When I write, my objective is to reach 3 things in every reader: your mind, your heart and your funny-bone.  You will find some articles that are merely fun, whereas others are serious and technical.  Feel free to email me at darryl@familyfishingtrips.com with any comments or questions.  Enjoy!

Index

Other Links to Some Great Reading

Trolling Crankbaits for Crappie - by Jeff White

Building Crappie Condo's - by Jerry Blake

Crappie.com's Articles, Tips & Techniques

Keith Sutton

BnM Poles Fishing Articles and Tips

Battle Over Bait

Though regarded as an angler’s secret to success, bait choice is really just a preference. Confidence in your choice directly impacts your opinion in each bait type and style. While some prefer live bait, others choose artificial. Once your choice is made, what type or style do you pick? Do you combine the two to get the best of both worlds? Such questions are just the beginning of the battle over bait.

A person can neither begin to test all the jigs on the market today, nor can he afford to purchase them all for his tackle box arsenal. What’s hot and what’s not is only determined by the fish and person’s ability to use it. Jig styles and colors manufacturers make most are what anglers use the most. If the angler isn’t productive with a certain style or color it won’t be purchased often. Talk to other anglers and find out what jigs and which colors they use most. This may vary from lake to lake, but I am confident what you will find is the most basic of colors have proven themselves repeatedly.

Though I have at least two-dozen different jig color combinations in my tackle box, my base seven are white, blue/white, black/chartreuse, red/chartreuse, orange/chartreuse, purple/chartreuse, and pink. These are colors manufacturers produce the most, which means they are the colors more anglers purchase.

With this color range, every water condition can be approached effectively. I was taught to use dark colors in dark water and light colors in clear water. The darker the water condition the darker the color jig is the pattern that usually emerges. Please notice I said “usually.” Regardless of what the science of light penetration and water clarity tells us, when using jigs, I will always start with my base seven jigs and a minnow on the eighth pole in order to determine a pattern for the day. Yes, you understood correctly. I attach the water with up to eight poles. Nobody can accuse me of not trying hard enough.

Now that we’ve determined the most productive colors, what jig style should be used? Though I have just about every style jig known to man, it is the tube that produces the most for me. But for discussion, let’s review the three most basic jig styles – tubes, solid bodies, and hair – then conclude with live bait.

The tube is artificial bait that is easily slid onto a jig hook of your choice. The most common tubes come in a variety of lengths with a hollow body and multi-strand skirt. A wide range of scents and attractants can be used with tube baits as well as working them in combination with a minnow. Try dipping your tube jig in cod liver oil. In my opinion, the tube jig is much like the spinner-bait bass anglers use. The tube and the spinner both resemble nothing natural in the water. However, they are both proven baits. Let’s not argue with what works.

Some refer to solid bodied jigs as grubs. They are, as the name implies, artificial bait that is solid throughout. The differences are mostly found in the style of tail – paddle tail, pin tail, curly tail, and triple tail are a few. Solid body grubs are excellent baits and create more vibration in the water than your average tube. Today, more lifelike solid body jigs are being produced – shad and crawfish are probably the most popular.

Hair or marabou jigs are produced in a variety of ways and are probably the one jig most produced by the anglers themselves as a hobby. Synthetic or natural hair is tied onto the jig hook. I know that sounds simple, but that’s it in a nutshell. They are perfect for producing a natural movement in the water. Often feathers of different colors are used. Some even use hair or feathers in combination with a plastic body. In any case, if you ever meet an angler who exclusively uses hair jigs know this – they are very committed and serious about jig fishing.

The most commonly used live bait for crappie is the minnow. You can always identify a crappie fisherman because they buy minnows by the pound and not by the dozen. Depending on the minnow’s size, a pound will yield about 12 dozen on average. For me, a pound is the correct quantity for a short half-day trip. The most I and another guide have used in a single weekend was three pounds. Varieties of minnows range from small to medium shiners to bull-nose tuffies. My favorite is the Rosey Red. This little orange tuffy is hardy, usually lives longer in well oxygenated, cold water, and is an irresistible morsel for all crappie species.

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Landing the Big One

Landing the big one requires no water.  Though one may land it while participating in other outdoor sports like hunting, fishing is my preferred choice.  To land the big one, an expensive boat and top quality tackle aren’t needed.  Landing the big one does, however, require good timing and a desire to experience it.

By now, you’ve probably guessed that I’m not talking about catching a big fish.  No, I’m not, but let me tell you the story.

Last year, my elder son, Josh, and I began preparing to fish a classic crappie tournament on Lake Norfork in Mountain Home.  You see, to us, fishing is more than just fishing.  Do research; talk to the local fishermen; find a guide who will share information; keep records on water temperature, lake levels and barometric pressure, and pre-fish the lake as often as possible; test out new techniques; get as much experience on the lake as possible before the big day.

We were told that crappie were once very prolific in Norfork.  But with the clear water and the introduction of white bass, striper and hybrids, the crappie population dwindled.  Discouraged, but not defeated, we conducted our own research.  After digging deep into the abyss of the Internet, we found one article that inspired our next step - find the sunken trees.

Over the past several years, the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission had sunken more than 90,000 trees in both Norfork and Bull Shoals lakes and marked these brushpiles with fish attractor signs.  Ah, that’s a good start.  In addition, the AGFC had stocked the lakes with as many as 200,000 crappie fingerlings per year.  To top it off, the lakes were blessed with an outstanding spawn about three to four years ago.

Armed with this new information, we set out to apply all we learned.  We fished almost every weekend for nearly three months.  We fished every major creek arm.  We fished deep and shallow brush.  We fished early in the day, all day.  We were going to own this lake and run away with the prize with all other participants singing our praises.

Well, as you can guess, that didn’t happen.  The first day of the tournament was plagued with foul weather and strong winds.  We only weighed in two legal crappies putting us at about 100^th place out of 120.  The final day of the two-day tournament was better.  We topped our seven fish creel with average fish.  We moved up considerably in the field, but not enough to take home the big prize.

“So, where’s the big one?” you ask.  Landing the big one occurred about halfway through our pre-fishing preparation for the tournament.  Josh was as dedicated as I was, but the early morning hours coupled with the long days weekend after weekend were beginning to take their toll on him.  On more than one occasion, he asked, “How can you be so happy so early in the morning?”  My only response each time, “The glory of first-light.”

We launched the boat and, in complete darkness, we sped across the perfectly calm water to a spot just north of Bidwell Point.  Quietly, we glided into position and began fishing for the crappie hidden in the depths of a massive, sunken tree.

To me, there is an all-consuming, inspiring period of time each day just before the sun rises when the world plays its own reveille softly and slowly.  It’s called “First-Light.”  You can hear the nocturnal creatures retreating to their lairs and those of the day coming out to play and sing.  The silhouettes of the creation begin to focus.  Often, even the breeze stops as if the whole earth is yawning for its first deep breath of the day.  This is a time of perfect peace.  It’s as if time stands still for just a few moments.  Words just can’t describe it justly.  All the worries and cares of this world vanish.  All the stresses of life are gone.

All is quiet and still.  Then, screaming from the back of the boat, I heard, “Daddy, I got it!”  After such a start, adrenaline rushing through my veins, I spun around and grabbed the dip net, ready to land the big one.  You should have seen the look on Josh’s face.  To my surprise, Josh had just landed the big one so many miss.  “Dad, I just got it – ‘the glory of first-light,’” he proudly declared.  And then, for the next 15 or so minutes, I was blessed to hear my not-so-talkative son describe to me all he had just experienced.

Admittedly, not every morning offers an experience this perfect.  All too often, they’re more like a drill instructor throwing a G.I. can down the middle of a squad bay.  But my recommendation to all is simply do what you can to experience the glory of first-light as often as you can.  Help those whom you love land the big one.

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Stay Seated in the Boat

It is a privilege and an honor to take people fishing with me. When I first started guiding for crappie, I worried about not being able to put my clients onto a good mess of crappie. I thought, “Nobody in his right mind would seek such humiliation.” But, when I changed my perspective, all the worries went away. “I’m just taking some new friends fishing,” I told myself. If we do well, great! If not, it happens.

The new perspective, however, didn’t eliminate the need for patience. My grandfather was probably the most patient man ever when it came to the fish and fishing. More than once, I watched him bait his hook with a minnow and sit for hours waiting for that one big catfish. Not me, I don’t wait for the fish to come to me. I, with a sense of urgency, go find the fish. Being impatient with the fish is a good thing. It’s more productive and fills your livewell faster.

