Thread: ??Spring Crappie Bite Question??

Been fishing for crappies since I was a kid with my dad and now with my kids in the springtime. We never really used to pay attention to water temps and such...we just used to hook up the boat and go when the weather started getting nice. It was usually hit or miss on the spring shallow/brush bite. Therefore, I'd like to get a better indication of when is the best time to go and what the experienced crappie anglers feel is the optimal water temp for the crappies in shallower water and brush?? I'm more of a muskie guy and know that the muskies will generally start to turn on in the spring when the surface temps reach the high 50s to mid 60s. Thanks in advance!!

SUNF

Is this a big secret or something?

Hello
Shut up fish
I live in So central pa. and haven't got my boat out yet but have fished a friends pond i stocked about 8 yrs ago with 25 9-12in crappie.Seems in the last 2-3 weeks the
crappie have moved closer to shore as the water is warming.When i started in late Feb as the ice disappeared they were in 8-10 ft of water now there in 3-5 ft.Now i know the smaller body of water will warm up quicker then a lake of say 40-150 acres but i would say with the temps here in the 40s at night and 50-60s by day the males should be in close looking to build a nest and the females not far behind.I'm making my maiden voyage on Thursday and will definitly start shallow 1st.then work my way deeper if need be.I'll try a 1/32 jig with a grub,tube,and something i dicovered this year a Kalins 1 3/4 in scrub in firetiger(deadly) then naturally a rosie red minnow w/a slipbobber.Ihope this works for you my friend,good luck and tight lines.

I wish I had some info to give out, I am usually the one asking the questions.

We just started really getting into crappie fishing about 4 years ago and quite often we couldn't figure them out. I wish we would have journaled everythig everytime we went.I still didn't figure them out right after iceoutbut once the water warms up we don't have a problem catching them.We found that up to about 10'of water is the best depth and water temp 65-70. Don't know if this will help or not. Tight lines to all.

Howdy Shut. Here in the north we have 2 moves to shallow water. The ice out move brings them in seeking some relatively warmer water. The action can be fabulous in March and early April, but also very hit or miss. The second move is associated with the spawn like it is all over the country. Of course they don't get an ice out bite down south as they don't get ice. Temperatures near 60 degrees seem to be the magic level to get this move rolling. The folks in SC and TN swear by the 60 degree level. From there the weather is key as big cold fronts drive them deep again and 3+ days of sun and warmth bring them shallow again.