAN]

Last week I caught 3 12-13 inch Crappies out of Lake McMurray. I believe if someone says they caught a certain fish in a certain lake, probably happened.

[Salmon King]

Referencing Campbell lake....

Many years ago there was some nice Crappie in there. But about 35 years ago they killed the lake off deweeded it and restocked it. They did not put Crappie back in...according to WDFW anyway.

[Beef_Weasel]

Campbell is a great channel cat spot mid summer before it turns radioactive. They hang out munching on the perch that are at 1-4 o clock from the concrete ramp. 1 oz slip, 4-5" leader, green corky with 1 white power egg (garlic scent) pushed above eye of hook, worm rigged just past the eyelet with hook coming out of the gizzard dipped in green garlic trout dip. Almost impossible to not catch a cat on it. Or trout or perch. bass on a reaction bite slowly retrieving to just give the worm a touch of action get pretty hard hits from trout that way too. I like to use a tiny spin n glo with a bead pegged ahead of it and one to four behind it possible with a corky then hook with worm or egg tip. The corky by the hook helps it sit more level and the pegged front bead keeps the corky from sliding halfway up the leader and dropping your rig depth. Works amazing on bass, trout, bluegill (tiny tiny spin glow), perch pumpkinseed, starry flounder occasional dogfish and probably a lot more. Distracted.... Off topic... Fazon north of bellingham in summer has a lot of piggy bluegill right off the boatlaunch between the pads. Tiny bit of bobber with some slow retrieve pause action... 6-8" bluegill all day long.