It’s Spring time which means the temps are on the way up,
the creeks are full of new water, the lakes are in an endless cycle of fill and
empty, turkeys are gobbling, guys with funny hats and sticks are searching for
morels, and I’m jigging a minnow over a flooded bush in hopes of a trophy
crappie. That’s right folks summer is on
its way, but before we get there, let’s all take advantage of what spring time
has to offer.
It wasn’t until 2011 that I really decided to start
targeting crappies on lakes. Before then
I’d catch crappie while bluegill, bass, or walleye fishing, but I never really
targeted them specifically. I do recall one
day I was fishing at a pond in Danville, IN.
I was throwing a Rat-L-Trap for bass, I felt a fish smack my lure, and I
thought I was reeling in a big largemouth.
Much to my surprise, when I got the fish to the bank, it was the biggest
crappie I’d ever seen. It went just
over 3lbs on my Rapala digital fish scale.
Dad came to pick us kids up, he’d had a bad day at work, and as result
told me to toss the fish back into the water instead of taking it to the
taxidermist. He and I still regret that decision to this day. I still have witnesses of that fish on speed dial though……
I think the main reason I didn’t focus on crappies in the
past is because members of my family led me to believe that crappies were
tasteless mushy fillets similar to a catfish.
However, I learned that couldn’t be further from the truth. A spring crappie fillet is about as good as walleye or yellow perch. I do agree with my family that come the dog days of
summer, those warmed up crappies get mushy. That’s why you have to target them
hard while water temps are still low. I
have no scientific proof to this theory, but it’s what I’ve come to notice over
many years of fishing, and even more years of eating fish. The question is, how does one catch the
delicious spring crappies?
There are many way to catch crappies this time of year. To catch them, first you have to know where they’re going to be. In the early spring when water temps get up to 50°F-55°F, the crappies begin migrating to toward their spawning grounds. They’ll spawn in areas of 2’-10’ water, usually around downed trees, bushes, docks, or other structure. However they don’t start spawning or get that shallow until the water reaches around 60°F-65°F. Therefore while the water is still cool you’ll want to search for them in deeper water out past the structured spawning grounds, or in mouths of creeks, these areas are called their “staging grounds”.
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| Click Image to Enlarge |
Use your depth finder and cruise around at different depths
during this time of year. Usually in
late March and early April, I’m able to
find fish in 15’-20’ of water. I’ll use
my sonar to see what depth the fish are suspended at, and I’ll set my bait to
that depth. During this time of year
I’ll primarily use a 1/16oz or 1/8oz jighead and a minnow on a bobber. Jig head size depends on wind speed, use the heavier 1/8oz jighead for windier days. Another
great tactic is to spider rig troll, which is done with multiple rods, jigs set
at that depth where you’re seeing suspended fish, and trolling or drifting very
slowly through those deep water areas. For this you’ll definitely need a boat
and rod holders. You can follow the
channels, as crappies tend to use these channels as highways to and from
different areas.
As the water warms up all you have to do is keep moving into
shallower water. In Mid-Late April I’m
usually finding bigger female fish in 8’-14’ of water. You can find males up
shallower, as they’re usually starting to get into spawning areas to fan out
their nests. I’ll still be using a
jighead and minnow on a bobber. By this
time the bite is usually really good, and you’ll be bringing home good numbers
of crappies.
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By late April and into May, the water is usually above that
60°F target temperature, and the crappies are up in the shallow water. I’ve caught them as shallow as 6’’ and as deep as 8’ this time of
year, but always around structure. A good way to see if they crappies are up in the shallows is by watching the blue herons on the banks. When the fish are up that shallow on their nests, the blue herons are
there to greet them. I found one of my favorite honey holes because we watched a blue heron snag a crappie right off the bank. You’ll also see a lot of activity along the banks, such as
splashing and darting. These crappies are on and guarding their nests, and will
usually bite any type of intruder.
During this time of year I’ll almost always use an 1/8oz or 1/16oz Willowpine Tackle crappie jig on a clip-on bobber.
I like the clip on in this depth because I believe you can see more bites with
a clip on bobber, also there is no knot or bead to malfunction costing you time
and fish. Minnows will still work fine, but I prefer to use artificial as often
as I can. Plus it's harder to keep minnows alive with the outside temps climbing.
From late May and on into early June the spawn ends, and the summer begins. The crappies will
abandon their shallow water homes and head back to their deeper staging areas, this
time in search of cooler water temps.
The crappies are still very catchable, but by this time my focus changes
to other species of fish. After all, as the water temps go up their fillets start getting mushy and tasteless. To catch crappies after the spawn, locate the
thermocline, and switch to your summer fishing tactics. Better yet, let the crappies be and catch the
spawning bluegill that have taken over the shallows spawning areas.
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| Joey B. with IN Crappies |
If you’re not fishing from a boat this spring, it doesn't
mean you can’t catch crappies. You just
wont have the added value of sonar, but that’s only one tool in the tool box. Get to your favorite crappie spot, and try to
determine water temperature. Use what
you learned above about the temperature and migration of the crappies, and put
it to the test. If it’s early April then
start fishing deep. Move your slip
bobber knot shallower and shallower until you locate the fish. If it’s May, then skip the deep chase and go
straight for the shallows. Just like
from a boat, locate downed trees, docks, stumps, or other types of structure. I’m sure your fish baskets will be full of
crappies this spring!!
-Joey W. Buttram (Willowpine Outdoors)
Deer: I had a great season and saw a lot of
good big buck action, when opening day of shotgun came around I went out with
my dad. He harvested a nice big 10 point
in the morning. That afternoon I harvested
a 210 pound 8 point buck. It was awesome
that we doubled up that day.
How'd you get started in the outdoors, and why do you maintain the lifestyle?
