Pitching at bluegill??

[JRammit]

This seems like a dumb question... But i have to ask

Ill be cruising along a creek, pitching at the obvious targets... Then ill see the perfect laid down log, but right before i swing the rod i notice bluegill swimming all around it..... I cant help thinking they would not be on top of that log if a big bass was under it... So i hesitate and my eyes wonder over to that low hanging tree branch

Do you cast at this log? Or move on to the tree branch??

 

[BassThumb]

Why not pitch to both targets? Pitching is supposed to be quick.

[j bab]

14 minutes ago, JRammit said:

they would not be on top of that log if a big bass was under it

Not necessarily true. They do coexist at times. Bass don't eat every bluegill they see, they just eat them when they're hungry or when there's an opportunity they can't pass up. Your job is to give them an opportunity they can't pass up when you're pitching. That or get a reaction bite. Definitely pitch at that spot.

[riverbasser]

Probably not a bass right next to the gills but as easy as it is to cast why not flip it. If there was a non active bass down there a falling bait might look enough like a dying fish enough to get a reaction bite. Hard to say for sure man

[Bluebasser86]

I'd think the opposite. There's food there, probably a good chance a bass is lurking in the shadows below that log for one of those gills to wander off and get a little too close. 

[buzzed bait]

i'll watch them a lot at the pond and they coexist....  if a laydown looks promising, i'll pitch to it.  even if there were a neon sign that said "no fish under this log" i'd still give it a shot!

[Choporoz]

Not a dumb question at all!  I ask myself lots of much dumber questions while I'm fishing.  That's one that's certainly on the list....and you know, not exactly same question, but especially when I see a dying shad or bluegill, I rarely catch a bass in the immediate area.  That said, I expect @Bluebasser86 is correct and I still fish the log.  I think we need a thread about dumb questions we ask ourselves about what bass do or think while we're fishing...my mind goes to some crazy places when fishing alone

[etrout72]

When in doubt, cast! What's the worst that could happen?

[Jar11591]

If I see bluegill where I am fishing, that means I'm right where I want to be, usually. This exact scenario actually happens a lot to me. I'll be pitching at a tree, and see blue gill hanging out next to the branches. I'll pitch the bait farther back into the tree and pull a bass out. I would take the bluegill presence as a good thing. Where there is prey, there is usually a predator. 

[JRammit]

Glad i asked... Thousands of heads are better than one!

Certainly worth a quick pitch... Why do i hesitate?... ADD maybe, sometimes there's just too many targets to choose from

Now ill spend more time in these creeks on my next trip

["hamma"]

 With all them bluegills there? there could be the lakes biggest bass hiding in the shade, eyeing them all. Maybe thats why they werent hiding in the shade, it was occupied.

[BassDude802]

Pitch to everything, why not?

[Wildbillb]

I don't eat everything from the fridge when I open it.

[BASSnRacks]

Can't hit what you don't swing at!

[Red Bear]

many times ive pulled bait away from a bluegill thats grabbed it and a bass swoops in and picks the bait up before the bluegill can get it again. whether it be a plastic worm or live nightcrawler...

[scaleface]

On 5/19/2016 at 6:27 PM, Keith "Hamma" Hatch said:

 With all them bluegills there? there could be the lakes biggest bass hiding in the shade, eyeing them all. Maybe thats why they werent hiding in the shade, it was occupied.

Can a bass lick its lips ?

[lmbfisherman]

I pitch to everything and often I pitch the same spot.  Many times have I caught a fish on the 2nd or third try, especially if it just looks too good I will do it again and from a different angle.