you CAN smell a Bluegill bed area I don't know why, and I forget what it smells like ... but, I've done it before. You can't, however, "smell" a Crappie bed area. And you probably aren't likely to "see" one, either. They generally pick a bedding sight that is just below the level, of enough light penetration, to actually "see" the bed (from above the water's surface). Of course, if the water is very shallow and very clear ... all over a particular body of water, or in the only suitable spawning areas, of that body of water ... then you may be able to see the beds, and probably the bedding fish. But, of course, that depends on the state, and waters within that state, that you fish. It has been my experience, in the lakes I fish in Ky, Tn, & Ala, that the Crappie beds are not usually visible (due to water clarity & cover used). ............ cp