Catching Crappie in pond

[JSand13]

I have a 6 acre pond that i brought about 4 years ago. I always new there were a few crappie in there but the bass always kept there numbers down. This is the first year i ever fished for them. Ive caught about 150 so far and most of them are 13-15" My question is How much longer do I have before they go back deep? Water temp is 70 right now. The only thing i have been able to get them to bite is a black and chartruese jig. They wont hit minnows at all. What would be the next best color to catch them on?

[FBM357]

First, Welcome to CDC!!!

Regarding your question, I'd keep fishing (you said you've caught abot 150 or so) until they slack off. I can't tell you the 'exact' time they will move to deeper water (it would be helpful if you indicated how deep you're catching them as well as the avg. depth of the pond and if you're fishing from boat or bank, etc.) .. lots of unmentioned variables.

Regarding jigs, I'd say 'experiment'. Jigs are relatively inexpensive, so it isn't unheard of many crappie fishermen with 50+ jigs of different colors and shapes.

Basically trial and error :o You'll have fun in the process! Pay attention to different patterns, etc. you're using to catch fish.

Just my $.02 ... others with varied opinions may chime in

Good Luck!

[crappieseeker]

your biggest concern may be, how long will they continue to be that kind of quality. A 6 acre pond is very small for crappie and more than likely they will begin to overpopulate and have stunted growth lengthwise and be very thin. It is not guaranteed this will happen, but very likely. I say try a few similar colors and just experiment. I hope the quality remains good for you though. If you keep what you catch then this should help a lot if you keep them regularly

[Fatman]

+2 Try all kinds of jigs, and keep the fish. Like seeker said 6 acres with crappie in there, you're gonna have to keep them under control or you might find a lot of stunted fish later on. Might want to talk to your fisheries people and see if they could suggest ways to keep the fishing really good for ya.

[JSand13]

I have a biologist that shocks the pond once a year and we have never shocked up more than a couple. Its a trophy bass pond so i am trying to remove all the crappie if I can. The fisheries guy said he doubt there is more than a couple hundred in there judging by the size and quality. I was catching 20 or 30 a day back a month ago and yesterday I fished all day and only caught five so im hoping that I have made a dent in them. The average depth is about 10 ft but they lower end near the dam is about 20 ft. They were scatted all over the pond at first and now they are down to only a couple of spots were the bank drops from 1 ft to 10 ft really quick.

[drill instructor]

Sounds like some great quality crappie in that pond. Try throwing a cork with a jig and cast further if you're fishing from the bank. If youre in a boat trolling is the way to get them. If you're near Augusta I can help you get them out of there, have a Jon boat rigged for trolling.

[gabowman]

Sounds like some good quality fish. As long as theyre biting I say catch 'em. It should only help the pond by removing some of the fish fighting for the food. And as said, experiment with some different color of jigs. Crappie can get finicky at times.

[JSand13]

Im actually in appling just outside of Augusta. If you would like to help me get some out that would be great. I know nothing about trolling, never tried it that way. Send me a private message if you want to try to catch some.

[drill instructor]

Pm sent

[kbaker]

I have fished two ponds in dodge county and they were full of hand size crappie,small and over populated and then we started keeping everyone we caught. I guess we were catching around 400 to 500 hundred a year.Now that we have been doing this,the fish are getting bigger and healthier. The ponds are around 6 to 8 feet deep and 2 to 4 acres a piece. I heard you can not ever catch all the crappie out of a pond. Good luck.