I hear that one of the best times to go crappie fishing is after a rain. Is that true? Any different way to fish them in this environment?

Fishing can be difficult for all species after a rain. Most fish are not fond of rapid changes of any kind, and that is exactly what rain does. First, it is noisy and makes fish very skitterish for quite some time afterward. Crappie will be extra-spooky after a hard rain. Second, rain changes the water temperature rapidly. Crappie will move to where the temperature is to their liking. Next, rain changes the water levels, so the stumps that crappie were hanging around at 15′, are now at 18-20′, or if the lake has a dam, they could open the gates and the stumps may be at 7′. The crappie will scatter and find another place to hang out. Lastly, the run-off muddies the water. Crappie may go deeper to get clear of the debris. It is still possible to catch crappie after a rain. You just have to work at it harder. Move out to deeper water near structure, and use brighter colored jigs that show up better in the muddy water. You want to fish slower as well. If using live minnows, use the smallest you can get. Vertical jigging is definitely the way to go now. Depending on what time of year it is, you may have to fish as deep as 25′ to locate suspended crappie. Summertime rains are not too bad, because the crappies are already deep, suspending in open water and moody already. It will not change much for them. In fall, try moving out about 10′ deeper than usual, and follow structure, riverbeds and drop-offs to re-locate the schools. In winter, they will move to the nearest structure in 10′-15′ of water and suspend. After about 6-10 hours, the crappie will become adjusted to the new conditions and most likely move back into their normal areas. Happy Fishing!