No, the patience I speak of is with the clients – the new friends I take fishing. Every client, young or old, male or female, has a differing degree of expertise. Some need and welcome more help than others. Some listen better than others. And some are funny, while others are serious. But, I must be patient with each of them so their trip is memorable.

I am proud of myself for being patient with all those who fish with me. Even when fishing with family, if I treat them like clients, it helps me remain patient. Hundreds of fishing trips have come and gone in the past several years and not once have I lost my patience – except once! Well, to be honest, it was a little more than just loosing my patience. I also offended the client for laughing so hard I almost fell out of the boat.

The boat I have now is a long, wide, V-hulled boat that serves as a very stable platform. No one person could turn it over if they tried. Standing and walking around does not bring about the immediate danger of capsizing. But several years ago, I fished from a small, flat-bottom, modified johnboat. I would tell my clients, “Stay seated for safety and we’ll work together to help each other.” All did, but one.

It was a warm summer morning on Lake Charles and the catch of the day was bream. I had fished the day before, boating more than my share of keeper bluegill, shell crackers and sunfish, so I knew these clients were going to have great success. If you’ve never fished with ultra-light tackle for creation’s most prolific freshwater fish, then you’re missing the time of your life. It’s not fish’in – it’s called catch’in.

Anyway, ultra-light rods in hand, crickets already all over the boat, we quietly slipped up to the first bank and I reminded my clients to stay seated at all times. All they had to do was swing their hooks at me and I’d bait them up. When they caught a fish, they were to do the same. I’d do all the work and they’d do all the catching.

Things went well, for the first minute or two. Two of the three clients, young boys, did just as I had instructed them to do and they immediately began landing fish. The third client, an adult female whom I will not mention by name for fear of life and limb, was not capable of following my safety instructions due to her overwhelming excitement. She cast into the perfect spot. Two large boulders, just under the surface of the water, lay close to each other. Her bait landed between them and within seconds the float disappeared.

Now, most amateur anglers don’t know to keep their rod tip high when reeling in the fish. Not her, just like a pro, the rod tip remained high. In fact, the entire rod was held over her head, reaching higher and higher. She squealed with excitement as she fought this mammoth bluegill. She stood up. Obviously, to get the rod even higher, hoping the fish would come closer to her. I directed her to please stay seated and just reel it in. And, before I knew it, here she came. Instead of reeling in the fish, she walked, stumbled, and tripped her way from the back to the front of the boat. The boys complained and the dog yelped when she stepped on them. The boat rocked and rolled. We all hung on, knowing the boat would capsize any minute.

Wow, it’s over and we didn’t get wet. We landed the fish and carefully she returned to her assigned spot in the back of the boat. While I baited her hook for the next fish, again, I reminded her to remain seated and just reel.

Well, you can guess what happened when the next fish took her bait and became fouled with her hook. We screamed, we cried, we laughed. The boys even learned to make a path for her saying, “Here she comes again, hang on!” Not once, not twice, not three times, but four times did she do this before mastering the rule – stay seated in the boat.

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Foul Weather Fishing

I have been accused of many things, and being a fair-weather fisherman is not one of them. I often tell people there are only four things that will stop me from going fishing: my wife, hurricane-force winds, monsoon rains, and lightning.

            My wife does come first even though I’m on the water 32 or more weekends out of the year. If she really, really needs me to stay home, I will. I may beg, plead and pout when trying to make her change her mind. But, when no compromise can be reached, I’m land-locked for the weekend. Maybe I can sneak in a fishing show or two.

            Even a casual fisherman knows the wind is the greatest enemy of boat control. We turn our trolling motors up on high, use windsocks or buckets and even drag our anchors attempting to overcome the wind’s effects. However, when the wind is so fierce that you can’t launch your boat without sinking it, it’s time to go home.

Enduring rainy days is also commonplace when fishing. Otherwise, why do so many retailers sell waterproof clothing? And, isn’t that what the automatic bilge pump is for anyway? Bright, clear, bluebird days aren’t really good fishing days anyway. Nonetheless, when it’s raining so hard you can’t see your fishing partner in the back of the boat, it’s time to stay off the water.

Lightning is something every angler should take very seriously. Each year, if I remember my statistics correctly, more people are struck by lightning when on the water than when on land. If you can see the lightning or even faintly hear a roll of thunder, you are at risk of being struck. Just think about it. You’re the tallest object in the middle of a large, flat expanse holding a long, graphite rod in your hand. Get off the water and take cover.

Braving the elements is just part of the sport. In fact, some of my most productive trips were either just before or during foul weather. Take last November as an example. My father, two sons and I were fishing Lake Norfork . The weather was only cool, but the wind made it very difficult to control the boat. Plus, a new cold front was due to arrive mid-morning the next day. The end of the first day’s fishing loaded our stringer with two limits of twelve-inch crappie. The next morning, before the severe weather forced us off the lake, we landed another two limits within an hour.

Reelfoot Lake in Tiptonville, TN is known for it’s abundant crappie and strong winds. On a trip there last year, my younger son, Levi, landed nine slabs in the midst of white-capping water and 30-mile-an-hour gusts of wind. We worked together as a team. He fished and I ran the boat keeping us into the wind and upright. It was a pleasure to watch my little man hang in there under such adverse circumstances and fight each crappie into the boat all by himself.

The opposite is also true. There have been a few trips where I decided not to brave the elements. As it turned out, the weather cleared and I regretted not fishing on that day. My frustrations were only magnified when my fellow anglers who did venture out on that dreary day emails me pictures of the monster catches.

Since I’ve started guiding, weather is always a top concern – safety issues from my perspective and comfort from the client’s. If the weatherman or weather.com is predicting a 30% chance for rain, I say there’s a 70% chance it will not rain. Unfortunately, most clients don’t see it that way.

Recently, with a bit of persuading, a young couple agreed to keep their booking on Lake Hamilton. It was drizzling rain and all weather reports called for an 80% chance throughout the daylight hours.  A mere hour and a half after we launched the boat, the rain cleared and they took home 26 slab crappie and one three-pound bass. We virtually had the lake to ourselves and didn’t really get too wet anyway.  No doubt, many other anglers got up that morning and went right back to bed opting not to fish on this rainy morning. They missed a great opportunity.

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That Dog Just Won’t Fish

My favorite fishing partner passed on a few years ago. Louie, a chocolate-brown mutt, became part of our family through the tender-heartedness and trickery of my older son and wife. Near death, by starvation, and thoroughly tick and flee-infested, this dog panhandled his way into our backyard, eventually into our living room and then in my boat.

The family wanted a dog, but I insisted that such responsibility would stifle our plans. The answer was, “No!” So, without my knowledge at the time, they nursed this dog back to health. Before I knew it, we had a dog. It was mutiny.

He was the perfect fishing partner. He was johnny-on-the-spot for every trip, never rocked the boat and praised you for every fish caught. His only shortcoming was squirrels. Squirrels made him loose control. Apart from that, he loved to go fishing. Other men have bird dogs or hunting dogs. Not me, I had a crappie dog.

When Louie died, it was a very sad day in our house. We had lost a family member and I had lost the best fishing buddy a man could have.

However, the void was quickly filled with a dog as opposite as opposite can be. Jazzy, a coal-black mutt, hates water and, though unofficially diagnosed, has doggie ADHD. She cannot, will not, sit still in the boat. She once even fell out of the boat. I know this to be so, because the first thing that hit the water was her head and not her feet. Other boaters near us at the time were none to happy and neither was I when I had to retrieve her from the water before she drowned. Oh, did I mention, she gets seasick too. It was insanity.

Recently, my younger son and I took a scouting trip to Lake Charles. The lake is now at winter pool and it’s a perfect time to use my trusty GPS unit and mark all the stump fields. The spring spawn will be here before we know it and I want to be ready, new customized map at the ready. We have tirelessly tried to socialize Jazzy and decided to take her along. I can tell you, it’s not working.

When it came time for her to get into the boat, she did. She was brave and overcame her fear of water and traumatizing misfortune of falling out of the boat. She must have wanted to be with us more than being left behind, locked up in the truck.

The easy part was over and the fun began. Jazzy ran circles from the front to the back of the boat as we sped across the lake. Levi was certain the rate of speed would somehow launch her out of the boat. I acted as if I didn’t notice. Honestly, it would have been a perfect cool-down for such a hot dog.

