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Thread: Summer crappie patterns

  1. #1
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    Jun 2009
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    Default Summer crappie patterns


    Hey everyone,

    It seems that alot of people switch to other species after the crappie spawn so I was wondering, do you continue to crappie fish through the summer and if so, where do you find them and how do you catch them?

  2. #2
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    May 2009
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    Summertime Crappie Fishing is my favorite time of the year. If you can stand the heat. Crappie will be hanging out in standing timber and shallow stumps.

  3. #3
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    May 2009
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    I use to fish for whatever was biting. A fair weather fisherman! Now, I primarily fish for Crappie and Catfish.

    I'm trying to learn how to catch Crappie year round. One of the best thing I ever did was start hiring guides. You'll learn a lot by watching what they do and asking questions.

    EB said something the first time I went out with him. It has stayed with me ever since. He probably doesn't recall saying it, but it stuck with me as one of those simple truths in life. It was an "Aha" moment! He said

    "People fish for Crappie during the spawn because they know where to find them. If they could find them at other times of the year, they'd fish for them then"

    "Finding them" has been my problem, but the learning curve has been flattened out a lot by hiring guides at these times and then taking what I learn and applying it to lakes I fish.

    Brian showed me how to catch Crappie along ripraps and standing timber in Summer and I've been able to replicate those patterns on other lakes. The really cool thing is that the fish are shallow usually, even when it's in the 90's or above. I'll catch them in less than 5 feet of water. Now that's some fun :D

    This year, I look forward to trying night time fishing and also giving longline trolling a try. It seems to be a popular technique in other states (here's a thread on the main board) Longlining for Summer Crappie
    Likes Crappie ciller LIKED above post

  4. #4
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    Jul 2005
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    Let's make this a Sticky until the end of the Summer. WTG Meatdragger, good idea!
    Reaper, Where Fish come to Fry
    Likes varmithunter, Crappie ciller, OKMIKE LIKED above post

  5. #5
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    Aug 2008
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    Thanks Reaper, good idea to make a sticky out of this. My learning curve has certainly steepened thanks to this board as well as, Lip Rippers, EB, Chatt Martin, Odie and others. I never would have tried fishing shallow for crappie during the summer until now. I am indebted to many of you. Thank you again.
    I have to go to Tenkiller for my wifes family reunion on June 17th and I plan on fishing the shallow stump fields in Sallisaw Creek on Kerr. I have heard reports that the water temp already is around 80 degs in that creek.
    Likes dstreet LIKED above post

  6. #6
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    I used to be a spawn only crappie fisherman and a bass fisherman the rest of the time. In the last 7 years I have been bass fishing less than 10 times. I forced myself to try and learn how to catch crappie year round. I did that by reading every article I could find on summer, fall, and winter crappie fishing and fishing every time I got the chance. The summer and winter are now my favorite times to fish. There are a lot less people out fishing and it is a whole lot like hunting. If you know me, you know hunting deer is my other passion. Since this thread is about summertime fishing, I will talk about the pattern I have found during the summer. When the water temps approach the mid 80's and the water becomes still (no current) the thermacline develops. The fish will not go below the thermacline due to low oxygen levels. If you have a good quality locator and turn up the sensitivity the thermacline line is visible. It is a solid line on my locator. On Oologah, on the main lake, that usually is no deeper than 16 feet. Brushpiles in less than 16 fow are what to look for and the fish are usually suspended above the brush. My son and I caught them on brush in 6- 8 fow last summer. My favorite summetime piles on Oologah are in 12- 14 fow. I also have found fishing during the summer on Oologah that minnows out perform jigs. I am a die hard jig man but fish with minnows most of the time when fishing summertime brushpiles on Oologah. Dipping standing timber can be fun, with early morning and late evening being the best for me. If you can find them during the summer, you can load the boat in a very short period of time. Hope this helps and everyone else weigh in and give us some tips.

    Odie
    Common sense isn't always that common!
    Likes Crappie ciller, Squirminator LIKED above post

  7. #7
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    We fished up in the creeks during summer years ago to escape the boats and weekend warriors, and to our surprise found the crappie as well. I love to vertical jig timber and laydowns in the summer. The weather and water levels are stable and once you pattern them it's very predictable every time out. I'm like Odie...hate minnows but late summer / early fall sometimes that's all they will hit. One year in early Sept. we fished Rock Creek and a dead minnow is the ONLY bait they would hit, we finished the day with 90.
    "Never Fry Bacon Naked"
    Likes Crappie ciller LIKED above post

  8. #8
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    Jun 2009
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    Odie, your experiences with fishing them on brush during the summer are the exact same as mine although I like to go a little shallower and seem to catch less small ones when I do. I believe what you say about the thermocline to be true and I began to explain this in the Oologah thread when Peke asked me about the summer pattern on Oologah but until you confirmed my thoughts, it was just a theory of mine and my fishing buddies. I'm glad to have someone else confirm it for us.

    I will say this, once things settle for the summer, if you can find them you will probably catch them there ALL summer. It's a great time to fish for them.

    As I said in the Oologah thread, I would like to try dipping some timber as well. I think I might catch bigger fish dipping timber than I do fishing brush.

    It seems strange to people to catch crappie so shallow during the summer. I see people trying to fish deep piles because they figure the fish want to be down in the cool water but that isn't the case.

    It's good to hear most of us are still out hunting them. The forum just seems to slow down duringthe summer so I assumed alot of people were moving on to catfish and sandies. It's just a busy time of year I guess.

    Stay after them and good luck everybody!
    Likes Crappie ciller LIKED above post

  9. #9
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    Meatdragger, It is getting close to time for the summer pattern to start. Once the lake stabilizes it will be on. The water temp was 84 last Thursday. I'll PM you my phone number, call when you are coming up this summer and me and my 13 year old son will meet you on the lake. I absolutely love the summertime fishing on Oologah. I'm going to experiment with another new pattern this summer and will report the results.

    Odie
    Common sense isn't always that common!

  10. #10
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    I've had days that the only thing that would get bit was a dead minnow. Is why I stopped chumming the water with them.
    Reaper, Where Fish come to Fry

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