A Toledo Bend Quickie

[Mark Robinson]

Sorry I haven’t kept up on the pics lately, but I will post some of the most recent ones with this update.
Mike Shankle of Shreveport got off work today at noon and headed to Toledo Bend for a quickie Crappie trip. We left the lodge at around 1:30 and headed for the shallow timber Toledo is known for. Mike explained that the extent of his crappie fishing was with cork and shiner. I told him he was going to turn to a new page in his fishing book today. We had a quick lesson on tackle and technique and mike turned out to be a fast learner. After a few pitches and getting the feel of a falling 1/16 ounce jig he was set to go. After a couple of false set into the wooden structure he learned he could finesse the jig over and through the wood to get to the meat. And get to the meat he did. Before I could say “let me cast” he was setting the hook on some of Toledo Bends finest. We hit a couple of stretches of shallow submerged stumps and lay downs and we were both grinning ear to ear. He hit the road back to Shreveport at about 5:30 with a nice catch of 42 specks and bars. Some of the bigger fish hit the 2-pound mark. The catch is pictured in a 160-quart igloo. Mike said that wouldn’t be the last “Quickie” he gets.
The lake is back to its normal population of boats fishing for crappie now that the crowds aren’t catching limits tied to a stump on the edge of the river channel. The fish are still here and biting real good; it is just a little harder for some to get on the numbers now. Minnows are producing lots of smaller fish in deep water. If your looking for heavy weights though you better be looking shallow.
Mark
Mike and a couple of gooduns

Mike and the catch

Mikes 160 quart igloo and 42 crappie

Jigster and his dad

Jamey and Miles

Jamey Cole with 2 of many big crappie

Mike Bordovsky and a bonus kitty

Good catch of crappie for Mike B

Hope y'all like em

[Big Dave]

Man o man I'm your killing me Mark. Why do you torment me with those great pictures. Save a few for Big Dave buddy.

BD

[Mark Robinson]

Big Dave;
Sorry about that. There are plenty to go around. It looks like this shallow thing is going to continue as long as the weather stays in the 60 to 70 everyday. I'll save you a place at the dinner table!
Mark

[Big Dave]

You should here from me in a week or two. This weather has them all out of wack down here. Catching both shallow and deep, with not much bite. I've seen them move onto the spawning banks as early as Feb. 1st in past years down here, if the weather stays the same this could be one of those years.

I notice a lot more white crappie in the last picture. Is there a story on that. You know out of the 190 fish we caught last time there where only 4-5 whites.

BD

[Mark Robinson]

Big Dave
It just seems that we are catching more white crappie in the shallow water. I can't tell you why that is it just is. One of them things. I am loving this shallow bite. too bad i'm so slow to change. When jigster was here i kept on trying what was working for the last three months and it took a big hammer to change my hard head. The next day, sunday when the bite was still slow the big hammer finally hit me. I change to shallow water with a lighter jig and started wacking them again. And alot of the big old good one are those big whites. Try real shallow near your deep water spots if you have that type of changes at LH. It can supprise you how far they will go if they have to to get comfee. Let me know what you find out.
Mark