We arrived at our destination. I swung the trolling motor over the side and stepped on the momentary switch on the foot pedal. Nothing! Well, it worked just fine yesterday when I checked it. It might not be plugged in well. I checked the plug. Nothing! Oh well, back to the boat ramp. Tools and voltmeter at the ready, I find that we’ve got power to the plug. Guess what? I traced power right down to the on/off switch. It was delirium.

Okay, the trolling is on now and working. We zoom back across the lake to the first stump field. Rods in the water and GPS acquiring three appropriate satellites, we quietly begin our day’s mission. All was well, for about 30 seconds. Jazzy, in the back of the boat, begins to growl and bark as if her and our lives were in grave danger. She discovered she’s in a world of dog-eating monsters.

We humans call these dog-eating monsters, stumps. But, to her, they had arms that were reaching for her. She growled and barked at each one. And, when one got close enough to the boat, she’d bite it and fight it off with a violent vigor. She’d seek our approval (or maybe protection) each time after spitting out dried moss and mud that filled her mouth. She did this for nearly 2 hours. It was hilarious.

We accomplished our mission and all the monsters were slain. During the trip back home, I pondered the day’s events, while Levi reclined in the passenger seat and Jazzy curled up on the back seat, both sound asleep. I realized we make memories, both good and bad, every day and often do so without realizing it. In the end, I only hope and pray, whether at work or play, the good memories out number the bad ones. Perhaps, if we choose to make good ones, we’ll accomplish that mission too.

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Fun Tournament

            Recently, I had the privilege to participate in a memorial crappie tournament in the name of the late David Summers, Tennessee ’s own TeeZur Jigs. David made his own jigs and often shared them with fellow anglers. It was his passion and purpose for the sport.

            The tournament was held on Kentucky Lake ’s Big Sandy. And, as with every tournament, there was adversity to overcome. First, came the rain. Well, it would be better said, an outright downpour. Second, came the wind. Since Big Sandy is relatively shallow, the wind created massive swells. Finding a place to fish out of the wind was imperative.

            By the end of the competition, my partners and I had landed an ample number of crappie. Our creel weight was shy of the top ten, but winning was not our purpose for being there. Nor was it the purpose for the nearly 100 boats participating in this memorial tournament. We were there to have fun, fellowship and remember a man who loved the sport of crappie fishing. The singular purpose of so many anglers was quite inspiring.

            Testing your skills on unfamiliar waters; challenging yourself to fish when you normally wouldn’t fish; and making new friends is what tournament fishing should be. However, that being said doesn’t eliminate the frustrating demands and satisfying rewards of tournament fishing.

Preparation, pre-fishing, and performance are common issues an angler must consider whether you are on a bass, crappie, walleye or striper tournament trail. Here are a few tips that will make you a winner at every tournament.

Preparation is, in my estimation, the most difficult and time consuming. First, you must decide whether or not you wish to fish that particular tournament or not. Then, if you have decided in the affirmative, you must collect as much information as possible and make travel plans.

Start your search with the Internet. There, you will find everything from lake statistics to fishing reports to lodging recommendations. Local anglers usually have the best information. However, finding one willing to share information when you’re on the lake is near impossible.

Try this. Find a message board on the Internet for that particular lake or species of fish. Post a message asking for a report on the lake of your choice. Inevitably, you will receive several contacts and gain all the information you need. For crappie, try www.crappie.com. This board has a main forum as well as one for each state.

Once your research is complete, then comes the hard work of preparing your boat and tackle. So many anglers wait until the last minute or skip this step. Big mistake. Clean out that ole boat. Make sure all your equipment is in good working order and safe. Replace your line if needed and re-tie all knots using new, sharp hooks. You’ll be glad you did when that state record takes your bait.

When you get to the lake and start your pre-fishing, relax. Remember, you’re not there to catch every fish in the lake. Pre-fishing is nothing more than testing out different areas and techniques, looking for a pattern. Get a good feel for the lake. Try to see in your mind’s eye what the lake is like under the water. Use a map and a GPS unit. When you find a good spot, mark the map and set a waypoint in your GPS.

Now, it’s tournament day and you’re ready. Good planning does make for good performance. However, when it comes to fishing, it doesn’t always work out that way. If you win or place, great! But, if you don’t, you’re still a winner. Walking away from a tournament, having learned at least one thing that makes you a better angler, is a prize in itself. Measure your performance in personal satisfaction and you’ll never loose.

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Check the Plug  

Checking the plug is probably the first and most basic of tasks to do when launching a boat. For some unknown reason, this step seems to elude me more times than not. It’s a really good thing, I have a functioning bilge pump. Without it, I would have certainly sunk my boat many times over.

Making rookie mistakes is just part of boating. Recently, some of my cyber-fishing buddies had a lengthy chat and a good laugh about all our near misses. Here’s just a few to read and know you’re in good company.

Not everyone grows up on a farm. And, even if they did, you still have to learn to back a trailer sometime. Backing into the garage wall, door or over the mailbox is not uncommon. Snaking your way down the ramp after two or three tries is expected.  Just try to stay to one side on wide ramps.

Trying to launch your boat with the tie-down straps still attached happens more than you think.  If you fill her with water, just drag her out, pull the plug (if it’s in) and start again, without the straps this time.

You may find yourself in a situation where you must launch your boat solo. Using a long length of rope tied to boat and trailer is one method.  It works well too, when the knots are secure and your boat doesn’t drift to the middle of the lake. Be prepared to swim for it.

Keep a close guard on your boat keys. I left mine laying on the bumper once and drove 40 minutes away to fish. Luckily, they were still there. But, that still doesn’t mean the ole boat will start. Fast cranking but no fire means the boat is in gear or the cable is pulled from the kill switch. Been there, done that, and it only cost me several hours and a new set of plugs.

Most boaters don’t have this problem, but if it happens to you, you’re not the first. Take the transom saver off before you launch the boat.  You’ll either break it or loose it to the bottom of the lake.

All that and we’re not even in the water yet. Once you have successfully launched the boat, the trolling motor is probably the next victim. It won’t run if the switch is in the “off” position. Leaving your trolling motor down when flying across the lake is not wise. Unbreakable shafts break, if you trailer your boat with the motor down.

Running out of gas and having to be towed is no fun. Shorting out wires connected to the batteries melts carpet and starts fires. Running across the lake with the anchor still deployed is a major drag. Approaching your trailer at a high rate of speed tends to bend and dent the bow.  And last of all, the amount of insurance you have on your boat is never enough.

These and many other unfortunate mishaps have happened to me. I think it’s just the nature of the beast and hope it’s not the beast operating the boat. Make for yourself a checklist. It will build good habits and make your boating adventures safe.

I’ll leave you with these words. Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

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The Crappie Widow

One should never think fishing is just a man’s sport. Some of the world’s top anglers are women. In fact, a Google search for women anglers yielded 224,000 hits. Another search for professional female anglers produced 36,000 matches. And, an even narrower search for Arkansas professional female anglers found 5,610 related sites.

From ancient times with nets and spears, to today’s high-tech tournament tours, women have played a dominant role in all aspects of fishing. Each year, more women top the winner’s charts and take center stage. Their involvement and accomplishments are only limited by their own desire.

I applaud these women for their accomplishments. But, there’s an even larger group of women who have never received a top national award or got their picture taken with the big check. Women like my wife, grandmother and a spitfire redhead I know in south Texas who ranks in the top five best anglers I’ve ever known. It’s these women who deserve a standing ovation.

Around my house, she’s called the “crappie widow.” We men, spend so much time and money on the sport we love and often forget about the one who really makes it all possible. She’s there, lending a helping hand, when you’re working on the boat. She’s up early and makes you breakfast. She fills your thermos with coffee, and then ensures you don’t forget and leave it at home. She wishes you luck, with a kiss, and prays for your safe return. When your trip was successful, she’s genuinely impressed. When you come home empty-handed, she provides encouragement.

She rarely denies you an opportunity to purchase more tackle and equipment that you really don’t need. In a sense, she’s your business manager, bookkeeper, receptionists, cook, maid, deckhand, friend, fishing partner, and fan club all rolled in one. Her sacrifice and support are essential to your angling success. She deserves to be rewarded for her efforts. And, I’m not talking about a new rod and reel combo, unless that’s what she wants.

Men need to realize that we have an outstanding fishing partner in our wife. She may not want to fish every weekend, but when she does, you just might learn something from her. Women anglers are generally more patient and possess a certain intuition that produces more fish and often quality fish.

