Crappie 101

[TOXIC]

We have had record rains and since most of my crappie fishing is done in the upper reaches of a big creek on a bigger river, I have not been out.  It's killing me!!  We've got a friend coming from Michigan for the week after Christmas and we want to get him out for some of our banner Crappie fishing but we are due for another big rain this weekend.  Hopefully it will settle down when he is here.  I do have access to a private lake that is the discharge for a nuke power plant but it is not known for its Crappie.  We go there for Largemouth in the winter because it never freezes.  I did take my daughter out over there last year just to see if we could catch some and we did.  Good size but the numbers were down.  

 

 

[HeyCoach]

How is this stuff for crappie? I never really fished for crappie before, don’t even know if I have caught one before. Probably not. 

 

I have some 1/16th and 1:8th jig heads, shad, scissor shad, sausage, joker, and looks like tubes. Black/chart, white/chart, bubblegum/chart, pearl, pearl/chart, pearl and blue/black

 

Also, I have a Zebco 33 combo, would that be ok for a rod?

[Todd2]

 

31 minutes ago, HeyCoach said:

How is this stuff for crappie? I never really fished for crappie before, don’t even know if I have caught one before. Probably not. 

 

I have some 1/16th and 1:8th jig heads, shad, scissor shad, sausage, joker, and looks like tubes. Black/chart, white/chart, bubblegum/chart, pearl, pearl/chart, pearl and blue/black

 

Also, I have a Zebco 33 combo, would that be ok for a rod?

 

 

Yeah, that'll catch em... Unlike my Bass gear, I'm trying to keep my Crappie fishing simple. I like Charlie Brewer Crappie Sliders in a couple colors (Blue / Charteuse is my #1) and I have a few Arkie Hinee Shinee's. With a little Crappie nibble on, I don't notice much of a difference between them and live minnows, without the hassle. This is my first real season mainly Crappie fishing though so subject to change.

 

I use two rods, both in the 9 foot range, one Crappie rod and one old Float N Fly rod I've had for years. Both work fine. Zebco 33 will be fine.

[Festivus]

If you don't have a boat and want to target them from shore what are some of the best tactics and methods of doing that? What should I be targeting for structure or shore line? I bought some long light powered rods specifically for crappie and white bass, 2 10" fiberglass rods, and 2 12" graphite rods. I was hoping these will help me in casting out farther and deeper. thanks. 

[N Florida Mike]

On 12/15/2018 at 10:03 PM, Crestliner2008 said:

Some very excellent information on crappie fishing here. Most of it appears to be related to single pole fishing along with targeting docks or brush. There are lot of crappie out deep, away from visible structures, that can be very vulnerable to several presentations.

 

Drift fishing is one of them. With multiple poles one can economically drift with the wind in relatively open water. We've done this for many years now, quite successfully too. A very relaxing & productive way to present various styles & colors of jigs. In a 15 mph wind, it would appear that our jigs are water skiing - yet, we've killed them doing this. And we usually net a mixed bag of crappie, white & yellow perch and even bluegills. Largemouth bass and rainbow trout love this fast, windy presentation too.

 

With the wind being less than predictable as of late, we've rigged two boats up for side pulling in similar fashion to drifting. This technique has been around a long time and is a proven technique. We've mounted our TM midships (a bit more aft actually) and mount our rod holders off the opposite side. Pulling in this fashion at speeds between .5 - 2.0 mph (gps) we've been able to move between open water schools of bait & crappie quite efficiently. Up here in MA, we are only allowed 2 rods per fisherman, so side pulling allows us a wider path of drift, as well as change of baits.

 

Just a slightly different perspective on the excellent information presented here, as always on Bass Resources.

When I used to fish for them more, we did some drift fishing with minnows . We used a split shot and no cork so it stayed on or near the bottom. Did well with numbers of smaller fish,  would get nice catfish that way too.

 

[slonezp]

23 hours ago, Festivus said:

If you don't have a boat and want to target them from shore what are some of the best tactics and methods of doing that? What should I be targeting for structure or shore line? I bought some long light powered rods specifically for crappie and white bass, 2 10" fiberglass rods, and 2 12" graphite rods. I was hoping these will help me in casting out farther and deeper. thanks. 

Crappies like cover. Trees, docks, boat lifts, weeds. A lot will depend on the lake itself. If you've caught crappie from the lake before, ask yourself why. What was there that attracted the crappie? They can be finicky. They could be tight to cover and if you cast 3ft away you may not get a bite. If you do catch one, repeat what you are doing. If you don't catch more, try the same spot a little deeper or a little shallower. Crappies are a schooling fish. There is always more than one.

[greentrout]

 

[TOXIC]

I am so bummed.  The weather hit my area like a sledgehammer and with the wind and ice, I didn't get to fill my freezer like I wanted.  That's the risk of waiting until they have been in colder water for an extended period of time to firm up the meat.  There's still an outside chance we will get out to the crappie spots again but with this crazy Polar Vortex that keeps splitting and dropping into Virginia, I doubt it.  

[JustJames]

Do you guys harvest crappies before spawned? Sorry never plan to keep any fish but all the talk about good tasting fish and beside it is not a bass. I was thinking about keeping some after the spawn circle is done.

[TOXIC]

Due to their mass numbers, it would be very difficult to "overfish" a crappie population in most bodies of water.  Since I like my freezer fish to come out of cold water, I am usually not fishing for spawning fish.  

 

Crappies will begin spawning when the water temperature reaches 56-60 degrees Fahrenheit.

The crappie spawn will peak when water temperatures reach 61-72 degrees Fahrenheit.

 

Although that may vary by location, it is a general guide to show the stage they are in when you fish.  But I will say, even in the fall and late fall when I fish for them the females are in egg production.  

[DogBone_384]

On 11/15/2018 at 9:04 AM, Mr. Aquarium said:

ive been wanting to try that slip bobber rig.   

Let’s try it @ Hedges while the water’s cold....

[Mr. Aquarium]

 

11 hours ago, DogBone_384 said:

Let’s try it @ Hedges while the water’s cold....

Good idea!! I'll be in NH this weekend 

[DogBone_384]

1 hour ago, Mr. Aquarium said:

 

Good idea!! I'll be in NH this weekend 

You can cast from NH to Plymouth !?!?!?!?!?!?!?

[scaleface]

I dont fish crappies much anymore but use to do it almost as much as bass fishing . Around April you will find me casting little Beetle Spins in flooded grass . 

[Glenn]

Anybody out crappie fishing?

[Junger]

59 minutes ago, Glenn said:

Anybody out crappie fishing?

Kind of...I spliced my TM fish finder over the summer and just got around to patching up the line. Went to my local reservoir to test it and ended up going for crappie. About a dozen small guys like this, biggest was 8". But now that I know my TM FF is working, I'm going to hit the Potomac river where they get real big and fat.