I love fish. I love observing them. I love catching them. I love eating them.

I've lived way up north, and I've lived in the south. I now live kind of in the middle.

If any fish is consistent for fun of catching and for an incredible meal, it has to be the bluegill.

I like lots of other fish too. Nothing better for eating than either walleye or striped bass. Perch are pretty good. Well, trout and salmon, and how about "lawyers" (turbot) . . .

Nothing fights harder than a musky or a northern, except maybe . . .

But, in a properly managed lake or pond, or especially in a great river, the bluegill is a real prize. A 10 or 11-inch bluegill with nearly every cast on a flyrod or an ultra-light is so much fun it should be illegal.

Those same 11-inch bluegills take about 45 seconds to fillet and skin. Batter those fillets, fry them up, and there is nothing better.

I'm already drooling. There are three 10-inchers in my fish cage waiting for Friday night dinner.

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