You should make her trip comfortable and respect her likes and dislikes. Now’s your chance to slay her dragons and she just might see you as Prince Charming when you get home, providing you don’t say something to ruin the special moments.

Young men, are you courting the right girl? If you’ve got the attitude of “I’m gonna miss her,” you just might need to prepare yourself to be lonely. Perhaps, you should be “look’in for a girl with a bass boat.”

Plan for retirement. Everywhere I go to fish, I see senior couples fishing together. Obviously, a couple that fishes together, stays together.

Angling mother’s pass on the legacy, heritage and tradition of fishing to the next generation just as much as, if not more than, fathers. Thank you for being there!

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Tackle Guide  

Now that Christmas is over, did you get all the new tackle you wanted? Probably not, and I’m not going to make it any easier.  Don’t fret, there’s plenty of time before the spawn.

Consider stocking up with hair and feather jigs. Some may consider the hairy side of jig fishing as old school, but it may be time to get back to basics.  Hair and feather jigs were used long before rubber and silicone tubes were invented. It’s classic and always productive.

Most who target panfish, use minnow or tubes. Try something new and innovative in 2005. Instead of the traditional tube, go for one that simulates a baby crawfish or a two-inch shad. Target trophy crappie in the shallows by up-sizing your presentation with small crankbaits or even mini spinner baits. If you’ve got your sights set on a state record, don’t be afraid to use a standard-sized three-inch crankbait or swimbait.

What about your line? Have you changed it lately? Choose the right line for the job. The traditional monofilaments will never fail you. Just remember to spool it correctly to prevent line twist. You can find hi-vis and low-vis in both monofilament and fluorocarbon lines. If you want greater sensitivity, try a braided line or even a super-braid. Their smaller diameter and anti-stretch features lets you feel a crappie smell your bait. Smooth casting, low memory line may be the ticket to greater success this coming year.

What about your terminal tackle? Old, rusted hooks are dull. Try new laser sharp, long shank cricket hooks for the crappie that elude your hookset. Maybe the new blood-red aberdeens will be your limit ticket this year. If you’ve never fished with anything less than 1/16^th ounce leadhead jig, test out some of the new painted-head jigs and go for lighter weights like 1/48^th ounce or even 1/80^th ounce.

Been thinking about a new reel? There are plenty on the market today. Buy what fits the job and your wallet. If you cast for crappie, the right gear ratio that matches your presentation preference will turn tiresome fishing trips into relaxing adventures.  The drag mechanism of a reel is also very important. It should be easily adjustable, yet sensitive enough to handle light-biting crappie or a roaming, rolling catfish.

Rods, you say! Now you’re talk’in. You get what you pay for. Certainly, some rods are ridiculously over-priced, while others aren’t worth half the asking price. Graphite is the way to go. Six to seven foot lengths are great for casting. Use 10-12 foot graphite rods for slow trolling and tight lining. Match rod and reel for balance. New graphite innovations are being marketed everyday. Look for fast trolling rods that feature an extra strong backbone in length up to 16 foot.

Last of all, new advances in tackle storage make being organized easier. Soft-sided tackle boxes with interchangeable storage boxes give you flexibility. Besides that, they make you look cool.

I do pray each of you had a great Christmas and hope to see you on the water in the New Year.

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Crappie Resolutions

Do we dare to dream dreams through our traditional New Years resolutions? Why is reality preferred over ideals? If dreams and ideals were never made into reality, what good would ever be done?

So many of us have stopped dreaming, formulating ideals and even making resolutions. Those that do don’t seem keep them through the whole year, even though our intentions are the best.

Most resolutions are usually tailored to self-improvement. Personally, I want to loose about 20 pounds and become more physically fit. Typical, right?

But I also have resolutions specifically related to the passion in my life – fishing. This year I resolve to fish smarter, not harder. I also resolve to take at least three different people with me who have never fished or caught fish before.

Some of my friends from Crappie.com have the same or similar resolutions:

Cohutta from Paris , TN told me, “My New Years crappie resolution is to some how persuade (trick) my wife into letting me buy a boat.” Sounds like Cohutta’s got his work cut out for him.

            Big Zig said, “I resolve to take my five-year-old with me on every fishing trip, short as they may end up being. He will be with me on the water.”

            Cane Pole hangs his hat in Old Springville, TN and resolves to “spend more time at the fish cleaning table and less time at the hospital operating table.” And, Tae73 wishes to “spend more time fishing than at work!”

            Roberta love to fish and resolves to “fish where I want to fish. I'm either going to have to buy a tube or rent a canoe from the marina to achieve this goal, since I can't manage the boat by myself.”

            “I want to try to enjoy every trip. I want to just have fun and laugh and not stress over things.” Sounds like Crap-King has the right idea.

            Piginthepigpen put it to us straight when he said, “My Resolution would have to be to not break anymore of my super sensitive rods.”

            Jerry, a very dear friend and guide from Hot Springs wants to “be on the water a minimum of 300 days.”

            FalconSmitty of Smiths, AL said he “will venture out from my home fishing area.” And LaBill from Shreveport , LA is resolved to “fish no matter how cold it gets, no matter how wet it is, and to fish with minnows instead of jigs.”

            Duane from Rollo , MO is resolved to “learn more about crappie fishing so I can have an even better time enjoying it.”

            Ranger375 is from Sullivan , IL and said, “For 2005, my resolution is to spend more time on the water and to become more consistent in catching crappie. Also, going to take a kid with me as often as possible (have no kids of our own).”

            Drill Instructor wants his “first fish of the year to be a crappie,” and that his daughter “catches her first crappie on her birthday, she will be 3.”

            Kenny from Yates City , IL said, “My resolution would be to have the exact same kind of year next year as I had this year. My wife told me to buy a new boat so I did.”

            My Manchester , TN friend, Fatboy, has his heart in the right place. He stated, “I'm gonna have to say that my New Years resolution and my wish for everyone else that doesn't fish is that they find a hobby that allows them the pleasure of being in the outdoors, spending quality time with your family, exploring different parts of the country and meeting great new people the way crappie fishing has allowed me to do in 2004. I resolve to continue it in 2005.”

            A New Years resolution is synonymous with a dream. It’s our idea of an ideal person or situation. George Bernard Shaw said, “You see things; and you say, ‘Why?’ But I dream things that never were; and I say, ‘Why not?’”

I resolve to help as many people as I can make their dreams reality.

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Crappie Science  

            One of the biggest misconceptions about crappie is that the blacks are the males and the whites are the females.  When, in fact, they are two separate subspecies of the sunfish family.

Taken together, they are the third most sought after class of fish overall, ranking behind only bass and catfish. But, by far, they are the most popular panfish in North America and serve as excellent table fair for millions.

            The white crappie, pomixis annualaris, also known as white perch or sac-a-lait (if you’re from Louisiana ), have black, spotted scales grouped in vertical bands on their body. The white crappie’s body is more elongated than the black crappie and silvery to silvery-green in color, depending on water clarity. Their dorsal fin has no more than six spines. And, during the spring spawn, the male white crappie’s throat and gill plates will develop a dark coloration.

            White crappie are nest builders, like other members of the sunfish family. Like the bluegill, white crappie have a very high reproductive potential. Thus, overpopulation and growth stunting in small ponds and lakes are common. White crappie nest in the spring when water temperatures reach mid to upper 60’s. Their fry hatch in three to five days, depending upon water temperature. They remain in the nest for a few days more, locked in a substance from the eggs. After this, they free themselves by vigorous swimming and begin to feed on microscopic animals. When they reach the fingerling stage, they school in large numbers. Typically, white crappie grow three to five inches the first year and reach maturity by the third year.

            The black crappie and the blacknose crappie, pomoxis nigromaculatus, also known as papermouth or calico bass, have irregular black, spotted scales on their body. The black crappie is deeper-bodied than the white and is also silvery-green in color. Their dorsal fin has seven or eight spines. And, just as the white crappie, the male develops a dark coloration during the spawn.

Like other members of the sunfish family, black crappie are nest builders. They nest in the spring, generally when water temperatures reach the lower to mid 60’s. The biology of black crappie is very similar to that of white crappie. Growth in terms of weight is very similar between the two species. White crappie tend to have higher growth rates in terms of length, but black crappie are more robust in body construction.

