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Thread: Croppie rookie

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
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    Default Croppie rookie


    Well, ....hello all i hadn't fished in years. Life had hit me with some of those sudden changes and i found myself staying with my step dad and my mother. their pretty country home was a quite relief and soon i found myself wandering in the woods to a small cove we have on our land. It let out into a old stripmine about 3 miles long filled with water over the years. The edges had many breaks, as the trees that had gave way lay stretched out into the depths of the blueish green water. My step father , quite the true sportsman, loved hunting but didn't care much for fishing, had a small two seat plastic bass type boat with a trolling motor. Which was driven by a 12 volt battery. He told me I could find all his fishing stuff in the attic and i dig it all out, Three zebco 33's on 5 foot rods a bit stiff, but something to play with. I cleaned them all up and put new line on them. 8lbs.test was the smallest I could find then turning to the tackel box (dusty, no joke lol) I looked inside , having always laid on the bank dozing in front of a couple of catfish poles in my younger days, i really had no idea what to do with the few hooks, purple worms and other things i saw, but what the heck , i just wanted some sunshine and peace and quite. so i put the boat on the trailer and hooked it to the 4 wheeler. tossing a termos full of coffee in the boat , i headed for the lake. Once floating out into the cove i started digging in the box and came up on a small amber grub looking worm with a twisty tail , not having anything better to do i tied it on and gave it a fling. About the fourth cast, suddenly the rod went double and the hit was sharp and strong. The line went slack and i knew , what ever it was , was gone. But i was sitting up , awake now lol
    casting back out into the same area i started to retrive slowly and stayed very alert. then it happened lol the rod dipped sharp, i set the hook and reeled in a fat 13 inch croppie. the rest of the day was nothing short of action , 12 and 13 inch croppie and a few nice 13 inch big mouth bass made a fine supper that night. i have fished the lake almost every sunrise and sunset since, taking 8 to 10 fat black croppies at a time and cleaning them for the freezer for winter. Having no way of spending much on gear right now i have been using the poles but have bought more white and amber twist tails. Most of the lake is only about 7 to 10 foot deep, steep banks that fall off sharp, but often clear enough to see down into it 6 or 8 feet i have found a few areas where underwater ridges and shallows lay and the whole place is full of life from bass and croppie to snakes and turtles. any advice u guys can give a total begginer will be welcome ...oh i am just a few miles from the ohio river under ind. Daviess/henderson area
    Gone fishin', be back for deer season :D

  2. #2
    fishinboat Guest

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    sounds like you have found heaven(for a crappie man) buy you some tube baits and some charlie brewer sliders and you will catch even more in that lake.

  3. #3
    CrappiePappy's Avatar
    CrappiePappy is offline Super Moderator - 2013 Man Of The Year * Crappie.com Supporter
    Join Date
    Apr 2004
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    Lexington, KY
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    Exclamation if it ain't broke .....don't fix it

    you have found a "gold mine" in that strip pit !! Just don't over fish it and decimate the population, and you'll have quality fish to catch for years to come. The equipment is adequate for the task, and should provide you with years of use until you can afford to "upgrade" or "specialize" your tackle. Just keep good quality line on those reels ... remember - it's the most important thing "between" you and the fish ! Change the line several times a year, and you shouldn't have any problems. Keep those 33's cleaned and maintained, and they should last you a good while.
    Sounds like the eco-system of that "lake" is pretty well balanced and producing good quality fish ... keep it that way by not introducing any non-native species into it (as in minnows, Shad, or other baitfishes). Take care of it and it will take care of you !!
    You are pretty smart - fishing the "low light" times of sunrise and sunset, on a clear water environment !! Be as stealthy and quiet as possible, use clear line and long casts and slow retrieves, and .......luck2ya ........cp

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2004
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    Thanks, both of u just yesterday i was on the water and floated into a place that the crappie was hitting fast i caught about 9 or 10 in a hour just jigging a small rubber minnow off the side of the boat. and i also caught a 14 inch 2 lbs bass and four really fat bluegill
    Gone fishin', be back for deer season :D

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