3. Post Spawn is when the males are done, and both the males and
females school back up, and move along cover to deeper water to sulk,
and recover. They have a maddening habit of suspending at a particular
depth, with no relation to any cover, and refuse to move more than a
few inches to take a bait. At this time, they are very moody and
uncooperative. This is some of the hardest crappie fishing of the year.
As the water gets warmer, they go into their summer mode of migrating
in search of baitfish, and preferred temperature. You will usually find
them at, or near the thermocline, along structure, and large schools of
baitfish, especially small shad. They can be as deep as 30 feet during
the day; and as shallow as 5 feet at night. But when you do find them,
they will actively feed.
4. Winter-When the water temperature drops to the low 60s, crappie will
move to
15-20 ft. of water and suspend over structure. They will stay here all
winter, until the Pre-Spawn. They will still feed, but the key here is
'Small and Slow'. Use very small jigs or minnows, and they must be
presented almost in their face.
But there is some great crappie action to be had at this time of year
due to less fishing pressure, and they don't move around as much.When
crappie get 'Lock-Jaw', here is a trick to entice them into action that
is very effective at times. You need two rods, one rigged with a jig,
or minnow, under a bobber, and the other rigged with a larger
crank-bait or spinner. Cast the bobber rig out and let it settle for a
bit at a suitable depth. Then, cast the lure out beyond the bobber, and
reel it rapidly towards the bobber rig. Keep doing this, and you will
get lots of hits on the bobber rig. Crappie think the lure is another
fish about to chow-down on your bobber rig, so they will try to beat it
to the punch.
When you are night fishing, put your extra minnows in a glass jar, seal
it with the lid, and tie a rope to the jar and suspend it a foot or two
under the surface, just within the circle of your fishing light. Drop
your line near the jar. Crappie will see the minnows in the jar and
make a serious effort to ruin their day, grabbing your offering in the
process.
When all else fails, try a double jig rig, with a chartruese jig on
top, and a yellow or white one underneath. Suspend them under a slip
bobber, and give them a little jerk once in a while. Double hook-ups
are not uncommon with this rig.
You can also try fly fishing. Any streamer fly pattern works, but the
very best patterns are small Clouser minnows, and Crappie candy.
Happy Fishing.
To get the full "3 Crappie Fishing Tips And Tricks" article you'll need to download it here.