Now, what is a blacknose crappie? A blacknose crappie is just a black crappie with a wide, dominant black or chocolate-brown stripe running from the top fin to the tip of the nose. Blacknose crappie are a genetic variation of the black crappie and not a hybrid of white or black crappie, nor are they a subspecies. Many game and fish departments use this genetically mutated crappie for stocking, which lends to ease of measuring case study results. It has been my experience, the blacknose crappie seem to be more aggressive.

Now, here’s my take on responsible harvesting of crappie. I have been informed that a young ten-inch female crappie will lay about 10,000 eggs, whereas, a 14-plus-inch female can lay as many as 200,000 eggs. I also know that it is the male that makes and guards the bed. Therefore, during the spawning season only, if an angler releases all males and large females, our area lakes should never become crappie poor. Selective harvesting during the spawn is key to each successive year.

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All About Line

            An entire library of books can be written about fishing line. However, I hope to provide in this short column a basic understanding to better equip readers in making their line choices.

            The three basic line types are monofilament, fluorocarbon and braided. Each have their own pro’s and con’s and tailor themselves uniquely to a specific task. There are also four basic specialty classes within each type that perform a specific job for the angler.

            When choosing your line, first determine what specific task best fits your fishing needing. The traditional monofilament line has a high stretch capability, excellent for absorbing high impact strikes without breakage. However, mono’s shortcoming is a large line diameter to test rating ratio. The larger the line diameter is, the less sensitive and more difficult the presentation becomes.

Newer, more innovative fluorocarbon lines have many of the same characteristics as monofilaments with the added benefit of disappearing when submerged in water. A fluorocarbon line is specifically made to react to and change color in sunlight. The angler can easily see the line when exposed to sunlight, but as the line plunges deeper into the water where light is impaired, it becomes invisible to the human and fish eye. Since fluorocarbon lines are made to react to sunlight, they are more sensitive to the sun’s harmful UV rays. Ultraviolet light breaks down the line’s chemical makeup, making it more brittle is a shorter period of time as compared to monofilament. You’ll need to re-spool at least once a year.

Braided and super-braided lines are perfect for fishing heavy cover and in situations where increased sensitivity is needed. Today’s braided lines are very strong and do not stretch. Their smaller than average diameter affords the angler greater sensitivity. A braided line may not become brittle like other lines, but they do fray with time.

Once you have decided what type of line best fits your need, now is the time to determine what specialty feature will increase your angling performance. Some of your options are hi-vis, lo-vis, smooth casting, heavy cover, low memory, super sensitive, no twist, no stretch, and no memory. You can now take a breath! There are certainly many options from which to choose.

And, if that’s not enough, don’t forget that you’re seeking an IGFA record you must have an IGFA approved line. I do not endorse one line brand over another. To learn more about line visit http://www.stren.com/anatomy.htm or www.stren.com

When all else fails, just use what works for you. If you are comfortable and confident with a specific line, keep using it. Joe Namath once said, “When you have confidence, you can have a lot of fun. And when you have fun, you can do amazing things.”

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Winter Crappie

If you’ve ever tried to crappie fish during the winter, then you’ve probably wondered why they’ve seemed to disappear. Be assured, they are still there, and probably there by the thousands.

When the crappie gather at the banks in the shallow water to spawn, locating and catching them is easy. What’s more difficult is finding them during the dreaded winter months. And, when you do, you’ll reap the reward of catching bigger crappie.

For this latitude and climate, I consider the winter crappie season to be from mid-November to about mid-February. The days are shorter and the nights are colder, causing the water temperatures to drop into the 40’s and 50’s. It is during this period that the crappie will retreat into the haunts of deeper water.

Of course, deep is relative to the body of water you’re fishing, but generally it can always be found near the main creek channel of the lake or reservoir. In and near this deep water main channel, the crappie will be.

You will find and catch crappie in one of two extremes – deep, in the bottom third of the water column, holding close to structure and cover or shallow, in the upper third of the water column, scattered.

When locating the deep crappie, use your sonar graph. Turn up the sensitivity so you can distinguish between bottom clutter and fish.  Once you’ve located them, throw a marker.  Fish slowly and methodically. If you’re using jigs, don’t forget to use a dark color to compensate for the low light level.

Be patient. Crappie holding tight to structure or cover, deep within a creek channel, are not actively feeding. Experiment with jig colors and combinations. Test various jig sizes and depth of your presentation. Make micro-changes, no more than six inches up or down to get the bait right in their face.

When locating the shallow, scattered crappie, fast trolling out the back of your boat is your best bet. These crappie will be actively feeding and will want a fast moving large presentation, sometimes as big as an umbrella tube or three-inch crankbait. They will be four to six feet under the surface and chasing balls of shad.

Use your sonar to stay in or near the deepest water and to locate the shad.  The shad wrapped in a tight ball will usually have a predator near by. Use your GPS to maintain your trolling speed. Generally, .8 to 1.5 mph makes a perfect presentation.

So many excellent crappie anglers miss some of the greatest fishing opportunities when they only fish during the spring spawn. Winter crappie fishing will become your favorite, when land that three-pound monster.

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Trolling Techniques

Single pole jigging for crappie is exciting. The “thump” is what I live for and always makes adrenaline rush through my veins.

But sometimes, you just can’t target the fish. So, the best technique to use is trolling. Both, fast and slow trolling give an angler the opportunity to cover more water for those finicky, scattered crappie.

Slow trolling, sometimes called spider rigging, is a technique where an angler or a pair of anglers, sitting side by side, fan as many as eight long rods in rod holders from port to starboard across the bow of the boat. Rod lengths range from 10 to 16 foot, depending upon the angler’s preference. Some slow trolling experts use up to five hooks or jigs per pole. My preference is only two.

Using a 36-inch segment of 8-pound test line, tie on an extra-light wire minnow or cricket hook or a 1/32 or 1/16-ounce jig hook. This is your bottom hook. Next, secure a 3/8 to 3/4-ounce egg sinker six inches above the bottom hook by looping you line through three times. Now, tie a three-way swivel on the opposite end. Last, tie another hook with a six-inch leader to the second leg of the swivel. Terminal rigs like this can be made in advance of your trip and easily stored by wrapping it around a two-inch segment of foam. I cut mine from a round swim noodle.

Slow trolling speeds are usually less than one half mile an hour. The faster you troll, the greater the weight needed to keep your lines as vertical as possible and out of your trolling motor. Go slow. Boat control is key. Identify on your sonar unit what depth the fish are holding and drop your bottom hook to that depth. Fish on and pray they all hit at the same time. This is not a lazy way to fish.

Fast trolling, sometimes called long lining, is a technique where anglers use up to eight rods to drag crank baits out the back or from the side of the boat at .8 to 1.5 miles per hour. My preference is the Bandit 300 because they float and offer and large three-inch presentation.

If you choose to try this technique, will need to use 7.5-foot heavy action rods with bait caster reels that have a decent drag system. You will also need a line counter device to identify exactly how much line is let out. A bandit out 200 foot pulled at 1.5 mph will swim about 12 foot deep. The shorter the line the shallower the bait will swim.

When trolling directly out the back of the boat, be very careful to make extremely wide turns. The outside baits in a turn will start to run faster. The inside baits will run slower and begin to rise. The final result is a huge tangled mess. Make wide turns.

When fast trolling from the side of the boat, use four rods staggered at different heights. Your back rod should be pointed down toward the water. The forward most rod should be pointed up at a 45-degree angle. The two center rods can split the difference equally between the front and back rods. Place and set your back rod first by letting out 200 feet of line. Work your way forward letting out 50 less feet of line than the one before it. This will bring all your baits in a staggered line and if the fish misses the first or second bait, it will hammer the next. Plus, all your baits will be swimming at a slightly different depth to better cover the water column.

Fast trolling is excellent for catching monster crappie. Don’t be surprised if you also catch your share of catfish, walleye and bass both in the black and white species. This is not an inexpensive way to fish, but it is very effective.

I called the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and was told that we do not have a general statewide rule that limits the number of poles and number of hooks a single angler can use. There are, however, rod and hook limitations on specific bodies of water. Always check your state regulations first.

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Crappie Habitat – Part 1

Habitat is the natural environment of plants and animals. It can also be a controlled environment. Basically, the habitat for crappie is where they live and can be found.

For the next several weeks, I will attempt to inform you about crappie habitat, both natural and artificial. In the end, I hope this information makes you a better angler, able to fill your limits often.

