If you like to fish, now might be a good time to concentrate your efforts on a lake and a good target would be panfish.

The title “panfish” is often used to describe several different fish species. I think the name may have come from the fact that several will fit nicely into a frying pan providing a great meal. When we talk about panfish, we are talking about not just bluegills, but other species like crappies, perch, rock bass, and pumpkinseeds.

The good thing about panfish fishing is that they are often available throughout the year if you look in the right places. During the hot summer days, many other fish like trout and bass can become pretty picky; this is especially true of trout. Add the lack of rain, and our streams are very low and clear, making fishing even more challenging, and even the Susquehanna River can be difficult fishing in the heat of the day.

It’s a pretty safe bet that you can usually find some willing panfish on a lake somewhere, but even panfish will move to get away from the warm summer waters.

Apart from bluegills and their close relative, the pumpkinseed, you can bet that your fishing efforts should be concentrated in the deeper, cooler water of the lake. Almost all my crappie and perch fishing in this mid-summer heat is centered around water that runs from 12-25 feet. If the lake you’re fishing doesn’t have great depth, at least check out the deepest water available.

Another question I am often asked when pursuing panfish is what gear I use. That can vary greatly; if I’m targeting bluegills and pumpkinseeds, I will often use a flyrod and a surface fly. I’ve done very well with a fly that I tie that looks like a hornet — a black and yellow body. Any number of small surface poppers will also produce.

If I’m pursuing crappies and perch, everything changes, I’m going deep. An ultralight spinning outfit with four-pound test line is my choice. Remember now, this time of year, you will almost certainly be searching the deeper water. That doesn’t mean the fish are always on the very bottom; oftentimes, schools are suspended at various depths, and that’s where your sonar unit becomes invaluable.

Once I’ve located some fish, I will work with several different presentations. A favorite technique is a one-sixteenth or one-eighth ounce jig head with some type of soft plastic attached. A one-and-one-half-inch white grub is hard to beat. Another good choice is a chartreuse tube between one and two inches in length. My wife recently outfished me one evening using that chartreuse tube, so you may have trouble finding any on the local store shelves. Don’t get too hooked on color, though, since I’ve also done well on yellow, black, and a combination of colors.

If you’re not used to fishing without a bobber for panfish, it’s best to go with a slip-bobber; this system allows the bobber to move up the line after the cast to a stopping point affixed to the line at the desired depth you want your lure to reach. If you are fishing without a strike indicator, you have to rely on that little tick or hit that comes up the line, and that’s where the ultralight outfits come into their own.

Another little “trick” you might want to look at is to fish with two or even three jigs or lures on a single outfit. I tie one jig at the end of the line, then move up a few feet and cut the line. I then splice the lines back together, leaving a few inches of line to tie on another small jig; trim the other chunk of line off. You can move up a couple more feet and tie on a third jig if you want. Trust me; there have been many times when I’ve pulled two fish up at one time.