transitioning from all bass all the time

[bennylt]

I'm a newbe here. (See: hello from Central PA)

Long time bass fisherman, but now i'm getting bored with only searching for big bass. you spend a lot of time and casts and money only to get a couple really nice fish per year, and all the fishing you do in between the big sucesses starts to lose it's importance, and fun.

So I'm downsizing lately. I'm spending more time in my kayak with an ultralight and a simple tackle box, just happy to be out fishing, and catching. Enjoying every fish not just the 6# bass.

The problem is. I suck at it! I am pretty much at a loss for catching crappie. I get a few here and there. Mostly on tiny little minnow crankbaits, or 1/32 jugs with a tiny tube.
I'm not much for live bait fishing because I usually just pop out to fish last minute and don't want to waste time on the drive to go get live minnows.

My gear is still somewhat bass oriented as is my habit.

I have a 5' two piece ultralight rod - since it packs really easily and i rarely used it before.

a little diawa ultralight reel (I really like it)

spooled right now with 10# superline - the equivalent diameter is the same as 2# mono. I have also used 4# mono. I really like the superline better, and it seems to catch the same number of fish. (not many)

i have an assortment of jigheads from 1/32 up to 1/8 oz

some various soft plastics like twister grubs and tiny tubes and gulp minnows.

I have slip bobbers and i know how to rig them, but i just can’t seem to get the knack of using them. I'm not sure where or how deep, so i usually just jig and crank.

I have a few small minnow crank baits top, middle deep diving.

and that’s about it.

What am I missing? and how the heck do you deploy the slip bobbers most effectively

[deathb4disco]

Your gear sounds fine. IMO, depth and speed are the most important factors. Experiment with those and see if you have more successs. As a bass angler, you might be used to fishing too fast. Crappie like a slow presentation.

Also, FWIW, I've fished nothing but jigs for thirty-five years. They work!

[RetiredRR]

First, welcome to the forum. Your on the right track, equipment sounds good. When I quit fishing for bass, slowing down was the hardest
thing I had to overcome. Crappie fishing is for relaxing and enjoying yourself while catching crappie to eat. Different mind set for sure.
Sometimes you can forget to pull the hook set rather than jerk the hook set. At first it can be frustrating to reel the jig in and have only
a pair of lips on the hook. Give it time, and it will get better. I haven't found a jig color that wouldn't catch crappie at sometime or other.
They do have their likes and seems like a variety of colors are needed to succeed. You will transition in time, with practice.

[bkabina]

Welcome. I'm from SW Pa. In Somerset County.
Around here I usually start out around 7-9ft deep if I'm using a slip bobber. Just because your using a bobber doesn't mean you should throw it out and wait for a strike. Work the bait like you would with a bass bait just slower and more gently. Start out near any structure you can find. Bridge pilings are a good place too.

Trolling is affective for locating and catching fish. Try 1/32 to 1/8oz. Jigs in a color that resembles the food in your lakes that the crappie feed on, or the crank baits you have.

Tons of info on this site. Use the search and read until you can't read anymore. There is no shortage of information or people willing to help here.

[bassbull]

Boy does your life sound just like mine. Like someone said above, this sight will help you a long thru the rough spots to figuring out how to catch crappies. You don't need a ton of equipment to go out and have a good time. Just my two cents worth is as follows. Get some 1/32 oz. jigs( round head no collar) , then get some Gulp Alive bait One inch minnows and go to the water that you fish. Look around for the nearest structure- tree limbs in the water,docks,weed lines near sharp drop offs and bridge pilings. If its sunny out fish the shady side of these things first. You will have a good start and like all good old time bass fisherman say. YOU CAN'T BEAT TIME ON THE WATER. HA HA STEVE

[Sawman]

I fished for nothing but bass for years and finally got burned out on it also. Since I started fishing for crappie and other panfish with ultra light rods and 4lb. line I've caught more big bass than I ever did with bass stuff. All them wasted years.

[bennylt]

You folks are awesome! thanks for all the replies. Im glad to hear others have had the same change of mind set. I love being in the kayak, (Im a fitness nut also) and with a wife and 18 mo time is short for hobbies. So fishing should be fun and relaxing, not work like it was. anyway. i'll work on slowing things down. that makes sense. I'll concentrate on jigging for now since that is what I'm most comfortable with. I'll search around for more tips on the slip bobbering.

Shawman, amen to that i catch all kinds of nice bass on the little jigs. and lots of other stuff too!

bkabina - I'm in Huntingdon county, so were practically neighbors, at least to PA standards we are. I mainly fish in Canoe Creek Lake, which is in Holidaysburg, in Blair County and on the Juniata and susquehanna rivers.

[bkabina]

That's roughly an hour from me probably. I have been fishing Shawnee State Park this year a lot, but also fish lake Somerset,and Quemahoning. If you make out my way, pm and maybe we can meet up.

[bennylt]

Cool. And if you are up my way let me know.

Canoe Creek is about 30 minutes from me. I am going there with a couple friends this Saturday. We will probably do some top water for bass first thing in the morning, but then the plan is to panfish the rest of the day and get enough for a fish fry. I also know there are a lot of Walleye in that lake. so i'll probably focus on them for a while too.

I'm debating whether to just leave the heavier gear at home and only take out my ultralight. simple and fun. know what I mean. but it practically gives me a panic attack not having more than one rod on board ha ha....
maybe just bring allong the UL and one medium baitcaster with 30# braid... ahhhhhh baby steps....

[CrappiePappy]

I started my fishing with Crappie, added Bass in my teens, and progressively moved into more Crappie fishing over the last few decades. One thing that I've seen hold true, in my favorite Crappie fishing method (casting jigs), is that it's a whole lot like Bass fishing ... only with downsized equipment. And, like some others have done, I've occasionally caught big Bass while Crappie fishing and big Crappie while Bass fishing. And while I'm still more comfortable using one rod at a time (as in Bass fishing), I'm working on expanding my use of the methods that Crappie anglers employ. Not that I haven't used most of them, on occasion, but that they haven't been an integral part of my equipment, boat, or a consistent part of my method arsenal. The most recent purchase of two Hi-Tek rod holders, is my latest step towards expanding my method arsenal. Coupled with the previous purchase of a Lowrance Elite 5 DSI depthfinder/gps chartplotter ... it should allow me to add more method options.

Just like in Bass fishing ... you can't catch'em if you can't find'em !! (and sometimes even when you do find them ) Use your Bass fishing skills & experience, and relate them to your Crappie fishing. Use the same techniques that you would if fishing for over pressured or neutral mood Bass ... slow retrieve, downsized baits & equipment ... keep your attention on your line, for the slight "tic" or line movement that signals a bite.

If you haven't already ... you might want to look through the forum on Kayaks & Canoes, also.

to Crappie.com ... & luck2ya !!

... cp