But, before we proceed, let us focus our attention on rules, regulations and responsibility. According to Sam Henry of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission in Jonesboro , there are no specific regulations limiting or restricting placement of man-made, artificial cover in lakes managed by the state. In my own experience, other bodies of water, such as Corps of Engineer lakes, regulations do apply and permits may be required. On these waters, check with the proper authority first, before placing any structure.

Next, let me challenge each angler to be responsible and a good steward of our natural resources. Do not fill our lakes with trash. Any component that can produce or become a toxic byproduct, contaminating the water, should be avoided and not used. Common sense should prevail. When it does, together we can improve the habitat for future generations.

Now that the formalities are complete, let’s turn our attention to crappie’s natural habitat. Understand this first, and then you’ll know where best to place your man-made cover later.

Crappie relate to structure and cover. The two are different and work together to form habitat. Structure is underwater geography. Primary and secondary creek channels are structure. Ledges, humps, points, flats, even a large boulder or formation of rock are all structure and can hold crappie.

Cover is everything that is not structure. Water vegetation is cover. Trees, stumps, lay downs, and brush piles are cover. All these, plus man-made cover, provide a place for crappie to hide and ambush their prey. Cover is what you get hung up in when fishing and structure is what the cover sits upon.

When fishing, seek out both structure and natural cover to find crappie. Use a map, when available, to find key structures. Use a sonar unit and GPS to locate and mark structure and cover.

Now, lets put the two together in some real examples. Norfork Lake is predominantly deep water. However, there are ample number of ledges with lay downs. Not only look for the Corps’ fish attractor signs that mark large brush piles, but also spot the cuts where water runs off into the lake. These ledge structures will accumulate dead wood and hold crappie.

The Arkansas Game and Fish have done a fantastic job of creating habitat in this lake. Maps are available and if you wish to read more on the subject, visit www.ozarkmtns.com/fishing/species/crappie.htm.

Next week, we’ll continue with Lake Charles and Poinsett and start on man-made cover.

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Crappie Habitat – Part 2

Last week, we started our discussion on the crappie’s natural habitat. We identified the differences between structure and cover and how together they form excellent habitat for targeting crappie. We finished last week’s column with specific examples on Lake Norfork .

In addition, Lake Charles , south of Black Rock, has two large, distinct stump fields that provide excellent natural cover for crappie. One is on what locals call “rock bank” and another along “mud bank.” Plus, the upper end of the lake and each cove are flats that house their share of stumps for crappie to take cover when spawning. Target these areas and you’ll locate the crappie. Visit the lake while it is at winter pool and you will see much of what I just described. Don’t forget, Lake Charles now has a 10-inch length limit on all crappie.

Lake Poinsett , near Harrisburg , is a simple lake with much variety. On the north end of the lake, there is a very distinct ditch with a few brush piles scatter on its lip. Near the opening of camper’s cover there is a fencerow of stumps that line the edge of a secondary creek channel. A well-defined point, with several brush piles scattered throughout, extends from east cove to the edge of the primary channel of the lake. These are but a few structure/cover combinations that make perfect habitat where you can target crappie.

Visit my website at www.familyfishingtrips.com to see maps of both Lake Charles and Poinsett. Each marks the structure and cover described above.

I’ve heard told more than once, “if you’re not fishing the wood, you’re not crappie fishing.” This is true. This is the crappie’s habitat. It is where they live and where they can be found all year round.

Now let’s turn our attention to man-made or artificial cover. Freshwater fish attractors concentrate fish by providing cover, structure and spawning habitat. Often, the angler provides that cover in the form of a brush pile or other structures assembled from man-made materials.

Location is key. An incorrectly placed fish attractor will produce nothing. The best place to locate man-made cover is in close proximity to deep water. Sites located off points near creek channels (the crappie’s highway) are excellent locations. Remember this, if you’ve caught crappie there before, you just might be able to attract more by adding a little cover.

Strategically place your fish attractors at different water depths to perpetuate year-round fishing. In the heat of the summer and cold of the winter, crappie will mostly be found in the deepest water. During the spawn they are in the shallowest water. Don’t omit the transition and staging areas between deep and shallow water.

Let me restate my challenge to each angler to be responsible and a good steward of every crappie habitat. Though there are no specific laws prohibiting the placement of man-made cover in our state lakes, do not fill our lakes with trash. Be selective and let’s do it right. If, today, we do a good job, then tomorrow’s habitat will improve for future generations.

Next week we will discuss different types of artificial cover like brush piles, stake beds and a unique system invented here in Arkansas called the crappie condo.

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Crappie Habitat – Part 3

Last week, in part two of our discussion about crappie habitat, we concluded by describing the proper placement for fish attractors. This week, the final column, we’ll identify types of artificial habitat and how best to build them.

The brush pile is probably the most basic of cover. And, the Christmas tree is probably the most commonly used. Christmas pines are dense cover and work well for baitfish and crappie fry when sunk in the shallows. Their shortcoming is the smaller branches will decompose in a short time. Therefore, you should sink as many as is reasonable in one spot to form a single pile after the smaller branches disappear.

Another alternative is to drill a 3/8-inch hole at the base of the tree and push a steel bar into the hole. Place the tree’s trunk in a 5-gallon bucket filled with concrete. Let it dry over night. The extra weight at the bottom keeps the tree upright. Strategically place them off points at the mouth of coves to create a perfect transition from deep to shallow water. When the tree is rotted away, usually only after a season or two, the bucket will remain and serve as an artificial stump.

Hardwoods make better brush piles and they last much longer. Don’t expect too much too soon. They will sour at first and require a longer period of time to begin to attract crappie. Find the best structure that will hold crappie naturally, like a creek channel, point or ledge, and sink it there. Make your pile at least 20 feet long and half the height of the water column when at draw-down. Use rocks or blocks tied to the wood to keep it on the bottom. A hardwood brush pile is a long-term investment you can add to and improve upon for years.

Stake beds are excellent cover for spawning crappie. There are two schools of thought concerning stakes. One believes the stakes should never extend more than two to three feet above the bottom no matter the water depth, whereas, another says the stake should always rise through at least half the water column. In either case, drive a boatload of them into the bottom of the lakebed creating a field of them in strategic locations. Another way to make stake beds is to nail them to a pallet and sink it.

            Now, the best for last – Jerry Blake’s Crappie Condos just can’t be beat. Jerry is a very good friend and fellow guide – www.actionfishingtrips.com – who continues to teach me. His crappie condos, as he calls them, are inexpensive to build and last for years. You may wish to get a partner to help because they are BIG.

            To make a crappie condo, you will need a 5-gallon bucket, some concrete mix and 12 to 15 or more pieces of fresh cut, green bamboo – leave the leaves on – bushy is better. The length of the bamboo will vary depending upon the depth of the water. His are usually eight to fifteen feet long and sunk in 25 to 35 foot of water.

            Mix the concrete in the bucket and place as many your bamboo in the bucket, fanned out and pointing in all directions. Let it set over night and they’re ready to sink. It’s just that simple. They attract crappie very quickly, sometimes within mere days, and are more forgiving with hang-ups. The bamboo is buoyant, but the concrete-filled bucket sinks perfectly upright, even on the steepest of slopes.

If you would like to read detailed instructions and techniques for building crappie condos, visit www.crappie.com/condo.

Last of all, don’t forget to use your GPS unit and mark a waypoint where you put the cover.  This will allow you to return to the exact spot. You might wish to share the coordinates with a few friends – like me.

Well-managed habitat will produce grand numbers of crappie. Concentrating and targeting crappie in this manner is a key to filling your limit every time you fish, no matter the season. So, anyone with a little bamboo, a few buckets and some concrete, give me a call and we’ll make the world’s best attractor for the world’s best pan fish.

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Spring Crappie - Water Temp is Key

Though the temperature is still flirting with the freezing mark each morning, it’s beginning to warm up more and more during the day. That means it’s time to get serious about spring crappie.

Some anglers believe crappie to be irrational and unpredictable. This is so untrue. Experienced crappie anglers know that water temperature is the single most influential factor governing crappie behavior. Fish are cold-blooded creatures and the slightest change in water temperature triggers their feeding and breeding activities.

When you match water temperature to activity, and then activity to location, crappie then become predictable and your freezer fills up.

During the winter season, water temperatures sometimes drop below 45 degrees. During this period, the crappie are scattered in the deepest water. Their bite is generally very light with an overall activity level some might consider hibernation. In reality, they are just conserving energy and waiting for the time when instinct drives them into feed frenzies.

