Chattahoochee State Park Lake had clear water and a strong population of bass to control the bream population. The facility is now managed by Houston County Parks as Chattahoochee Park. The county removed floodwater-borne silt from the lake less than a year ago. Thus the lake is not likely to produce a big bream for a few years.

For more information on Chattahoochee Park, call park manager Larry Weaver at (334) 699-3607 or go online to www.houstoncounty.org ; then, follow the link for Houston County Parks.

REDBREAST SUNFISH
On June 15, 1996, Ronnie Carnley of Opp caught the state-record redbreast sunfish, a 13-ouncer, from the Pea River.

“I am surprised the record has held for 12 years,” Carnley reflected. “I’m sure there are anglers who have caught bigger fish, but just did not weigh them.”

An average redbreast weighs between 4 and 8 ounces. The world record weighed 2 pounds, 1 ounce and was caught from Florida’s Suwannee River in 1988.

Limited to the eastern half of the state, the redbreast -- or redbelly --lacks the statewide distribution of bluegills and shellcrackers. Redbreasts prefer flowing waters with a sand or rock bottom, but they don’t hold in fast current. They relate strongly to cover and gather next to snags, stumps, logs, aquatic vegetation and rocks.

“I am surprised the record has held for 12 years. I’m sure there are anglers who have caught bigger fish but just did not weigh them.” --Ronnie Carnley, holder of the state record for redbreast sunfish

When Carnley fishes the Pea River, which is prime redbelly habitat, he never knows which species of bream will bite. “It depends on the water conditions,” he explained. “When the water is high, more food is washed into the river, and we catch higher numbers of redbreast. The best fishing is when the water is stained, but we don’t fish specifically for redbreast -- we go to catch a mess of fish.”

On the day Carnley caught the record redbreast, he launched his boat at the ramp on County Road 474, east of Kinston and then traveled upstream. He was fishing just below a creek mouth. “The fish was on the bed in real shallow water,” he remembered, adding that water visibility was about 6 inches.”

Carnley caught the record with a cricket fished under a split shot, but without a bobber. The bait was tight-lined on the bottom with a 12-foot fiberglass pole.

On the way home from having his record redbreast certified, Carnley released the fish back into the Pea River. “I don’t usually release bream,” he admitted, “but I had caught plenty. I released the fish in hope that there would be more big redbreast in the future.”

Last year, according to Carnley, fishing on the Pea River suffered because of the drought.

HOT BIG-BREAM DESTINATIONS
Last year, the DWFF established its Angler Recognition Program, which highlights the achievements of freshwater anglers and is responsible for the maintenance of records for reservoirs, state fishing lakes and private ponds. Part of the program recognizes anglers for catching a fish meeting a minimum length or weight requirement.

Bluegills and redears weighing 1 pound and meeting a minimum-length requirement is 10 and 11 inches, respectively, earn fishermen a Master Angler Certification. If the fish weighs 2 pounds or measures 13 inches, it merits Trophy Angler Certification. (The redbreast is not recognized in this program.) For details, go online to www.outdoorsalabama.com ; click on the links for Fishing, Freshwater and State Record/Angler Recognition.