Enid Lake Crappie

[khenders]

i dont have a boat and usually fish at plum point beach or wallace creek along the banks. Is there any luck catching crappie from the banks? I see guys in boats catching about 30 fish in 3-4 hours when i cant get i single bite. I have been using these little feathery looking jigs from walmart. Maybe it is my jig. What do you think, jig, location, need a boat, or a combo of these?

[spawner]

Good to hear post from others on here. Are you new to the forum? If so welcome and I hope you learn alot. I am not a pro at catching these speckle fish but I love to fish for them and I am always open to learn new techniques on doing just that. In my opinion you dont need a boat to catch crappie however it sure helps especially when they are staging on a ledge or sudden drop off a couple of hundred yards away from the bank your fishing from. You never know where there going to be from day to day(ex-weather conditions, water temps, water clarity) all play a role. Not to mention what you cant see from the bank lurking under the water (ex- stump field, stake beds, condos, sunken tops) all could be the differance why they were catching fish and you werent. You mentioned bait selection which is also very important(ex-jigs, jigs and minnows, jigs and nibbles, crankbaits, spoons, spinnerbaits or the go to bait a plain minnow) I am sure I left something out but all have a place at a given time. I tried berkley nibbles for the first time this year back when the water temps were so high and I was sold on them. It seemed as long the water temps stayed high the nibbles along with tube jigs or hair would catch the crappie until the water temps started fallen a bit and now I dont do as good. Jig selection esp. color of jig to me is very important only to the body of water you are fishing. A good color at Enid may not produce at Sardis which may be because of water clarity or again weather conditions.
Your local bait shops, fishing reports, and checking the weather forecast is a good start but just getting out and experimenting on the water or bank is a plus. My dad got me hooked on crappie fishing at Enid when I was a kid. Havent been there since May of this year caught some good crappie on char. hair jigs with two tone heads(char. and orange) fished standing timber to the right of water valley boat ramp.
The spawn is a good time to fish from the bank or wade. Fall is a good time to fish from the bank if you can find a sunken brush top somewhere close to the bank in from 4ft- 10ft of water or rip rap along a river bank. Also bridge pileons(?) are good to fish around from the bank. Spillways are always a good option around here to fish in the fall and winter. However only if they are letting water out and fighting the crowds if the fish are biting. I noticed in this months Crappie Magazine on the magazine rack at Wal-mart they had a article on this very subject of bank fishing. It detailed places to try and techniques to use. It might be helpful! I read a little of it every night on my lunch break.Ha!Ha! Sorry if I rambled on but if and when you start catching them 4lbs out of Enid like you should dont forget me. Okay!!!!!!!!
See ya on the lake,
Spawner

[khenders]

Is it a certain brand, type, of the nibblers you like? And how bout the hair jigs? and tube jigs? I know the wide variety of the same kind of stuff and just wanted some guidance is all.

Good to hear post from others on here. Are you new to the forum? If so welcome and I hope you learn alot. I am not a pro at catching these speckle fish but I love to fish for them and I am always open to learn new techniques on doing just that. In my opinion you dont need a boat to catch crappie however it sure helps especially when they are staging on a ledge or sudden drop off a couple of hundred yards away from the bank your fishing from. You never know where there going to be from day to day(ex-weather conditions, water temps, water clarity) all play a role. Not to mention what you cant see from the bank lurking under the water (ex- stump field, stake beds, condos, sunken tops) all could be the differance why they were catching fish and you werent. You mentioned bait selection which is also very important(ex-jigs, jigs and minnows, jigs and nibbles, crankbaits, spoons, spinnerbaits or the go to bait a plain minnow) I am sure I left something out but all have a place at a given time. I tried berkley nibbles for the first time this year back when the water temps were so high and I was sold on them. It seemed as long the water temps stayed high the nibbles along with tube jigs or hair would catch the crappie until the water temps started fallen a bit and now I dont do as good. Jig selection esp. color of jig to me is very important only to the body of water you are fishing. A good color at Enid may not produce at Sardis which may be because of water clarity or again weather conditions.
Your local bait shops, fishing reports, and checking the weather forecast is a good start but just getting out and experimenting on the water or bank is a plus. My dad got me hooked on crappie fishing at Enid when I was a kid. Havent been there since May of this year caught some good crappie on char. hair jigs with two tone heads(char. and orange) fished standing timber to the right of water valley boat ramp.
The spawn is a good time to fish from the bank or wade. Fall is a good time to fish from the bank if you can find a sunken brush top somewhere close to the bank in from 4ft- 10ft of water or rip rap along a river bank. Also bridge pileons(?) are good to fish around from the bank. Spillways are always a good option around here to fish in the fall and winter. However only if they are letting water out and fighting the crowds if the fish are biting. I noticed in this months Crappie Magazine on the magazine rack at Wal-mart they had a article on this very subject of bank fishing. It detailed places to try and techniques to use. It might be helpful! I read a little of it every night on my lunch break.Ha!Ha! Sorry if I rambled on but if and when you start catching them 4lbs out of Enid like you should dont forget me. Okay!!!!!!!!
See ya on the lake,
Spawner

[khenders]

yes, i am new to site, and also new to crappie fishing, never caught one yet, but i am trying the banks though! Hopefully i can get one this week!

[waxworm]

For Enid a chartreuse and red tube jig on a 1/16 oz plain jig head is about all you ever need. Keep it simple if you can. The key is knowing where the structure is that you can get to from the bank - and there is plenty of it. Walk the banks this winter once the drwdown is complete, make note of brushpiles and stakebeds and once the water comes up this spring find you one of those fish attractors in a foot to 4 feet of water, wade to within reach of it with a jig pole and you will catch a fish or two off of it. Find yourself a nice route of several of these places to walk or drive to and then you have a way to fill a stringer.

[Pops]

Khenders, it is fairly easy to catch crappie if you can just find the brush top or structure they are hanging around, as Spawner says. However, when the lakes are dropping 4"-6" daily in the fall, the fish are not usually going to stay close to the bank.

As Waxworm and Spawner say, find some good structure this winter and be ready for the rising water and spawn in the spring.

I think the best place to catch crappie in the fall and winter from the bank is in the spillways of the major lakes. Spillway fishing is an art in itself, just go and watch what other folks are using and how they are fishing. When I moved to MS 25 years ago, it took me a couple of winters to figure it out...and you have to watch the most successful folks real close!!!!!

[khenders]

what do you mean exactly by brushtop? is it trees and and bushes that are sunken? i think i will try the spill way. I have been trying to get away from there because it is so easy to get stuck on the rocks. maybe i will try floater at spillway.