When the water temperature warms to the 50-degree mark, the instinctual migration begins. Crappie move out of their deep water haunts in the main lake body and begin to concentrate near the entrances of primary creek channels. By the time the temperature finally reaches 55-degrees, they will have moved closer to the shallower secondary channels.

It is the primary and secondary channels that crappie use as a highway or migration route. Slow trolling or drifting these channeled staging areas can be very productive. Another productive method is casting across the channel and, with a stop-and-go presentation, retrieve your jig at varying speeds. Use a count-down method to control your depth.

When the water temperature reaches the 55-60 degree range, the male crappie’s throat and gill plate start to turn black. My friend Jerry calls it “putting on the tuxedo to court the ladies.”

They also form the advanced party into the shallows. Here, the male crappie locate and fan out spawning beds while the females wait in the before mentioned channels. During this time, both male and female crappie feed aggressively, increasing an angler’s opportunity to easily fill a day’s limit.

The male crappie’s aggression can also be triggered during this time by invading its bedding territory. This is my favorite style of crappie fishing. Glide up into the shallow water and pitch or daub a jig around stickups, lay-downs, and brushpiles. Sometimes, it will hit your jig so hard and fast you think it might take the pole right out of your hand.

If you wish to fish this way, I recommend you do the following. First, set the hook with a side pull motion and not up. This will prevent spooking other crappie, drag it out of the brush quickly with fewer hang-ups and stop it from jumping.

Second, when you catch a crappie, always go directly back to the exact same spot. Last year, I caught a 15-inch male and a 14-inch female off the same bed.

Last, when pitching, swimming the jig back at a constant depth is essential. Baitfish swim straight, not up and down in roller coaster fashion. Mark your line using a permanent marker about 18 inches above the jig. Keeping this mark at the water’s surface, ensures you are swimming the jig straight and at the correct depth.

As a general rule, once the water’s surface temperature reaches the mid-60’s, the spawn is in full swing. Back and forth, the crappie go between staging and bedding. The females will be in the staging areas or on the bed laying eggs. The males will be protecting a bed or retrieving a female from the staging area.

By the time the temperature enters the 70’s, the females stop spawning and begin their migration back to deeper water following the same route. Soon thereafter, the males will retreat. When the water temperature is in the 80’s, you can know they have made it all the way back to the deeper, cooler water.

Please remember, water temperature, activity and location are inter-related. Of course, exceptions always apply, but I sincere hope this information helps you better target crappie.

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How to Get Started

My favorite online crappie fishing forum, www.crappie.com, has recently gained at least a dozen new members, proclaiming they are new to crappie fishing and want to know how to get started. They have inspired me to write this for you.

The first thing a new crappie angler must do is decide just how much you are willing to invest into the sport.  Crappie fishing, perhaps, may not be as expensive as today’s popular bass angling, but it will consume as much, if not more, of your time. You must decide if this is really what you want. Because, once you start, you’re going to be hooked. Crappie fishing is more addicting than nicotine or some other drug.  It’s a passion that is never fully satisfied.

If your decision is in the affirmative, then the next thing to do is study. Purchase books and magazines that are specific to the sport of crappie fishing. There are several books available that can be purchased at any major bookstore or online. I recommend them all, but you might first try Crappie Wisdom by Al Linder and Ultimate Crappie Techniques by Samuel L. Calvin. Crappie World is the only magazine I know of that solely dedicates itself to panfish.

Now that you have read and thoroughly familiarized yourself with the sport, hire a guide. Hiring a guide is not an expense, but rather and investment. Hire a guide that is willing to not only take you fishing, but also able teach you everything you need to know. You can learn from a guide in only one or two trips what he learned over many years. A good crappie guide can show you firsthand how to rig your terminal tackle and what to look for on the water. Some guides will even give you a GPS coordinate or two to help get you started. A guide is a mentor, coach and friend. Every good guide has at the core of his business the success of his clients.

Now all you need is your own equipment and some experience. Start with the basic equipment – boat, rod, reel, terminal tackle, bait and net. Any boat that will safely float will do. You will want a trolling motor and basic fish finder. Later you will want to add a GPS unit to your electronic tools.

If you are going to tightline, troll, drift or use slip floats when fishing for crappie, I recommend a 12-foot graphite crappie rod with a basic open-faced spinning reel. You can expect to pay between $30.00 and $80.00 for the rod/reel set. If you prefer to cast for crappie, I recommend a 6 to 7 foot graphite ultra-light rod.

Use 6 to 8 pound test monofilament line with 1/16^th ounce jig hooks and 1½-inch tube jigs or extra light wire Aberdeen hooks for live bait. When using a slip float, I prefer the half-inch pencil style with two appropriately sized split shots that will stand the float upright, but not sink it below the water’s surface. There are literally millions of jigs types, styles and colors. The tube jig is probably the most basic and productive. Color is important, but not so important to keep you off the water. Pick anything with chartreuse color in it.

A wise man once told me, “A blind hog will get an acorn every once in a while.” There is a difference in luck and skill. If you start with the basics and fish often, you will not need to rely upon luck for your fishing success. Depending upon the amount of time and effort you contribute to the sport, you can become a skilled crappie farmer able to find and catch the world’s best panfish any time of year.

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Familiar Waters

Go with what you know. That is the best advice I have ever received.  As it relates to crappie fishing, you should fish familiar waters with equipment you are accustomed to in a manner that is comfortable to you.

Recently, I was privileged to take a father and his son fishing. Admittedly, both were novice fishermen and required generous amounts of tutelage. The father was not overly interested in fishing. The son, however, was relentless and proved to be a quick study.

This 14-year-old enthusiast fished with every rod in my box in every manner known to man. His zeal was inspiring. For over four hours he tirelessly cast spoons and crankbaits, while keeping one eye on two slipfloat rigs.

It was a very slow day on the lake. But, due to sheer determination, he landed six, keeper crappie, besting his dad’s two.

The point is they fished to the best of their ability, not caring that the spinning reel was upside down and they had great day on the water. Wow, what an object lesson.

Go with what you know. Fishing unfamiliar waters tests your knowledge and skill of the sport beyond normal tolerances. However, productive harvests of crappie tend to occur more frequently when you fish a lake, pond or river you know.

For example, there are an ample number of great crappie waters here in the immediate vicinity of Paragould. Nonetheless, I drive four hours south, to Hot Springs, most weekends to guide and fish lakes I know. Doing so, allows me to offer a guaranteed catch. Familiar waters give you confidence.

All too often, outdoor writers and fishing professionals promote the latest and greatest in today’s tackle and equipment leading some to believe you won’t catch another fish without it. On the one hand, there are many products on the market today that are worth their weight in gold and make the angler’s job easier and more efficient.

On the other hand, an angler may tend to believe that if he had the new graphite rod with the latest in reel technology spooled with super-invisible fluorocarbon line baited with a red-light flashing, crawfish impregnated, imitation minnow, then he would have filled his limit. This is not necessarily true. Sometimes, the best crappie catcher is a simple cane pole with small red ribbon tied to a hook.

Using tackle and equipment you are accustomed to allows you to spend more time fishing. If you are spending half your time learning the new fishfinder or fighting that new trolling motor or re-spooling that new reel, you just might miss the most productive fishing time.

Learning new presentation techniques is a great way to improve your angling skill. However, that new technique may not be right for you. If you are comfortably confident trolling for crappie, then spend your time trolling.

As for me, I am more productive hovering over a specific brushpile and tightlining a jig or dangling a minnow under a slipfloat. I enjoy casting for crappie and like to experiment with it, but the fish caught are fewer in number.

Go with what you know. Do this the majority of the time. Experiment some of the time. Just remember, you can’t have everything and do everything at the same time.

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Getting the Most from Your Graph (Sonar, Sounder or Fishfinder)
by Jerry Blake of Action Fishing Trips

(This is a post Jerry made on Crappie.com.  It is so good and an essential element to successful fishing I just had to publish it here on my website.)

Questions on how to properly adjust graphs and decipher what they show on the screen have come up many times on this board (www.crappie.com). The following is what I have learned from using several different graphs over the years and may be something that could be made into an article for future reference. Please consider it a rough draft. I’m open to suggestions so if I’ve left anything out or not explained anything adequately please feel free to offer any suggestions that will make it more complete and concise. I’ll try to get some pictures to add in the near future. If it turns out to be helpful and worthwhile I’ll ask Ed to make it a permanent article. A lot of this is pretty basic, long and drawn out (boring) but I've tried to make it helpful for someone that has never used a graph before.

Fish Arches - What Am I Seeing?

In order to get a “fish arch” (like the manufactures lead us to believe we should be seeing on our graphs) a fish must pass completely through the “cone” or view of the transducer from one side to the other within a narrow speed range depending several variables without changing depth when either the boat passes over the fish or the fish swims under the boat.

Think of your graph screen as a composite picture of individual sonar returns. The transducer sends intermittent sound waves or “pings” down into the water and records how long it takes for that ping to return to the transducer as well as how loud that signal is returned when the signal bounces back up from the bottom or other object. The sound waves are broadcast into the water in a "cone" or circle that is narrow at the transducer and widens until it meets the bottom. Only objects that are in the cone or view can be detected by the graph.

Think of each horizontal pixel on your screen as one ping or one still photograph of what was in the view at that instant. Think of each vertical pixel as one volume setting. The louder the ping comes back the more vertical pixels it will “paint” depicting higher volume. Higher volume means the sound wave bounced off a harder or denser material.

Also, note that the display on your screen is simply a short history of what your boat passed over or what passed under your boat. The most recent information comes into view on the right side of your screen and then moves across and off your screen to the left. Depending on your boat speed and scroll speed (speed at which information passes across your screen), what your seeing on your graph isn’t necessarily under your boat and can actually be quite a ways behind you.

Arches are created because as a fish passes through the view or “cone” of the transducer it is farther from the transducer when it is at the edge of the cone and closer to the transducer when in the center of the cone. The width of the arch depends on several factors including, how fast the fish passes through the cone and also how fast your Scroll Speed is set.

The cone angle also affects fish arches because at a given speed (boat or fish) and scroll speed it takes longer for a fish to pass through a wide cone than a narrow cone at any given depth. Varying depths of fish also affects the arches because the cone gets wider as it gets deeper so the deeper a fish is the longer it takes it to pass through the cone and visa versa because of the difference in the distance across the cone at different depths.

The faster the fish passes through the cone and/or the faster your Scroll Speed is set the shorter the arch is going to be up to the point where it is just a blob instead of an arch. The slower the fish passes through the cone and/or the slower your Scroll Speed is set the longer the arch is going to be up to the point that it goes all the way across your screen.

If the fish stays in the view of the cone - either because the boat is not moving or the fish is moving at the same speed and direction as the boat – and doesn’t change depth then you’re going to see a solid line all the way across your screen instead of an arch.

If you’re sitting still or moving very slowly over a brushpile the only way you’re going to see fish arches is if a fish swims through the view of the transducer at just the right speed – probably somewhere between .5 and 3 mph depending on a variety of factors as mentioned above.

If you get over an active school of fish that is moving up and down in the water column your going to see lines that go up and down your screen like a bunch of snakes. Crappie however are not usually that active and if you’re sitting or moving very slowly over a brushpile you can expect them to show up as solid lines on your screen rather than arches.

If a fish enters the view of the transducer and leaves in less time that it takes for that information to move across the screen but not fast enough or centered enough to make an arch then you’ll have a line on your screen that starts and stops.

To see actual sonar returns - lines or arches - and no fish symbols turn your Fish ID off. Set your overall sensitivity so the bottom shows up fairly dark (hard return) and cover – brushpiles, bamboo condos or weed beds, etc. – show up a lot lighter (soft return). Most graphs now have several different “views” – Whiteline or Grayline, Inverse, Structure ID, Bottom Black, etc., which are a variety of ways information is displayed on the screen. I have mine set to Whiteline (Humminbird) or Grayline (Lowrance), which seem to be the best for differentiating between the bottom and cover.

How Do I Adjust My Graph For Optimum Performance?

First, make sure your transducer is pointing fairly straight down and be sure there is no oil or wax residue on the face, which could cause small air bubbles to stick to the face and interfere with the signal. Also, make sure you have a good connection where your transducer cable connects to your graph - there should be no moisture or corrosion in this connection.

I think one mistake folks make is assuming that more sensitivity means you see more on your graph, which isn’t necessarily true. Increased sensitivity simply makes everything darker (or more of the colors that depict more solid objects on a color graph) and decreased sensitivity makes everything relatively lighter (or less of the colors that depict solid objects on a color graph).

With sensitivity properly set, harder (rockier) bottom will show up darker because stronger signals are coming back to the transducer and mud or silt bottom will show up lighter because some of the signal is absorbed and less of the signal is returned to the transducer. Increased sensitivity also shows more surface clutter and electrical noise and visa versa.

You can distinguish between cover and the bottom because wood, bamboo, weeds, etc. have a different density than rock, silt or mud. Knowing what type of cover you are over, either because you put it there or have seen it when the water level was down, helps a lot in learning to identify what you’re seeing on your graph.

You can also distinguish between fish and cover because fish have a different density than wood, bamboo and weeds, etc. Probably the easiest identifying feature of a sonar return made by a fish in your “view” is that it has a constant thickness or “volume”, which shows as a consistent line across your graph. Bigger (thicker) and shallower fish will show up as thicker lines because the ping comes back louder than it does on a smaller (thinner) or deeper fish but each fish will show a consistent thickness or volume as it’s sonar return is displayed across the screen.

As the fish moves towards the edge of the cone its sonar return may be somewhat lighter or thinner because it is farther from the transducer than when it is in the center of the view but it won’t change much. Tree limbs on the other hand vary in thickness and therefore show up with an inconsistent thickness or volume. Bamboo is not very dense so it has a fairly light but consistent sonar return and shows up very similar to a school of baitfish so it’s very easy to see sonar returns (lines) made by fish that are down in bamboo cover.

When you are confident that you can distinguish between fish and cover you may want to turn your Fish ID back on and set the Fish ID sensitivity so it only shows fish symbols on some of the better fish returns. I use the Fish ID on my Matrix 12 so I can glance down and quickly see the depth of fish on the screen by the target depth shown with each fish symbol. I can still see the actual sonar returns to verify that the computer generated fish symbol is actual a fish.

My Lowrance LCX17M on the other hand is mounted on my console too far away for me to see fish symbols and their corresponding depths while I’m crappie fishing anyway so I don’t use the Fish ID on it. When I have turned on the Fish ID it filtered out all the actual fish returns and only showed the symbols, which I didn’t care for at all. It probably can be adjusted to show both symbols and actual returns like my Matrix does but I haven’t tried since I don’t use Fish ID on it anyway.

Depending on what graph you have you may or may not be able to set it to show both fish symbols/depth and actual returns. If you have to choose between one or the other you definitely want to turn off the Fish ID so you can see the actual returns.

One useful method of adjusting your overall sensitivity and your Fish ID sensitivity is to use a 1/16 to 1/8-ounce lead head jig suspended in the view of your graph. The width of the view of a 20-degree cone angle transducer is only about one-third the depth of the object your seeing so if you’re looking for your jig at a depth of 10-feet it will have to be within about a 3-foot diameter circle under your transducer. It’s easier to keep your jig in the cone if you put it down 15 or 20-feet but even then it will need to be within a 5 or 6-foot diameter circle directly under your transducer.

To adjust your overall sensitivity turn your Fish ID off and suspend a jig in the view of your transducer and slowly move it up and down a foot or two at a time. It should show up on your graph as a line that moves up and down on the screen just like you are moving the jig with a split second delay as the graph processes the information and displays it on the screen. If you have a flasher bar on the side of your screen it should show the jig moving up and down in real time.

If you don’t see your jig, slowly increase your sensitivity JUST until it starts to show up as a faint line. If your jig shows up real dark then reduce your sensitivity until it only shows as a faint line. Now your overall sensitivity should be about right but you can make minor adjustments from there if needed.

Most graphs now have an “Automatic Sensitivity” setting, which adjusts for different water conditions and depths. Even with the Automatic Sensitivity turned on you can manually set the desired sensitivity range. The Automatic Sensitivity then makes adjustments for different depths and conditions so your display is consistent. If you’re going to use your Automatic Sensitivity then be sure it is turned on before you make sensitivity adjustments.

If you are going to use your Fish ID turn it back on after you have adjusted your overall sensitivity. Now move your jig up and down as before. If you’re graph shows fish symbols along with the line depicting your jig reduce the Fish ID sensitivity until it no longer shows fish symbols. If your jig no longer shows up as a line then you may have to increase your overall sensitivity if you are going to use your Fish ID. If your jig still doesn’t show up as a line or if it only shows up with your sensitivity set so high that you can’t distinguish between cover and the bottom then you probably want to turn your Fish I